TL;DR
For an Indian D2C brand taking 1,500 calls a month, one support agent plus an AI for overflow and after-hours calls costs about ₹34,000 a month, or ₹23 a call, by our calculation. Two in-house agents cost about ₹54,900 (₹37 a call). AI on every call plus one agent costs ₹48,200 to ₹55,450. An outsourced dedicated agent costs $1,404 to $3,510 a month, quoted in US dollars.
For an Indian D2C brand taking 1,500 calls a month, the cheapest setup that picks up nearly every call is one support agent plus an AI that takes overflow and after-hours calls: about ₹34,000 a month, or ₹23 a call. Two in-house agents cost about ₹54,900 (₹37 a call), and an outsourced agent dedicated to your hours costs $1,404 to $3,510 a month, quoted in US dollars.
Letting AI answer every call, with one agent for hand-offs, costs ₹48,200 to ₹55,450. That saves little over two agents at this volume; what it buys is 24x7 answering and no busy tone. The sums below are our calculations with every step shown, so you can swap in your own numbers.
Our assumptions
- Calls: 1,500 a month, about 58 a day over 26 working days.
- Call length: 3 minutes of talk plus 1 minute of notes afterwards, so 4 minutes of an agent's time per call.
- Opening hours: 10 am to 7 pm, Monday to Saturday. That is 9 hours × 26 days = 234 open hours a month.
- Salary: ₹25,000 a month per agent, the middle of AmbitionBox's ₹2.9 lakh to ₹3.2 lakh a year for customer support executives (₹3 lakh ÷ 12).
- Busiest hour: the busiest day carries 25% more calls than average, and 15% of that day's calls land in one hour, so about 11 calls (58 × 1.25 × 0.15).
The workload is 1,500 calls × 4 minutes = 6,000 minutes, or 100 hours a month. That fits inside one person's 234 hours, but it keeps them on the phone 43% of the time, so calls collide. In the busiest hour one person misses about 4 in 10 callers because they are already talking; our staffing maths for a store's phone line shows how that figure is worked out.
Option 1: two in-house agents
- Salary: ₹25,000 a month.
- Employer PF: 12% of wages up to the ₹15,000 ceiling = ₹1,800 (EPFO rate chart). EPFO applies 10% where fewer than 20 people are employed; we use 12%.
- EDLI and PF admin charges: 0.5% + 0.5% of ₹15,000 = ₹150, from the same chart.
- ESI: ₹0. It covers employees earning below ₹21,000 a month (ESIC).
- One agent: ₹25,000 + ₹1,800 + ₹150 = ₹26,950 a month.
- Two agents: ₹26,950 × 2 = ₹53,900.
- Phone: a shared business number for both, for example TalkEasy Pro at ₹999 + GST a month, with 3 hours of talktime a day and extra hours at ₹49 + GST.
- Total: ₹53,900 + ₹999 = ₹54,899 a month, or ₹54,899 ÷ 1,500 = ₹36.60 a call.
We charge PF on the full ₹15,000. Under the labour codes, in force since 21 November 2025, allowances beyond 50% of total pay are added back to wages, so a low basic salary no longer keeps the PF base small.
Not counted: hiring, training, a desk and laptop, gratuity, and cover when someone quits. At 11 calls in the busiest hour, two agents still miss about 13% of them.
Option 2: an outsourced call centre seat
- Hourly rate: Outsource2india's rate card lists non-technical support "as low as $10 - $15 per hour". Cimmons, a Bengaluru BPO, puts Indian voice support at $6 to $12 per productive hour in a July 2026 article on its website.
- One agent for all your open hours: 234 hours × $6 = $1,404, up to 234 hours × $15 = $3,510.
- Total: $1,404 to $3,510 a month, quoted in US dollars.
- Per call: $1,404 ÷ 1,500 = $0.94, up to $3,510 ÷ 1,500 = $2.34.
A dedicated seat means you pay for the seat whether the day is busy or quiet. The alternative is per-contact pricing, which Cimmons describes as charging "per call, chat or ticket resolved". Ask Indian providers for a rupee quote under both models.
Option 3: AI answers every call, one agent takes hand-offs
- AI minutes: 1,500 calls × 3 minutes = 4,500 minutes. This is the upper bound; transferred calls use fewer AI minutes.
- AI cost: at VaniAgent's ₹4.5 a minute, 4,500 × ₹4.5 = ₹20,250 + GST. At Ringg's ₹6 a connected minute, 4,500 × ₹6 = ₹27,000, plus ₹499 for the number = ₹27,499.
- One agent for hand-offs, return approvals and callbacks: ₹26,950.
- Phone plan for the agent: ₹999.
- Total: ₹20,250 + ₹26,950 + ₹999 = ₹48,199 with VaniAgent (₹32.13 a call). With Ringg it is ₹27,499 + ₹26,950 + ₹999 = ₹55,448 (₹36.97 a call).
Option 4: one agent answers, AI takes overflow and after-hours
- Share for the AI: at 6.4 calls an open hour, one agent misses about 30% of calls because they are already talking (our Erlang B calculation). That is 1,500 × 30% = 450 calls, with after-hours calls on top.
- AI minutes: 450 × 3 = 1,350 minutes.
- AI cost: 1,350 × ₹4.5 = ₹6,075 + GST at VaniAgent. On Superfone's receptionist, ₹9,000 per six months covers 300 minutes a month on average, and the other 1,050 at ₹5 bring it to about ₹6,750 + GST a month.
- Total: ₹26,950 (agent) + ₹999 (phone) + ₹6,075 (AI) = ₹34,024 a month, or ₹22.68 a call.
Check the 30% against your own call log, which shows how many calls go unanswered today. Even at 40%, the AI costs only about ₹2,000 a month more. Your business number must forward busy and after-hours calls to the AI's number, so confirm both products handle that.
Which should you choose?
| Setup | Monthly cost (1,500 calls) | Per call | Choose it when |
|---|---|---|---|
| One agent + AI overflow | ₹34,024 | ₹22.68 | Calls bunch into peaks and evenings |
| AI first + one agent | ₹48,199 to ₹55,448 | ₹32 to ₹37 | Most calls are order status; you want 24x7 |
| Two in-house agents | ₹54,899 | ₹36.60 | Calls need judgement and product knowledge |
| Outsourced dedicated seat | $1,404 to $3,510 | $0.94 to $2.34 | You need long hours or extra languages |
Totals exclude GST on software. Adding 18% to the AI and phone costs raises option 4 by about ₹1,270 and option 3 by about ₹3,820 with VaniAgent, which doesn't change which setup is cheapest.
How we compared: salaries from AmbitionBox and Indeed, PF and ESI rules from EPFO and ESIC, outsourcing rates from Outsource2india's rate card and a Cimmons article, and AI prices from each provider's pricing page, all checked in September 2026. AI prices exclude 18% GST unless stated.
Which calls should go to AI, a call centre or your own team?
Split by call type rather than by vendor. A brand can use all three at once: its own agent for judgement, an AI for routine volume, and an outsourced overflow team for sale weeks.
- AI: "Where is my order?", COD confirmation, delivery reschedules, return-window questions and after-hours messages. These have one right answer that can be read from your order data or policy.
- Outsourced agents: festive-sale surges, extra languages and long evening shifts, where you need people but can't hire for a few weeks of the year. In the same article, Cimmons says an e-commerce brand it supports runs dedicated seats for its core team and per-contact overflow for sale events.
- Your own team: refund disputes, damaged or wrong items, cancellations after dispatch, bulk or high-value orders, and angry customers. These calls need someone who knows your products and can make a decision.
Whoever answers, the customer should never have to repeat the order number. Send transferred calls to a person with the order number and reason already noted.
What changes at 300 or 5,000 calls a month?
- 300 calls a month (about 10 a day): one person can answer daytime calls between other work. Add AI for after-hours and busy moments: even if every call went to the AI, 900 minutes cost about ₹4,500 to ₹5,000 + GST a month (Superfone at ₹5 a minute beyond its included minutes, or VaniAgent's ₹4,999 monthly minimum). See missed-call alert services if you only need to know who called.
- 5,000 calls a month (about 190 a day): at 750 calls per agent, in-house needs about 7 agents, or 7 × ₹26,950 = ₹1,88,650 before phones. AI answering every call costs 15,000 minutes × ₹4.5 = ₹67,500, plus a smaller team for hand-offs. At this size, compare the AI answering services built for e-commerce and ask an outsourcer for per-contact pricing on sale weeks.
Where TalkEasy by GrowEasy fits
TalkEasy by GrowEasy fits options 1, 3 and 4: the in-house part of your support line. Your agents share one business number that runs alongside their existing SIMs, and every call is logged against that number whoever answers.
Incoming calls can be routed by team or availability, with separate rules for office hours and after-hours. Recorded calls get an AI summary of the customer's requirement, the next step and the outcome, usually within a couple of minutes.
The AI receptionist answers after hours, at weekends and on holidays, captures the caller's details, and then transfers the call or books a callback. Pro costs ₹999 + GST a month with unlimited users and 3 hours of talktime a day (pricing). The AI receptionist is not on the public price list, so get a quote before you plug it into option 4.
If you want a fully managed team, an outsourcer is the better fit. For how AI receptionists compare on price across India, see our AI receptionist guide, and for phone plans alone, our business phone number costs.
Set up a shared support number with an AI receptionist
Last reviewed 24 September 2026.
