Free Voice AI Agent Platforms
Which voice AI agent platforms a startup can build phone and web voice agents with for free today, how much free credit or how many minutes they give, the main limit, the per-minute price after, whether a card is needed and what paid usage costs, read from each provider's own page.
Free allowances read on each provider's own pages, all checked on or after . Voice AI platforms change their free credits and prices often: confirm the terms on the provider's page before you put an agent on a phone line.
Voice AI agent platforms a startup can build with for free today include Ultravox (30 minutes of free calls), LiveKit ($0 on the Build plan), Vapi ($5 in free credits), Daily (Pipecat Cloud) (1:1 voice sessions free), and Retell AI ($10 in free credits). Each of the 8 free allowances below links to the provider's page that states it, with its main limit, the per-minute price after it, whether a card is needed and what paid usage costs.
Voice AI agents answer phone calls, book appointments and qualify leads in natural speech. Hosted platforms give free credits or minutes to build and test with, and open-source frameworks let you build voice agents in code for free.
The headline rarely tells you how far it goes. Free credits are usually given once, concurrent calls are capped, and a platform's per-minute price may or may not include the voice, model and phone costs. Each platform below shows what is free, its main limit, the per-minute price after, whether a card is needed and what paid usage costs, quoted from the provider's own page with the date we read it.
Which platforms we picked and the order they appear in are our editorial choices; the terms are the providers'. Some of these providers pay us a referral commission when someone signs up through our link: those links are labeled, and they play no part in which platforms are listed or where.
Voice AI agent platforms with free credits
Hosted platforms for phone and web voice agents, with free credits or minutes to start.
- 1
Ultravox
A standing free plan for testing a voice agent
Pay As You Go includes 30 minutes of free calls, then $0.05 per minute, with up to 5 concurrent calls. The Pro plan is $100 a month. Its pricing page also says Ultravox has been acquired by Inworld.
- Per minute after
- $0.05 per minute after (source: ultravox.ai)
- Paid usage
- Pro: $100 a month (source: ultravox.ai)
- 2
Vapi
Pay-as-you-go builders who want $5 to start
Vapi gives $5 in free credits to get you started, then pre-paid hosting at $0.05 per minute. Four concurrent calls are included.
- What's free
- $5 in free credits (source: vapi.ai)
- Main limit
- 4 concurrent calls (source: vapi.ai)
- Per minute after
- $0.05/min Vapi hosting (pre-paid) (source: vapi.ai)
- Paid usage
- Core: $29 a month (source: vapi.ai)
Start free at VapiReferral linkTerms read on vapi.ai on Vapi: the free allowance and how to start Vapi for Startups: what startups get - 3
Retell AI
Phone agents with $10 to start and 20 free concurrent calls
Retell gives $10 in free credits to go live, then $0.07-$0.31 a minute for AI voice agents. Every account includes 20 concurrent calls for free.
- What's free
- $10 in free credits (source: retellai.com)
- Per minute after
- $0.07-$0.31 a minute, voice agents (source: retellai.com)
- 4
Bland AI
Inbound number and 2 credits, no card needed
The Start plan gives 2 credits and an inbound number with a $0 platform fee and no card required. Talk time is $0.14 a minute, and the Build plan has a $299 a month platform fee.
- Main limit
- 10 concurrent calls (source: bland.ai)
- Per minute after
- $0.14/min talk time (Start) (source: bland.ai)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: bland.ai)
- 5
Synthflow
Building a phone agent before any upfront spend
You can start and build an AI agent for free. Once you launch, you pay as you go for the calls and chats conducted.
Open-source voice agent frameworks
Build voice agents in code, free and open source, some with a free cloud tier.
- 1
LiveKit
Voice and video agents that need a free cloud tier
The Build plan starts for free with no credit card required and 1,000 minutes included. The Ship plan then charges $0.01 per minute after its included minutes, from $50 a month.
- What's free
- $0 on the Build plan (source: livekit.com)
- Per minute after
- $0.01/min after included (Ship) (source: livekit.com)
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: livekit.com)
Start free at LiveKitTerms read on livekit.com on LiveKit: the free allowance and how to start LiveKit Startup Program: what startups get - 2
Daily (Pipecat Cloud)
1:1 voice agents on Pipecat Cloud, free sessions
1:1 voice sessions on Pipecat Cloud are free, and the platform supports unlimited concurrency. Active agents bill at $0.01 per minute.
- What's free
- 1:1 voice sessions free (source: daily.co)
- Main limit
- Unlimited concurrency (source: daily.co)
- Per minute after
- $0.01/min per active agent (source: daily.co)
Start free at DailyTerms read on daily.co on Daily (Pipecat Cloud): the free allowance and how to start - 3
Pipecat
Teams that want full control of a free framework
The framework is free to use under the BSD-2 license, and you pay only for the services you choose.
Voice AI startup programs
Programs from voice AI companies that give startups credits on paid usage.
Also useful for AI agents and automation
Referral links, picked for fit and ordered by fit (70%) and what a signup earns us (30%), at no cost to you. They never change this page's ranking.
How this comparison is built
The list covers voice AI agent platforms and frameworks a founder can use for free today without applying to a program. The order and the "best for" notes are our editorial reading of each platform's terms. Every term comes from the platform's own pricing or help page on the date shown, never from a third-party list; follow each link for the full conditions. Free credits given once, a cap on concurrent calls, and the per-minute price after can matter more than the headline, so the comparison quotes them wherever the provider states them. Some of these platforms pay StartupPerks a referral commission, and their links are labeled as referral links; that decides neither whether nor where a platform appears, and no platform pays for a placement on this page.
Read the full methodologyCommon questions
What is the best free voice AI agent platform?
It depends on what you build. By the terms each provider states, Retell AI gives $10 in free credits, Vapi $5 in free credits, Ultravox 30 minutes of free calls, and LiveKit's Build plan is $0 a month with 1,000 agent minutes included.
Is Vapi free?
Vapi gives $5 in free credits to start, with up to 4 concurrent calls; after that Vapi hosting costs $0.05 a minute, pre-paid.
Is Retell AI free?
Retell AI starts at $0 with $10 in free credits; after that its voice agents cost $0.07 to $0.31 a minute, with 20 concurrent calls included.
Can I build a voice AI agent for free with open source?
Yes. Pipecat is free under the BSD-2 license, TEN Framework is open source under Apache 2.0 with added terms, and LiveKit's Build plan is $0 a month with 1,000 agent minutes.
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