Google’s AI Is Calling Dentists for Patients. Here’s How It Picks Who to Call.
Google now runs a feature, shown in Search as “Have AI check pricing,” that calls local businesses on a patient’s behalf and emails the patient a price-and-availability comparison. It is live across the United States for signed-in users 18 and older and is expanding into more categories, including healthcare and dental searches. Google chooses which businesses to call from local search results, and higher-ranked practices are the ones most likely to be called, so strong local visibility matters more than ever. Any practice that misses the call can be shown to the patient under a “businesses we couldn’t reach” label, below the ones that answered.
Key takeaways
- Google’s AI calling feature is live for signed-in US users 18 and older and, per Google, is “expanding to more services.” Its named categories already include wellness centers; we confirmed the dental flow ourselves in June 2026.
- Google chooses which businesses to call from local search rankings, and higher-ranked listings are more likely to be called (Google, via Search Engine Journal). Independent testing by RankScience found 8 of the top 9 local results were called; in our own June 2026 dental test, Google called about ten practices across the market, a wider net than the three-pack.
- Pricing-request calls from Google’s AI grew more than 300% month over month in November 2025 (Invoca). This is a fast-growing channel, not a curiosity.
- Across industries, 26% of these AI calls go unanswered and 48% of answered calls give no price (Invoca). A missed call can put your practice under a “couldn’t reach” label next to the ones that answered.
- You can opt out in your Google Business Profile, but opting out removes you from the comparison while every competitor who stays in remains visible.
What “Have AI check pricing” actually does
Agentic calling (also marketed as “Ask for Me”) is a Google Search feature that places automated phone calls to nearby businesses on a patient’s behalf, then emails the patient a comparison of prices and availability. A patient searches the way they always have, for example “dentist near me” or “dental implants in [city].” If the category is enabled, Google shows a button to let its AI make the calls. The patient fills in a short form with the service and timing, taps submit, and Google’s AI phones several nearby practices at once. When the calls are done, Google emails the patient a summary. Google’s own help page says a response takes about 30 minutes, and that Google “will share your request details, which may include your name, with these businesses.” Google also notes the AI results can include mistakes.
The technology is not new. It runs on Google Duplex, the calling system Google showed in 2018, now upgraded with Gemini. What changed is the scale. The feature went from a January 2025 experiment with nail salons and auto repair to a nationwide US rollout by July 2025, and at Google I/O in May 2026 Google confirmed it is still expanding. This is part of the same shift that produced Google’s AI Overviews for dentistsThis link leads to a blog post about AI overviews for dentists: Google is answering and acting on searches inside its own surface. One detail matters for dentistry. The price-check flow does not book the appointment. Google’s help page says, “Using this service will not create a booking,” so the patient still calls back the practice they pick. That makes the first phone call a screening step your practice either passes or fails.
How Google decides which dentists it calls
This is the part most owners miss. A Google spokesperson told Search Engine Journal that the AI chooses which businesses to contact based on traditional local search rankingsThis link leads to a blog post about local SEO, that only businesses appearing in local results and matching the patient’s request are contacted, and that higher-ranked listings are more likely to be called. Separate independent testing by RankScience found 8 of the top 9 businesses in local results were called, while lower-ranked competitors were not. In our own June 2026 dental test, Google called about ten practices across the market, a wider net than the three-pack, including listings with hundreds of reviews. The takeaway is not that only the top three get called. It is that local visibility decides whether you are in the running at all, and the higher you rank, the better your odds.
Local rank is the strongest lever you have on a new patient-acquisition channelThis link leads to the Lead Generation page. If your group ranks well in local results for “dentist near me” and your high-value service terms, Google’s AI is more likely to dial you. If you have weak local visibility, your odds drop sharply. Google’s own 2026 guidance is clear that optimizing for AI search relies on the same fundamentals as classic SEO: Google Business Profile accuracyThis link leads to a blog post about optimizing GBP, reviews, proximity, and relevance are what put you in the calling pool. There is no separate trick to buy.
What the patient sees, and the label you do not want
When the calls come back, the patient gets a clean comparison: which practices answered, what they said about price and availability, and when they have openings. Practices that did not pick up are not simply absent. Google groups them under a “businesses we couldn’t reach” line, with their contact information shown below the practices that answered with clear information. Google’s help page confirms the fallback: if it cannot reach businesses, it emails the patient recommendations instead.
Picture your practice in that email. A patient sees one office with a clear new-patient price and a Thursday opening, and right beneath it, your name marked as the office Google could not reach. You did not lose on price or reviews. You lost because no one answered a phone. For a dental group, this is the same missed-call leakThis link leads to a blog post about call tracking you already know about, now scored and shown to the patient in the moment they choose. Google labels the comparison as AI-generated and notes it can include mistakes, which is one more reason to make sure your front desk gives clear, correct answers: what your team says gets summarized for the patient, and a vague answer is easy to summarize badly.
The dental wrinkle: insurance gets asked and reported, not used as a filter
Dentistry adds a question most categories do not: insurance. In our walk-through, the patient could enter their dental plan before the calls went out. Importantly, the AI does not appear to filter practices on it. In our test, offices that were out of network, or that did not take the patient’s plan, were still called and still listed, with their insurance answer shown in the summary. So insurance is asked and reported, not used as a gate. The takeaway still holds: a front desk that can clearly confirm “yes, we are in network for that plan, and a new-patient exam is X” wins the comparison against one that is vague, and a fee-for-service or membership practice can use that moment to pitch its savings plan rather than be dismissed on a single insurance answer.
Three checks to run this week
You do not need a new platform to respond. You need to be visible locally and answer the phone.
- Confirm you rank well in local results for “dentist near me” and your top service terms in each location’s market. If your local visibility is weak, strengthening your local rankingsThis link leads to Dental SEO page is the first fix, because rank is what improves your odds of getting dialed.
- Brief your front desk on the AI call. Google’s caller identifies itself as an automated system calling from Google on behalf of a customer and asks about a specific service. It is not spam. Train your team to stay on the line and turn that call into a booked appointmentThis link leads to a blog post about converting new patient calls into appointments, even with an approximate price range and the next open date.
- Make sure every call gets answered, including after hours. A missed call is now a visible “couldn’t reach” next to a competitor’s answer. Whether the fix is staffing, an answering service, or call handling that covers overflow and after-hours, the standard is simple: someone or something answers every time.
What we would not do
We would not tell you to opt out. You can, in your Google Business Profile under advanced settings, but opting out removes your practice from the comparison while every competitor who stays in keeps showing up. For a practice that ranks and answers, opting out hands away patients.
We would not promise you an “AI rank” you can buy. There is no dial to turn. Anyone selling a guaranteed slot in Google’s AI calls is selling something Google does not offer. The honest play is the boring one: rank locally, answer every call, and give the AI clear, accurate information to report back.
And we would not treat this as a reason to panic. It is a reason to get the fundamentals tight before your competitors notice the channel exists.
Called and answered vs. called and missed vs. weak visibility
| Scenario | What the patient sees | What decides it |
|---|---|---|
| Ranks well + answered | “Your name, your price, your next opening, among the practices that responded” | Strong local visibility + a phone that gets answered |
| Ranks well + missed the call | “Your name under “”businesses we couldn’t reach,”” below the ones that answered” | A missed or hung-up call |
| Weak local visibility | Much less likely to be called for that search at all | A local visibility gap |
What this means for a growth-focused group
The practices that win this channel are not the ones with a secret AI tactic. They are the ones that rank in local results across every locationThis link leads to a blog post about multi-location SEO for multiple dental offices and answer every patient call the first time. Google just made the cost of a missed call visible to the patient.
“Google’s AI dials the practices it finds in local results, and the higher you rank, the more likely you are on that list. If you are not visible locally, you are not in the running. Local rank is still the lever that matters most.” — Cory Roletto, CEO of WEO Media
“Patients were already choosing the practice they recognized and trusted. Now one office answers clearly while another gets labeled the office Google couldn’t reach. Being found was never the finish line. Being the one who picks up is.” — Shannon Mackey, CEO of Marketly Digital
Frequently asked questions
Is Google’s AI really calling dental offices?
Yes. The feature, shown as “Have AI check pricing,” is live for signed-in US users 18 and older and, per Google, is expanding to more services. We confirmed the dental flow by running it ourselves in June 2026.
How does Google decide which practices to call?
By local search rankings. A Google spokesperson told Search Engine Journal the AI contacts businesses that appear in local results and match the patient’s request, with higher-ranked listings more likely to be called. Independent testing by RankScience found 8 of the top 9 local listings were called. In our own June 2026 test, Google called about ten practices, so local visibility, not only a top-three slot, is what gets you in the running.
Does Google’s AI calling cost anything?
No. Google’s Business Profile Help states, “Businesses and customers can use this feature at no charge.”
Will the AI book the appointment, or just get pricing?
The price-check flow does not book. Google’s help page says, “Using this service will not create a booking,” so the patient still contacts the practice to schedule. Google’s Business Profile Help also lists a separate appointment-booking action, so answering clearly matters either way.
Can my practice opt out?
Yes, in your verified Google Business Profile under advanced settings, “Bookings and inquiries from customers.” Be aware that opting out removes you from the comparison while competitors who stay in remain visible to the patient.
How do we know the call is from Google and not spam?
Google’s AI identifies itself as an automated system calling from Google on behalf of a specific customer and asks about a named service. Spam robocalls use vague scripts and never reference a real request.
Which states is it in?
It is available across the United States except five states that Google’s Business Profile Help lists as excluded: Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Montana, and Nebraska. Coverage is still expanding by category, so the fastest check for your market is to run the search yourself and see whether the “Have AI check pricing” option appears.
The one thing to check first
This already cuts both ways. We have seen patients walk into practices we work withThis link leads to Client Wins page and say an AI assistant sent themThis link leads to a blog post about AI marketing; one came in after an AI assistant recommended the practice by name. That is the upside of this shift: when you are the practice the AI calls and names, it hands you the patient. WEO Marketly has helped dental practices grow since 1999, and being the answer AI gives is the same work that wins the local pack.
So before you change anything operationally, find out whether Google and the AI systems can even see your practice for the searches that matter. Our free AI Visibility Scan shows you in about two minutes how your practice appears across Google’s AI, ChatGPT, and other AI assistants for your market and your services. If you are not visible, you are not in the calling pool, and that is the first gap to close.
Run your free AI Visibility Scan at aeo.marketlydigital.comThis link opens a new tab to aeo.marketlydigital.com, then brief your front desk this week. Individual results vary, but the practices that rank and answer are the ones Google’s AI puts in front of the patient.
References
- Google Search Help, “How to check pricing for local businesses with AI” (support.google.com/websearch/answer/16421135)
- Google Business Profile Help, “About automated calls from Google on behalf of customers” (support.google.com/business/answer/16190256)
- Search Engine Journal, “Google Search Can Now Call Local Businesses Using AI” (2025-07-16)
- RankScience, Google “Ask for Me” testing (2026-02)
- Invoca pricing-request calls study (Dec 2025)
- Google Keyword blog / Google I/O 2026.
