Ruby vs Smith.ai
An honest comparison of Ruby and Smith.ai for AI phone answering. Find out which service fits your business best.
Quick Overview
Ruby is premium live virtual receptionist service for small businesses. Smith.ai is ai + live agent hybrid for the front office. Both serve the AI phone answering space, but they differ in pricing, features, and target audience.
Ruby vs Smith.ai: At a Glance
Ruby
Human-First
Best for: Law firms, professional services, and small businesses wanting premium human answering
Smith.ai
Hybrid
Best for: Law firms and professional services needing AI plus live agent backup
Ruby vs Smith.ai: Feature Comparison
See how these two services compare on key features.
| Feature | Ruby | Smith.ai |
|---|---|---|
| AI Call Handling | Unknown | Yes |
| Appointment Booking | Yes | Yes |
| Lead Capture | Unknown | Yes |
| Call Recording | Unknown | Yes |
| Call Transfers | Yes | Yes |
| Voicemail | Yes | Unknown |
| SMS Notifications | Yes | Yes |
| Bilingual Support | Yes | No |
| HIPAA Compliance | Yes | Unknown |
| CRM Integration | Yes | Yes |
| Dedicated Phone Number | Unknown | Yes |
| Custom AI Training | Unknown | Yes |
| Custom Greetings | Yes | Yes |
| Spam Filtering | No | Unknown |
| Quick Setup | No | No |
Pricing Comparison
How Ruby and Smith.ai compare on cost.
Ruby Pricing
Per-minute pricing with tiered plans
$250/month for 50 minutes
50 Minutes: $250/mo
50 receptionist minutes, all features included, great for startups
100 Minutes: $395/mo
100 receptionist minutes, all features included, great for one-person businesses
200 Minutes: $720/mo
200 receptionist minutes, all features included, most popular plan
500 Minutes: $1,725/mo
500 receptionist minutes, all features included, great for larger businesses
All plans include the same comprehensive features — the only difference is the number of receptionist minutes. No setup, activation, or hidden fees. Ruby bills in 30-second increments. Overages beyond your plan minutes incur additional per-minute charges. Spam and wrong-number calls count toward your minute total. Live chat plans available separately ($143–$520/mo) or bundled with receptionist plans at 20% off. Larger custom plans available by contacting sales.
Smith.ai Pricing
Per-call pricing with self-service and guided annual plans
$95/month (AI Receptionist self-service)
Self-Service (~2 calls/day): $95/mo
$1.90/call, month-to-month, no dedicated support, unused calls expire monthly, overages at $2.40/call
Self-Service (~5 calls/day): $270/mo
$1.80/call, month-to-month, no dedicated support, unused calls expire monthly, overages at $2.40/call
Self-Service (~15 calls/day): $800/mo
$1.60/call, month-to-month, no dedicated support, unused calls expire monthly, overages at $2.40/call
Guided Annual (~10 calls/day): $500/mo
$1.50/call, billed annually, dedicated success manager, custom integrations, no overages
Guided Annual (~25 calls/day): $1,000/mo
$1.33/call, billed annually, dedicated success manager, custom integrations, no overages
Guided Annual (~55 calls/day): $2,000/mo
$1.20/call, billed annually, dedicated success manager, custom integrations, no overages
AI Receptionist pricing shown above. Smith.ai also offers a separate Virtual Receptionists product (human-first live answering) with its own pricing. Live agent handoff on the AI Receptionist costs an additional $3 per call. Many features like appointment booking ($1.50/call), SMS notifications ($0.50/call), and Spanish support ($1.00/call) are add-on charges on the Virtual Receptionist product. Self-service plans require a $2,000 add-on for custom configuration that annual plans include free.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Ruby
Strengths
- Live U.S.-based human receptionists provide a personal, high-touch experience
- 24/7/365 coverage with trained professionals — not AI scripts
- Strong reputation in legal industry with specialized CRM integrations (Clio, Rocket Matter, MyCase)
- Outbound calling, payment collection, and managed live chat services
- AI-enhanced features like call transcription and sentiment analysis
Weaknesses
- Starting price of $250/month for just 50 minutes — more than 8x Dialzara's $29/month entry price
- Effective per-minute cost ranges from $3.45 to $5.00 — extremely expensive for call volume
- Spam and wrong-number calls consume your paid minutes
- Overage charges when you exceed your plan minutes
- Bills in 30-second increments, rounding up — a 31-second call costs you a full minute
Smith.ai
Strengths
- Hybrid model with 500+ live agents available for handoff when AI can't handle a call
- 143 integrations including deep CRM support (HubSpot, Salesforce, Clio)
- Established brand trusted by 5,000+ businesses with high review ratings (4.8+ on Clutch and G2)
- Outbound calling and web chat products available
- Strong presence in legal industry with specialized intake workflows
Weaknesses
- AI Receptionist starts at $95/month — more than 3x Dialzara's $29/month entry price
- Per-call pricing model means costs scale up quickly with call volume
- Many features are paid add-ons: scheduling ($1.50/call), SMS alerts ($0.50/call), Spanish ($1.00/call), call recording ($0.25/call)
- Live agent handoff costs an additional $3 per call on top of base pricing
- Best pricing requires annual commitment starting at $500/month ($6,000/year)
Looking for a Better Option? Try Dialzara
While Ruby and Smith.ai each have their strengths, Dialzara offers a purpose-built AI answering service starting at just $29/month with features that both services charge more for — including bilingual English/Spanish support, appointment booking, call transfers, HIPAA compliance, and Zapier integration on every plan.
Flat pricing with 60 minutes included. No per-user charges.
Enter your website URL and your AI agent is ready to go.
Healthcare-ready on all plans, starting at $29/month.
Ruby vs Smith.ai: FAQ
Common questions about the differences between Ruby and Smith.ai.