fonio alternative: five differences for a whole company

With fonio the number of calls it takes at once depends on your plan. Five differences with BeepSweep for a company with employees, and what it costs.

1 October 2026 5 min read

A man has stopped on the pavement of a Dutch street to read something on his phone. In his other hand he holds a closed folder with a set of keys, and a bag hangs from his shoulder. Behind him are brick facades and parked bicycles

If you are looking for an alternative to fonio, BeepSweep is the one to look at.

First what they have in common, because that is most of it. Both answer your company’s main number, in the evening and at the weekend too. Both ask what the caller is ringing about and handle the questions you get often, from what you have told them about your business. If it is something one of your employees deals with, they transfer. An appointment goes into your calendar. And afterwards you read back who called and what about, written out in full with a summary on top.

So you give up nothing on that basis. The difference starts as soon as more than one person in your company answers the phone. Then five things go differently.

It still picks up when someone is already on the line

If someone calls while a conversation is already running, fonio does not take it. How many it handles at once depends on your plan.

With fonio that is one on the entry plan, three on Team, and on Scale a number you agree separately.

With us it is not a setting and not a plan choice. Five callers are five conversations, even if there are two of you.

What happens when five customers call at the same time. In the top band fonio, where the number of calls it can take at once depends on your plan: one on Solo, three on Team, and on Scale a number you agree separately. Callers beyond that do not get through. In the bottom band BeepSweep, where five callers are simply five conversations whatever the plan

The caller reaches the employee who deals with it

Both can transfer. The difference is what an employee is: with us someone with their own line, with fonio another number.

A company does not only have a main number. Your employees have their own mobile that customers know, and that is where the questions only they can answer come in.

Connect those numbers and every employee gets their own calls, with the company’s knowledge behind them. That is what the €15 buys. If they do not pick up, they get a message.

With fonio the entry plan is for one user and an extra phone number costs €7 a month.

There is a computer and an app

With BeepSweep there is a company inbox and one per employee, on the computer and in an app. fonio works in the browser only.

Someone at a computer is in the office, and everything is there to see: every call written out, with who rang and what about.

But the employee who needs the message is not sitting there, whether they are out on a job or with a customer. They get it on the device already in their pocket. The app is in the App Store and the Play Store.

BeepSweep answers and does not call out

fonio also offers outbound calls and calling campaigns, from the Team plan up. BeepSweep does not. We are a company’s reception, not a call centre.

Your customers will not be rung by us with an offer, and your leads will not be chased.

Where fonio is broader: 60 languages and more than 120 voices, against six languages with us.

What it costs

fonio costs €119 a month for one user, or €99 billed annually. With us it is €99 excl. VAT plus €15 per employee.

Three employees comes to €129 a month, five to €160.

fonio’s €119 plan includes 1,000 call minutes, and every 100 minutes above that costs €15. Team is €359 with 3,600 minutes.

How that sits against the rest of the market is in what an AI receptionist costs, and the full price breakdown is on its own page.

Everything side by side

The differences from this piece in one overview, with the position at the end of September 2026, so you can check them yourself.

		BeepSweep
Calls at once	1 on Solo, 3 on Team	five callers are five conversations
Employees in the entry plan	1	the whole company, €15 per employee
An employee’s own number	extra number €7 a month	their own line with the company’s knowledge
Where you see it back	dashboard in the browser	computer and app, with a separate inbox
Outbound calling	yes, from Team	no
Languages	60+	6
Price per month	€119, Team €359	€99 excl. VAT, plus €15 per employee

Every figure about fonio comes from fonio.ai itself, checked on 28 September 2026. Prices change, check them with the provider.

Further reading: what an AI receptionist does for you, the difference with an answering service, and the same comparison for the hospitality provider Bonnie. All six Dutch providers sit together in the price overview.

To hear how it sounds, use the demo, or send a message on WhatsApp via +31 85 083 5355.