Insights · Updated October 27, 2026
After-hours answering service for contractors
Quick answer
An after-hours answering service for a contractor answers the phone when the office is closed, instead of sending the caller to voicemail. Contractor Systems' After Hours AI receptionist is $147 a month (350 minutes, English and Spanish), added to Advanced or on its own: it answers nights, weekends, and holidays, knows your services, area, and hours, takes the message, texts it to you, and logs every call in the leads inbox. Pro at $597 a month and Master at $897 a month include the All Hours receptionist (1,000 minutes), which answers 24/7, including business hours.
By Kyle Burt, Co-founder
Transcript
What happens to a call after hours?
A call after the office closes can go to voicemail, to a person at an answering service, or to an AI receptionist. The three lines below describe those categories. This page does not quote a price for voicemail or for a human answering service.
Voicemail
The caller hears a recorded greeting and can leave a message. Nobody answers live. The message waits until someone checks the mailbox.
Human answering service
A person answers and takes a message to pass along. What that person is allowed to book depends on the service. This page does not quote that service's price.
AI receptionist
AI Receptionist is software that answers in a voice. After Hours: Answers nights, weekends, and holidays. All Hours: Answers 24/7, including business hours. Contractor Systems' prices are in the plan section on this page.
What does Contractor Systems' receptionist do after hours?
Picks up when you can't, in a natural voice, in English and Spanish. Add it to Advanced or get it on its own. Pro and Master include All Hours.
After Hours is $147 a month. Covers the phones when you're closed. Takes the message and texts it to you. It does not answer during business hours. All Hours is $297 a month, or included with Pro and Master. All Hours answers 24/7, including business hours. Answers every call, day or night. Qualifies the job and books the estimate.
The AI receptionist page describes the receptionist included on Pro: The AI receptionist answers your calls, gets the job details, and books the appointment. Every call is logged in the thread with a summary and the recording. Pro includes All Hours. Qualifies the job and flags emergencies. Books estimates on your calendar. Transfers to you live when you're free. After Hours is the lower tier: Takes the message and texts it to you.
Trade versions of this answering service: plumbing answering service, HVAC contractor answering service, and electrical contractor answering service.
After Hours
$147 a month
Covers the phones when you're closed. Takes the message and texts it to you.
- ✓350 minutes a month
- ✓SMS 10DLC registration included
- ✓Answers nights, weekends, and holidays
- ✓English and Spanish
- ✓Knows your services, area, and hours
- ✓Takes the message and texts it to you
- ✓Every call logged in your leads inbox
All Hours
$297 a month
Included with Pro and Master. Everything in After Hours, plus. Answers every call, day or night. Qualifies the job and books the estimate.
- ✓1,000 minutes a month
- ✓Answers 24/7, including business hours
- ✓Qualifies the job and flags emergencies
- ✓Books estimates on your calendar
- ✓Transfers to you live when you're free
- ✓Your greeting, your tone, your call flow
How does it pair with missed-call text-back?
Missed-call text-back is an Advanced feature. Can't answer? The caller gets a text in seconds so they don't dial the next guy. It goes out from your business number, within seconds of a call nobody answered. Missed-call text-back is the feature page. The guide is missed-call text-back for contractors.
Pro's list label is "Everything in Advanced, plus." Master's list label is "Everything in Pro, plus." The text-back is on Advanced, and those labels put it on Pro and Master as well.
After Hours says "Takes the message and texts it to you." That message goes to you. Missed-call text-back texts the caller from the business number. They are two different texts. After Hours does not answer during business hours, so a daytime call nobody picks up still gets the text-back. All Hours: Answers 24/7, including business hours. Pro includes All Hours on top of missed-call text-back. Advanced still texts the caller within seconds when a person doesn't pick up. This site does not publish a quiet-hours window for missed-call text-back.
Which plan includes after-hours answering?
Advanced includes the text-back and not the receptionist. The receptionist is added to Advanced, or sold on its own. Pro and Master include All Hours.
| Plan | What covers the call | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced | Missed-call text-back. The receptionist is not included. | $297 a month. Setup $297 on monthly billing. |
| After Hours | Answers nights, weekends, and holidays. English and Spanish. Knows your services, area, and hours. Takes the message and texts it to you. Every call logged in your leads inbox. SMS 10DLC registration included. | $147 a month. 350 minutes a month. Add to Advanced, or on its own. |
| All Hours | Answers 24/7, including business hours. Qualifies the job and flags emergencies. Books estimates on your calendar. Transfers to you live when you're free. Your greeting, your tone, your call flow. | $297 a month. 1,000 minutes a month. Included with Pro and Master. |
| Pro | All Hours AI receptionist included. 1,000 minutes a month, in English and Spanish. Answers every call 24/7, qualifies the job, and books the estimate. | $597 a month. Setup $597 on monthly billing. |
| Master | Everything in Pro, plus the All Hours receptionist. | $897 a month. Setup $897 on monthly billing. |
No contracts on monthly or quarterly plans. Annual plans are paid up front for the year. Quarterly and annual billing waive the package setup fee. The receptionist tiers do not list a separate setup fee. Add-ons, including the AI receptionist, bill monthly alongside your package on every plan. Extra minutes: $47 per 300 minutes. Go over your minutes? Add more in blocks. No surprise overage rates. Pricing.
Questions
What is an after-hours answering service for contractors?
An after-hours answering service for a contractor answers the phone when the office is closed, instead of sending the caller to voicemail. Contractor Systems' After Hours AI receptionist is $147 a month (350 minutes, English and Spanish), added to Advanced or on its own: it answers nights, weekends, and holidays, knows your services, area, and hours, takes the message, texts it to you, and logs every call in the leads inbox. Pro at $597 a month and Master at $897 a month include the All Hours receptionist (1,000 minutes), which answers 24/7, including business hours.
How much does an after-hours answering service cost for a contractor?
Contractor Systems' After Hours AI receptionist is $147 a month for 350 minutes, added to Advanced or on its own. All Hours is $297 a month for 1,000 minutes, and it is included with Pro ($597 a month) and Master ($897 a month). Advanced is $297 a month and includes missed-call text-back, not the receptionist. Extra minutes are $47 per 300 minutes, with no per-minute overage rate. Monthly billing of a package adds a one-time setup fee of $297 on Advanced, $597 on Pro, and $897 on Master. Quarterly and annual billing waive that package setup fee. The receptionist tiers do not list a separate setup fee. This page does not quote a price for voicemail or for a human answering service.
What is an AI receptionist for contractors after hours?
Picks up when you can't, in a natural voice, in English and Spanish. Add it to Advanced or get it on its own. Pro and Master include All Hours. After Hours is $147 a month and answers nights, weekends, and holidays. Knows your services, area, and hours. Takes the message and texts it to you. Every call logged in your leads inbox. It does not answer during business hours. All Hours is $297 a month. Answers 24/7, including business hours. Qualifies the job and flags emergencies. Books estimates on your calendar. The AI receptionist page for the Pro plan says: The AI receptionist answers your calls, gets the job details, and books the appointment. Every call is logged in the thread with a summary and the recording.
Which Contractor Systems plan includes after-hours answering?
Advanced ($297 a month) includes missed-call text-back and does not include the receptionist. Add After Hours for $147 a month or All Hours for $297 a month, or buy either receptionist on its own. Pro ($597 a month) and Master ($897 a month) include All Hours. 1,000 minutes a month, in English and Spanish. Answers every call 24/7, qualifies the job, and books the estimate.
Does the After Hours receptionist answer during business hours?
No. After Hours answers nights, weekends, and holidays, and it does not answer during business hours. All Hours answers 24/7, including business hours. During the business day on After Hours, missed-call text-back still texts the caller when nobody picks up.
How does after-hours answering work with missed-call text-back?
Takes the message and texts it to you. That text goes to you. Missed-call text-back texts the caller from the business number within seconds when nobody answers, and the reply lands in the lead inbox. Missed-call text-back is included on Advanced. Pro includes All Hours on top of missed-call text-back. After Hours does not answer during business hours, so a daytime missed call still gets the text. This site does not publish a quiet-hours window for that text.
Does the receptionist answer in Spanish?
Yes. After Hours: English and Spanish. All Hours's list label is "Everything in After Hours, plus." Pro's receptionist line says the 1,000 minutes are in English and Spanish.
How many calls do the receptionist minutes cover?
The pricing page turns minutes into calls by assuming a 2-minute call and a 30-day month. On that assumption, 350 minutes is 175 calls a month, about 6 a day, and 1,000 minutes is 500 calls a month, about 17 a day. That is the same math as the pricing page. It is not a count of calls a shop will get.
What happens when the receptionist minutes run out?
Add more in blocks of 300 minutes for $47. Go over your minutes? Add more in blocks. No surprise overage rates. You get a heads-up before you run out. There is no per-minute overage rate.
Related: AI receptionist · Plumbing answering service · HVAC contractor answering service · Electrical contractor answering service · Missed-call text-back · Missed-call text-back for contractors · Receptionist pricing · Trades
After Hours is $147 a month. All Hours is included on Pro.
Advanced is $297 a month without the receptionist. Pro is $597 a month. Master is $897 a month.