Pricing
AI Automation Agency Pricing: Real Numbers, No Runaround
A Clarity Audit is $750. Building a system is $1,200 to set up, then $250 a month, and your audit fee comes off the setup. Missed-call text-back is $750, one-time. Most agencies make you book a call before they'll tell you any of that. Here is what's included and what it looks like for a business your size.
Do the year-one math before you compare plans
Start with the audit and the $750 is credited, so the total is the same $4,200. See the full comparison.
Our packages
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Clarity Audit
$750 (Two weeks)
We map your current workflow, identify what's worth automating, estimate the cost, and tell you honestly whether you should do it yourself, hire us, or hire someone else. Most clients start here. Credited toward your setup if you build.
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Build and Run
$1,200 setup + $250/mo (Per system)
The $1,200 setup
Covers scoping from your audit, building the system inside the tools you already use, testing the edge cases, documentation, and a walkthrough for your team. Live in two to three weeks.
The $250 a month
Covers hosting and platform management, monitoring and error alerts, fixes when an integration or API breaks, up to one hour of small changes a month, and a short monthly check-in.
Month to month. Cancel anytime and you keep what we built. Third-party platform and AI usage fees, typically $20 to $250 a month, are paid directly to those vendors. Each additional system is its own setup and monthly fee.
Start with the audit The audit scopes the build, and its fee comes off the setup. -
Missed-Call Text-Back
$750 (One-time)
Every unanswered call gets a text back in seconds, from your existing business number. Live in one day. No monthly fee to us.
Risk-Free Integration
We build inside the tools you already use — your phone, your CRM, QuickBooks, Jobber, Housecall Pro, whatever you're running. No new software to learn. No ripping out what works. You own everything we build, and you can take it with you.
No obligation to build afterward. If a fix isn't worth it, the audit says so.
What the first system usually is
- Home Services (Plumbing, HVAC, Roofing)
- Common needs: Lead follow-up automation, quote-to-close tracking, appointment reminders, dispatch triage.
- Usual first system: missed-call handling and estimate follow-up.
- Real Estate Agents and Teams
- Common needs: Instant lead response and routing, showing scheduling, long-term follow-up sequences, transaction checklists.
- Usual first system: instant lead response and routing.
- Marketing Agencies
- Common needs: Client reporting, onboarding automation, lead qualification, internal project handoffs.
- Usual first system: automated client reporting.
- E-commerce Small Business
- Common needs: Order follow-up, review solicitation, abandoned cart logic, support triage.
- Usual first system: order follow-up and review requests.
- Professional Services
- Common needs: Client intake, document processing, follow-up sequences, internal reporting.
- Usual first system: client intake and follow-up sequences.
Every one of these is the same price: $1,200 setup, then $250 a month.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does an AI automation agency cost per month?
Alpenglow AI charges $250 a month per system, after a $1,200 setup, with no retainer. For comparison, market rates for a small-business retainer run $1,000 to $3,000 a month, packaged plans start around $500, and larger engagements run $3,000 to $10,000 or more.
What's a fair price for a small business automation project?
For a single well-scoped workflow with one integration and one clear outcome, the market range is $2,500 to $6,000. Below that, you are often getting a template solution or paying someone who will skip testing. Ours is a flat $1,200 setup per system, because the Clarity Audit does the scoping first.
Is it cheaper to hire an agency or do it in-house?
It depends on the workflow. Simple, single-tool automations are often cheaper to do in-house with no-code tools, often four to six hours of setup. Multi-tool workflows with real edge cases are almost always cheaper with an agency once you account for the time it takes to get them working reliably. If you are weighing the math for your team, read our guide on whether hiring someone is worth it.
Why $250 a month when most agencies charge $500 or more?
Because the monthly fee pays for keeping one system running well, not for a bundle of tools you may not use. The $1,200 setup pays for the build. A typical $500-a-month package with a $1,500 setup is $7,500 in year one. Ours is $4,200, and the $750 audit is credited toward the setup if you build. We did the year-one math here.
Do AI automation agencies charge setup fees?
Most do, either explicitly as an audit fee or onboarding fee, or implicitly folded into the first project's price. If an agency waives the setup fee entirely, ask how they are covering discovery, because the work still has to happen somewhere. Ours is $1,200 per system, and the Clarity Audit fee is credited toward it.
Can I cancel the $250 a month?
Yes. It is month to month after launch. If you cancel, you keep the system and its documentation; we stop monitoring and maintaining it.
Is there an AI automation option under $1,500?
Yes. Build and Run is $1,200 to set up one system, then $250 a month. If you start with the $750 Clarity Audit, that fee is credited toward the setup, so the audit plus the build is still $1,200 up front. Missed-call text-back is $750 one-time with no monthly fee.
What does the $250 a month cover?
Hosting and platform management for the system, monitoring and error alerts, fixes when an integration or API breaks, up to one hour of small changes a month, and a short monthly check-in. Third-party platform and AI usage fees, typically $20 to $250 a month, are paid directly to those vendors.
Want to learn more about how we price and what drives costs up or down? Read our full breakdown: How Much Does an AI Automation Agency Cost? (Real Numbers)
Still defining what you need? Read our overview of what a marketing automation agency does.
Start with the $750 audit
It tells you what is worth building and what it will cost, before you spend anything on a build. Prefer to talk? Call (719) 314-1500.
No obligation to build afterward. If a fix isn't worth it, the audit says so.