Comparison
VAPI charges $0.05/min. Then adds STT, LLM, TTS, and Twilio on top.
The real cost breakdown for call centers running 10,000+ minutes per month. Not marketing fluff — unit economics.
Vapi's advertised rate covers orchestration only. STT, LLM, TTS, and telephony are billed separately by each provider. Here's what a real minute actually costs:
| Monthly Volume | Vapi (avg $0.22/min) | Klariqo ($0.12/min) | You Save |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 mins | $2,200 | $1,200 | $1,000/mo |
| 25,000 mins | $5,500 | $2,750 | $2,750/mo |
| 50,000 mins | $11,000 | $5,000 | $6,000/mo |
| 100,000 mins | $22,000 | $8,000 | $14,000/mo |
Vapi cost assumes mid-range provider choices (Deepgram STT, GPT-4o-mini, Cartesia TTS, Twilio). Klariqo pricing is enterprise all-in rate.
See what it costs on your volume.
Start a 300-minute pilot on one campaign. If the math doesn't work, walk away.
Start Free PilotSIP-native
Direct SIP trunk integration with VICIdial, Trackdrive, Five9, Genesys. No middleware.
Sub-500ms latency
Edge-deployed on Cloudflare's global network. STT + LLM + TTS in one optimized pipeline.
Built-in AMD
Async voicemail detection. Hangs up on machines in ~4 seconds, saving you wasted minutes.
Warm & cold transfer
AI qualifies, then transfers live to your closers. SIP REFER or Twilio redirect — your choice.
Dual-channel recording
Separate AI and caller tracks. Compliance-ready with automatic disclosure.
WebRTC / API-first
Designed for browser-based voice. Telephony is bolted on, not native. SIP requires custom config.
Variable latency
Depends on your provider choices. Each hop adds delay — STT, LLM, TTS are separate API calls.
No AMD
You build it yourself or burn minutes talking to answering machines.
Transfer = custom code
Call transfer requires webhook logic, Twilio functions, and custom routing. Nothing built-in.
Recording = extra
Set up Twilio recording separately. Compliance disclaimers are your responsibility.
| Capability | Klariqo | Vapi |
|---|---|---|
| SIP trunk integration | Native | Custom config |
| Voicemail detection (AMD) | Built-in | Build yourself |
| Warm transfer to closer | Built-in | Webhook + custom code |
| Cold transfer | Built-in | Custom routing |
| Call recording + compliance | Included | Separate setup |
| Per-client LLM config | Dashboard toggle | API parameter |
| STT keyword boosting | Per-client config | Provider-dependent |
| Barge-in / interruption | Built-in | Built-in |
| Outbound dialer integration | VICIdial, Trackdrive, etc. | Build your own |
| Multi-provider flexibility | We optimize for you | Full BYO provider |
| Custom AI models | Optimized stack | GPT-4, Claude, custom |
| Pricing | $0.10–0.15/min all-in | $0.16–0.28/min real cost |
Volume pricing, optimized routing, and zero orchestration markup. We negotiate bulk rates with Deepgram, Cartesia, and Groq that individual Vapi customers can't access. Plus we don't charge a per-minute platform fee on top.
Yes. We accept inbound SIP transfers and originate outbound via SIP or Twilio. VICIdial and Trackdrive are already live in production with paying clients.
If you're building a consumer product with voice AI baked in, Vapi's flexibility matters. If you're running a call center and need leads qualified and transferred — you don't need to pick your own STT provider. You need it to work.
We offer 300-minute pilot programs for enterprise clients. You test with real calls, real transfers, real data. If the unit economics don't work for you, you walk away.
Currently live with SSDI, Final Expense, ACA health subsidy, and general insurance qualification. Expanding into debt relief, tax, mortgage, and mass tort. Each vertical gets its own qualification script and compliance guardrails.
300-minute pilot. Real calls. Real transfers. If our cost-per-lead doesn't beat what you're paying now, walk away.
Talk to Us