How to choose an after-hours answering service
Nights, weekends and public holidays are when the phone rings and you’d rather it didn’t. Here are the four ways to cover it, what each costs, and the questions to ask before you sign.
The short answer
Pick cover that does something with the call. A message still leaves you ringing back in the morning, and a customer who was ready to book last night may have booked someone else by then.
Then check who decides what counts as an emergency, what a night or weekend call costs, and where the details end up.
If you want a person on every call and don’t mind ringing back, a human service is a fair choice. If you want routine jobs booked and only real emergencies sent to you, look at an AI receptionist.
The four kinds of after-hours cover
| What happens to the call | What it costs | Suits | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voicemail | A greeting and a beep. You find out when you check | Free | A phone that barely rings after hours |
| Carrying the phone yourself | You answer, wherever you are | Free in dollars. Costs you your evenings | Emergency work you’d go out for anyway |
| A human answering service | A person takes a message. Dearer plans transfer urgent calls | OfficeHQ: from A$25 a month plus A$2.50 a call, and A$0.60 extra a call after hours, before GST | Wanting a person on every call |
| An AI receptionist | Answers, sorts emergencies from routine jobs, books the routine ones | Ours: A$299 a month for a sole trader, the same rate any hour | Wanting the job booked without ringing back |
OfficeHQ prices from its MessageExpress page and terms, read on 12 October 2026, before GST. OffsiteMate’s price is on our prices page.
Four questions to ask
Does it finish the call?
A message moves the work back to you. Ask what happens to a routine job at 9pm: booked in, or emailed to you for the morning?
Who decides what’s an emergency?
You should. Write down the few calls you’d get out of bed for and the ones that can wait, then ask how each would be handled.
What does a night call cost?
OfficeHQ adds A$0.60 to A$1.00 a call outside 8am to 6pm weekdays. Your Phones Covered sells after hours as an add-on. Ours costs the same any hour.
Where do the details end up?
A text you’ll read, a job in your calendar or ServiceM8, or an inbox nobody checks until Tuesday.
Emergencies, in your words
Every trade has a short list of calls worth answering at night. For a plumber it’s water or sewage coming out. For a locksmith it’s someone locked out after dark, and for an electrician it’s no power or something sparking.
They’re often the better-paying calls too. What’s The Damage’s October 2026 cost guides put a typical after-hours plumbing visit at A$450, an after-hours lockout at A$280 and an after-hours electrical visit, with the first hour, at A$400.
Everything else can wait for the morning, as long as somebody answers and gets it booked.
You keep your number
Most services work by forwarding your existing number, so customers keep ringing the number on your ute. OfficeHQ gives you a local number to forward to, and you choose whether every call goes there or only the ones you don’t answer.
Ours works the same way. Your phone forwards to the assistant when you don’t pick up, or all the time, whichever you choose. Your number stays with your phone company and stays yours.
That also means you can switch after-hours cover on and off yourself, and try a service without telling a single customer.
Hear it before you pay
Ring the service’s own number after hours, the way your customers would. Ask something awkward. Listen to what it does with a job it can’t book.
Most let you try first. OfficeHQ offers a 7-day free trial, and Your Phones Covered has a free trial too.
Ours is on 0485 000 166, any hour. It answers as Mario’s Plumbing, a made-up plumber, set up the way yours would be. Book a job if you like. Mario won’t turn up.
After-hours answering questions
What is an after-hours answering service?
A service that answers your business phone when you’re not working, so callers get a person or an assistant instead of voicemail.
How much does an after-hours answering service cost in Australia?
OfficeHQ’s message taking starts at A$25 a month plus A$2.50 a call, with A$0.60 extra for each call outside 8am to 6pm weekdays, all before GST (October 2026). Ours is A$299 a month for a sole trader, with no after-hours rate.
Will it wake me up for every call?
Only if it’s set up that way. Ours only texts you what you’ve said counts as an emergency, then rings you so you can’t miss it.
What should an after-hours service do with an emergency?
Get it to you fast, in a way you’ll notice at 2am. Ask each service exactly how it reaches you, then test it with a pretend emergency before you rely on it.
Can I use an answering service only after hours?
Yes. Most work by forwarding your number, and OfficeHQ suggests switching forwarding on at the end of each day. Ours can ring you first during the day and answer straight away after hours.
This phone is answered.
Ring us on the number below, or email. Either way, a human gets back to you.
0468 075 000Or email hello@offsitemate.com.au