Johnni is AI phone answering built in Australia for tradies first. It answers in an Aussie accent, qualifies the job, books it and rings missed leads back. For a busy plumber or sparky, that is a sharp pitch.

People look for Johnni alternatives for three reasons. Plans are sized in minutes, so long calls cost more. Booking into ServiceM8 or Simpro is a quoted add-on. And some owners want to compare local options before they forward their number.

Below is what Johnni offers as of September 2026 and six alternatives with honest trade-offs. We build Help Genie, so weigh our entry accordingly. Prices come from each vendor’s own page unless we say otherwise.

What Johnni actually offers

Johnni is run out of Brisbane and sells to service businesses across Australia and New Zealand. Its homepage lists plumbers, electricians, HVAC, builders, pest control, solar, roofing, locksmiths and cleaners, plus property managers, accountants and salons.

Pricing. Johnni now publishes its plans on its pricing page. All prices are in AUD and exclude GST. Monthly billing, annual billing saves 10%.

• Pay As You Go. A$49 a month (A$44 on annual). 60 minutes included, then A$0.50 a minute.
• Solo. A$134 a month. 200 minutes, then A$0.45 a minute. Adds a website voice and text widget.
• Starter. A$269 a month. 600 minutes, then A$0.40 a minute. Adds an outbound caller for follow-ups, reminders and missed-lead call-backs.
• Growth. A$809 a month. 1,500 minutes, then A$0.35 a minute.

Add-ons sit on top. SMS confirmations and reminders are A$50 a month. The outbound caller is a A$750 one-off on the two lower plans. Job software integration is “quoted per business”. There is no setup fee, a 7 day free trial, and plans run month to month.

Features. Every plan has 24/7 answering, warm transfer, a dedicated number, transcripts, repeat-caller memory and Aussie accents. The homepage names ServiceM8, Simpro, ServiceTitan, HubSpot, Pipedrive, Zoho and Google Calendar, and says Johnni can take up to 20 calls at once.

Where Johnni is strong. It is local, trade-focused and built around booking the job, not just taking a message. Outbound call-backs are rare in this category. And the prices are public.

Where it gets harder. The plans assume a two-minute average call, so a five-minute quote call uses two and a half calls’ worth of your pool. Writing the job into your software is priced separately and not published. The public review base is small, with the homepage citing 19 Google reviews at 5.0.

Six Johnni alternatives worth a look

1. Help Genie (we build this one)

Help Genie builds one genie from your website, manuals, price lists and FAQs. It answers by voice and chat on your phone line, website, email and QR codes, then hands the job to your team with context. It suits trades that also sell or service products, like hot water units, solar systems or equipment.

Best for: Businesses whose callers ask product questions, not just “can you come Tuesday”, and who want web and phone answered from one knowledge base.

Honest trade-off: It is voice AI, not a human team. It captures the lead and emails it to you, but it does not book straight into a calendar or send SMS. Deep write-back to job software is scoped per deal, not a native ServiceM8 or Simpro connector.

Pricing: A$299 a month on Pro, which is the plan with the phone number. Flat monthly under fair use, with no per-minute or per-call meter. Free plan to build and test first. Details on /pricing.

Wins over Johnni: A long troubleshooting call costs the same as a short one. Web chat, voice, email and QR come from the same setup. 40+ languages. Trained on your actual manuals and spec sheets. Ring the demo line on +64 9 886 4856 or hear it work.

Where it falls short: Johnni books jobs, sends SMS reminders and calls missed leads back. Help Genie does none of those out of the box. If booking into ServiceM8 is the whole point, Johnni or ServiceM8’s own agent fits better.

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2. Sophiie

Sophiie is another Australian product aimed at trades. It answers calls, books jobs, sends quotes and invoices, and schedules your team. The homepage claims 750,000+ calls and 1,600+ businesses across Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the US.

Best for: Trade businesses that want one product to cover the phone, SMS, web chat and some office admin.

Honest trade-off: You have to book a demo to see a price. You are buying a broader office tool, which is more to learn.

Pricing: Not published. A third-party review last verified in April 2026 reports around A$300 a month plus a A$400 setup fee, not confirmed by the vendor.

Wins over Johnni: Named integrations include ServiceM8, Simpro, Xero and QuickBooks. Quotes and invoices sit in the same product. Larger claimed customer base.

Where it falls short: No public price list. Setup fee reported by third parties. Compare notes on /compare/sophiie-alternatives and /compare/sophiie-pricing.

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3. Hey Jodie

Hey Jodie is a low-cost AI answering service sold in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the US, Canada and Ireland. The company is registered in England and Wales. It learns your business from your website or Google listing and says most businesses are live in under 10 minutes.

Best for: Sole traders and small crews who mostly need calls picked up and the job details sent to their phone.

Honest trade-off: The A$99 Basic plan takes messages but does not include bookings or call transfers. Those start on Professional at A$199. Zapier arrives on Premium at A$399.

Pricing: A$99, A$199 and A$399 a month, taxes added at checkout. Unlimited minutes under a fair-use limit of 1,000 call events per 30 days, per its terms. Enterprise from A$1,000.

Wins over Johnni: No minute meter on normal volumes. Lower entry price for full-length calls. iOS and Android app on every plan.

Where it falls short: No named job software integrations, only Zapier on the top plan. No published outbound call-back feature. More on /compare/hey-jodie-alternatives and /compare/hey-jodie-pricing.

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4. ServiceM8 Phone Agent

If you already run ServiceM8, check your own job software first. ServiceM8 Phone includes an AI Phone Agent on its Connect Plus and Unlimited plans. It answers common questions, takes messages into your ServiceM8 inbox, texts callers a booking link, submits bookings and transfers urgent calls.

Best for: Tradies already on ServiceM8 who want calls and jobs in one place with no extra vendor.

Honest trade-off: It lives inside ServiceM8. If you run Simpro, Tradify or AroFlo, it is not for you.

Pricing: ServiceM8 Phone Connect Plus is A$49 a month with 500 call minutes and the Phone Agent, then 8c a minute. Unlimited is A$199 a month. The page does not say whether prices include GST.

Wins over Johnni: Native to the job software, so no quoted integration. Lower entry price. One-month free trial.

Where it falls short: No website chat or outbound call-backs listed. Only useful inside ServiceM8.

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5. ReceptionHQ

ReceptionHQ is a live answering service with human receptionists and Australian and US websites. It sells message-taking, transfers and diary booking plans.

Best for: Owners who want a real person on every call, with no AI in the loop.

Honest trade-off: Humans cost per call, and their answers depend on the script you give them.

Pricing: The Australian pricing page would not load when we checked on 26 September 2026. A third-party roundup checked in July 2026 reports plans from about A$19 a month plus A$1.99 per call, not confirmed by the vendor. The US site shows plans from US$25 a month plus US$1.99 per call.

Wins over Johnni: A human voice. Useful for sensitive or emotional calls. See also /compare/receptionhq-alternatives.

Where it falls short: Per-call billing adds up in a busy month. No job software booking on the message plans.

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6. Smith.ai

Smith.ai is a US company selling AI answering with an optional live agent team behind it.

Best for: Businesses that want AI first and trained humans as a backstop under one vendor.

Honest trade-off: It bills in US dollars and is built for the US market. Ask how your Australian number reaches it before you sign, because forwarding to an overseas number can cost extra through your carrier.

Pricing: US$0 for 25 calls, then US$3 a call. Pro from US$150 a month. Enterprise from US$500 a month. Month to month with 30 days notice.

Wins over Johnni: Human escalation. Per-call, not per-minute, billing, so long calls do not cost more.

Where it falls short: Currency, time zone and local accent. Read /compare/smith-ai-alternatives-nz-au.

Side-by-side comparison

Service	Published price	What is metered	Channels	Job software	Human option
Johnni	A$49 to A$809 a month ex GST	Minutes, then A$0.35 to A$0.50	Phone, web widget from Solo, SMS add-on	Quoted add-on	No
Help Genie	A$299 a month on Pro	Nothing, fair use	Phone, web chat, voice widget, email, QR	Scoped per deal	Hands off to your team
Sophiie	Not published	Unknown	Phone, SMS, web chat	ServiceM8, Simpro, Xero	No
Hey Jodie	A$99 to A$399 a month plus tax	Fair use of 1,000 call events	Phone	Zapier on Premium	No
ServiceM8 Phone Agent	A$49 or A$199 a month	Minutes on Connect Plus	Phone, SMS booking link	Native ServiceM8	No
ReceptionHQ	About A$19 plus A$1.99 a call (third party)	Calls	Phone	No	Yes, core product
Smith.ai	US$0 to US$500 a month	Calls	Phone	Many	Yes

What Johnni costs at your call length

Johnni sizes plans on two-minute calls. Here is the published maths when calls run longer, in AUD ex GST.

100 calls at three minutes. 300 minutes on Solo is A$134 plus 100 extra minutes at A$0.45. That is A$179 a month.

300 calls at three minutes. 900 minutes on Starter is A$269 plus 300 extra minutes at A$0.40. That is A$389 a month.

300 calls at five minutes. 1,500 minutes. Starter plus overage is A$629. Growth is A$809 flat. Add A$50 if you want SMS.

Help Genie Pro stays at A$299 in each case. That does not make it the better buy, because Johnni’s price includes booking work Help Genie will not do. Run your own call log through the ROI calculator and both price lists.

Best alternative by scenario

You run ServiceM8 and want jobs booked with no extra vendor. ServiceM8 Phone Agent.

You want local, trade-first and will pay for booking into Simpro or ServiceTitan. Stay with Johnni and get the integration quote in writing.

You want an all-in-one office tool with quotes and invoices. Sophiie, after a demo and a written price.

You are a sole trader who mostly needs messages taken. Hey Jodie Basic.

Your callers ask about products, specs, parts or warranty. Help Genie. Look at the trades hub or send us your manual and we will build a genie from it.

You want a person on every call. ReceptionHQ or a hybrid like Smith.ai.

Frequently asked questions

How much does Johnni cost? From A$49 a month ex GST on monthly billing, or A$44 on annual, with 60 minutes. The popular Starter plan is A$269 with 600 minutes. Overage runs A$0.35 to A$0.50 a minute depending on plan, as of September 2026.

Does Johnni integrate with ServiceM8 and Simpro? Its homepage names both. Its pricing page lists job software integration as a custom add-on quoted per business. Ask for that quote before you compare prices.

Is Johnni cheaper than Help Genie? At low volume, yes. With longer calls or higher volume, Johnni can pass A$299. They also do different jobs. Johnni books work, Help Genie answers product questions across phone and web.

What is the best Johnni alternative for a product-heavy trade business? If callers ask which model suits them, what a part costs or how to reset a unit, a genie trained on your manuals handles that better than a booking script. See product support and lead capture.

The bottom line

Johnni is a good local option for tradies who want the job booked and the missed lead called back, and its prices are now public. The catch is the minute meter and the separately quoted integration.

On ServiceM8, try its Phone Agent first. For admin in one tool, get a Sophiie quote. For a person, ReceptionHQ. If callers ask product questions and you want web and phone covered at one flat price, try Help Genie. More matchups on /compare.

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