Callata vs Talkroute: Two Bundled-User Phone Plans

Short answer: Talkroute and Callata both bundle several users into one account price instead of charging every seat from the first. Talkroute Pro costs $59 per month for 10 users, 3 numbers and 5,000 texts, with extra users at $5; Callata Office costs $99 per month for 5 users and up to 3 local numbers, with extra users at $20, and call recording, AI summaries and voicemail transcription built in. Talkroute costs less at every team size and is the better pick on price and for anyone who wants a toll-free number, native apps or a free trial; Callata is the pick if you want AI summaries on every recorded call, voicemail urgency triage and pay-per-minute AI agents without a monthly AI plan.

Talkroute figures are from talkroute.com/pricing, checked October 1, 2026. Callata figures are from callatta.com.

Plans side by side

	Talkroute Basic	Talkroute Plus	Talkroute Pro	Callata Office
Monthly price	$19	$39	$59	$99
Users included	1	3	10	5
Numbers included	1	2	3	Up to 3 local
Texts per month	500	2,000	5,000	No published cap (fair use)
Text registration	$19 one-time + $1.50/mo	$15 one-time	Included	$49 one-time
Call recording	Not listed	Not listed	Included	Included
AI call summaries	AI Receptionist add-on	AI Receptionist add-on	AI Receptionist add-on	Included on recorded calls
Extra users	$5/user/mo	$5/user/mo	$5/user/mo	$20/user/mo
Extra numbers	$5/number/mo	$5/number/mo	$5/number/mo	Not offered beyond 3
Contract	None	None	None	None

Talkroute also lists an Enterprise plan for 20 or more users with 10 or more numbers and custom bulk texting, priced through sales.

Where the costs diverge

Both products bundle users into a plan price and charge for extra users beyond it. Talkroute bundles more users for less and charges $5 per extra user; Callata bundles 5 users and charges $20 per extra user.

Team size	Talkroute (cheapest plan that fits)	Callata Office
1 person	$19 (Basic)	$99
3 people	$39 (Plus)	$99
10 people	$59 (Pro)	$199
15 people	$84 (Pro + 5 users)	$299
25 people	$134 (Pro + 15 users) or Enterprise quote	$499

Talkroute costs less at every team size in this table, and the gap grows past five users because Callata's extra users cost $20 each against Talkroute's $5. Even if you need call recording, Talkroute Pro at $59 for up to 10 users is $40 less than Callata's $99 for 5. The case for Callata is features and AI costs rather than the base plan price.

Texting

Talkroute sets monthly message allowances on each plan (500, 2,000 and 5,000) and sells bulk texting add-ons from $55 per month (Starter, 2,500 extra messages) through $169 (Growth, 10,000) and $409 (Scale) up to $749 per month (High Volume). The local number registration fee is $19 on Basic and $15 on Plus and is included on Pro; Basic also carries a $1.50 monthly campaign fee.

Callata charges a one-time $49 for 10DLC registration and does not publish a monthly message allowance; its fair-use and messaging policies apply, and it is designed for conversational texting from a shared team inbox with templates, delivery receipts and AI reply suggestions rather than bulk campaigns. If you send large marketing blasts, Talkroute's bulk texting plans are a more natural fit.

AI receptionist and call intelligence

Talkroute sells its AI Receptionist as an add-on that requires a business phone plan:

Talkroute AI plan	Monthly price	AI minutes included	Extra minutes
Pay as You Go	$39	None	$0.40/min
Starter	$59	100	$0.35/min
Growth	$99	250	$0.30/min
Scale	$199	750	$0.25/min

The AI plans include call recording, call summaries and transcripts, with multilingual minutes and chat messages billed separately.

Callata has no monthly fee for AI agents. Receptionist, sales, support and scheduler agents use prepaid AI minutes at $0.25 per minute (sold in 60, 250 and 1,000 minute packs), and an AI text reply uses a quarter minute. You can also connect your own ElevenLabs account and pay a platform fee of a quarter minute per minute. Separately, every recorded call on Callata gets an AI summary with sentiment and action items at no extra charge, and voicemails are transcribed and triaged for urgency.

For a business of up to five people that wants call recording and an AI receptionist handling 200 minutes a month, Talkroute Growth costs $99 plus the $59 Pro plan, $158 in total (Starter with 100 extra minutes at $0.35 comes to $94, or $153 with Pro); on Callata, 200 minutes at $0.25 is $50 on top of the $99 plan, $149 in total. Above five users, Callata's $20 per extra user puts it back above Talkroute.

Where Talkroute is stronger

• Lower price at every team size. $19 per month for a solo user is hard to beat, and Pro covers 10 users for $59 with extra users at $5.
• Free trial. Talkroute offers 7 days; Callata does not list a trial.
• Apps everywhere. Talkroute lists desktop, mobile and web apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android on every plan. Callata runs in the browser and rings your cell.
• 24/7 support. Talkroute lists 24/7 US and Canada based support on all plans. Callata support is by email with a one-business-day reply target.
• Video meetings and integrations. Every Talkroute plan includes video meetings for up to 100 participants, plus Zapier, webhooks and API access. Callata has no video and integrates with Gmail.
• HIPAA agreements. Talkroute offers a business associate agreement on Pro and Enterprise. Callata does not advertise a BAA.
• Toll-free numbers and extra numbers. Talkroute sells additional numbers at $5 each. Callata caps at three local numbers.
• Bulk texting plans. Clear add-ons for high-volume sending.
• Professional voice recordings. Talkroute's Voice Studio produces custom greetings from $20 per recording, with five clips included on Pro and Enterprise.

Everyday use

Both services handle the basics a small office expects: forwarding calls to the right person, a greeting, voicemail and texting from the business number. The details differ by plan on Talkroute. Basic has no phone menu, no hours-of-operation settings and no simultaneous ring; Plus adds one menu, single-digit extensions, simultaneous ring, live transfer and hours of operation; Pro unlocks unlimited menus, multi-digit extensions, a company directory, call recording, scheduled forwarding and reporting.

Callata does not split features by tier because there is only one plan. Every account gets ring groups, extensions, hold, business-hours and after-hours routing, call recording, voicemail transcription and the shared texting inbox. Calls ring in every open Callata browser tab, and each person can choose to ring their cell at the same time. The trade-off is that Callata has fewer extras around the phone itself: no video meetings, no Zapier connector and no native apps.

Where Callata is stronger

• Shared texting inbox with no published monthly cap, instead of plan-based message allowances.
• AI summaries on recorded calls and voicemail triage included rather than tied to an AI add-on plan.
• AI agents billed only for minutes used, with no monthly AI subscription.
• Ring groups, extensions and business-hours routing in the one plan.
• E911 on every number with owner notification when 911 is dialed.

Decision checklist

• Is the monthly plan price the deciding factor? Talkroute costs less at every team size.
• Want a toll-free number or mobile app? Talkroute.
• Expect to grow well past 10 people? Talkroute's $5 per extra user stays below Callata's $20.
• Want AI summaries on every recorded call without buying an AI plan? Callata.
• Need bulk marketing texts? Talkroute's bulk texting add-ons.

For more detail, see Talkroute pricing explained, Talkroute alternatives, and our guide to business phone systems without per-user pricing.

Try Callata

If you want recorded calls summarized automatically and voicemails triaged without an AI add-on, Callata covers up to 5 users for $99 per month ($20 per additional user) with free number porting. Sign up for Callata.