What is a predictive dialer?
A predictive dialer is software that calls several numbers at once on behalf of each agent, predicts when an agent is about to be free, and connects only the calls a human actually answers. Agents stop listening to ringing, voicemail and dead numbers — they just get conversations.
The gain is enormous and easy to state: manual dialling typically yields 10–15 minutes of talk time per agent hour. A well-tuned predictive dialer can push that past 40–50 minutes. Same headcount, several times the conversations.
The trade-off is equally simple. Because the system dials ahead of availability, it can occasionally connect a call with no agent ready — the "dead air" an abandoned call produces. That is why pacing settings and compliance limits matter, and why predictive dialling only makes sense above a certain team size.
Predictive, power, preview or auto dialer — what is the difference?
| Type | How it dials | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Predictive | Several numbers per agent, paced by an algorithm | Teams of roughly 8+ agents on high-volume outbound | Abandoned calls if pacing is set aggressively |
| Power | A fixed number of lines per agent (often 1–3) | Small teams, 2–8 agents | Some idle time between connects |
| Preview | Shows the record, agent chooses to dial | High-value or complex sales, callbacks | Lowest throughput by design |
| Progressive | One call per agent, automatically, as they free up | Service and follow-up calling | No prediction, so no abandonment either |
| Auto dialer | Umbrella term for all of the above | — | Vendors use it loosely — ask which mode you are buying |
"Auto dialer software" and "predictive dialer software" are often the same product listing. When comparing quotes, ask which dialling modes are included in the tier you are being quoted — predictive is frequently the upgrade.
Predictive dialer and auto dialer software compared
Published and reported rates, checked August 2026. Most of this market is sold per agent per month, and several vendors quote by sales call only.
| Platform | Pricing | Cost for 10 agents | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| eTollFree hosted VICIdial | $99/mo up to 10 agents $249/mo up to 30 |
$99/mo (~$9.90 per agent) | No per-agent fees, no setup, unlimited campaigns |
| CloudTalk | from ~$19/user/mo | ~$190/mo | Strong routing; predictive on higher tiers |
| Convoso | Quote only (reported ~$90/user/mo) | ~$900/mo | High-volume lead gen, AI pacing |
| Five9 | ~$119–$159/user/mo | ~$1,190–$1,590/mo | Reported 50-seat minimum — not an SMB product |
| PhoneBurner | from ~$140/user/mo | ~$1,400/mo | Power dialling focus |
| Talkdesk / Genesys / NICE | Quote only, enterprise | Quoted per seat | Contact-centre suites, long procurement |
| Self-hosted VICIdial | Software free, infrastructure is not | ~$900–$3,500+/mo all-in | See the self-hosting breakdown below |
The market generally runs $25–$175 per agent per month. That is the number to hold in your head, because it is what makes flat-rate hosting look strange at first glance: $99/mo for up to 10 agents works out around $9.90 per agent, and $249/mo for up to 30 is about $8.30.
Why is per-agent pricing so much more expensive?
Because it charges for seats, and outbound teams flex. Seasonal campaigns, part-time closers, a week of overflow — each one adds a seat charge on a per-agent platform, and taking it away again often means waiting for renewal.
Run it out at three team sizes, using the mid-market rate of ~$90/agent:
| Agents | Per-agent platform (~$90) | eTollFree hosted | Difference per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | $450/mo | $99/mo | ~$4,200 |
| 10 | $900/mo | $99/mo | ~$9,600 |
| 30 | $2,700/mo | $249/mo | ~$29,400 |
Annual billing takes ours lower still — $83/mo for the 10-agent plan and $211/mo for 30 agents, a 15% saving.
What about self-hosting VICIdial? It's free.
The software is genuinely free and open source, and that is exactly why people underestimate this. What you pay for is everything around it:
| Self-hosted | Monthly reality |
|---|---|
| Server / infrastructure | $200–$500 |
| IT admin time (tuning, patching, carrier issues) | $500–$2,000 |
| Support contract | $200–$500 |
| Downtime | Variable, and it lands mid-campaign |
| Realistic total | $900–$3,500+ |
Against $99–$249/mo fully managed, most operations save 40–60% by not running it themselves — and the saving is bigger than it looks, because the hours the software eats are usually your most technical person's.
Self-host anyway if you have in-house Asterisk expertise, unusual customisation needs, or a regulatory reason to hold the infrastructure. Those are real reasons. "It's free" is not one.
What should outbound call center software include?
Whatever it is called on the pricing page, these are the parts that decide whether your floor runs:
- All dialling modes — predictive, power, preview and progressive, with pacing you control.
- Campaign and list management — multiple campaigns, lead recycling, dispositions, DNC handling.
- Call recording, included rather than an add-on, with storage you can actually retrieve from.
- Real-time dashboards — agent status, drop rate, connects per hour, while the shift is running.
- STIR/SHAKEN attestation, or your calls get flagged as spam and answer rates collapse.
- Inbound too, so callbacks land in the same system as the campaign that generated them.
- CRM integration and an API, so dispositions do not get retyped.
All of that is standard on our hosted plans, including the $99 one — unlimited inbound and outbound campaigns, recording, real-time reporting and STIR/SHAKEN compliance, with a 99.9% uptime SLA and setup measured in under an hour.
Compliance: the part that costs more than the software
Outbound dialling is regulated, and the fines dwarf the licence fee. Without giving legal advice, these are the levers your dialler must give you:
- Abandonment rate control. Predictive pacing must be tunable, and you should be able to see the live drop rate.
- DNC list handling at campaign and account level, with scrubbing on import.
- Calling-hours rules by time zone, enforced by the system rather than by memory.
- Consent and recording notices, configurable per campaign and per state.
- Caller ID attestation (STIR/SHAKEN) so legitimate calls are not labelled spam.
- Audit trail — recordings and dispositions you can produce on request.
If a vendor cannot show you these settings in a demo, that is your answer.
Do I actually need a predictive dialer?
- 1–2 agents: no. Click-to-call from your CRM is enough, and predictive pacing on tiny teams mostly generates abandoned calls.
- 3–7 agents: a power or progressive dialler is usually the sweet spot — more talk time, no abandonment risk.
- 8+ agents on high-volume outbound: yes. This is where prediction pays for itself, often several times over in the first month.
- Mostly inbound: you need call-centre software, not a dialler. Look at routing, queues and reporting instead.
Best auto dialer by situation
Small outbound team (up to 10 agents)
Hosted VICIdial at $99/mo gives every dialling mode, unlimited campaigns and recording for less than one seat on most per-agent platforms. Best value in the category by a wide margin.
Growing call centre (10–30 agents)
$249/mo for up to 30 agents, with priority support, API access, custom reporting and a dedicated server option. The per-agent equivalent at ~$90 is $2,700/mo.
Enterprise or multi-site
Custom plans with dedicated infrastructure, white-label options, multi-tenant support and custom SLAs. This is also where Five9, Genesys, Talkdesk and NICE genuinely compete on capability — get quotes and compare properly.
Small sales team that just needs more dials
A power dialler bolted onto your CRM may be enough. Be honest about volume before buying contact-centre software.
Questions to ask before you buy a dialer
- Is this priced per agent or flat? What happens when I add five seasonal agents?
- Which dialling modes are in this tier — is predictive an upgrade?
- Is there a seat minimum? (Several enterprise platforms require 50.)
- Is call recording included, and where is it stored?
- Is STIR/SHAKEN attestation included?
- What is the setup fee and how long until we are dialling? (Ours: $0, under an hour.)
- What is the contract term and the uptime SLA? (Ours: month to month, 99.9%.)
- Who tunes the pacing when the drop rate climbs?
The short version
A predictive dialer multiplies talk time per agent hour — roughly 10–15 minutes manually to 40–50+ — and is worth it from about 8 agents upward. The software market charges $25–$175 per agent per month, with Five9 at ~$119–$159, PhoneBurner from ~$140, CloudTalk from ~$19, and Convoso and the enterprise suites quoting by sales call. Self-hosting VICIdial is free software on $900–$3,500+/mo of infrastructure and admin time.
Hosted VICIdial here is $99/mo for up to 10 agents and $249/mo for up to 30 — no per-agent fees, no setup cost, every dialling mode, unlimited campaigns, recording and STIR/SHAKEN included, live in under an hour. Full plan detail and the cost breakdown are on our VICIdial pricing page.
