All businesses / Answering and reception service
Starting an answering and reception service in Europe costs €2,000–€12,000 in 2026, with first income after about 10 weeks and earnings of up to €4,000 a month working full time.
Last updated: September 2026 · sources at the bottom of the page
Taking calls for small firms.
| Money to start | €2,000–€12,000 | What you spend before the first customer pays: kit, stock, licences, launch. |
|---|---|---|
| Hours a week | 25–50 | What it takes to run it properly, from part time to full time. |
| Weeks to first income | about 10 | How long you pay in before any money comes back. You still need to live in those weeks. |
| Kept of every €100 | €60 | What stays with you after running costs, before you pay yourself for your hours. |
| Most it earns a month | €900 part time · €4,000 full time + | A realistic ceiling for you running it. It can grow further, but only by hiring or adding units. |
| Competition | low | Few do it, usually because something hard keeps them out. |
| Licence or qualification | not usually | Beyond registering the business and insurance, nothing specific in our research. |
The figure above is what this earns in the shape described: you, running it. Past that it keeps going, but by hiring people or adding units, not by you working more hours. That is a different job from the one you would be starting, and worth knowing before you start it.
Quietly recurring and very low competition, because nobody puts it on a list of business ideas. You are tied to the phone during business hours until you hire, and that first hire is what unlocks the ceiling.
These are the categories this business pays for in the first month. We go through the software side on the tools page.
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LaunchKit · €390 + VAT
A site made for your an answering and reception service business, Google profile, domain and email, a QR poster and a 30-day launch plan built on the numbers above. Live in about a week.
Between €2,000 and €12,000 to begin. That covers phone system, CRM, staff or virtual assistants and the rest of the setup. It does not cover your own living costs during the 10 weeks before the first income arrives, which is the cost most people forget.
Around 10 weeks to the first euro. Reaching the realistic maximum of €4,000 a month takes considerably longer, and assumes 50 hours a week.
Up to about €4,000 a month working full time, or €900 part time. Of every €100 it takes, about €60 stays with you after running costs. Past that it can grow, but by hiring people or adding units rather than by working more hours.
Yes, at a cost. Part time it realistically tops out around €900 a month, against €4,000 working full time, and it needs 25–50 hours a week.
Competition is low. Low competition here is not luck: it is a barrier doing its job, and barriers cost money or time to clear.
Compare further: every business you can start with €2,000 · what it costs to start a business, across all 115 · all 115 ranked by startup cost
Where these numbers come from. Figures are rounded ranges for European markets; check the ones you are about to spend money on. Last checked September 2026.
These numbers are the average case. Whether this business clears your target depends on your money, your hours and how long you can wait. Put them in and see.
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