AI receptionists
Smith.ai vs Ruby
The $150 card is not a person. Smith.ai AI Pro is 75 bot-first calls with a North America human behind it. Ruby starts at $250 for 50 minutes of a US receptionist, and the minutes round up. That is the whole comparison.
| What | Smith.ai | Ruby |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly floor | $150 AI Pro, 75 calls | $250 Live, 50 minutes |
| Who greets the caller | AI first. North America human behind it | US person. AI is a copilot, not the greeting |
| Human-only plan | $300 Starter, 30 calls | Every live plan is a person |
| Overage | $3 per live-agent transfer on AI. $11.50 on call 31 of human Starter | $5.40/min on the 50-minute plan |
| How they count | Per answered call. Unused do not roll | Per minute, 60-second rounding, hold and wrap. Unused do not roll |
| Jobber and Housecall Pro | Housecall Pro native on AI. Jobber is mostly Zapier | No Jobber or Housecall Pro page |
| Reviews product | No. A follow-up link is not NiceJob | No |
| Trial | 30-day money-back on the first VR or chat plan payment. Overages excluded | 21-day money-back |
| Cancel | Email support@smith.ai. 30 days notice | Email billing@ruby.com or a phone call before the next invoice. Pay through period end |
| Verdict | Solid pick, 7.5 | Situational, 7 |
| Skip this number | Stale $97.50 tables. Treating AI Pro as a human | $235 and $245 on old directories. The pricing page with no overage |
The skip is treating $150 like a person
Both will pick up at 2 a.m. Only one of those pickups is a person on the $150 and $250 cards. Smith.ai tells the caller it is AI. Ruby does not use AI to answer.
Buy Smith.ai if you are a law firm or a high-ticket trade, you will cap live-transfer rules, and AI-first is acceptable. Stay on AI Pro at $150 when 75 calls is a real month. Buy human Starter at $300 when a person has to greet. Spanish is included on AI. A dedicated Spanish line is $1 a call on human plans. Do not buy Starter if a busy week will blow 30 calls.
Buy Ruby if a model is not allowed to greet the caller, the office is low volume, and you will size 50 minutes honestly, including hold. Pay ACH and skip the 3% card fee. After 90 days you cannot freely downgrade. Clio is native. Jobber is not.
Skip both as a cheap night bot. That job is still Rosie at $49 or Frontdesk at $99. AnswerConnect is a different human floor: $350 for 200 minutes and a 90-day minimum.
Buy Smith.ai
$150 if AI-first is fine. $300 when a person has to greet. Cap the transfers.
Buy Ruby
A person on every pickup. 50 honest minutes. You will read the $5.40 overage before you sign.
The catch
Smith.ai hides the human behind the $150 card. Ruby hides rounding and $5.40 overage off the pricing page. Both meters have already shown up in billing complaints.
FAQ
Is Smith.ai $150 a live receptionist?
No. AI Pro is $150 for 75 calls. About a quarter of those still involve a person. Human Starter is $300 for 30 calls. Call 31 on that plan is $11.50.
How does Ruby bill the month?
50 minutes at $250. 60-second rounding, including hold and wrap after hangup. Overage is $5.40 a minute on that plan. That number is in the help center, not on the pricing page.
Which one for a plumber?
Neither as the default. Smith.ai is built for law first. Ruby says dispatch-heavy plumbers should keep walking. A night bot is Rosie at $49 or Frontdesk at $99.
Full aisle: AI receptionists. AI pair: Rosie vs Frontdesk. Shop OS: Jobber vs Housecall Pro.