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Smith.ai Review

Smith.ai is a virtual receptionist and answering service that combines AI and live human receptionists to handle business calls and website chats 24/7.

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Smith.ai — product screenshot

Why it matters

1Smith.ai offers a hybrid model combining AI agents with live North American human receptionists for 24/7 support.
2The service integrates with over 7,000 tools, including popular CRMs like Salesforce, HubSpot, and Clio.
3The AI Receptionist plan starts at $500 per month, while the Traditional Receptionist plan is $4,000 per month.
4Smith.ai's AI Receptionist product holds a 4.7/5 rating on G2.

About Smith.ai

Business Model
Subscription SaaS
Usage Pricing
$500/mo for AI Receptionist per call
Headquarters
Mountain View, CA, USA
Founded
2015
Team Size
Approx. 50-200 employees
Funding
Bootstrapped
Platforms
Web, API
Target Audience
Small to medium enterprises looking for responsive call handling solutions

Pricing Plans

AI Receptionist
Starting at $500/mo
  • • 24/7 Availability
  • • Lead qualification
  • • Appointment booking
Traditional Receptionist
$4,000/mo
  • • 9-5 Availability
  • • Human touch

Cost Examples

  • • Answer up to 100 calls per day: ~$500

Leadership

Justin NicholesCo-Founder & CEOLinkedIn
API Docs

Specs

API Docs

View Documentation →

API Available

Yes, public API

overview

What is Smith.ai?

Smith.ai is an AI-powered virtual receptionist and answering service tool developed by Smith.ai that enables small businesses, law firms, medical offices, and professional service companies to manage business communications 24/7. It uniquely blends AI with live North American human receptionists to handle calls, ensuring a human safety net for complex interactions. The service provides a comprehensive virtual front desk solution, managing inbound calls and website chats around the clock. Key functions include 24/7 Call Answering and Chat Management, Lead Qualification and Intake using custom questions, and Appointment Booking through integrations with tools like Google Calendar, Calendly, and Acuity. Smith.ai also offers Outbound Calling for follow-ups and integrates with over 7,000 tools, including CRMs such as Salesforce, HubSpot, Clio, and MyCase, via Zapier. The platform automatically filters out unwanted calls through Spam Blocking.

features

Key Features of Smith.ai

Smith.ai provides a robust set of features designed to streamline business communication and client intake, leveraging both artificial intelligence and human expertise. The platform ensures comprehensive coverage and efficient handling of various communication channels.

  • 24/7 Call Answering and Chat Management by AI and North American human receptionists.
  • Lead Qualification and Intake, utilizing custom questions to gather essential client information.
  • Appointment Booking and Scheduling, with integrations for tools like Google Calendar, Calendly, and Acuity.
  • Outbound Calling capabilities for follow-ups, lead nurturing, and appointment reminders.
  • CRM Integration with over 7,000 tools, including Salesforce, HubSpot, Clio, and MyCase, for data synchronization.
  • Spam Blocking and Call Screening, automatically filtering out unwanted calls and solicitors.
  • Call recording and transcription for review and compliance.
  • Bilingual Spanish Support, allowing the AI Receptionist to detect and respond to Spanish-speaking callers.
  • Transfers with Context, providing relevant information during warm handoffs to team members.
  • Self-healing FAQs, where the AI Receptionist learns from calls to build a more complete knowledge base.

use cases

Who Should Use Smith.ai?

Smith.ai is primarily designed for small to medium enterprises and professional service companies that require efficient, 24/7 client communication and lead management without the overhead of a full-time in-house receptionist. Its hybrid model caters to businesses prioritizing both AI efficiency and human interaction.

  • Small businesses seeking 24/7 professional call handling and lead capture to ensure no client inquiries are missed.
  • Law firms requiring specialized lead qualification, appointment booking, and CRM integration for legal client intake processes.
  • Medical offices needing efficient patient scheduling, reliable spam blocking, and secure communication management.
  • Professional service companies aiming to enhance their first impression and convert more leads through intelligent routing and live website chat.
  • Home service businesses that benefit from consistent call answering, scheduling, and follow-up services for field operations.

how to use

How to Use Smith.ai

To begin using Smith.ai, businesses typically sign up for a plan and configure their communication preferences. The service then integrates with existing business tools to manage calls and chats.

  • 1Sign up for a Smith.ai account on their official website, smith.ai.
  • 2Configure your call handling preferences, including custom intake questions, routing rules, and desired actions for different call types.
  • 3Integrate Smith.ai with your existing CRM (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot), calendar (e.g., Google Calendar, Calendly), or other business tools.
  • 4Forward your business phone number to Smith.ai or implement their live website chat widget on your site.
  • 5Monitor call summaries, listen to recordings, read transcripts, and review analytics via the client dashboard.
  • 6Adjust AI and human receptionist instructions and FAQs as your business needs and client interactions evolve.

pricing

Smith.ai Pricing & Plans

Smith.ai offers a paid subscription model with two primary tiers: AI Receptionist and Traditional Receptionist. The pricing structure is primarily per-call, with potential overage fees depending on call volume. Specific pricing details are available on their pricing page at smith.ai/pricing/ai-receptionist.

  • AI Receptionist: Starting at $500/month (monthly) for AI-powered call handling and basic features.
  • Traditional Receptionist: $4,000/month (monthly) for comprehensive services combining AI with live North American human receptionists.

Pros

  • +Hybrid AI and North American human receptionist model ensures 24/7 coverage with a human safety net for complex interactions.
  • +Effective lead qualification, intake, and appointment booking with extensive CRM integrations (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot, Clio).
  • +Comprehensive spam blocking and call screening capabilities reduce unwanted calls.
  • +User-friendly client dashboard provides access to call recordings, transcripts, and analytics.
  • +Bilingual Spanish support for the AI Receptionist enhances accessibility for diverse callers.
  • +Offers a cost-effective alternative to hiring a full-time in-house receptionist, especially for 24/7 coverage.

Cons

  • −Per-call billing model with potential overage fees can lead to higher-than-expected costs for unpredictable or high call volumes.
  • −Some user reviews indicate instances of AI auto-escalation to live agents without explicit user authorization, potentially increasing costs.
  • −The Traditional Receptionist plan has a significantly higher monthly cost of $4,000.
  • −While offering extensive integrations, the core service is focused on reception and not a full unified communications as a service (UCaaS) platform.

Policies

Pricing Page

View Pricing→

Similar Tools

Smith.ai vs Competitors

Smith.ai positions itself as a hybrid virtual receptionist service, combining the efficiency of AI with the nuanced judgment of live North American human agents. This model differentiates it from purely human-centric or purely AI-driven alternatives in the market.

1
RubyOn Stork

Ruby focuses on providing premium, 100% US-based human receptionists who aim to sound like in-house staff, emphasizing a warm, human-first answering experience.

While Smith.ai blends AI with live North American human receptionists, Ruby prioritizes a purely human-led model for relationship-driven firms. Ruby offers unified voice and chat handling and transparent pricing without extra charges for setup, onboarding, or after-hours coverage, which contrasts with Smith.ai's AI-led model and per-call billing.

2
AnswerHeroOn Stork

AnswerHero offers a flexible, human-centered approach to AI-powered call handling, featuring an 'AI Sidekick' that intelligently detects when a call requires a human touch and facilitates a seamless transfer.

Similar to Smith.ai, AnswerHero provides a hybrid model with AI receptionists available 24/7 and the option to combine with human agents. AnswerHero emphasizes seamless AI-to-human transfers and smarter follow-ups, aiming to deliver qualified leads and actionable data.

3
Dialpad AI Agents↗

Dialpad integrates AI virtual receptionists directly into a unified communications platform, enabling AI agents to handle inbound calls intelligently and maintain context from the initial interaction to resolution.

Dialpad's AI Agents offer a more integrated approach within a broader communication system compared to Smith.ai's dedicated receptionist service. It focuses on natural language understanding for routing and handling routine inquiries, with seamless handoffs to human agents, similar to Smith.ai's hybrid model, but as part of a larger UCaaS offering.

4
RingCentral AI ReceptionistOn Stork

RingCentral AI Receptionist provides an always-on, reliable AI front desk that handles 24/7 call handling, appointment setting, and lead collection, with the capability to seamlessly switch languages and hand off complex issues to a team with a call summary.

Like Smith.ai, RingCentral AI Receptionist offers 24/7 automated call handling and lead capture. Its strength lies in its integration within the RingCentral UCaaS ecosystem, providing a comprehensive solution for businesses already using their phone system, and it also extends to answering text messages.

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