Best Bland AI alternatives (Nov 2026)
Short answer: Retell AI is the strongest all-round swap: $0.117 a minute on our standard setup including US telephony, below Bland's $0.14 talk-time rate before telephony, with 20 free concurrent calls. For a bundled rate like Bland's, Deepgram's Voice Agent API charges $0.075 and PolyAI's platform 9.5¢. Vapi suits builders, ElevenLabs Agents suits plan buyers and Thoughtly is sales-only.
Which Bland AI alternatives compare best? (as of 14 Nov 2026)
| Alternative | Best for | Price | Free to start | Watch out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bland AI (for reference) | One bundled rate | $0.14/min Start; $0.12 on Build ($299/month) | 2 credits + inbound number | Telephony rate not published |
| Retell AI | All-round swap | $0.117/min on our setup | $10 credit | 5 line items to track |
| Deepgram Voice Agent API | Bundled rate, as an API | $0.075/min | $200 credit | No telephony on the pricing page |
| Vapi | Picking every provider | $0.082 to $0.129/min | $5 credit | 4 concurrent calls without a package |
| ElevenLabs Agents | Plan minutes | $0.08/min + LLM + telephony | 15 free minutes | LLM not priced per minute |
| PolyAI | Bundled platform | $0.095/min + telephony | $100 credit (limited time) | Telephony not priced |
| Ultravox | Lowest headline rate | $0.05/min | First 30 minutes free | 5 calls at once on pay-as-you-go |
| Thoughtly | Sales-led inbound teams | Not published | Not stated | No public price |
Prices change often, so check each vendor's page before you switch.
Why switch from Bland AI?
- Price: $0.14/min on Start is above every other bundled rate here. Build cuts it to $0.12 for $299/month, which only pays off above 14,950 minutes a month ($299 ÷ $0.02).
- Telephony is a blind spot: it's billed "on your own carrier or Bland's at pass-through cost", with no rate published.
- Start plan limits: 100 calls a day, 100 an hour, 10 at once and 1 voice.
- Compliance is split: the FAQ says "HIPAA compliant with a signed BAA", while the plan table shows the BAA on Enterprise only.
- Transfers cost extra: $0.05/min on Start, $0.04 on Build.
Which Bland AI alternatives are worth a look?
1. Retell AI: lower all-in cost with published telephony
Why switch: Retell publishes the phone line too ($0.015/min in the US), so its $0.117 on Kall's standard setup is a full price. You get 20 calls at once free, batch outbound calling at $0.005 per dial and, per its docs, a self-signed BAA with "no additional fee" (Retell docs).
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): $0.055/min Voice Infra + $0.032 GPT 6.1 Terra + $0.015 voice + $0.015 telephony = $0.117/min, plus $2/month per number. $10 in free credit.
Watch out: You track 5 line items, branded caller ID adds $0.10 per outbound call, and prompts over 4,000 tokens bill extra time. Its pricing page also has HIPAA/BAA rows in its plan table, so confirm which plan covers a BAA. Retell against the other big builder: Retell AI vs Vapi: pricing, compliance and fit compared.
2. Deepgram Voice Agent API: Bland's bundle at about half the rate
Why switch: Like Bland, it's "one rate covering speech-to-text, a managed language model, and text-to-speech", at $0.075/min against Bland's $0.14. You can bring your own LLM or voice for less, and new accounts get a $200 credit.
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): $0.075/min standard on pay-as-you-go, $0.068 on Growth, $0.050 with your own LLM and voice, $0.163 for Advanced.
Watch out: It's an API billed per minute of WebSocket connection, and the pricing page doesn't mention phone numbers or telephony. BAAs are for Enterprise customers.
3. Vapi: pay every provider at cost
Why switch: Vapi charges $0.05/min for hosting and passes providers through "at cost" with "no markup". Its own estimate for 1,000 minutes is $82 to $129, against $140 on Bland Start before telephony.
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): $0.05/min hosting plus transcription, LLM and voice; 1 free US inbound number; Core package $29/month.
Watch out: Free Vapi numbers are inbound-only and "cannot be used to launch" outbound campaigns, so outbound needs an imported number (Vapi docs). You get 4 calls at once without a package, and HIPAA costs $2,000/month. More options: Best Vapi alternatives.
4. ElevenLabs Agents: plan minutes at $0.08
Why switch: Voice and speech-to-text come bundled at $0.08/min, against Bland's $0.14, with a free plan and paid plans from $6/month.
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): Free (15 minutes), Starter $6 (75), Creator $22 (275), Pro $99 (1,238), Scale $299 (3,738), Business $990 (12,375). Extra minutes cost $0.08.
Watch out: The LLM is billed on top at provider rates "with no markup" (ElevenLabs docs) and telephony "at cost", and neither is priced per minute. BAAs are Enterprise-only.
5. PolyAI: a bundled platform at 9.5¢
Why switch: The Platform rate bundles 5¢ platform, 3¢ for the Dialog-RSN-1 model and 1.5¢ standard voice, with 10 calls at once. Agent plans start at $49/month for 250 minutes.
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): From 9.5¢/min; plans at $49 (Essentials), $199 (Plus) and $299 per location (Scale); $100 in free credit for new accounts "for a limited time" (the Platform card itself mentions "$20 of free credit to get started").
Watch out: The Platform rate doesn't price telephony, and HIPAA with a BAA is Enterprise-only.
6. Ultravox: the lowest headline rate
Why switch: "First 30 minutes free, $0.05/min after that," with no monthly fee on pay-as-you-go and SIP at 0.5¢/min.
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): $0.05/min on pay-as-you-go ($0/month) or on Pro ($100/month, no hard concurrency cap).
Watch out: Pay-as-you-go has a hard cap of 5 calls at once, and the pricing page doesn't say which models and voices the rate covers. Inworld acquired Ultravox on 30 Sep 2026 and says there is "no migration or code change required" for existing customers (Inworld), so recheck the pricing page before you commit.
7. Thoughtly: for sales-led teams
Why switch: Plans aimed at "inbound conversion", with bring-your-own carrier (Twilio, Telnyx), a choice of GPT, Claude or Gemini, 34+ languages and TCPA/state DNC review on Scale and Enterprise.
Pricing (as of 14 Nov 2026): Not published. Every plan says "Talk to sales", "Get a quote" or "Talk to enterprise".
Watch out: Voice minutes are listed as unlimited, yet usage above plan allowances is "billed in arrears at the end of each cycle". HIPAA and a BAA are Enterprise-only. Before any outbound AI calling, check the rules where you call: see Are AI phone calls legal? US, UK, EU and India.
How we picked
- Self-serve sign-up, except Thoughtly, included for sales teams who'd talk to sales anyway.
- Published pricing on official pages, re-checked on 14 Nov 2026.
- A bundled or lower all-in rate than Bland, or a fix for one of its limits.
- Watch-outs taken from each vendor's own pages.
- Research only: we haven't test-called these yet. Method: How Kall tests and ranks AI voice agents.
For the all-in math behind these numbers, see AI voice agent pricing per minute: the real all-in cost.
Sources
- Pricing, Bland AI, 14 Nov 2026
- Pricing, Retell AI, 14 Nov 2026
- Compliance, Retell AI docs, 14 Nov 2026
- Pricing, Deepgram, 14 Nov 2026
- Pricing, Vapi, 14 Nov 2026
- Creating free phone numbers, Vapi docs, 14 Nov 2026
- ElevenAgents pricing, ElevenLabs, 14 Nov 2026
- Supported LLMs, ElevenLabs docs, 14 Nov 2026
- Pricing, PolyAI, 14 Nov 2026
- Pricing, Ultravox, 14 Nov 2026
- We have acquired Ultravox to Advance Realtime Voice AI, Inworld, 30 Sep 2026
- Pricing, Thoughtly, 14 Nov 2026
FAQ
What is the best alternative to Bland AI?
Retell AI is the strongest all-round swap. On our standard setup it costs $0.117 a minute including US telephony, below Bland's $0.14 talk-time rate before telephony, and it includes 20 concurrent calls, as of 14 Nov 2026.
How much does Bland AI cost per minute?
Bland charges $0.14 a minute on its free Start plan and $0.12 on the $299-a-month Build plan, covering the LLM, speech-to-text and voice. Telephony and transfer time cost extra, as of 14 Nov 2026.
Which Bland alternative also bundles everything into one rate?
Deepgram's Voice Agent API charges $0.075 a minute for speech-to-text, a managed LLM and text-to-speech. PolyAI's platform bundles platform, model and standard voice at 9.5 cents a minute, as of 14 Nov 2026.
Is Bland AI HIPAA compliant?
Bland's FAQ says it is HIPAA compliant with a signed BAA, but its plan table lists the BAA under Enterprise only. Retell's docs say you self-sign its BAA with no extra fee, though its pricing page also lists HIPAA/BAA in a plan table, so confirm your plan.
Related
- Retell AI vs Vapi: pricing, compliance and fit comparedRetell AI vs Vapi on per-minute cost, free credits, HIPAA and SOC 2, integrations, no-code fit and languages, from official pages as of 14 Nov 2026.
- Best Vapi alternatives7 Vapi alternatives with pricing as of 14 Nov 2026: Retell AI, Bland, ElevenLabs, Deepgram, PolyAI, LiveKit and Pipecat, with a watch-out for each.
- Are AI phone calls legal? US, UK, EU and IndiaAI phone call rules in the US, UK, EU and India as of 14 Nov 2026: consent, call recording, AI disclosure and opt-outs, with primary sources.
- AI voice agent pricing per minute: the real all-in costWhat AI voice agents and receptionists really cost per minute once platform, LLM, voice, transcription and phone line are added. 15 platforms.
Ranks are never for sale. This page has no affiliate links and no paid placements. Prices change often: check the vendor's pricing page before you buy.