{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "bland-ai", "name": "Bland AI API + MCP", "vendor": "Bland AI", "vendorUrl": "https://www.bland.ai", "kind": "http-api", "category": "voice-agents", "summary": "Phone-first voice-agent platform that runs its own speech recognition, language model, TTS and telephony, billed as one per-minute rate.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bland-ai", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bland-ai.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bland-ai.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bland-ai.json", "transports": [ "http", "streamable-http", "stdio" ], "remoteUrl": "https://api.bland.ai/v1", "packages": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "bland-cli" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "API key in the `Authorization` header for REST, and as `Bearer org_...` for the hosted MCP server at `https://api.bland.ai/v1/mcp`. The `bland mcp` command in the CLI runs a local stdio server. An agent can sign its owner up through a device-code flow or a headless flow that needs a texted 6-digit code from the owner.", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Start is free to join with 2 credits and an inbound number, no card, then $0.14 a connected minute and $0.05 a transfer minute, 10 concurrent calls and 100 calls a day. Build is $299 a month with $0.12 a minute, $0.04 transfer, 50 concurrent calls and 2,000 calls a day. Scale is $499 a month with $0.11 a minute, $0.03 transfer, 100 concurrent calls and 5,000 calls a day. Enterprise is custom. Every outbound attempt has a $0.015 minimum and failed calls are charged $0.015. SMS is $0.02 a message. The rate covers STT, LLM, TTS and telephony, and BYO Twilio customers pay no transfer fee. An Agent Phone Plan for personal AI agents is $29.99 a month ($14.99 the first month) (https://docs.bland.ai/platform/billing).", "priceSummary": "$299 / mo", "where": "both", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402 support in the docs, pricing page or MCP docs (checked 2026-09-30). Headless signup for the Agent Phone Plan answers HTTP 402 with a Machine Payments Protocol challenge settled through Stripe Link, which is a different protocol from x402 and only covers that plan (https://docs.bland.ai/platform/agent-headless-onboarding).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": 42, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": 1179, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-09-30" }, "docsUrl": "https://docs.bland.ai", "llmsTxt": "https://docs.bland.ai/llms.txt", "capabilities": [ "voice.agent", "voice.pipeline", "voice.tools", "voice.telephony" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "closed-source", "freemium", "no-card", "mcp", "llms-txt", "webhooks", "pipeline", "enterprise" ], "lastRelease": "2026-09-13", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 63.8, "grade": "B", "agentReady": false, "rank": 370, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 950, "categoryRank": 5, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 53, "maintenance": 60, "payments": 65, "reliability": 65, "schema": 68, "security": 66, "transparency": 71 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-01" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "One per-minute rate covering STT, LLM, TTS and telephony, $0.14 on Start and $0.12 on Build. No OpenAPI document.", "bestFor": "Teams that want one predictable per-minute bill for outbound and inbound phone agents, and personal agents that need their own US number.", "strengths": [ "One per-minute rate covering STT, LLM, TTS and telephony, $0.14 on Start and $0.12 on Build", "Start plan with 2 credits and an inbound number, no card", "Hosted MCP server with 42 tools labelled read, write or destructive, with confirmation on destructive ones", "Headless agent signup that needs only a 6-digit texted code from the owner", "Subprocessor list with locations and a valid security.txt" ], "weaknesses": [ "No OpenAPI document", "Start caps at 10 concurrent calls and 100 calls a day", "Failed calls and outbound attempts cost $0.015 each", "Audit logs are enterprise-only and don't record API key use", "Privacy policy gives no retention period for recordings or transcripts" ], "agentNotes": [ "Call `wait_for_call` (it waits up to 45 seconds) instead of polling `get_call_log`", "Send destructive MCP tools a second time with the confirmation argument", "Space calls to the same number at least 10 seconds apart or expect a 429", "Budget $0.015 for every outbound attempt, including ones that never connect", "Run `validate_pathway` before saving a pathway graph" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 2, "avgRating": 3, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "B", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 63.8 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 53, "maintenance": 60, "payments": 65, "reliability": 65, "schema": 68, "security": 66, "transparency": 55 }, "provenanceScore": 87 }, "connect": { "http": "curl -X POST https://api.bland.ai/v1/calls -H \"Authorization: $BLAND_API_KEY\" \\\n -H \"content-type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"phone_number\":\"+15551234567\",\"task\":\"Confirm tomorrow 3pm appointment and ask if they need to reschedule.\"}'", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add --transport http bland https://api.bland.ai/v1/mcp --header \"Authorization: Bearer $BLAND_API_KEY\"", "config": { "mcpServers": { "bland": { "args": [ "bland-cli", "mcp" ], "command": "npx", "env": { "BLAND_API_KEY": "${BLAND_API_KEY}" } } } } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/voice.agent", "tool": "https://letme.dev/bland-ai" }, "area": "voice", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Start plan connected minute", "unit": "call-minute", "usd": 0.14, "note": "all in, STT, LLM, TTS and telephony" }, { "item": "Build plan connected minute", "unit": "call-minute", "usd": 0.12, "note": "all in, plus $299 a month" }, { "item": "Start plan transfer minute", "unit": "call-minute", "usd": 0.05, "note": "Bland numbers only" }, { "item": "Build plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 299 }, { "item": "Agent Phone Plan", "unit": "month", "usd": 29.99, "note": "$14.99 the first month" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Bland Inc.", "domain": "bland.ai", "domainRegistered": "2023-07-30", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://www.bland.ai/legal/terms", "privacy": "https://www.bland.ai/legal/privacy", "statusPage": "https://status.bland.ai", "changelog": "https://www.bland.ai/changelog", "securityTxt": "valid", "checked": "2026-10-01", "notes": [ "The terms (updated 2026-08-28) name Bland Inc. The privacy policy (updated 2026-06-23) names Intelliga Corp DBA Bland AI." ], "score": 87 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bland-ai.json", "live": { "slug": "bland-ai", "probe": { "target": "https://api.bland.ai/v1", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-10T02:54:48.990046117Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 404, "lastMs": 914, "authRequired": false, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 278, "p95ms24h": 1247, "samples24h": 249, "samples30d": 2466, "days": [ { "date": "2026-09-30", "probes": 35, "ok": 35 }, { "date": "2026-10-01", "probes": 276, "ok": 276 }, { "date": "2026-10-02", "probes": 248, "ok": 248 }, { "date": "2026-10-03", "probes": 271, "ok": 271 }, { "date": "2026-10-04", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-05", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-06", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-07", "probes": 272, "ok": 272 }, { "date": "2026-10-08", "probes": 268, "ok": 268 }, { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 250, "ok": 250 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 30, "ok": 30 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.bland.ai", "indicator": "none", "summary": "All Systems Operational", "checkedAt": "2026-10-10T02:49:57.004579661Z" }, "versions": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "bland-cli", "version": "0.10.1", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T16:43:03.436580846Z" } ], "npmWeekly": 1548, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://bland.ai/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "valid", "expires": "2027-04-05T00:00:00.000Z", "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T15:40:28.992504172Z" }, "llmsTxt": { "url": "https://docs.bland.ai/llms.txt", "ok": true, "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T14:01:32.351895568Z" }, "domain": { "domain": "bland.ai", "registered": "2023-07-30", "source": "https://rdap.identitydigital.services/rdap/domain/bland.ai", "checkedAt": "2026-10-04T13:08:15.310416438Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://www.bland.ai/changelog", "kind": "changelog", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:48:36.427773872Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "d73002ae0cca" }, { "url": "https://docs.bland.ai/platform/billing", "kind": "deprecations", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:36:41.792318321Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-06T16:07:50.570943874Z", "fingerprint": "aa3457425060" }, { "url": "https://www.bland.ai/pricing", "kind": "pricing", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-01T13:16:48.844714237Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "31b0239cb0b9" }, { "url": "https://www.bland.ai/legal/privacy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:48:38.634502753Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "b2d6dc77b3fe" }, { "url": "https://www.bland.ai/legal/terms", "kind": "terms", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:48:40.688000635Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "86441cb18833" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-10T02:54:48.990046117Z" } }, "answer": "Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 63.8 (B) and 63.3 (B). OpenAI Realtime API leads on schema \u0026 documentation and agent ergonomics.", "b": { "slug": "openai-realtime", "name": "OpenAI Realtime API", "vendor": "OpenAI", "vendorUrl": "https://openai.com", "kind": "http-api", "category": "voice-agents", "summary": "OpenAI's Realtime API runs spoken conversations with speech-to-speech models such as `gpt-realtime-2.1`. Clients connect over WebRTC, WebSocket or SIP, and sessions support interruptions, function calling and remote MCP tools.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/openai-realtime", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/openai-realtime.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/openai-realtime.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/openai-realtime.json", "repo": "https://github.com/openai/openai-agents-js", "license": "Proprietary service. The service terms on openai.com were not read. The Agents SDK for TypeScript and the OpenAPI description are MIT", "transports": [ "http" ], "remoteUrl": "https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime", "packages": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "@openai/agents" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@openai/agents-realtime" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "Self-serve API key from platform.openai.com, sent as a Bearer header on server WebSocket connections and call-control requests. For browsers and phones, a server calls `POST /v1/realtime/client_secrets` for a client secret (`ek_`) that lasts 10 seconds to 2 hours, 10 minutes by default, and can start several sessions until it expires. The browser WebSocket example passes the secret as a subprotocol. SIP calls are tied to a project by the project ID in the SIP address.", "pricing": "usage", "pricingNotes": "Per 1M tokens on `gpt-realtime-2.1`. Audio $32.00 in, $0.40 cached and $64.00 out, text $4.00 in and $24.00 out, image $5.00 in. `gpt-realtime-2.1-mini` is $10.00 and $20.00 for audio. Each response re-sends the whole conversation, and input transcription is billed separately. Usage tiers start at $5 of credit purchases. Whether the Free tier covers Realtime models was not established (https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricing.md, checked 2026-10-09).", "priceSummary": "Pay per use", "where": "hosted", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the Realtime guides, the pricing page or the OpenAPI file (checked 2026-10-09).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-09" }, "docsUrl": "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/realtime", "llmsTxt": "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/llms.txt", "openapi": "https://github.com/openai/openai-openapi/blob/main/openapi.yaml", "capabilities": [ "voice.agent", "voice.speech-to-speech", "voice.tools", "voice.telephony" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "usage-priced", "closed-source", "speech-to-speech", "webrtc", "websocket", "sip", "streaming", "typescript", "python", "openapi", "llms-txt", "api-key", "function-calling", "mcp-client", "status-page" ], "lastRelease": "2026-07-28", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 63.3, "grade": "B", "agentReady": false, "rank": 400, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 950, "categoryRank": 7, "methodology": "0.4", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 76, "maintenance": 52, "payments": 20, "reliability": 67, "schema": 84, "security": 61, "transparency": 71 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "low", "date": "2026-10-09" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "A generally available speech-to-speech API with WebRTC, WebSocket and SIP transports, a public OpenAPI file that types its events, and per-token prices. Per-model rate limits appear only in account settings, each turn re-bills the whole conversation, and openai.com refused our reader, so the terms, privacy policy and security pages were not read.", "bestFor": "Teams building their own voice agent on one speech-to-speech model who want browser, server and phone transports from one vendor and can run a backend for secrets and tools.", "strengths": [ "The OpenAPI 3.1 file in `openai/openai-openapi` covers nine Realtime paths and types 13 client events and 48 server events as schemas.", "Browser clients use client secrets that expire after 10 seconds to 2 hours, 10 minutes by default, so the API key stays on a server.", "Remote MCP tools accept an `allowed_tools` list, and `require_approval` defaults to `always` in the OpenAPI file.", "SIP calls connect at `sip.api.openai.com` with accept, reject, refer and hangup endpoints and a signed incoming-call webhook.", "The data controls page lists `/v1/realtime` with no training use, 30-day abuse logs, no stored application state and Zero Data Retention eligibility." ], "weaknesses": [ "openai.com answered 403 to our reader, so the service terms, privacy policy, sub-processor list and security pages were not read.", "Realtime rate limits are shown only in account settings. The public table gives numbers for GPT-6 model families only.", "Every response re-sends the whole conversation, so later turns cost more. Audio is $32 in and $64 out per 1M tokens on `gpt-realtime-2.1`.", "The status feed names Realtime among affected components in five incidents between 24 July and 6 October 2026, with durations not shown in the feed.", "Session settings attached to a client secret can be overridden by the client connection, per the client secret reference." ], "agentNotes": [ "Create a client secret on a server with `POST /v1/realtime/client_secrets` and give browsers only the `ek_` value. Never ship the API key.", "After a response with MCP calls finishes, send another `response.create`. The API does not create the follow-up response itself.", "Set `truncation` with a `retention_ratio` below 1 and `token_limits.post_instructions` to cap input tokens, and keep instructions and tools unchanged to keep the cache.", "On a WebSocket, stop playback on `input_audio_buffer.speech_started` and send `conversation.item.truncate` with `audio_end_ms`. WebRTC and SIP truncate on the server.", "Use `gpt-realtime-2.1` or `gpt-realtime-2.1-mini`. `gpt-realtime` and `gpt-realtime-mini` shut down on 20 January 2027." ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "low", "grade": "B", "methodology": "0.4", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 63.3 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 76, "maintenance": 52, "payments": 20, "reliability": 67, "schema": 84, "security": 61, "transparency": 58 }, "provenanceScore": 84 }, "connect": { "install": "npm install @openai/agents", "http": "curl -X POST https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime/client_secrets \\\n -H \"Authorization: Bearer $OPENAI_API_KEY\" -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"session\": {\"type\": \"realtime\", \"model\": \"gpt-realtime-2.1\"}}'" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/voice.agent", "tool": "https://letme.dev/openai-realtime" }, "sameCompany": [ "openai-api", "openai-embeddings", "openai-guardrails", "openai-moderation", "openai-image-api", "openai-sora", "openai-speech-to-text", "openai-agents-sdk", "openai-decisions-api", "openai-codex" ], "area": "voice", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "gpt-realtime-2.1 audio input", "unit": "1m-tokens", "usd": 32, "note": "$0.40 cached. 1 token per 100 ms of user audio, about $0.019 a minute before caching" }, { "item": "gpt-realtime-2.1 audio output", "unit": "1m-tokens", "usd": 64, "note": "1 token per 50 ms of assistant audio, about $0.077 a minute" }, { "item": "gpt-realtime-2.1 text input", "unit": "1m-tokens", "usd": 4, "note": "$0.40 cached" }, { "item": "gpt-realtime-2.1 text output", "unit": "1m-tokens", "usd": 24 }, { "item": "gpt-realtime-2.1-mini audio input", "unit": "1m-tokens", "usd": 10, "note": "$0.30 cached" }, { "item": "gpt-realtime-2.1-mini audio output", "unit": "1m-tokens", "usd": 20 } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "OpenAI", "domain": "openai.com", "domainRegistered": "2007-01-19", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/", "privacy": "https://openai.com/policies/privacy-policy/", "statusPage": "https://status.openai.com", "changelog": "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/changelog", "securityTxt": "unknown", "checked": "2026-10-09", "notes": [ "The API, WebRTC and SIP endpoints are on api.openai.com and sip.api.openai.com. The docs are on developers.openai.com.", "RDAP for openai.com gives a registration date of 2007-01-19.", "The legal entity was not read. The SDK licence file says Copyright (c) 2025 OpenAI.", "robots.txt answered 200 on developers.openai.com and openai.com, allowing the pages read, and 404 on status.openai.com, which means no rules.", "openai.com answered our researcher with a bot check on 9 October 2026, so the terms and privacy policy were not read on that day. The links are the two documents OpenAI's other listings here carry. openai.com answers our policy reader with HTTP 403 as well, so neither document has been read and both are recorded as unreadable." ], "score": 84 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/openai-realtime.json", "live": { "slug": "openai-realtime", "probe": { "target": "https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime", "method": "get", "lastAt": "2026-10-10T02:55:04.55025386Z", "lastOk": true, "lastStatus": 405, "lastMs": 133, "authRequired": false, "uptime24h": 100, "uptime30d": 100, "p50ms24h": 153, "p95ms24h": 204, "samples24h": 115, "samples30d": 115, "days": [ { "date": "2026-10-09", "probes": 85, "ok": 85 }, { "date": "2026-10-10", "probes": 30, "ok": 30 } ] }, "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.openai.com", "indicator": "minor", "summary": "Partial System Degradation", "checkedAt": "2026-10-10T02:50:36.234904992Z" }, "versions": [ { "registry": "github", "name": "openai/openai-agents-js", "version": "@openai/agents-extensions@0.20.0", "released": "2026-10-08", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:10:29.452928495Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@openai/agents", "version": "0.20.0", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:10:27.202909251Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@openai/agents-realtime", "version": "0.20.0", "seenAt": "2026-10-09T17:10:27.531105633Z" } ], "githubStars": 3903, "npmWeekly": 2125326, "pages": [ { "url": "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricing.md", "kind": "pricing", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-09T18:36:10.419663305Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "742c4d3c6b71" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-10T02:55:04.55025386Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "HTTP API", "b": "HTTP API", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "Bland AI", "b": "OpenAI", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "https://api.bland.ai/v1", "b": "https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio", "b": "HTTP", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "API key", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Freemium", "b": "Pay per use", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "$29.99 per month (plan)", "b": "not published", "name": "Price for voice agents" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "none", "b": "Proprietary service. The service terms on openai.com were not read. The Agents SDK for TypeScript and the OpenAPI description are MIT", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "42", "b": "none", "name": "Tools exposed" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "2026-09-13", "b": "2026-07-28", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "2026-08-28", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "2026-06-23", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "yes", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "couldn't be read", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" }, { "a": "1.2k npm/wk", "b": "none", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "3/5 (2)", "b": "none", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 63.8 (B) and 63.3 (B). OpenAI Realtime API leads on schema \u0026 documentation and agent ergonomics.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, Bland AI API + MCP or OpenAI Realtime API?" }, { "answer": "Both need an API key.", "question": "Do Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API need an API key?" }, { "answer": "Yes. Bland AI API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.bland.ai/v1 and OpenAI Realtime API at https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime.", "question": "Can an agent call Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API without installing anything?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Security \u0026 auth, 66 against 61", "Payments \u0026 pricing, 65 against 20", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 60 against 52" ], "also": [ "Runs on your own machine", "Free to start without a card" ], "goodFor": "Teams that want one predictable per-minute bill for outbound and inbound phone agents, and personal agents that need their own US number.", "slug": "bland-ai", "watchFor": "No OpenAPI document" }, { "aheadOn": [ "Schema \u0026 documentation, 84 against 68", "Agent ergonomics, 76 against 53" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "Teams building their own voice agent on one speech-to-speech model who want browser, server and phone transports from one vendor and can run a backend for secrets and tools.", "slug": "openai-realtime", "watchFor": "openai.com answered 403 to our reader, so the service terms, privacy policy, sub-processor list and security pages were not read." } ], "job": { "capability": "voice.agent", "name": "Voice agents" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-bland-ai.json", "title": "AssemblyAI Voice Agent API vs Bland AI API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-bland-ai" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-openai-realtime.json", "title": "AssemblyAI Voice Agent API vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-openai-realtime" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-bolna.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Bolna API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-bolna" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-deepgram-voice-agent.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Deepgram Voice Agent API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-deepgram-voice-agent" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-elevenlabs-agents.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs ElevenLabs Agents API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-elevenlabs-agents" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-gemini-live.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Gemini Live API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-gemini-live" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-hume-evi.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Hume EVI (Empathic Voice Interface)", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-hume-evi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-retell-ai.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Retell AI API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-retell-ai" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-synthflow.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Synthflow API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-synthflow" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-ultravox.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Ultravox Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-ultravox" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vapi.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Vapi API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vocily.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Vocily AI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vocily" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vogent.json", "title": "Bland AI API + MCP vs Vogent API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vogent" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-openai-realtime.json", "title": "Bolna API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-openai-realtime" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-voice-agent-vs-openai-realtime.json", "title": "Deepgram Voice Agent API vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-voice-agent-vs-openai-realtime" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-agents-vs-openai-realtime.json", "title": "ElevenLabs Agents API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-agents-vs-openai-realtime" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-live-vs-openai-realtime.json", "title": "Gemini Live API vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-live-vs-openai-realtime" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hume-evi-vs-openai-realtime.json", "title": "Hume EVI (Empathic Voice Interface) vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hume-evi-vs-openai-realtime" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-retell-ai.json", "title": "OpenAI Realtime API vs Retell AI API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-retell-ai" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-synthflow.json", "title": "OpenAI Realtime API vs Synthflow API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-synthflow" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-ultravox.json", "title": "OpenAI Realtime API vs Ultravox Realtime API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-ultravox" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vapi.json", "title": "OpenAI Realtime API vs Vapi API + MCP", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vapi" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vocily.json", "title": "OpenAI Realtime API vs Vocily AI", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vocily" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vogent.json", "title": "OpenAI Realtime API vs Vogent API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vogent" } ], "scores": [ { "bland-ai": 65, "by": 2, "edge": "openai-realtime", "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "openai-realtime": 67, "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "bland-ai": 68, "by": 16, "edge": "openai-realtime", "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "openai-realtime": 84, "weight": 13 }, { "bland-ai": 53, "by": 23, "edge": "openai-realtime", "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "openai-realtime": 76, "weight": 13 }, { "bland-ai": 66, "by": 5, "edge": "bland-ai", "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "openai-realtime": 61, "weight": 14 }, { "bland-ai": 65, "by": 45, "edge": "bland-ai", "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "openai-realtime": 20, "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "bland-ai": 60, "by": 8, "edge": "bland-ai", "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "openai-realtime": 52, "weight": 7 }, { "bland-ai": 71, "by": 0, "edge": "", "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "openai-realtime": 71, "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 63.8 (B) and 63.3 (B). OpenAI Realtime API leads on schema \u0026 documentation and agent ergonomics. Both do voice agents.", "verdicts": { "bland-ai": "One per-minute rate covering STT, LLM, TTS and telephony, $0.14 on Start and $0.12 on Build. No OpenAPI document.", "openai-realtime": "A generally available speech-to-speech API with WebRTC, WebSocket and SIP transports, a public OpenAPI file that types its events, and per-token prices. Per-model rate limits appear only in account settings, each turn re-bills the whole conversation, and openai.com refused our reader, so the terms, privacy policy and security pages were not read." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime.md", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime.min.md" }, "markdown": "Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 63.8 (B) and 63.3 (B). OpenAI Realtime API leads on schema \u0026 documentation and agent ergonomics. Both do voice agents.\n\n- Bland AI API + MCP: grade B, 63.8/100, rank #370 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bland-ai.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bland-ai.json\n- OpenAI Realtime API: grade B, 63.3/100, rank #400 of 950. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/openai-realtime.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/openai-realtime.json\n- Best conversational voice-agent APIs: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/voice-agents/index.md\n- All 91 voice agents comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/voice-agents/index.md\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### Bland AI API + MCP (B)\n\nGood for: Teams that want one predictable per-minute bill for outbound and inbound phone agents, and personal agents that need their own US number.\n\nAhead on:\n- Security \u0026 auth, 66 against 61\n- Payments \u0026 pricing, 65 against 20\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 60 against 52\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- Runs on your own machine\n- Free to start without a card\n\nWatch for: No OpenAPI document\n\n### OpenAI Realtime API (B)\n\nGood for: Teams building their own voice agent on one speech-to-speech model who want browser, server and phone transports from one vendor and can run a backend for secrets and tools.\n\nAhead on:\n- Schema \u0026 documentation, 84 against 68\n- Agent ergonomics, 76 against 53\n\nWatch for: openai.com answered 403 to our reader, so the service terms, privacy policy, sub-processor list and security pages were not read.\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | Bland AI API + MCP | OpenAI Realtime API | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 65 | 67 | OpenAI Realtime API +2 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 68 | 84 | OpenAI Realtime API +16 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 53 | 76 | OpenAI Realtime API +23 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 66 | 61 | Bland AI API + MCP +5 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 65 | 20 | Bland AI API + MCP +45 |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 60 | 52 | Bland AI API + MCP +8 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 71 | 71 | even |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |\n| **Total** | | **63.8 · B** | **63.3 · B** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | Bland AI API + MCP | OpenAI Realtime API |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |\n| Vendor | Bland AI | OpenAI |\n| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.bland.ai/v1` | `https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime` |\n| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP, stdio | HTTP |\n| Auth | API key | API key |\n| Pricing | Freemium | Pay per use |\n| Price for voice agents | $29.99 per month (plan) | not published |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | none | Proprietary service. The service terms on openai.com were not read. The Agents SDK for TypeScript and the OpenAPI description are MIT |\n| Tools exposed | 42 | none |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | no |\n| llms.txt | yes | yes |\n| Last release | 2026-09-13 | 2026-07-28 |\n| Terms last updated | 2026-08-28 | couldn't be read |\n| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-06-23 | couldn't be read |\n| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | couldn't be read |\n| Terms restrict automated access | yes | couldn't be read |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | couldn't be read |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | yes | couldn't be read |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | couldn't be read |\n| Popularity | 1.2k npm/wk | none |\n| Agent reviews | 3/5 (2) | none |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**Bland AI API + MCP.** One per-minute rate covering STT, LLM, TTS and telephony, $0.14 on Start and $0.12 on Build. No OpenAPI document.\n\n**OpenAI Realtime API.** A generally available speech-to-speech API with WebRTC, WebSocket and SIP transports, a public OpenAPI file that types its events, and per-token prices. Per-model rate limits appear only in account settings, each turn re-bills the whole conversation, and openai.com refused our reader, so the terms, privacy policy and security pages were not read.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### Bland AI API + MCP\n\n1. Call `wait_for_call` (it waits up to 45 seconds) instead of polling `get_call_log`\n2. Send destructive MCP tools a second time with the confirmation argument\n3. Space calls to the same number at least 10 seconds apart or expect a 429\n4. Budget $0.015 for every outbound attempt, including ones that never connect\n5. Run `validate_pathway` before saving a pathway graph\n\n### OpenAI Realtime API\n\n1. Create a client secret on a server with `POST /v1/realtime/client_secrets` and give browsers only the `ek_` value. Never ship the API key.\n2. After a response with MCP calls finishes, send another `response.create`. The API does not create the follow-up response itself.\n3. Set `truncation` with a `retention_ratio` below 1 and `token_limits.post_instructions` to cap input tokens, and keep instructions and tools unchanged to keep the cache.\n4. On a WebSocket, stop playback on `input_audio_buffer.speech_started` and send `conversation.item.truncate` with `audio_end_ms`. WebRTC and SIP truncate on the server.\n5. Use `gpt-realtime-2.1` or `gpt-realtime-2.1-mini`. `gpt-realtime` and `gpt-realtime-mini` shut down on 20 January 2027.\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, Bland AI API + MCP or OpenAI Realtime API?\n\nBland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API score within a point of each other on agent readiness, 63.8 (B) and 63.3 (B). OpenAI Realtime API leads on schema \u0026 documentation and agent ergonomics.\n\n### Do Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API need an API key?\n\nBoth need an API key.\n\n### Can an agent call Bland AI API + MCP and OpenAI Realtime API without installing anything?\n\nYes. Bland AI API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.bland.ai/v1 and OpenAI Realtime API at https://api.openai.com/v1/realtime.\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"bland-ai\", \"b\": \"openai-realtime\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare bland-ai openai-realtime`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bland-ai.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/openai-realtime.json\n\n## Other comparisons with Bland AI API + MCP or OpenAI Realtime API\n\n- [AssemblyAI Voice Agent API vs Bland AI API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-bland-ai.md)\n- [AssemblyAI Voice Agent API vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-openai-realtime.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Bolna API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-bolna.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Deepgram Voice Agent API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-deepgram-voice-agent.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs ElevenLabs Agents API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-elevenlabs-agents.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Gemini Live API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-gemini-live.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Hume EVI (Empathic Voice Interface)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-hume-evi.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Retell AI API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-retell-ai.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Synthflow API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-synthflow.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Ultravox Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-ultravox.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Vapi API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vapi.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Vocily AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vocily.md)\n- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Vogent API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-vogent.md)\n- [Bolna API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-openai-realtime.md)\n- [Deepgram Voice Agent API vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-voice-agent-vs-openai-realtime.md)\n- [ElevenLabs Agents API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-agents-vs-openai-realtime.md)\n- [Gemini Live API vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-live-vs-openai-realtime.md)\n- [Hume EVI (Empathic Voice Interface) vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hume-evi-vs-openai-realtime.md)\n- [OpenAI Realtime API vs Retell AI API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-retell-ai.md)\n- [OpenAI Realtime API vs Synthflow API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-synthflow.md)\n- [OpenAI Realtime API vs Ultravox Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-ultravox.md)\n- [OpenAI Realtime API vs Vapi API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vapi.md)\n- [OpenAI Realtime API vs Vocily AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vocily.md)\n- [OpenAI Realtime API vs Vogent API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-realtime-vs-vogent.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-10", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.4", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/" }, { "name": "Bland AI API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API", "url": "" } ], "description": "Bland AI and OpenAI Realtime score within a point of each other for voice agents, 63.8 and 63.3 out of 100. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "Bland AI API + MCP B 63.8", "OpenAI Realtime API B 63.3", "scores" ], "h1": "Bland AI API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime.png", "path": "/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "Bland AI vs OpenAI Realtime for AI agents in 2026: scores and prices", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-09", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-openai-realtime" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 2600, "slim": 780 }, "version": 1 }