Guide
AI ISA vs. Human ISA: Features, Costs and Tradeoffs
An inside sales agent makes the prospecting calls and follow-ups an agent runs out of time for. You can hire that role or run it as software. They are not the same thing, and the honest answer is that each one is better at different parts of the job.
7-day trial · up to 50 AI calling minutes · no card required · calling stays off until you connect your own calling account.
Side by side
| Area | Human ISA | AI ISA (Agent Assist AI) |
|---|---|---|
| Cost basis | Salary or hourly pay plus payroll costs, whether or not calls connect. US inside sales pay is commonly reported around $51,631 per year (Salary.com, June 2026) to $61,197 base (Indeed, 2026). | Subscription from $99/month with included calling minutes, plus a stated per-minute rate beyond them. |
| Volume and hours | Works set hours; volume drops with sick days, training and turnover. | Runs within the calling hours and daily caps you set, on the workflow you enabled. |
| Judgment | Reads tone, handles a genuinely unusual situation, negotiates, builds a long relationship. | Follows a reviewed script, asks one question at a time, and stops when someone is not interested. |
| Consistency | Varies by day, mood and script discipline. | Same disclosure, same questions, same do-not-call handling on every call. |
| Record keeping | Depends on how diligently the person logs the call. | Transcript, summary, status, temperature and follow-up task written back automatically. |
| Appointments | Can book directly into your calendar if you allow it. | Captures a requested day and time for you to confirm. No calendar sync or automatic booking. |
| Compliance exposure | Human dialing rules apply; training and monitoring are on you. | AI-generated voice is treated as artificial or prerecorded voice under the TCPA (FCC, February 2024), so consent and disclosure matter more, not less. |
Salary figures are third-party published averages, linked in the sources below. They are not a promise of savings or results.
Where the AI assistant is genuinely better
Volume that never happens otherwise. An expired list from three weeks ago, a FSBO that went quiet, a buyer inquiry that came in on a Saturday — those calls get skipped when the day fills up. The assistant also documents itself: every attempt writes a status, temperature, transcript, summary and follow-up task, so nothing depends on someone remembering to log the call.
It is also consistent about the parts that carry risk: it discloses that it is AI on every call, it ends the conversation when someone says they are not interested, and it adds a number to your internal do-not-call list when asked.
Where a person is still better
Anything that needs judgment: a seller in a difficult situation, a pricing conversation, a referral relationship, a negotiation. The assistant is built for first contact and follow-up, then handing the interested conversations to you. It does not give legal, tax or lending advice and it does not quote numbers it has not been given.
You control what the assistant says
Identity, disclosure, tone and qualification rules are settings you can read and edit — which is the practical difference from training a new hire.
Plans start at $99/month
Included AI calling minutes on every plan, with a stated per-minute rate after that. You bring your own lead lists and confirm every requested appointment time yourself.
Frequently asked questions
- Can an AI ISA replace a human ISA?
- For first-touch prospecting and follow-up on lists you own, it covers calls that often do not get made at all. For negotiation, nuanced conversations and long-term relationship work, a person is still better. Many agents use the AI for volume and handle the interested conversations themselves.
- How do the costs really compare?
- A subscription plus per-minute usage is a different shape of cost than a salary. Published US averages for an inside sales representative are around $61,197 base per year (Indeed, 2026) and $51,631 per year for an Inside Sales Representative I (Salary.com, June 2026). Compare against your own plan's monthly price and expected minutes rather than a headline claim — we do not publish savings figures.
- Does the AI say it is an AI?
- Yes. The assistant identifies itself as your AI assistant and never claims to be a person. That instruction is visible in your training settings.
- Do I need my own lead lists?
- Yes. You bring your own lists and your own calling account. Agent Assist AI does not sell lead data.
Run the comparison on your own numbers
Start the free trial, upload a list you already own, and see what the calls and records look like before deciding.
7-day trial · up to 50 AI calling minutes · no card required.