Vapi vs Retell AI: voice agent pricing compared
Updated 2026-11-01 · listed A to Z, not ranked
Vapi and Retell AI are platforms for building AI phone and web voice agents. Both charge per minute, but they publish it differently: Vapi lists its own hosting fee and passes through the transcriber, model and voice you choose at cost; Retell lists a per-minute range and a component price sheet (voice infrastructure, model, voice, telephony).
Listed A to Z, from vapi.ai/pricing and retellai.com/pricing on Nov 1, 2026. Both are general AI tools paid by card; neither lists crypto payment.
- Published rate
- $0.07–$0.31 per minute pay as you go
- What is billed
- Retell voice infra $0.055/min, plus the model (e.g. $0.064/min for some recommended LLMs), voice ($0.015/min platform voices, more for some ElevenLabs voices) and telephony
- Concurrent calls
- 20 included on pay as you go, more on demand; no cap on Enterprise
- Packages / plans
- Pay as you go; Enterprise custom
- Phone numbers
- Retell numbers $2.00/month; custom telephony and SIP trunking not charged by Retell
- Published rate
- $0.05 per minute Vapi hosting, plus providers at cost
- What is billed
- Transcriber, model and voice passed through with no markup; carrier telephony charged by the carrier (e.g. Twilio $0.008 in / $0.014 out per min)
- Concurrent calls
- 4 on usage only; 10 on Core; 30 on Pro; extra lines $10/month each
- Packages / plans
- Usage only; Core $29/month; Pro $999/month minimum; Premier custom
- Phone numbers
- 1 Vapi number on usage only, 5 on Core, 10 on Pro
How we checked: Quoted from each official pricing page on Nov 1, 2026. A real per-minute cost depends on the model, voice and telephony you pick, so build the same agent on both before comparing. Confirm with each provider.
How they differ
- How the price is shown. Retell gives an all-in range per minute and a calculator; Vapi separates its fee from provider costs, so its total is the sum of the providers you choose.
- Concurrency. Retell includes 20 concurrent calls on pay as you go. Vapi includes 4 without a package and sells more with packages or as add-ons.
- Support and SLAs. Vapi’s Pro and Premier packages add response SLAs and uptime SLAs; Retell’s Enterprise plan adds dedicated support and compliance options.
FAQ
How much does Retell AI cost per minute?
Retell lists $0.07 to $0.31 per minute pay as you go for voice agents, depending on the model, voice and telephony you choose (checked Nov 1, 2026).
How much does Vapi cost per minute?
Vapi charges $0.05 per minute for hosting and passes through transcriber, model and voice costs with no markup, plus carrier telephony if you use one.
Sources (official pages, read 2026-11-01)
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