Quick answer
You can set up an AI receptionist in about ten minutes: build your plan, connect a phone number, and load your hours, services, and FAQs. It's no-code (no developer needed) and starts answering calls the same day.
Setting up an AI receptionist takes about 10 minutes: sign up, pick a plan, connect a phone number, and load your business details. No code, no developer, no hardware, and your first AI-answered call can happen the same day. This guide walks through each step with Rinqly, from account creation to your first live test call.
Step 1: Create Your Account (about 1 minute)
Sign up with your email on the signup page and confirm it from the message we send. No card is needed for the 7-day trial.
Plans After the Trial
Rinqly's plans differ only by included minutes: every plan gets 24/7 answering, several calls at once, calendar booking, and full call transcripts. Here's the current lineup (see pricing for full details):
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Included Minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $49 | 140 minutes |
| Starter | $99 | 280 minutes |
| Pro | $199 | 570 minutes |
| Business | $349 | 1,000 minutes |
Overage is $0.35/minute on every plan, and the 7-day free trial includes 60 free minutes with no credit card required. For industry-specific setups, browse pages like dental clinics or restaurants: there are 19 industry templates to start from.
Step 2: Tell the Builder About Your Business (about 3 minutes)
The setup builder asks a few questions: what the business is called, what you do, when you are open, and what callers most often want. Paste your website address at the first question and it reads your site and fills in most of the answers, so you only confirm and fix what is off. It starts from the industry template that fits, which sets the greeting and the call-handling rules for your trade.
Step 3: Connect a Phone Line (about 3 minutes)
On the phone page, either get a new US number (choose an area code and it rings your receptionist right away) or forward the number you already have. To forward, dial your carrier's short code once from the business phone; most businesses forward only the calls they don't pick up. The getting started guide lists the codes by carrier, and the phone page has a "Start test" button that confirms forwarding works.
Step 4: Make a Test Call (about 2 minutes)
Call your Rinqly number (or the forwarded business number) from your own mobile and act like a customer: ask what you offer, what it costs, when you are open, then ask to book or leave a message. The call appears in your Inbox when you hang up, a summary email follows within a minute, and the full transcript sits under the call. You can also talk to it from your browser with the test call button at the top of the agent page.
Step 5: Turn It On
On the agent page, flip the switch to Active. From then on every call to the line is answered. Put the number where people look: your Google Business Profile if you took a new number, and your website header and contact page.
Changing It Later: The Agent Page
Everything about a receptionist lives on its page in the dashboard, in tabs:
- Overview: your FAQs and knowledge base (type answers, upload PDF, Word or text files, or add pages from your website).
- Settings: business information and the voice (male or female), the greeting, business hours, call transfer, Google or Outlook Calendar, and your other integrations.
- Number: the phone number and forwarding for this receptionist.
- Call Logs and Analytics: every call with its transcript and summary, and how call volume and outcomes trend.
- History: earlier versions of the setup.
"Edit with AI" at the top of the page reopens the builder if you would rather describe a change than make it field by field. Changes apply to the next call, so the quickest way to improve your receptionist is to read a few transcripts, fix the answer that was off, and call again.
What do you need before you start?
Just five things: a phone number, your hours, your FAQs, your service list, and calendar access. Setup goes fastest if you have these ready:
- A phone number to forward (or a new one from your provider)
- Your business hours, address, and parking/directions
- Your top 10–15 FAQs (pricing, services, policies)
- Your service list and any price ranges
- Calendar access, if you want the AI to book appointments
That's it. No scripts to write from scratch. You paste this into your knowledge base and the AI turns it into natural conversations. Most businesses are live the same day.
Setting up an AI receptionist doesn't have to be a daunting task. With Rinqly, you can streamline your customer interactions and free your staff to focus on more critical tasks, all in about ten minutes. Whether you're managing a hair salon or an auto detailing business, Rinqly is the ideal solution for enhancing efficiency and customer satisfaction. Ready to transform your business operations? Sign up for Rinqly today and experience the future of business communication.