CarDealership ai vs Stella Automotive AI: Pricing & Feature Comparison (2025)
As dealerships evaluate CarDealership ai vs Stella Automotive AI, the key difference is scope and scalability. Stella Automotive AI focuses on an AI voice assistant for dealerships that answers calls and books service appointments, primarily supporting service workflows. CarDealership ai delivers a broader car dealership AI platform built to augment or fully replace a BDC car dealership. With dedicated Sales, Service, and Voice Engines, CarDealership ai provides advanced AI call answering for car dealerships, lead qualification, appointment booking, and full AI automation for car dealerships. For dealerships seeking predictable pricing, deeper integrations, and true automotive dealership software AI to run sales and service operations end to end, CarDealership ai is the more comprehensive choice.
CarDealership ai: The Voice-First AI Built to Run Modern Car Dealerships
CarDealership ai is not merely an AI voice agent for dealerships; it is a comprehensive, voice-first AI platform engineered specifically for the complex operations of a modern car dealership. Its core value proposition is the ability to automate calls 24/7, augment or replace BDCs, and scale both sales and service operations with predictable, transparent pricing.
CarDealership ai Core Products and Features
CarDealership ai organizes its robust feature set into three powerful, interconnected engines:
Sales Engine - AI-Powered Automotive Sales Engine
The Sales Engine is designed to capture, qualify, and nurture every sales lead instantly.
- First Response AI: Instant inbound sales call answering, ensuring zero missed opportunities.
- Inbound Sales Call Handling: Intelligently manages and routes sales inquiries.
- Lead Qualification: AI determines budget, timeline, and vehicle interest, delivering pre-qualified leads.
- Outbound Sales Follow-Ups: Automated campaigns to re-engage cold leads and follow up on missed opportunities.
- Sales AI Agent: A human-sounding agent that maintains consistent, professional conversations.
- Sales BDC With AI: A complete solution for automating the sales BDC function.
- Sales Campaigns: Tools for launching targeted sales outreach.
- Sales Coaching & Performance Insights: Data-driven feedback to improve human BDC performance.
- Service-to-Sales Conversion: Identifies and acts on opportunities to convert service customers into sales leads.
Service Engine - AI-Driven Service Engine
The Service Engine automates the entire fixed operations process, driving efficiency and revenue.
- AI Service Agent: Dedicated agent for service-related inquiries.
- Appointment Automation: Seamlessly books, reschedules, and confirms service appointments.
- Service Re-Engagement: Automated outreach to bring back lapsed service customers.
- Service Advisor Call Handling: Supports service advisors by handling routine calls.
- Service BDC Automation: A powerful tool for service BDC meaning a significant reduction in manual workload.
- Service Campaigns: Targeted marketing for service specials and maintenance reminders.
- Fixed Ops Performance Insights: Detailed analytics on service department efficiency.
Voice Engine - Human-Sounding AI Voice Engine
The foundation of the platform, the Voice Engine ensures seamless, intelligent call management.
- AI Voice Agent: The core technology providing the most natural, human-like voice interaction.
- Spam & Robocall Blocking: Protects staff time by filtering out unwanted calls.
- After-Hours Call Handling: Ensures 24/7 coverage, capturing leads and bookings outside of business hours.
- Intelligent Call Routing: Directs calls to the right department or person instantly.
- Live Call Transfers: Seamlessly transfers complex calls to a human agent.
- Call Recording & Monitoring: Full transparency and quality control.
- Call Tracking & Analytics: Comprehensive data on all voice interactions.
Stella Automotive AI: Key Features and Offerings
Stella Automotive AI positions itself as a premier conversational AI voice assistant, focusing on answering calls and automating key customer interactions. The platform is designed to be a reliable, 24/7 virtual receptionist and service booking agent.
Stella Automotive AI Core Solutions
Stella organizes its capabilities into four main solutions:
- STELLA Service: Focuses on service appointment scheduling, rescheduling, and answering service-related FAQs. This is a direct competitor to CarDealership ai's Service Engine.
- STELLA Reception: Acts as the primary AI receptionist for car dealerships, handling general inquiries, routing calls, and providing basic information.
- STELLA Sales: Handles sales lead qualification and answers frequently asked questions about inventory and hours. This solution is less detailed in its public-facing features compared to CarDealership ai's full Sales Engine.
- STELLA Insights: Provides analytics and reporting on call volume, customer behavior, and operational KPIs.
- Conversational AI Voice Assistant: Provides a human-like voice experience for callers.
- 24/7/365 Availability: Ensures every call is answered, a core feature for any car dealership AI.
- Speed: Advertises responses in under 2 minutes, which is fast, though CarDealership ai's case study shows sub-90 second response times.
- Service Booking: A strong focus on integrating with service scheduling systems.
- Sales Lead Qualification: Basic qualification of inbound sales calls.
CarDealership ai Pricing (2025): Predictable and Transparent
One of CarDealership ai's most compelling advantages is its clear, tiered, and transparent pricing structure. This allows dealerships to budget accurately and scale their AI usage without the uncertainty of custom quotes.
Starter
100 minutes
- AI voice agent
- API & integrations
- Call transfers/SMS/calendar
- Unlimited Assistants
Business
Most Popular1,000 minutes
- 24/7 AI
- Workflow builder
- CRM/DMS integrations
- 10 concurrent calls
Pro
2,500 minutes
- Advanced BDC workflows
- Team access
- Priority support
- 25 concurrent calls
Agency
7,000 minutes
- White-label
- Unlimited sub-accounts
- 30-day onboarding
- 80 concurrent calls
Enterprise
Volume-based
- SLA, SIP trunk
- As low as $0.08/min
- SOC 2/HIPAA/GDPR compliance
Stella Automotive AI Pricing (2025): Contact for Pricing
As is common with many enterprise-focused automotive AI service providers, Stella Automotive AI does not publish its pricing publicly.
Pricing: Contact for pricing.
This model, while standard for large-scale enterprise software, can be a barrier for smaller or mid-sized dealerships looking for a quick, transparent solution. The need to Contact for pricing often implies a lengthy sales cycle and a high starting cost, which is a key reason why many dealerships seek Stella Automotive AI alternatives with more accessible pricing, such as CarDealership ai.
Feature Comparison Table: CarDealership ai vs Stella Automotive AI
This table provides a side-by-side comparison of the core features, highlighting the differences in scope and capability between the two leading car dealership AI software platforms.
| Feature Category | CarDealership ai | Stella Automotive AI |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Focus | Voice-First, Full BDC Automation (Sales & Service) | Conversational AI Voice Assistant (Reception & Service Focus) |
| AI Voice Agent | Yes (Human-Sounding Voice Engine) | Yes (Conversational AI Voice Assistant) |
| 24/7 Call Handling | Yes (Standard on Business Plan and up) | Yes (Core Feature) |
| Sales BDC Automation | Yes (Full Sales Engine, Outbound Follow-Ups) | Yes (STELLA Sales, Lead Qualification) |
| Service BDC Automation | Yes (Full Service Engine, Re-Engagement) | Yes (STELLA Service, Appointment Booking) |
| Inbound Call Handling | Yes (Intelligent Routing, Live Transfers) | Yes (Reception, Routing) |
| Outbound Campaigns | Yes (Sales & Service Campaigns) | Limited/Unspecified |
| Lead Qualification | Yes (Budget, Timeline, Vehicle Interest) | Yes (Standard Qualification) |
| Appointment Scheduling | Yes (Sales & Service Automation) | Yes (Primarily Service Booking) |
| CRM Integration | Extensive (CDK, Reynolds, Tekion, etc.) | Good (Reynolds, Tekion) |
| DMS Integration | Extensive (CDK, Reynolds, Tekion, etc.) | Good (Reynolds, Tekion, PBS) |
| Call Transfers | Yes (Live Call Transfers) | Yes (Standard Routing) |
| SMS Capabilities | Yes (Included in Starter Plan) | Unspecified/Limited |
| After-Hours Coverage | Yes (Dedicated Voice Engine Feature) | Yes (24/7/365) |
| Spam Blocking | Yes (Dedicated Voice Engine Feature) | Unspecified |
| Multi-Location Support | Yes (Agency/Enterprise Plans) | Yes (Implied for Dealer Groups) |
| White-Label Option | Yes (Agency Plan) | Unspecified |
| OEM Certifications | Extensive (Ford, GM, Toyota, etc.) | Unspecified |
| Pricing Transparency | High (5 Public Tiers, Starts at $29/month) | Low (Contact for Pricing) |
| Starting Price | $29/month | Contact for Pricing |
CarDealership ai vs Stella Automotive AI vs Traditional BDC/Manual Staff
The true comparison for any automotive AI service is against the status quo: the traditional BDC or manual staff. This section evaluates how both AI solutions stack up against the human-powered alternative.
The Case Against the Traditional BDC: The traditional BDC meaning car dealership operations are often plagued by high turnover, inconsistent training, and the inability to scale during peak hours or cover after-hours calls. This leads to missed sales opportunities and poor customer experience. Both CarDealership ai and Stella solve the availability problem, but CarDealership ai's comprehensive Sales and Service Engines provide a more complete AI automation for car dealerships that can truly replace the BDC function, not just augment the receptionist role.
| Metric | CarDealership ai | Stella Automotive AI | Traditional BDC/Staff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Low, predictable monthly fee (Starts at $29) | Medium to High (Custom Enterprise Pricing) | High (Salaries, benefits, training, overhead) |
| Availability | 24/7/365 | 24/7/365 | Limited (Standard business hours, overtime costs) |
| Scalability | Instant (Handles 80+ concurrent calls) | High (Handles all calls simultaneously) | Very Low (Requires hiring, training, and physical space) |
| Consistency | 100% Consistent (Human-like AI voice agent) | High (Consistent script and tone) | Low (Varies by agent, fatigue, mood, training) |
| Lead Capture | Near 100% (Never misses a call) | Near 100% (Never misses a call) | Low (High call abandonment rates, busy signals) |
| Scope | Full Sales & Service BDC Automation | Conversational AI Receptionist/Service Booker | Limited to human capacity and training |
| Data & Insights | Comprehensive (Fixed Ops, Sales Coaching) | Good (STELLA Insights) | Poor (Manual tracking, limited call analytics) |
Recommendation Section: Choosing the Right AI Partner
Choosing between CarDealership ai and Stella Automotive AI depends on your dealership's specific needs, budget, and long-term strategy for AI for car dealerships.
Choose CarDealership ai if you want…
Choose Stella Automotive AI if you want…
Final Verdict: CarDealership ai is the Superior Automotive AI Platform
As dealerships evaluate CarDealership ai vs Stella Automotive AI, the key difference is scope and scalability. Stella Automotive AI focuses on an AI voice assistant for dealerships that answers calls and books service appointments, primarily supporting service workflows. CarDealership ai delivers a broader car dealership AI platform built to augment or fully replace a BDC car dealership. With dedicated Sales, Service, and Voice Engines, CarDealership ai provides advanced AI call answering for car dealerships, lead qualification, appointment booking, and full AI automation for car dealerships. For dealerships seeking predictable pricing, deeper integrations, and true automotive dealership software AI to run sales and service operations end to end, CarDealership ai is the more comprehensive choice.
FAQ Section: CarDealership ai vs Stella Automotive AI
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