A receptionist
you can afford.
Moneypenny is the UK’s most-trusted human-answered call service. Plans start around £100/month. Qenn is an AI receptionist that also handles your back office - from £49/month. Both will answer calls when you’re on the tools. Here’s the honest comparison.
The short version.
Pick Moneypenny if
- • You want a real human voice on every call - high-value clients, professional services feel.
- • You need them to transfer calls to your mobile or schedule complex appointments live.
- • Budget isn’t a constraint - you’re comfortable at £100–500/mo for the service.
Pick Qenn if
- • You’re a UK tradesperson and a £200/month receptionist is a stretch.
- • You want the same number to handle quotes, invoices, and customer comms - not just calls.
- • Your customers prefer WhatsApp anyway, and your calls are mostly lead capture.
Side by side.
| What | Qenn | Moneypenny |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | £49/mo | ~£100/mo (varies by plan, can run to £500+) |
| Answers calls | Yes - AI phone (60/120/250 min by tier). | Yes - human UK-based receptionist. |
| Answers WhatsApp messages | Yes - primary channel. | No. |
| Drafts quotes from photos | Yes. | No. |
| Drafts invoices from voice notes | Yes. | No. |
| Chases late invoices | Yes - polite drafts you approve. | No. |
| Customer record memory | Yes - every customer, every prior job and price. | Limited - call notes only. |
| Hours of availability | 24/7. | 24/7 on higher plans. |
| Human voice on calls | No - AI voice. | Yes - UK-based human. |
| Live call transfer | No. | Yes. |
| Xero / QuickBooks push | Yes. | No. |
| Setup time | About an hour - onboarding by WhatsApp. | Days - bespoke setup with an account manager. |
| Per-business identity | Your business name + avatar in WhatsApp profile. | Receptionist answers in your business name. |
| Free trial | First month free, no card. | 7-day trial available. |
The price honesty.
Moneypenny is excellent. Real UK receptionists, twenty-five years of pedigree, the kind of service that makes a small business sound bigger than it is. For a solicitor or a high-end consultancy where the call quality is the product, it’s the right tool.
For a UK joiner or builder, the maths is harder. £200/month for a receptionist is £2,400/year - about three big quotes. Most of the inbound to a tradesperson is lead capture: photo of the job, postcode, name, number. That can be done well by an AI on WhatsApp at a quarter of the cost, and the same tool also handles the quoting, the invoicing, and the customer memory.
The trade-off you’re making with Qenn: no live human voice on the call, and no in-the-moment call transfer. If you need either of those, Moneypenny is the right tool. If you don’t, you’re paying ~£150/month for something you could replace with an AI plus an admin assistant in one.
Try Qenn first.
First month free. If you find you really do need a human voice, you can still go to Moneypenny - but most tradespeople find they don’t.