What Is Average Handle Time (AHT)?
Average handle time (AHT) is a contact center metric that measures the total time an agent spends on a customer interaction, from the moment they connect to the moment they finish all after-call work. It includes talk time, hold time and wrap-up time. AHT is one of the most widely tracked metrics in contact center operations because it directly affects staffing requirements, customer wait times and operating costs.
The formula is straightforward: AHT = (Total Talk Time + Total Hold Time + Total After-Call Work) / Total Number of Interactions. For example, if your team spent 500 minutes talking, 50 minutes on hold and 100 minutes on wrap-up across 100 calls, your AHT is 6.5 minutes.
A lower AHT is not always better. Rushing calls to hit a target can hurt customer satisfaction and first-contact resolution. The goal is to reduce unnecessary handle time (long holds, repetitive data entry, searching for information) while giving agents the time they need to resolve issues completely. Five9 AI Agent Assist helps reduce AHT by surfacing relevant knowledge base articles, automating call summaries and providing real-time guidance so agents spend less time searching and more time solving.
How Do You Improve Average Handle Time?
Several strategies help reduce AHT without sacrificing quality:
Give agents real-time knowledge. Five9 AI Agent Assist surfaces relevant articles and scripts during live calls so agents do not put customers on hold to search for answers.
Automate after-call work. Five9 AI Summary generates call notes and disposition codes automatically, eliminating minutes of manual wrap-up after every interaction.
Use screen pops to deliver customer context. When agents see account details, interaction history and intent data the moment a call connects, they skip the verification questions that add time.
Route calls to the right agent the first time. Skills-based routing through Five9 ACD matches callers with agents who have the expertise to resolve their issue without transfers or escalations.
Identify and address outliers through analytics. Five9 Interaction Analytics flags calls with unusually high handle times so supervisors can review recordings, identify bottlenecks and provide targeted coaching.
