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Home / Blog / Ringmere vs Hey Jodie: which AI receptionist fits your business?

Ringmere vs Hey Jodie: which AI receptionist fits your business?

Two UK AI receptionists, the same £49 starting price, and two different ideas of what that should buy. We make Ringmere, and here is the honest comparison, including when Hey Jodie is the better choice.

7 min read

First, the disclosure: we make Ringmere, so read this knowing who wrote it. Second, the respect: Hey Jodie is a well-built product with a clear offer, and for some businesses it is the better choice. This comparison is about which tool fits which job.

What each one is

Hey Jodie is a UK AI receptionist that answers your calls, captures the job details and sends them straight to your phone. It is aimed at UK small businesses with a strong focus on trades, and every plan includes unlimited minutes under a fair-use policy.

Ringmere is a UK AI receptionist built for businesses that run on bookings. It answers your calls 24/7, quotes only the services and prices you approve, checks live availability and books the appointment during the call, and puts urgent calls through to your team. Setup is self-serve and most businesses are live the same day.

Side by side

RingmereHey Jodie
Entry price£49 a month, 150 call minutes included£49 a month, unlimited minutes (its terms set fair use at up to 1,000 call events a month)
Booking appointmentsEvery plan: checks live availability and books during the callListed from the £99 Professional plan
Transferring urgent callsEvery planListed from the £99 Professional plan
Top published plan£249 a month, 700 minutes£199 a month; Enterprise from £500
Free trial14 days. You add a card when the trial starts, and nothing is charged for 14 days7 days, no card required
ChannelsPhone on every plan; two-way WhatsApp and SMS on Growth and ProPhone. Its own pages describe WhatsApp and SMS differently, so confirm what your plan includes
Your numberKeep yours by forwarding, or take a UK number included freeKeep yours by forwarding to a number it gives you
Where data is processedStored in the UK. Every sub-processor is named in our privacy policy, and some process outside the UK under UK GDPR safeguardsIreland and the United States, per its terms
Built forSalons, clinics, practices and garages, plus restaurants and hotelsUK small businesses, with a strong focus on trades

Hey Jodie details are from its public website, pricing page and terms as read on 19 September 2026; confirm current pricing and features on its own site. Prices exclude VAT.

When Hey Jodie is the right choice

  • You take a lot of calls, or long ones, and do not want to think about minutes
  • You mainly want the job details captured and sent to your phone, rather than a diary booked for you
  • You want to try it for a week without entering a card
  • You want iOS and Android apps, or you already work in one of the tools it integrates with

When Ringmere makes more sense

  • You want appointments booked and urgent calls put through without moving up to a £99 plan
  • Your diary lives in Google Calendar and you want the slot confirmed on the call, with no double-booking
  • You want the same receptionist to answer WhatsApp and text messages as well as the phone
  • You want customer data stored in the UK, with every sub-processor named in our privacy policy
  • You run a restaurant or a hotel: Ringmere takes table reservations, takeaway orders and room bookings

Looking for a Hey Jodie alternative?

The honest way to choose between two £49 plans is to work out which limit you would hit first. If it is minutes, because your phone rings all day, Hey Jodie’s unlimited plan is the better buy. If it is features, because the point of answering the call is to put a booking in the diary, check which plan that starts on. With Ringmere it is every plan, from £49. What an AI receptionist costs in the UK shows how the pricing models compare.

The honest bottom line

Both products have free trials, so use them. Put your real calls through each for a week: start Hey Jodie’s trial, and put Ringmere on your line free for 14 days → (cancel anytime). Your own callers will tell you which fits. For the wider market, see our comparison of the best AI receptionists in the UK.

Frequently asked questions

Is Ringmere cheaper than Hey Jodie?
Both start at £49 a month, so the difference is what that buys. Hey Jodie’s £49 Basic plan includes unlimited minutes, and its pricing page lists appointment bookings and call transfers from the £99 Professional plan. Ringmere’s £49 Starter plan includes 150 call minutes, with calendar booking and live call transfer on every plan. Prices as published on 19 September 2026, excluding VAT.
Does Hey Jodie book appointments?
Its pricing page lists appointment bookings from the Professional plan at £99 a month, and its industry pages describe a booking request texted to you to confirm. Ask Hey Jodie how that works with your diary. Ringmere checks live availability and books the slot into Google Calendar or its built-in diary during the call, on every plan.
Which is better for a tradesperson?
If you mainly want your calls picked up and the job details sent to your phone, and you take a lot of calls, Hey Jodie’s unlimited minutes and its focus on trades are a strong fit. If you want fixed-price jobs booked straight into your diary and urgent calls put through to you, Ringmere does both from £49 a month.
Where is my call data processed?
Hey Jodie’s terms say data is currently processed in Ireland and the United States, and its privacy policy says it does not offer single-region pinning. Ringmere stores customer data in the UK with backups in the EU, and names every sub-processor in its privacy policy. Some of those, including the voice AI provider, process outside the UK under UK GDPR transfer safeguards.
What is the best Hey Jodie alternative?
It depends on why you are looking. If you want appointments booked and urgent calls transferred without moving to a £99 plan, two-way WhatsApp and SMS, or customer data stored in the UK, Ringmere is the natural alternative from £49 a month. If unlimited minutes matter most, Hey Jodie is hard to beat on price.

Keep reading

Related guides.

The best AI receptionists for UK businesses (2026)

We build one of the products on this list, so this is not a neutral review. It is an honest one: published prices, real differences, and who each provider genuinely suits, including when the answer is not us.

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Ringmere pricing

Starter £49, Growth £99 and Pro £249 a month, each with a UK number and a 14-day free trial.

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Ringmere vs Fasthosts AI Receptionist: an honest comparison

Fasthosts starts £10 a month cheaper and bills per call. Ringmere bills per minute and books appointments on every plan. We make Ringmere, and here is the honest comparison, including when Fasthosts is the better buy.

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