JRW / Blog / Statistics

Missed call statistics, 2026.

Most missed-call statistics online come from companies that sell answering services, quoting each other. We list the measured figures first, with who measured them and on how many calls, then the surveys, then the numbers that circulate with no source.

Jeff Weinberg, JRW · Checked 22 October 2026

32%of healthcare leads missed. CallRail, 1.1 million leads
31 in 100dental callers hung up before anyone answered. 11.5 million calls
47%of US business calls arrive outside Monday to Friday hours
40%of law firms answered the phone live when secret-shopped

Measured on call logs.

Platform data from call-tracking, call-scoring and answering vendors. Real counts on stated samples, from companies that sell the fix.

32% (link to this figure)

Healthcare had the highest missed-call rate of any industry in CallRail’s 2025 analysis of 1.1 million tracked leads.

Measured, vendor data: CallRail, via Plumber Magazine, 2025. 1.1 million leads, lead-level, marketing-generated calls

Legal 28%, home services 14%, real estate 9%. Lead-level counting leaves out existing-customer calls, so the rate is high and the volume is low.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#healthcare-missed-32, checked 22 October 2026
28% (link to this figure)

Legal was second for missed calls in the same CallRail data.

Measured, vendor data: CallRail, via Plumber Magazine, 2025. 1.1 million leads

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#legal-missed-28, checked 22 October 2026
14% (link to this figure)

Home services missed 14% of tracked leads, the lowest of the four industries CallRail reported.

Measured, vendor data: CallRail, via Plumber Magazine, 2025. 1.1 million leads

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#home-services-missed-14, checked 22 October 2026
31 in 100 (link to this figure)

Of every 100 calls to dental practices in 2025, 31 hung up before reaching anyone.

Measured, vendor data: Patient Prism, 2025. 11,552,668 calls, 8,280 dental locations, 2025

Same breakdown: 34 were real booking opportunities, 21 booked, 13 walked away, 4.8 got a follow-up call, 0.7 of those came back. Dental only, one vendor’s customers.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#dental-hangup-31, checked 22 October 2026
21 in 100 (link to this figure)

Twenty-one of every 100 dental calls ended in a booked appointment. Thirteen were bookable and walked away.

Measured, vendor data: Patient Prism, 2025. 11.5 million calls

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#dental-booked-21, checked 22 October 2026
47% (link to this figure)

Nearly half of calls to US businesses arrive outside Monday to Friday working hours, weekends included.

Measured, vendor data: AnswerConnect, 2026. 5,906,476 minutes of US call logs, April to June 2026

An answering service’s own customers, who already get after-hours calls. No hour cut-off defined, no industry breakdown.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#after-hours-47, checked 22 October 2026
34.8% (link to this figure)

Over a third of calls to small and mid-sized US law firms went unanswered during business hours in a 1,200-call audit.

Measured, vendor data: Law Leaders / LegalNavigator, 2025. 1,200 calls, 10am to 4pm, four weeks, 2025

Run by a vendor of AI intake. No per-call data published. “Unanswered” is not defined by ring count.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#law-unanswered-35, checked 22 October 2026
37.8% (link to this figure)

Only 37.8% of calls to 85 small businesses in 58 industries were answered live over 30 days. 37.8% went to voicemail and 24.3% got nothing.

Measured, vendor data: 411 Locals, via Ambs Call Center, 2019. 85 businesses, 30 days

Small sample, quoted second-hand. The most repeated all-industry figure.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#small-business-answered-38, checked 22 October 2026
54.1% (link to this figure)

A little over half of 325,000 new-patient calls and web inquiries to healthcare practices ended in a booked appointment.

Measured, vendor data: Liine, 2022. 325,000 inquiries, 2022. A 2023 cut of 278,000 marketing-sourced leads booked at 39.9%

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#new-patient-booked-54, checked 22 October 2026

Surveys and secret shoppers.

40% (link to this figure)

About 40% of US law firms answered the phone live when Clio’s researchers called as prospective clients. It was 56% in 2019.

Survey: Clio, via the American Bar Association, 2024. 500 firms, 2024

About 52% made contact once callbacks are counted. Roughly half of firms could not be reached by phone.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#law-answer-live-40, checked 22 October 2026
20 to 35% (link to this figure)

Medical practices reported missing 20% to 35% of calls during business hours in a 2025 survey.

Vendor figure: Tebra, via AgentZap, 2025. Quoted second-hand

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#practices-missed-20-35, checked 22 October 2026
60% (link to this figure)

Nearly 60% of customers said they would hang up after one minute on hold.

Survey: Velaro, 2012. About 2,500 customers, 2012

What people said they would do, in 2012. Still the origin of most “callers won’t wait a minute” claims.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#hold-one-minute-60, checked 22 October 2026

Numbers with no source we could find.

Listed so you know them when you see them. None is a default in our calculators.

42% (link to this figure)

“42% of calls to medical practices go unanswered”, from a study of 7,000 calls at 22 practices in 18 states.

Vendor figure: Circulated by notifyMD, TrackableMed and AnswerNet, 2025. Credited to notifyMD, TrackableMed and AnswerNet in different places

None of the sites that cite it link to the report. What counted as missed is unknown. Treat it as an upper bound.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#practices-missed-42, checked 22 October 2026
62% (link to this figure)

“62% of patients who reach voicemail hang up without leaving a message”, from a PatientBond survey.

Vendor figure: PatientBond survey, via Solutionreach, 2025. Survey not located

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#patients-voicemail-62, checked 22 October 2026
67 to 86% (link to this figure)

Between 67% and 86% of callers who reach a business voicemail hang up, depending on which vendor is quoting.

Vendor figure: Invoca, Hiya and others, via vendor roundups, 2024. Credited to BIA/Kelsey, Invoca and Hiya. None traceable

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#voicemail-hangup-67-86, checked 22 October 2026
5 to 7% (link to this figure)

Healthcare call abandonment, callers who hang up on hold, is put at 5% to 7%.

Vendor figure: Keona Health, 2024. Vendor benchmark

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#hold-abandon-5-7, checked 22 October 2026
27% (link to this figure)

About 27% of inbound calls to home-service contractors go unanswered, and 25% to 40% arrive outside standard hours.

Vendor figure: HiGrovi, 2026. A roundup of unnamed call-tracking sources

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#contractors-missed-27, checked 22 October 2026

What a lost caller is worth.

The figures the cost side of the calculators uses.

$538 (link to this figure)

First-year value of a new patient at a medical group. $1,395 at a health system.

Survey: Zocdoc, 2023. 351 medical groups and 11 health systems, surveyed by a scheduling marketplace

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#new-patient-value-538, checked 22 October 2026
$253 (link to this figure)

Mean cost of an office-based primary care visit in 2021. $368 across all specialties, $627 for orthopedics.

Official: AHRQ, Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, participant publications page, 2021. Federal Medical Expenditure Panel Survey

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#primary-care-visit-253, checked 22 October 2026
$1,205 (link to this figure)

Average HVAC repair revenue per job in 2025, up from $818 in 2021.

Measured, vendor data: Housecall Pro, 2026. About 2 million tagged jobs on one platform

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#hvac-repair-1205, checked 22 October 2026
$1,973 to $4,015 (link to this figure)

Average requested retainer by practice area in 2023. Immigration $1,973, trusts and estates $2,172, criminal $2,816, family $3,163, bankruptcy $4,015.

Vendor figure: LawPay, 2024 Benchmark Report, 2023. A legal payments vendor’s benchmark report

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#law-retainers, checked 22 October 2026

From our calculators.

What the calculators show at their default settings. These are model outputs. Each page lists the assumptions and lets you change them.

$334,081 (link to this figure)

A year of lost appointments at a medical practice taking 60 calls a day, missing a quarter during open hours and all after-hours calls.

Our default: JRW, 2026

Missed-call calculator for medical practices. The 58% booking rate is from our voice intake case; the other dials are cited on the page.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#jrw-medical-lost, checked 22 October 2026
$726,737 (link to this figure)

A year of matters never opened at a law firm taking 30 calls a day, missing 35% and with nobody on the phones after hours.

Our default: JRW, 2026

Missed-call calculator for law firms.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#jrw-law-lost, checked 22 October 2026
$381,972 (link to this figure)

A year of jobs booked elsewhere for a contractor taking 25 calls a day, missing one in five on the job and all after-hours calls.

Our default: JRW, 2026

Missed-call calculator for HVAC, plumbing and electrical.

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#jrw-field-lost, checked 22 October 2026
33% to 58% (link to this figure)

Booking rate for answered new-patient calls at a mental health practice with over 100 providers, before and six weeks after a voice agent took the calls.

JRW engagement: JRW case study, 2026. One engagement, 2026

Cite
JRW, “Missed call statistics 2026”, https://jrw-tech.com/blog/missed-call-statistics#jrw-booking-58, checked 22 October 2026

The labels.

Measured. Call logs, records or a trial, with a stated sample, from someone not selling a fix for the problem measured.
Measured, vendor data. A vendor’s own platform data, with a stated sample.
Survey. A survey or secret-shopper study, with a stated sample.
Official. Government statistics, statutes and regulations.
Legal analysis. A law firm’s or court’s account of a law or ruling. Not legal advice for your state.
Vendor figure. Published or repeated by a company that sells a related product, with no independent check. Some have no primary source we could find; the note says which. Where a calculator starts from one, its defaults table says so.
JRW engagement. Measured in one of our own client engagements. We sell the work being measured, so read it as one practice’s result, not a benchmark.
Our default. A number we chose, or a JRW calculator’s output at its default settings. The calculator page shows the assumptions.

To cite a figure, copy its cite line. Anchors are stable. Corrections: jeff@jrw-tech.com.

Questions.

Which figure should a medical practice use?: CallRail’s 32% is the largest measured sample, with the caveat that it counts tracked marketing leads. Patient Prism’s 31 in 100 is dental. Your own phone system report is better than either. Our calculator defaults to 25%, below both.
Why not the 42% figure?: None of the sites that quote it link to the report, and what counted as missed is unknown. It is listed as an upper bound.
Why is the after-hours share so high?: AnswerConnect’s 47% comes from an answering service’s customers, who already get after-hours calls, and it includes weekends. Our calculators default to 25% for a practice and 40% for home services.
Can I cite these?: Cite the original source for measured and survey figures. Cite JRW for the calculator outputs and for this page.

Put your own numbers in.

Three calculators start from these figures, for practices, firms and contractors. You can change every dial.

Open the missed-call calculator

Missed call statistics, 2026.

Healthcare had the highest missed-call rate of any industry in CallRail’s 2025 analysis of 1.1 million tracked leads.

Legal was second for missed calls in the same CallRail data.

Home services missed 14% of tracked leads, the lowest of the four industries CallRail reported.

Of every 100 calls to dental practices in 2025, 31 hung up before reaching anyone.

Twenty-one of every 100 dental calls ended in a booked appointment. Thirteen were bookable and walked away.

Nearly half of calls to US businesses arrive outside Monday to Friday working hours, weekends included.

Over a third of calls to small and mid-sized US law firms went unanswered during business hours in a 1,200-call audit.

Only 37.8% of calls to 85 small businesses in 58 industries were answered live over 30 days. 37.8% went to voicemail and 24.3% got nothing.

A little over half of 325,000 new-patient calls and web inquiries to healthcare practices ended in a booked appointment.

About 40% of US law firms answered the phone live when Clio’s researchers called as prospective clients. It was 56% in 2019.

Medical practices reported missing 20% to 35% of calls during business hours in a 2025 survey.

Nearly 60% of customers said they would hang up after one minute on hold.

“42% of calls to medical practices go unanswered”, from a study of 7,000 calls at 22 practices in 18 states.

“62% of patients who reach voicemail hang up without leaving a message”, from a PatientBond survey.

Between 67% and 86% of callers who reach a business voicemail hang up, depending on which vendor is quoting.

Healthcare call abandonment, callers who hang up on hold, is put at 5% to 7%.

About 27% of inbound calls to home-service contractors go unanswered, and 25% to 40% arrive outside standard hours.

First-year value of a new patient at a medical group. $1,395 at a health system.

Mean cost of an office-based primary care visit in 2021. $368 across all specialties, $627 for orthopedics.

Average HVAC repair revenue per job in 2025, up from $818 in 2021.

Average requested retainer by practice area in 2023. Immigration $1,973, trusts and estates $2,172, criminal $2,816, family $3,163, bankruptcy $4,015.

A year of lost appointments at a medical practice taking 60 calls a day, missing a quarter during open hours and all after-hours calls.

A year of matters never opened at a law firm taking 30 calls a day, missing 35% and with nobody on the phones after hours.

A year of jobs booked elsewhere for a contractor taking 25 calls a day, missing one in five on the job and all after-hours calls.

Booking rate for answered new-patient calls at a mental health practice with over 100 providers, before and six weeks after a voice agent took the calls.

Put your own numbers in.