The Flat-Rate Alternative to Retell AI
Retell AI advertises $0.07/min, but real-world costs reach $0.25–$0.33/min when you add LLM, TTS, telephony, and knowledge base fees. Voquii is $497/mo flat for unlimited inbound minutes on proprietary GPU infrastructure. No per-minute billing. No provider juggling. Built for agencies.
Where Retell AI Falls Short for Agencies
Modular Pricing Creates Unpredictable Bills
Retell charges separately for their voice infrastructure ($0.055/min), voice engine ($0.015/min), LLM ($0.003–$0.08/min depending on model), telephony ($0.015/min), knowledge base ($0.005/min), and denoising ($0.005/min). Users report actual costs of $0.25–$0.33 per minute - far above the advertised $0.07/min. For agencies managing multiple clients, this complexity makes margin calculation nearly impossible.
No Native White-Label Solution
Retell AI doesn't offer built-in white-label tools. To deploy under your brand, you need to go through certified app partners like Call Supplai or Knotie-AI Pro - adding another vendor dependency. There's no native custom domain, no agency dashboard, no sub-account management.
Third-Party API Stack
Retell routes through Deepgram for ASR, OpenAI/Anthropic/Google for LLM, and Cartesia/ElevenLabs for TTS - all on AWS/Azure cloud infrastructure. Each external hop adds latency, creates dependency on third-party uptime, and means your data flows through multiple providers.
Complexity Barrier
Users describe Retell as "way too complicated" for non-technical teams. It requires engineering resources to reach production. For agencies who want to deploy AI voice for local businesses quickly, the platform demands more technical depth than most agency teams have.
Voquii vs Retell AI - Feature Comparison
An honest look at how the two platforms compare.
| Feature | Voquii | Retell AI |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing Model | $497/mo flat rate | $0.07+/min (advertised) |
| Actual Cost (10 clients) | $497/mo | ~$1,800/mo |
| Time-to-First-Audio | 375ms | ~600–800ms |
| AI Infrastructure | Proprietary bare-metal GPUs | Cloud (AWS/Azure) + third-party APIs |
| ASR Engine | Self-hosted (proprietary) | Deepgram (third-party) |
| TTS Engine | Self-hosted (Kokoro) | Cartesia, ElevenLabs (third-party) |
| LLM Inference | Self-hosted on bare-metal | OpenAI, Anthropic, Google (third-party) |
| White Label Dashboard | Built-in (custom domain, logo, SMTP) | Via third-party app partners only |
| Sub-Accounts | 10 included | Not included |
| Per-Minute Fees | None | $0.07–$0.33/min total |
| Telephony | BYOK (Twilio/Telnyx) | BYOK (Twilio/Vonage/SIP) |
| Knowledge Base (RAG) | Per-client, included | +$0.005/min add-on |
| Appointment Booking | Built-in (Google/Microsoft) | Via function calling |
| HIPAA Compliance | HIPAA mode available | HIPAA compliant |
| Cost Predictability | Fixed monthly - no surprises | Variable - depends on usage + model |
The Real Cost Difference
What agencies actually pay per month.
What Retell AI Does Well
An honest comparison means acknowledging strengths on both sides.
Outbound Calling & Batch Campaigns
Retell AI supports both inbound and outbound calling, including batch call campaigns with no concurrency limits. Voquii is inbound-only - a deliberate strategy that eliminates TCPA risk and carrier reputation damage, but it means outbound campaigns aren't supported.
Elastic Scalability
Retell runs on AWS/Azure cloud infrastructure with elastic scaling from 5 to 5,000+ concurrent calls. Voquii runs on a fixed bare-metal GPU cluster - which gives us better latency but means capacity is limited to hardware on hand.
SOC 2 Type II Certification
Retell AI holds SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliance certifications. Voquii offers HIPAA mode and encrypts all data, but does not currently hold SOC 2 certification.
Conversation Flow Builder
Retell offers both structured "Conversation Flow Agents" with visual builders and flexible prompt-based agents. Voquii uses prompt-based agents with function calling - powerful but without a visual flow builder.
Why Agencies Switch from Retell to Voquii
Predictable Margins
Your cost is $497/mo no matter how many minutes your clients use. Charge $199–$399/mo per client, and every new client is pure margin. With Retell's modular pricing, costs scale with usage and model choice - your margins erode as volume grows.
Faster Voice Response
375ms Time-to-First-Audio vs Retell's 600–800ms. Our entire pipeline runs on co-located bare-metal GPUs with zero external API hops. The result: more natural conversations and lower caller drop-off.
Built-In White Label
Custom domain with auto-SSL, your logo, your brand colors, custom SMTP, and a full agency portal with sub-account management and client impersonation. No partner program needed. Your clients never see Voquii.
Zero Third-Party Dependencies
Retell routes through Deepgram, OpenAI, Cartesia, and Twilio - each with their own billing, rate limits, and outage risk. Voquii runs the entire ASR → LLM → TTS pipeline on proprietary hardware. One vendor. One bill.
Built for Agencies, Not Developers
Retell is a powerful developer platform, but users report it's "too complicated" for non-technical teams. Voquii is designed for agencies: deploy a client in minutes, not days. No engineering team required.
One-Click Migration from Retell
Voquii has a built-in importer that connects directly to the Retell AI API. Paste your API key, click import, and your agents, phone numbers, and call logs are in Voquii in minutes. No CSV exports, no manual re-entry.
Stop Paying Per Minute. Start Keeping Your Margins.
$497/mo flat. 10 sub-accounts. White label. Proprietary GPU infrastructure. 375ms latency. No per-minute fees. No third-party API dependency.
$497/mo flat · No setup fees · 10 sub-accounts, white label · No per-minute fees