Compare · Prices checked October 20, 2026
Smith.ai vs Ruby (2026)
Published starting prices: Smith.ai, $150/mo (Pro plan entry price; a free 25-call plan also exists). Ruby, $250/mo (Call Ruby 50). Side-by-side public pricing, what each does, real use cases and who each suits, all from our listings with sources. We haven't tested either hands-on.
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ReceptionistFree tier
Smith.ai AI Receptionist
Per-call AI receptionist that can hand a call to Smith.ai's North America-based live agents. Strong lead-qualification focus and a native Clio integration, popular with law firms.
≈ $501/mo at 300 calls
Ranked in 2 industries$150/mo
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Human service
Ruby
Long-running US live virtual receptionist service. Real people answer; AI is used for transcripts and call flows. Included here as the human benchmark people compare AI against.
≈ $3,128/mo at 300 calls
Ranked in 5 industries$250/mo
Quick answer
- Cheaper: Advertised entry prices: Smith.ai $150/mo, Ruby $250/mo. At about 300 calls a month, our estimate of the real bill is ≈ $501/mo for Smith.ai and ≈ $3,128/mo for Ruby, so Smith.ai is cheaper at that volume. Your bill depends on your call volume and call length; the math is on each product page. Checked October 20, 2026.
- Free plans: Smith.ai: yes. Its Free plan is $0/mo (25 calls/mo), checked October 20, 2026. Ruby: no $0 plan on its pricing page (checked October 20, 2026).
Pricing side by side
| Item |  Smith.ai |  Ruby |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $150/mo (Pro plan entry price; a free 25-call plan also exists) | $250/mo (Call Ruby 50) |
| Pricing model | Subscription | Subscription |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Real bill at 300 calls/mo (our estimate) | ≈ $501/mo | ≈ $3,128/mo |
| Free trial | Free plan: 25 calls/mo | not published |
| Plans |
|
|
| Pricing note | Billed per call, not per minute. Known spam is filtered and up to 10% of calls can be removed as spam each cycle. Month-to-month, 30 days' notice to cancel. | Plan list and overage rates come from Ruby's own help center; ruby.com/pricing shows plan sizes but the minute prices did not render for us. Minutes are rounded up to the next 60 seconds and include hold time. |
| Checked | October 20, 2026 | October 20, 2026 |
| Source | Vendor pricing page | Vendor pricing page |
Copied from each vendor's public pricing page on the date shown. "not published" means the vendor doesn't publish it; we don't guess. Prices change; confirm with the vendor.
Features and details from our listings
| Item | Smith.ai | Ruby |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Per-call AI receptionist that can hand a call to Smith.ai's North America-based live agents. Strong lead-qualification focus and a native Clio integration, popular with law firms. | Long-running US live virtual receptionist service. Real people answer; AI is used for transcripts and call flows. Included here as the human benchmark people compare AI against. |
| Type | AI receptionist with live-human backup | Live human receptionists (with optional AI enhancements) |
| Listed under | AI receptionists | AI receptionists |
| 24/7 answering | yes | yes |
| Appointment booking | Yes (Calendly and others) | Yes (scheduling) |
| Integrations | Clio Manage, Clio Grow, Zapier, Calendly | not published |
| Bilingual | Yes, English/Spanish | Yes, 24/7 Spanish/bilingual |
| Call transfer | Yes, incl. to live Smith.ai agents | Yes |
| HIPAA | Not HIPAA-compliant per a third-party review (practiceaireview.com); confirm with vendor | HIPAA-compliant services available (vendor claim) |
| Setup fee | None listed for Pro; Enterprise includes full-service setup | None (Ruby states no activation, onboarding or setup fees) |
| Verified public use cases | 0 | 0 |
Use cases
Smith.ai
We haven't found a verified public use case for Smith.ai yet.
Where our industry rankings place it: Law Firms #1, Insurance Agencies #2.
Ruby
We haven't found a verified public use case for Ruby yet.
Where our industry rankings place it: Dental Offices #5, Medical Practices #3, Law Firms #4, Veterinary Clinics #3, Insurance Agencies #5.
Use cases are summarised in our own words from the linked public post; vendor case studies are labelled. All use cases.
Who each is best for
- SubscriptionFree plan
Smith.ai is best for
- Ranked for: Law Firms, Insurance Agencies. In law firms: Native Clio Manage/Grow, lead qualification and live-agent backup. Pricier (~$501 at 300 calls).
- Type: AI receptionist with live-human backup. Real bill at 300 calls: ≈ $501/mo.
- Strengths: Human backup when the AI gets stuck; Per-call pricing makes long calls cheap; Native Clio integration for law firms; Free tier to test with real calls.
- Watch out: One of the more expensive AI options at 300 calls; Not a fit for PHI/HIPAA work (per third-party review); Extra calls cost more than included ones.
- Subscription
Ruby is best for
- Ranked for: Dental Offices, Medical Practices, Law Firms, Veterinary Clinics, Insurance Agencies. In medical practices: Human receptionists with HIPAA-compliant service if AI isn't acceptable.
- Type: Live human receptionists (with optional AI enhancements). Real bill at 300 calls: ≈ $3,128/mo.
- Strengths: Real people on every call; Bilingual and HIPAA options; No setup fees.
- Watch out: About 6-25× the cost of AI options at 300 calls; Minute rounding and hold time are billed.
From our listing data (jobs, public pricing, industry rankings, pros and cons); not a hands-on test. Full details: Smith.ai · Ruby.
FAQ
Which is cheaper, Smith.ai or Ruby?
Advertised entry prices: Smith.ai $150/mo, Ruby $250/mo. At about 300 calls a month, our estimate of the real bill is ≈ $501/mo for Smith.ai and ≈ $3,128/mo for Ruby, so Smith.ai is cheaper at that volume. Your bill depends on your call volume and call length; the math is on each product page. Checked October 20, 2026.
Is Smith.ai free? Is Ruby free?
Smith.ai: yes. Its Free plan is $0/mo (25 calls/mo), checked October 20, 2026. Ruby: no $0 plan on its pricing page (checked October 20, 2026).
How much does Smith.ai cost?
Smith.ai lists Free: $0/mo (25 calls/mo); Pro: from $150/mo (75 calls ($2.00/call); 150 calls ($1.80/call); 300 calls ($1.67/call)); Enterprise: from $500/mo (300 calls ($1.67/call), 500 ($1.60), 1000+ custom). Our estimate of the real bill at about 300 calls a month: ≈ $501/mo. Checked October 20, 2026 on the vendor's pricing page.
How much does Ruby cost?
Ruby lists Call Ruby 50: $250/mo (50 receptionist minutes); Call Ruby 100: $395/mo (100 minutes); Call Ruby 200: $720/mo (200 minutes); Call Ruby 500: $1,725/mo (500 minutes); Call Ruby 750: $2,550/mo (750 minutes); Call Ruby 1,000: $3,350/mo (1,000 minutes). Our estimate of the real bill at about 300 calls a month: ≈ $3,128/mo. Checked October 20, 2026 on the vendor's pricing page.
Did AITeamGuide test them?
Not hands-on. This comparison is built from each vendor's public pricing page (with the date we checked it), published product information and credited public use cases.
Can a vendor pay to win this comparison?
No. Nothing here is paid. Paid placements on AITeamGuide are always labelled "Sponsored" or "Featured" and never change a comparison or ranking.
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