If you run a small business and want AI doing real work, you have three kinds of vendor to choose from. They are priced differently, they deliver differently, and they leave you with different things when the engagement ends.
Dollar figures below are from the cited sources. Staffhand’s own figures are set in your scope, after the audit.
The three categories
Software platforms sold as AI employees or assistants. You subscribe, connect your accounts, and configure the tool yourself. It does one job or a small set of jobs.
AI automation agencies. A consultancy builds a workflow for you on top of existing tools, and charges a setup fee plus a retainer or a project fee.
A done-for-you chief of staff build. A vendor audits the business, builds a coordinated set of agents in the client’s own accounts, runs them in approval mode, and provides ongoing human oversight. This is where Staffhand sits.
What the platforms cost and do
The “AI chief of staff” tools in readywhen’s 2026 roundup are all software products: Alfred AI at $24.99 a month, Fyxer from $30 a month, Motion at $19 to $29 a month, Reclaim at $8 to $18 per user per month, Martin at $35 a month, Lindy with a free tier and a $49.99 Pro plan, Coworker at $30 per user per month, Notion AI at $20 per user per month, Fellow from about $11 per user per month, plus readywhen, Bond and Ambient. None is a done-for-you service. (Source: readywhen.)
In the dealership market, AI platforms are sold on subscription tiers of about $1,500 to $3,000 CAD per month per rooftop, compared by the vendors against staffing a business development center at $30,000 to $45,000 a month all-in. (Source: automotiveai.ca.)
In home services, done-for-you AI front-office services exist, offering a 24/7 AI receptionist, web chat and booking. That category covers the front desk, not the whole operation.
Platforms are cheap to start and quick to switch on. They cover one slice of the business, and you do the configuring and watching.
What agencies cost and do
Published guidance on AI automation agency pricing for small businesses puts a single-workflow setup at roughly $1,500 to $5,000 one-time, with retainers of $500 to $1,500 a month. The same source recommends productized, fixed-scope packages for small businesses. (Source: taskip.net.)
Agencies that publish project pricing commonly start at $5,000, with most projects between $5,000 and $50,000. Hourly consulting at $250 an hour also exists. (Source: highflyers.media.)
You get a custom build, usually one workflow at a time. What happens after launch depends on the retainer. Whether the build lives in your accounts or the agency’s is worth asking.
Comparison
| AI employee platforms | AI automation agencies | Chief of staff build (Staffhand) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you get | Software for one or a few jobs | A custom workflow, often one at a time | A company chief of staff plus specialist desks, scoped by audit |
| Who sets it up | You, with onboarding | The agency | Staffhand, in your accounts |
| Who watches it | You | Depends on retainer | Staffhand people review; nothing runs unattended |
| Approval before customer contact | Varies by tool | Varies by build | Always; one approval queue |
| Money questions (price, credit, financing) | Varies by tool | Varies by build | Always routed to a person |
| Published pricing | $8 to $50 a month for general tools; about $1,500 to $3,000 CAD per rooftop per month in dealership AI | About $1,500 to $5,000 setup plus $500 to $1,500 a month; projects commonly $5,000 to $50,000 | Fixed build fee paid in stages; where it fits, a share of revenue above your baseline with a monthly cap; usage at cost. Figures set in your scope |
| Who owns accounts and data | Usually you, inside their platform | Varies; ask | You, always; built in your accounts and stays with you |
| Reporting | Tool dashboards | Varies | Morning brief, live action log, weekly report with attribution |
Platform and agency figures are from the sources cited above.
Where Staffhand sits
Staffhand is not a platform and not a workflow shop. It builds the AI behind a company’s operations and marketing as one coordinated layer: a company chief of staff, specialist desks under it, and personal chiefs of staff for the people who want one. Every build starts with a scored digital audit. See what we build.
Pricing is a fixed build fee for the agreed scope, paid in stages, and where it fits, a share of revenue above a baseline drawn from your own history, with a monthly cap. Usage costs pass through at cost. See pricing; exact figures are set in your scope after the audit.
How to choose
If you need one job done and are comfortable configuring software, a platform is the cheapest path. If you have one workflow to automate and want someone else to build it, an agency fits. If you want the operation run as a team, with one brief, one queue and one log, and you want to own everything built, that is what Staffhand does.
Whichever you pick, ask the four questions in who owns the AI accounts and data before you sign.
Start with a digital audit
The audit is how we decide whether a build makes sense for your business at all. It scores your website, search presence, reviews, social and lead handling. Start with a digital audit.
