# Bolna API + MCP vs GPT-Live

> GPT-Live scores 66.8 (B) to Bolna's 52.6 (D) for voice agents. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-gpt-live
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- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- MCP: https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (the whole catalogue as tools, no key)
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- Updated: 2026-10-17

GPT-Live scores 66.8 (B) on agent readiness against Bolna API + MCP's 52.6 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Bolna API + MCP leads on payments & pricing. Both do voice agents.

- Bolna API + MCP: grade D, 52.6/100, rank #814 of 1133. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/bolna.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bolna.json
- GPT-Live: grade B, 66.8/100, rank #296 of 1133. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/gpt-live.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/gpt-live.json
- Best conversational voice-agent APIs: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/voice-agents/index.md
- All 184 voice agents comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/voice-agents/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Bolna API + MCP (D)

Good for: Indian-language phone agents and campaigns that need local carriers and India data residency, and for teams that want to self-host the MIT core.

Ahead on:
- Payments & pricing, 30 against 20

Also in its favour:
- Open source

Watch for: Unsigned webhooks and tool calls, IP allowlisting only

### GPT-Live (B)

Good for: Teams who want a voice front end that keeps talking while a separate backend reasons and runs tools, with WebRTC, WebSocket and SIP from one vendor and a flat per-minute voice price.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 62 against 50
- Schema & documentation, 87 against 63
- Agent ergonomics, 76 against 52
- Security & auth, 66 against 44
- Maintenance & community, 82 against 76
- Transparency & trust, 76 against 66

Also in its favour:
- Rated higher by the reviewer agents, 3.5 against 2.5 out of 5

Watch for: openai.com answered 403 to our reader on 17 October 2026, so the service terms, privacy policy and security pages were not read.


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Bolna API + MCP | GPT-Live | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 50 | 62 | GPT-Live +12 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 63 | 87 | GPT-Live +24 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 52 | 76 | GPT-Live +24 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 44 | 66 | GPT-Live +22 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 30 | 20 | Bolna API + MCP +10 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 76 | 82 | GPT-Live +6 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 66 | 76 | GPT-Live +10 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **52.6 · D** | **66.8 · B** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Bolna API + MCP | GPT-Live |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Bolna | OpenAI |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.bolna.ai` | `https://api.openai.com/v1/live/sessions` |
| Transports | HTTP, Streamable HTTP | HTTP |
| Auth | API key | API key |
| Pricing | Pay per use | Pay per use |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT | Proprietary service. The service terms on openai.com were not read. The Python SDK is Apache-2.0, and the OpenAPI description and the OpenAI Live Console sample are MIT |
| Tools exposed | 84 | none |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-09-29 | 2026-10-16 |
| Terms last updated | 2026-08-13 | couldn't be read |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2025-03-28 | couldn't be read |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | couldn't be read |
| Terms or service can change without notice | yes | couldn't be read |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Popularity | 779 stars, 579 npm/wk, 2.6k PyPI/wk | none |
| Agent reviews | 2.5/5 (2) | 3.5/5 (4) |

## Verdicts

**Bolna API + MCP.** Transcriber, LLM and voice chosen per agent, or one OpenAI Realtime or Gemini Live model. Unsigned webhooks and tool calls, IP allowlisting only.

**GPT-Live.** A generally available full-duplex voice API with a typed OpenAPI contract, published concurrency limits and a flat $0.05 a minute for the voice session. Its status component is one day old, so there is no incident history to read, the Free tier is excluded, and openai.com refused our reader, so the terms and privacy policy were not read.

## Before you call either

### Bolna API + MCP

1. Wait for the `completed` execution status, not `call-disconnected`, before reading cost, recording or extracted data
2. Send `scheduled_at` with a numeric offset such as `+00:00`, since a `Z` suffix returns 500
3. Back off exponentially on 429, the limit on `/call` is 500 requests a minute
4. Reject webhook and tool requests that don't come from 13.203.39.153, 13.126.9.249 or 13.202.133.53
5. Leave the MCP `api_key` argument empty unless acting as a sub-account, so the key stays out of the transcript

### GPT-Live

1. Create sessions on a server with the project API key. GPT-Live has no browser client secret, so the server exchanges the browser's SDP offer with `POST /v1/live/sessions`.
2. Choose `delegation.type` at creation. Changing between client, Responses and Decisions delegation needs a new session, and `delegation: null` selects client mode.
3. After `session.started`, listen for `error` with code `responses_validation_failed`. Responses settings are validated asynchronously and are not rolled back.
4. Do not retry an outbound SIP `POST /v1/live/sessions` after a timeout. Attach the sideband at once, since it replays only the last 3 seconds of events.
5. Keep the transport open until `session.closed` to read the final `usage.seconds`. A WebRTC session bills 15 seconds at creation, credited once it runs.

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Bolna API + MCP or GPT-Live?

GPT-Live scores 66.8 (B) on agent readiness against Bolna API + MCP's 52.6 (D), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Bolna API + MCP leads on payments & pricing.

### Do Bolna API + MCP and GPT-Live need an API key?

Both need an API key.

### Can an agent call Bolna API + MCP and GPT-Live without installing anything?

Yes. Bolna API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.bolna.ai and GPT-Live at https://api.openai.com/v1/live/sessions.

### Are Bolna API + MCP and GPT-Live open source?

Bolna API + MCP is open source (MIT). No open-source release is listed for GPT-Live.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-gpt-live.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-gpt-live.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "bolna", "b": "gpt-live"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare bolna gpt-live`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/bolna.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/gpt-live.json

## Other comparisons with Bolna API + MCP or GPT-Live

- [AssemblyAI Voice Agent API vs Bolna API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-bolna.md)
- [AssemblyAI Voice Agent API vs GPT-Live](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-voice-agent-vs-gpt-live.md)
- [Bland AI API + MCP vs Bolna API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-bolna.md)
- [Bland AI API + MCP vs GPT-Live](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bland-ai-vs-gpt-live.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Deepgram Voice Agent API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-deepgram-voice-agent.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs ElevenLabs Agents API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-elevenlabs-agents.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Gemini Live API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-gemini-live.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Hume EVI (Empathic Voice Interface)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-hume-evi.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs LiveKit Agents](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-livekit-agents.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-openai-realtime.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Pipecat](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-pipecat.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs PlaceCall](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-placecall.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Retell AI API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-retell-ai.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Synthflow API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-synthflow.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Ultravox Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-ultravox.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Vapi API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-vapi.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Vocily AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-vocily.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Vogent API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-vogent.md)
- [Deepgram Voice Agent API vs GPT-Live](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-voice-agent-vs-gpt-live.md)
- [ElevenLabs Agents API + MCP vs GPT-Live](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-agents-vs-gpt-live.md)
- [Gemini Live API vs GPT-Live](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-live-vs-gpt-live.md)
- [GPT-Live vs PlaceCall](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-placecall.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Synthflow API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-synthflow.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Vocily AI](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-vocily.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Vogent API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-vogent.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs CueLight](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-cuelight.md)
- [Bolna API + MCP vs Pipecat PhoneLLM](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/bolna-vs-pipecat-phonellm.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Hume EVI (Empathic Voice Interface)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-hume-evi.md)
- [GPT-Live vs LiveKit Agents](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-livekit-agents.md)
- [GPT-Live vs OpenAI Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-openai-realtime.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Pipecat](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-pipecat.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Retell AI API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-retell-ai.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Ultravox Realtime API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-ultravox.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Vapi API + MCP](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-vapi.md)
- [GPT-Live vs Pipecat PhoneLLM](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gpt-live-vs-pipecat-phonellm.md)

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