AI minutes & usage

How AI time is metered, and how to avoid running out.

What an AI minute is

Time your AI receptionist spends on a call, metered separately from ordinary call minutes.

A call answered by a human uses call minutes. The same call answered by the AI uses AI minutes. A call the AI answers and then transfers uses AI minutes for the AI's portion and call minutes for the rest.

Where to see your balance

Settings → Usage & credits shows what you have used this period and what is left. The Overview pane of the AI Receptionist also shows whether it is answering right now and what it has left to answer with.

What is included

Your plan includes an allowance per billing period. It resets at the start of each period and does not roll over.

See Plans & billing.

Running past your allowance

Usage beyond your included allowance draws on credits — AI overage credit. If you have a credit balance, the assistant keeps answering and draws down.

If you have no credits and no allowance left, the assistant stops answering.

When the assistant runs out of minutes, calls do not fail visibly — they fall through to whatever else that number is configured to do. If nothing is configured, callers get nothing. Set a fallback destination on every number the AI answers.

Do not find out from a customer

Set a usage alert under Settings → Notifications so you are warned before you run out rather than after.

A sensible threshold is around 80% of your allowance — enough warning to top up before the weekend.

What uses more than you expect

Spam and robocalls. Every one is metered. Enable screening — see Spam & blocking.

Long silences. A caller who puts the phone down without hanging up keeps the call open. Set a sensible maximum call length.

Patient response speed. Longer waits mean longer calls. Worth it for the experience, but it does add up.

Testing. Test calls are metered like real ones. Keep them short.

Reducing usage without losing calls

• Screen spam aggressively.
• Tighten the greeting — three seconds saved on every call adds up quickly.
• Keep required fields to what you will act on. Every extra question is call time.
• Transfer early on calls the AI cannot resolve.

Topping up

Add credits under Settings → Usage & credits. See Usage & credits.

If you regularly exceed your allowance, moving up a plan is usually cheaper than repeated top-ups.

Where usage is reported

Under Analytics, alongside call volume and outcomes, so you can see cost against results rather than in isolation.