The iPad VMS famous for two-way visitor messaging. WelcomeDesk takes the same job and does it in any browser, for one flat price that covers every office.
14-day free trial · no credit card · $199 migration from The Receptionist included on request
One of the original iPad visitor management products. Best known for two-way kiosk messaging - the host can reply to the visitor from Slack/SMS and the reply appears on the kiosk. Lovely feature; everything around it is showing its age.
WelcomeDesk runs in any browser on the tablet you already own, charges one flat price per account (not per location), and includes every core visitor-management feature on day one. Most teams move across in an afternoon.
The Receptionist starts at Mid-market iPad subscriptions, custom-quoted (Annual contracts). WelcomeDesk is $49/mo Starter or $99/mo Business, covering every office under one bill.
| If you have... | The Receptionist | WelcomeDesk |
|---|---|---|
| 1 office | Custom quote (~$100+ / mo) | $49 / mo (Starter) save $51/mo |
| 5 offices | Custom quote (~$500+ / mo) | $99 / mo (Business) save $401/mo |
| 15 offices | Custom quote (~$1,500+ / mo) | $99 / mo (Business) save $1,401/mo |
Honest comparison: most table-stakes features are checked off by both products. The differences sit at the bottom of the table - those are the ones that matter.
| Feature | The Receptionist | WelcomeDesk |
|---|---|---|
| Self-service kiosk | !YesiPad app required |
✓Yesany browser, any tablet |
| Pre-registration | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Photo capture | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Custom visitor types | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Host email notifications | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Host SMS / Slack / Teams notifications | !Yeshigher tiers only |
✓YesBusiness or Communications add-on |
| NDA / legal capture | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Watchlist screening | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Evacuation / muster report | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Multi-location | ×Yesper-location billing |
✓Yesone bill covers all |
| Audit log | ✓Yes |
✓Yestamper-evident hash chain |
| REST API + webhooks | !Yestop tiers only |
✓YesBusiness, or Developer add-on |
| Virtual mailroom + package handling | ×Limitedoften a paid module |
✓Includedno extra cost |
| Team invites / multi-user admin | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| Google + Outlook calendar pre-reg | ✓Yes |
✓Yes |
| SAML SSO | !YesEnterprise tier only |
✓Yesvia WorkOS, on Business |
| Browser-first kiosk (no iPad app) | ×No |
✓Yescore differentiator |
| Per-account pricing (not per-location) | ×No |
✓Yes~10x cheaper at 5 offices |
| Self-serve trial, no sales call | !Yesoften credit-card gated |
✓Yes14 days, no credit card |
We will pull your visitor history out of The Receptionist via CSV export and rebuild your button flows as WelcomeDesk visitor types. One $199 session.
At one office, the prices are close. At three or more offices the gap widens fast because WelcomeDesk's $49 Starter and $99 Business plans cover multiple locations under one bill. By five offices WelcomeDesk is usually 5 to 10 times cheaper than The Receptionist at an equivalent feature set.
No. WelcomeDesk's kiosk runs in any modern browser, so the cheap Android tablet, refurbished iPad or even Windows kiosk you already own works. That's the main architectural difference between us and The Receptionist.
Yes. Our $199 migration service includes importing your The Receptionist visitor log, host directory and pre-registrations. Your audit trail stays unbroken.
Most teams are checking in their first visitor on WelcomeDesk within an hour of signup. If you opt in to the migration service, your historical data is staged that same day.
Yes. 14 days on the full Business plan, no credit card required. No sales call, no demo gating, no per-feature unlocks.
Try WelcomeDesk free for 14 days. If you decide to migrate, our Support Lead handles the transfer from The Receptionist for $199.
Start your free trial See the live demo