Front-of-house buyer guide
A robot receptionist greets visitors, answers scripted questions, guides people through a building and calls a human when judgment is needed. Published pricing runs from $3,999 for a telepresence platform to $32,000 for a humanoid. Compare what each class really does before you buy the brand moment.
The platform-class decision
01
For check-in, wayfinding and video-calling a human when it matters, a mobile telepresence platform such as temi does the job at a fraction of humanoid cost, and it is the only class with a page-published price under $5,000.
02
Pepper-class humanoids pull visitors in and answer scripted questions. Buy one for the brand moment and the foot-traffic data, not to replace the front desk.
03
Ameca-class robots are rented for launches, lobbies and museums. Treat them as programmed entertainment with handlers, not as unattended reception staff.
Normalized platform evidence
This is not a market ranking. It shows what the reviewed sources establish for each platform, including who actually owns and sells each product in 2026.
Evidence reviewed 31 July 2026
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| Buyer field | SoftBank PepperHumanoid greeter | temi V3Telepresence concierge | LG CLOi GuideBotGuide robot | Engineered Arts AmecaShowpiece humanoid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Form and presence | 121 cm, 29 kg humanoid with a 10.1-inch chest touchscreen and 20 motors.[SBJ1] | 100 cm, 12 kg wheeled platform carrying a 13.3-inch full-HD touchscreen with face-tracking tilt.[TM1] | 150 cm, 80 kg guide robot with a 9.2-inch face display and dual 27-inch touch screens front and back.[LG1] | 187 cm, 62 kg humanoid with 61 actuated movements, 27 of them in the head and face.[EA1] |
| Visitor interaction | Answers questions, gives recommendations, assists with scheduling and forms, guides visitors, and feeds a CRM.[SBU1] | Far-field voice with ASR and text-to-speech, video calls with remote app control, and an open Android SDK for custom reception flows.[TM1] | Speech and touch in six languages (English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean), guest escort mode and docent tours.[LG1][FTE1] | 50+ facial expressions, speech recognition and language models via the Tritium platform, with a claimed 70+ languages.[EA1] |
| Autonomy and navigation | Stationary or short-range greeter; laser sensors and gyroscopes support presence detection rather than building-wide navigation.[SBJ1] | 360° LiDAR plus depth cameras with 5 cm accuracy, obstacle avoidance, human following, saved locations and self-docking; up to 8 hours per charge.[TM1] | LiDAR, depth and ToF sensors; 9 hours of operation on a 5-hour charge with automatic recharging, at up to 1 m/s.[LG1] | Typically installed standing; autonomous behaviors cover eye contact, blinking and gaze, not roaming a lobby.[EA1] |
| Price evidence | $32,000 purchase through RobotLAB in the US; historical pricing was $30,000, or $2,000 upfront with a $550 monthly plan.[RL1][TRR1] | $3,999 purchase or Robots-as-a-Service from $83 per month through RobotLAB; the only platform here with a published sub-$5,000 price.[RL2] | Enterprise quote only; the US RSCGD20 model page is now marked discontinued.[LG1] | Rental and quote-based sale; no public pricing is published.[EA1][EA2] |
| Vendor status in 2026 | Maker Aldebaran entered receivership in 2025 after roughly 17,000 Peppers sold; Maxvision bought the technology and IP, and RobotLAB still sells and services Pepper in the US.[TRR1][HEI1][RL1] | Actively sold; the V3 hardware revision is current and V2 units are upgradeable.[RL2][TM1] | LG took a majority stake in Bear Robotics in January 2025 and is folding its CLOi commercial robots into that business; buy through the Bear channel, not the discontinued LG listing.[LG2][LG1] | Engineered Arts reports 250+ robots deployed across 30+ countries, on a rentals-first commercial model.[EA2] |
Named reception programs
Status checked 31 July 2026
| Program | Maturity | Workflow | What the source establishes |
|---|---|---|---|
| HSBC Fifth Avenue flagship + Pepper | Deployed | Bank branch greeting | HSBC and SoftBank Robotics America put Pepper at the Fifth Avenue flagship to greet customers, qualify questions, route visitors to bankers and promote products.[HSBC1] |
| Sphere Las Vegas Aura greeters | Deployed | Venue atrium reception | Sphere's five Aura humanoids greet guests in the grand atrium, answer questions about the venue's engineering and give directions, per Sphere's own announcement.[SPH1] |
| DFW Airport + LG CLOi GuideBot | Pilot / testing | Terminal wayfinding | DFW trialled the GuideBot at Terminal D gates D1 to D4 in 2022 for wayfinding, mobile ordering and flight information, with LG and DFW executives on record.[FTE1] |
| Henn na Hotel robot workforce | Retired / culled | Hotel front desk and in-room service | The famous all-robot hotel removed more than half of its 243 robots in 2019 because they created more work than they saved. The chain still operates 21 properties with robot front desks in 2026, on a much narrower task set.[FRB1][HNH1] |
The front-desk cost baseline
Human baseline
$39,460 mean annual wage
BLS May 2025 data counts 910,180 US receptionists and information clerks at a mean $18.97 per hour, or $39,460 a year ($38,010 median). A robot supplements this desk far more often than it replaces it.[BLS5]
The affordable class
$3,999, or $83 a month
temi is the only reception platform here with a page-published price: $3,999 to buy or Robots-as-a-Service from $83 per month through RobotLAB, before integration work.[RL2]
The humanoid premium
$32,000 for presence
Pepper costs eight times a temi for the humanoid form and brand moment. Price that gap against what a greeter actually has to do at your front desk.[RL1][RL2]
Procurement hard gates
Pepper's maker went through receivership in 2025 and LG folded its guide robots into Bear Robotics. Before buying, confirm who owns the product line, who services it in your country, and what happens to parts and software if that changes again.
Henn na Hotel culled half its robots because they created work instead of removing it. Write down the three tasks the robot must complete unattended, and pilot against those, not against foot-traffic delight.
Marketing language counts differ from what ships. Test the languages your lobby actually hears, in your acoustic environment, before contract.
A robot that cannot check visitors into your existing system, print badges or notify hosts is a kiosk with a face. Name the integration owner before the pilot.
Reception must work for wheelchair users, children, and anyone the robot fails to understand. Keep a human escalation path within sight of the robot.
Engagement is highest in week one. Measure interactions in month three before deciding to scale, because the brand moment fades faster than the subscription.
Site requirements
Buyer questions
Shortlist support
We map your reception workflow, integrations and budget against the platforms above and return a shortlist grounded in what has actually worked at real front desks.
Every claim above cites one of these sources. Review dates note when RoboZaps last checked the page.