Comparison
HiyaCalls vs Orca: which is right for your UK business?
An honest, evidence-based comparison, what each does well, where each falls short, and how to pick.
HiyaCalls: AI call answering, UK·Orca: UK human-staffed call answering since 2010
HiyaCalls
AI call answering for UK businesses
Built for UK estate agents and SMBs. Every call answered 24/7 by AI, with a written summary in your inbox within seconds.
- Type
- AI
- Coverage
- 24/7
- Based
- UK
- Pricing
- Bespoke
Orca
UK human-staffed call answering since 2010
Orca is a human-staffed call answering service.
- Type
- human
- Coverage
- 24/7 typically
- Based
- UK
- Founded
- 2010
Honest assessment
Both have strengths. Here’s the truth.
Where Orca genuinely wins
- 15+ year UK track record handling calls for hundreds of SMBs
- Family-run feel with sector-specialised human teams
- 24/7 coverage with a 7-day free trial, easy to try
- Strong testimonials across estate agents, dental, automotive, legal
- Per-call and per-minute pricing both available from £1.60 / £1 respectively
Where HiyaCalls wins
- Every call answered by AI 24/7, no queue, no missed calls during spikes
- Written call summary in your inbox within seconds of hanging up
- Unlimited concurrent calls, never engaged, never on hold
- Bespoke pricing structured around your call volume rather than per-call surcharges
Feature comparison
Side by side.
| Capability | HiyaCalls | Orca |
|---|---|---|
| Service type | AI | Human team |
| Truly 24/7, no queueing | subject to team | |
| Unlimited concurrent calls | ||
| Automatic written summary per call | email/SMS | |
| Sentiment & urgency tagging | ||
| Setup model | after a scripting call | ~3 days |
| UK-based | ||
| Free trial | on demand | 7 days |
| Industry-specific scripts | ||
| GDPR documentation pack |
How to choose
Which one fits your business?
Choose HiyaCalls if…
- You handle high call volume, especially during peak hours, and the team can’t keep up
- You want every call to land as a written summary in your inbox automatically
- You’re an estate agent and need viewing requests, valuations, and tenant calls handled to a specific script
- You want 24/7 cover without paying per-call surcharges
- You’ve tried voicemail and it’s costing you leads
Choose Orca if…
- You want a consistent human voice your regulars will recognise over time
- You’re a lower-volume business that values traditional named account management
- You want a longer free trial period before committing
- You’re happy with per-call or per-minute pricing
Comparison FAQ
Common questions.
- Is HiyaCalls cheaper than Orca?
- It depends entirely on your call volume. Orca’s per-call pricing (from £1.60) can add up at scale; HiyaCalls’ bespoke pricing is structured to be predictable. For most UK SMBs handling 100+ calls a month we come in cheaper, especially when you factor in the written summaries you’d otherwise pay extra for.
- Will my callers tell the difference?
- In most cases no, modern AI voice quality is indistinguishable from a confident human receptionist on routine calls. The trade-off is the AI’s consistency: every caller gets the same professional answer, even at 3am. We’d encourage you to listen to a sample on a demo before deciding.
- I’m an estate agent, does HiyaCalls handle property calls as well as Orca?
- Yes, better in our view, because we’ve built our flagship around the estate-agent workflow specifically: viewing requests, valuations, tenant maintenance, and landlord queries. Every call lands as a structured written summary in your team’s inbox within seconds.
See HiyaCalls handle a real call.
Book a 15-minute demo. We’ll show you the AI answering a sample call for your business and the summary in your inbox before we hang up.
Comparison based on publicly available information. Orca and all third-party trademarks are property of their respective owners. We update these pages as competitor offerings change. Spotted something inaccurate? Let us know via our contact form.