How it compares · Studio OS vs a virtual assistant
Studio OS or a virtual assistant: an AI team or a person?
A virtual assistant is a person who handles your admin remotely. Studio OS is a team of AI agents that prepares the same work and waits for your approval. Choose Studio OS when your admin is mostly email, quotes, projects and invoices. Today a person is the better choice when the work happens on the phone, on site or inside your other systems.
Why consider Studio OS?
Good service means three things here. The agent knows the background: before replying, Kairi sees the client’s earlier emails, notes and quotes, Madis the state of the project and Liisa the invoices. Work starts straight away: once you let the agents work in the background, Kairi normally reviews a client’s email within 10–15 minutes, evenings and weekends too. Work carries on: a won quote becomes a project and a project becomes an invoice, without you handing over each step.
Where a human assistant is strong
An assistant can do more than email and invoices: Estonian providers also offer design, social media, website and online store management, meeting preparation and translation, and order office supplies and gifts. A person uses judgement where no rule exists, and you deal with a person. Several providers ask for no long commitment, and the volume can change from month to month. Sources: Assistent.ee: service prices; Eluloov: price list; VIA Assist: price list; E-Sekretär: virtual assistant service.
Features and everyday work
On smaller screens, scroll the table sideways to read both products.
| Your requirement | Studio OS | Virtual assistant |
|---|---|---|
| Background and continuity | A client’s emails, notes, quotes, projects and invoices sit in one place. The agent reads them before preparing the work. | A person learns your business over time. Work runs through an agreed channel and you share files with them, for example in a shared Drive folder. |
| When work starts | Once background work is on, a client’s email is normally reviewed within 10–15 minutes, evenings and weekends too. On WhatsApp and Messenger, Kairi can answer clients right away from your public information. | During agreed hours and volume. One provider, for example, works Mon–Fri, 8:00–16:30. |
| What you can hand over | Email in three languages, quotes, calendar and meeting preparation, projects, invoices, costs, research and documents. On request, Tõnis the marketing agent also prepares posts, images and newsletters. | Email and documents, plus design, social media, website, online store, translation and practical errands. |
| Control | Every outgoing email, invoice and commitment waits for your approval by default. You see what the agent did and why, and the AI level sets how much initiative the agents take. | You give a person the access they need and trust them within agreed limits. A monthly report shows the work and the time. |
| Volume and users | The monthly fee does not depend on hours. Studio Solo is for one user, Studio Business for a team. | An hourly rate or a monthly package with fixed hours. At one provider, unused hours do not carry over to the next month. |
Competitor capabilities are documented in the linked sources. Studio responsibilities and integrations are scoped for your business. Sources: Virtuaalassistendid: prices; Assistent.ee: service prices; Eluloov: price list; VIA Assist: price list; E-Sekretär: virtual assistant service; Tulemeedia: virtual assistant.
What AI does not do today, and where it is heading
The agents do not make calls, go on site or run your website or online store. They do not read a Google mailbox themselves: email reaches the workspace by forwarding. Microsoft 365 can also be connected directly.
AI can be wrong, so by default only what you have approved goes out. That means some of your time goes on approving. Weigh that when comparing: how long it takes you to explain, review and correct one piece of work in each case.
Studio is moving toward more independence. The AI-led level is in development: once a routine has proved itself and you have confirmed it, Kairi could in future answer ordinary support questions and agree on times herself, and Madis could plan some of the work on his own. Phone calls are a possible next step too. This is a direction, not something available today, and we promise no dates.
Try both with one real week
A new client asks for a quote on Monday evening, another moves a meeting on Wednesday, and one invoice is unpaid by Friday. Ask each who sees these first, where they get the background, how fast a reply is ready and what you must do yourself. Count how many times you had to explain, remind or correct something.
Which fits your business?
Choose Studio when…
Your admin is mostly email, quotes, projects and invoices, work also arrives outside office hours, and you want to see everything in one place and decide yourself what goes out.
Consider the alternative when…
Today you need phone calls, design, online store or website management, practical errands, or someone who deals with clients without you reviewing anything. A person can do this work well alongside Studio OS too.
Compare the full cost of the workflow
Estonian providers’ published hourly rates start at €20–35. Monthly packages run from €150 for 5 hours to €1,400 for 35 hours. VAT treatment differs between providers. Studio Solo is €199 and Studio Business €349 per month. The Solo fee does not depend on hours; its limit is one user. Sources: Virtuaalassistendid: prices; Assistent.ee: service prices; Eluloov: price list; VIA Assist: price list; E-Sekretär: virtual assistant service; Tulemeedia: virtual assistant; Sinu Assistendid: price list.
Ask Studio for a proposal covering the same workload, users, integrations, usage and support. Include setup, maintenance and your team’s review time in both estimates. The useful measure is the cost of a completed workflow and the attention it still needs from you.
Frequently asked questions
Can Studio OS take the place of a virtual assistant?
For email, quotes, projects and invoices, it can, and with Tõnis on request for posts and newsletters too. For phone calls, design and practical errands, not today. Compare them on one real week of work.
Does AI do this as well as a person?
Background and continuity are its strength: it reads the client’s history before each task and works in the evening too. A person has the stronger judgement, which is why you approve what goes out.
Can I use Studio OS and a human assistant together?
Yes. The agents do the routine preparation and the person does what AI cannot. If the assistant needs their own Studio OS login, you need Studio Business, because Solo is for one user.
Will the agents do more on their own in future?
That is the direction we are working in. Today the agents prepare the work and outgoing work waits for your approval. In future they could act more independently in routines you have confirmed, such as answering ordinary support questions, agreeing on times and planning some of the work. We promise no dates.
Who does the accounting?
Liisa prepares invoices and books purchases, but an accountant remains responsible for the accounts. If you do not have one, we can refer you to a vetted partner. The partner delivers the service and invoices you, and the referral is free. The partner also offers payroll, annual reports, financial advice and a part-time finance director.
Sources and review method
Based on public vendor documentation and Studio’s own product scope, not a comparative performance trial. Recommendations reflect our assessment of workflow fit. Features, plans and AI availability can change.
- Virtuaalassistendid: prices
- Assistent.ee: service prices
- Eluloov: price list
- VIA Assist: price list
- E-Sekretär: virtual assistant service
- Tulemeedia: virtual assistant
- Sinu Assistendid: price list
Product names belong to their respective owners. These comparisons are written by Hiiu Studio and are not affiliated with or endorsed by the other vendors.