290 agents · 42 jobs
Updated Nov 4, 2026Hire your first AI agent.
The directory for founders and teams who want work done, not another chatbot. Pick the job, see which agents do it, what they cost and how much they handle on their own.
I need an agent that…
- answers my phone
- talks to callers for me
- lets me build my own agents
- writes and fixes my code
- takes my meeting notes
- handles my calls
- runs my marketing
- handles support tickets
- chats with my site visitors
- books sales meetings
- finds leads and sends my outreach
- automates my busywork
- helps me code my own agents
- clicks around websites for me
- runs on my own servers
- handles my errands and inbox
Starting a business
Agents that cover the jobs you can't hire for yet.
Using agents at work
Agents that take repetitive work off a team's plate.
Most searched
The lists people come for
How to read this site
Not every “agent” is an agent. We rate how much of the job it does without you.
Assistant
Helps you do the work; you stay in the loop on every step.
8 reviewed agents
Task agent
Completes tasks you hand it, then reports back.
69 reviewed agents
Autonomous
Runs a whole job end to end without supervision.
62 reviewed agents
Receptionists
Best AI Receptionists
Smith.ai is the best AI receptionist for most service businesses because live North America-based receptionists can take over any call the AI can't handle, and it has a free plan to start. Rosie is the best value for small local businesses at $49/mo with 250 minutes. Goodcall suits busy lines with repeat callers, since it bills per unique caller instead of per minute.
Smith.ai
AI receptionist with live North America-based receptionists as backup
Rosie
AI phone answering for small businesses, from $49/mo
Goodcall
AI phone agent billed per unique caller, not per minute
Upfirst
Per-call AI answering service with a no-card free trial
Coding
Best AI Coding Agents
Claude Code is the best AI coding agent for most developers: it plans and carries out multi-file changes and checks its own work with your tests. Cursor suits people who want the agent inside a familiar VS Code editor, and OpenAI Codex is the easiest place to start because it comes with every ChatGPT plan, including Free.
Claude Code
Anthropic's coding agent that edits, runs and ships code from your terminal or IDE
Cursor
AI code editor with an agent that makes changes across your whole project
OpenAI Codex
OpenAI's coding agent for the terminal, IDE and cloud, included in every ChatGPT plan
GitHub Copilot
GitHub's AI pair programmer and coding agent that turns issues into pull requests
Agent builders
Best AI Agent Builders
n8n is the best AI agent builder for teams that want full control, with agent nodes, hundreds of integrations and a self-hosting option. Zapier Agents is the easiest for non-technical teams because it works across thousands of apps and is free to start. Lindy is the pick for founders who want ready-made assistant agents for email, meetings and follow-ups.
n8n
Workflow automation with AI agent nodes, cloud-hosted or self-hosted
Zapier Agents
AI agents that act across 9,000+ apps using your Zapier connections
Lindy
AI assistant for email, meetings, calls and routines across your apps
Gumloop
No-code builder for AI agents and workflows that use your company's tools
Sales
Best AI Sales Agents
For most B2B teams the best AI sales agent is 11x, which runs outbound with Alice and inbound follow-up with Julian. Founders who want to pay per prospect with no contract should start with AiSDR, and teams with steady website traffic get more from Qualified Piper, which converts inbound visitors without any cold-email risk.
11x
AI sales reps for outbound (Alice) and inbound follow-up (Julian)
AiSDR
Pay-per-prospect AI SDR for email and LinkedIn outbound
Artisan (Ava)
Ava, an AI BDR that finds leads, writes outreach and books meetings
Qualified Piper
Inbound AI SDR that chats with site visitors and books meetings
Learn
New to AI agents? Start here
What Is an AI Agent? A Plain-English Definition
An AI agent is software that takes a goal, decides the steps needed to reach it, and carries them out using tools like email, a browser, a calendar or a CRM. Unlike a chatbot that only replies, an agent acts: it books the meeting, answers the call or fixes the bug, then checks its own work.
Agentic AI: What It Means and How It Differs From GenAI
Agentic AI is AI that acts on its own to reach a goal. Instead of producing one answer to one prompt, an agentic system plans a series of steps, uses tools and apps, checks the results and adjusts. Generative AI creates content; agentic AI uses that ability to get work done with less human input.
AI Agent vs Chatbot: What's the Difference?
A chatbot answers questions in a conversation; an AI agent completes tasks. A chatbot tells a customer how to change their booking. An AI agent changes the booking in your system, sends the confirmation and updates the CRM. Agents plan steps and use tools, while chatbots mostly follow scripts or reply with text.
AI Agent Examples: 25 Real Agents Businesses Use Today
Common AI agent examples include Intercom Fin resolving support tickets, Smith.ai answering business phone calls, 11x and Artisan running sales outreach, Claude Code and Cursor writing software, ChatGPT deep research writing research reports, and Fyxer sorting and drafting email. Each one takes a goal and finishes the task using real business tools.
Types of AI Agents: The Classic 5 and Today's Business Types
There are five classic types of AI agents: simple reflex, model-based reflex, goal-based, utility-based and learning agents. In business today, agents are usually grouped by job (support, sales, coding, research), by interface (chat, voice, browser, background) and by autonomy, from assistants that suggest to agents that run whole jobs.
How to Build an AI Agent: No-Code and Code Paths
To build an AI agent, pick one narrow job, write down the steps and rules, choose a model, connect the tools it needs, and test it on real examples before going live. Non-coders can build in n8n, Zapier Agents, Lindy or Microsoft Copilot Studio. Developers can use the OpenAI Agents SDK, Claude Agent SDK or LangGraph.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI agent in 2026?
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There is no single best AI agent; the best one depends on the job. For coding, Claude Code and Cursor lead. For answering business phone calls, AI receptionists like Smith.ai and Goodcall are the usual picks. For building your own agents without code, n8n, Zapier Agents and Lindy are the most common choices. Each list on this site ranks agents for one job.
What is an AI agent?
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An AI agent is software that uses a large language model to complete a goal by planning steps and taking actions with tools, such as sending emails, updating a CRM or writing code, instead of only answering a prompt. Read the full guide at bestaiagents.org/learn/what-is-an-ai-agent/.
Which AI agents should a new business start with?
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Most new businesses get the fastest payback from an AI receptionist (never miss a call), a website chat agent (answers questions and captures leads), and a bookkeeping agent. Outreach and content agents come next, once you know who you sell to.
How much do AI agents cost?
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Most business AI agents cost $20–$500 per month. Voice agents usually bill per minute (often $0.05–$0.20), support agents often bill per resolved conversation, and open-source agents are free to run apart from model API costs.
How does bestaiagents.org rank agents?
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Agents are ranked per job by how well they do that job for small teams: what they actually automate, how much they do unattended, transparent pricing, setup time and real tradeoffs. Vendors cannot pay for ranking. See the methodology page for details.