Skip to content
Sam Despo

Free AI newsletter

The best new AI tools and how to actually use them. Free, straight to your inbox.

No spam. Unsubscribe any time.

Side-by-side comparison · Sales & Customer Support

Close vs Decagon vs Retell AI

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Close

4.1

From $9/user/mo

DetailsVisit

Decagon

3.9

Free to start

DetailsVisit

Retell AI

4.1

From About $0.07–$0.31/min

DetailsVisit

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Close4.1
Easiest to use

Pick it if: Small sales teams and solo sellers who call and email a lot of leads and want it all in one tool.

Decagon3.9

Pick it if: Large companies with big support teams that want AI to handle most customer chats, emails and calls.

Retell AI4.1

Pick it if: Service businesses and agencies that want an AI receptionist or phone agent without hiring developers.

Overview

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
In one lineSales CRM with calling, texting and email built in, plus an AI agent that calls leads.AI agents that answer customer chats, emails and phone calls for large companies.AI phone agents that answer calls, book appointments and make outbound calls.
Pricing modelPaidPaidPaid
Starting price$9/user/moSee websiteAbout $0.07–$0.31/min
Free plan No No No
Works with Claude Code Yes No Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
Overall rating4.13.94.1
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.0
3.0
3.5
FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together.
4.5
4.5
4.5
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
4.0
4.5
4.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
3.0
4.0
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
4.0
4.5
4.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
Access & platform
Free plan No No No
Mobile app Yes No–
Desktop app Yes No–
Browser extension No No–
API access Yes– Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes Yes Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO No Yes Yes
Connects to other apps Yes Yes Yes
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files Yes Yes Yes
Understands images–––
Makes images No No No
Makes video No No No
Writes code No No–
Runs agents or automations Yes Yes Yes
Learns your brand or style No Yes–
Works in many languages No Yes Yes
Capabilities score7/ 177/ 177/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
Plans

Solo

$9/user/mo billed yearly, or $19 monthly

One person selling on their own.

EnterpriseOur pick

Custom

Large companies with high support volume.

Pay as you goOur pick

About $0.07–$0.31/min

Most small businesses and agencies.

Essentials

$35/user/mo billed yearly, or $49 monthly

Small teams sharing leads.

Enterprise

Custom

High call volumes and compliance needs.

GrowthOur pick

$99/user/mo billed yearly, or $109 monthly

Teams that want follow-ups and AI on autopilot.

Scale

$139/user/mo billed yearly, or $149 monthly

High-volume calling teams.

Which plan to pickTake the 14-day trial, which needs no card. Solo is a bargain if you sell alone and follow up by hand. Growth is where Close earns its price, because that's where automated follow-ups, the power dialer and Chloe in workflows start. Budget a little extra each month for call minutes.There's only one way to buy it: book a demo and get a custom quote. It only makes sense once you handle tens of thousands of support conversations a month.Start on pay as you go with the free credits, build one agent for your most common call and test it on your own phone. Talk to sales only once you run thousands of minutes a month.

Key features

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
Standout features
  • Built-in calling and texting
  • Chloe AI agent
  • Power and predictive dialers
  • Email and text sequences
  • Two-way email sync
  • AI summaries
  • Chat, email and voice
  • Agent Operating Procedures
  • Real actions
  • Testing and A/B tests
  • Quality checks
  • Customer insights
  • Phone agents
  • Flow builder
  • Appointment booking
  • Knowledge base
  • Batch calling
  • Call analysis

Pros and cons

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
Pros
  • Calling, texting and email built in, with everything logged
  • Solo plan is one of the cheapest proper CRMs around
  • Chloe can call and qualify leads without hiring a rep
  • Fast to learn compared with Salesforce or HubSpot
  • Official MCP connector for Claude
  • Takes real actions in customer accounts, not only answers
  • Support teams can change how the agent behaves without engineers
  • Strong testing and quality tools before changes go live
  • Handles chat, email and phone in one agent
  • Big-name customers report high resolution rates
  • Natural voices and quick responses
  • Visual builder makes it usable for non-developers
  • Pay per minute with no platform fee
  • Strong reviews from small businesses and agencies
Cons
  • Calls and texts are billed on top of the plan
  • Automations and the power dialer need Growth, which is a big jump from Essentials
  • Chloe launched for US and Canadian numbers in English only
  • Less suited to marketing or businesses that rarely pick up the phone
  • Large companies only, with no public pricing, trial or self-serve plan
  • Contracts are reported to start well above $100,000 a year
  • Setup takes weeks and needs your systems connected
  • Most performance figures come from Decagon and its customers
  • Per-minute cost varies a lot with your model and voice choices
  • Takes testing to handle real callers reliably
  • Some users want more voice and customisation options

Who each one is for

AttributeCloseDecagonRetell AI
Best for
  • Calling and texting leads straight from the CRM
  • Following up leads automatically by email and text
  • Having AI call and qualify new leads
  • Small inside sales teams and solo sellers
  • Automating support at a large consumer brand
  • AI agents that take real actions in customer accounts
  • Answering phone calls with AI in many languages
  • Support teams that want to change the AI without engineers
  • AI receptionist for a small business
  • Booking appointments by phone
  • Answering after-hours and overflow calls
  • Outbound reminder and follow-up calls
You'll find it used by
  • Small sales teams
  • Solo founders
  • Agencies
  • Inside sales reps
  • Large consumer brands
  • Fintech companies
  • Travel companies
  • Enterprise support teams
  • Small business owners
  • Clinics
  • Voice AI agencies
  • Customer service teams
  • Developers

Questions people ask

Which is better, Close, Decagon or Retell AI?

They tie on our overall rating (Close 4.1/5, Decagon 3.9/5 and Retell AI 4.1/5). Close is best for calling and texting leads straight from the CRM and following up leads automatically by email and text. Decagon is best for automating support at a large consumer brand and AI agents that take real actions in customer accounts. Retell AI is best for AI receptionist for a small business and booking appointments by phone.

Which is cheaper, Close, Decagon or Retell AI?

Close: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $9/user/mo. Decagon: Pricing isn't published; check the vendor's site for a quote. Retell AI: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at About $0.07–$0.31/min.

Which is easier to use, Close, Decagon or Retell AI?

Close rates highest for ease of use in our scores. Small sales teams and solo sellers who call and email a lot of leads and want it all in one tool.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

Swap in another tool

More tools from Sales & Customer Support in the library.