7 Smith.ai Alternatives for AI Answering in 2025 (Tried & Compared)

TL;DR - What's the best Smith AI alternative?

We'll save you scrolling: It's Ringly.io. With unbeatable transcription accuracy, seamless integrations, and pricing that doesn't require a venture capital round, it's the smart choice for businesses serious about AI-powered communication.

What is Smith AI?

Born in the tech heartland of Palo Alto back in 2015, Smith.ai is an AI receptionist for businesses. Founders Aaron Lee and Justin Maxwell saw a massive gap: businesses drowning in missed calls and lost potential customers. Their solution? An AI assistant that answers, screens, and manages current clients and sales calls like an in-house team member.

With over 3,000 users already riding this communication revolution, Smith.ai is the go-to AI receptionist for businesses of all sizes. Whether you're a scrappy startup or a established enterprise, this platform turns communication chaos into smooth, professional interactions that never sleep.

Top user complaints of Smith's AI virtual agent

We meticulously studied dozens of user reviews of Smith.ai from online review platforms like G2, Gartner, and SoftwareAdvice and identified the following themes amongst user complaints that you should be wary of when looking for a Smith.ai alternative:

• Suuuper expensive: You pay $4.25 for an AI phone call, while at Ringly.io the average client pays $0.25 per phone call! We've had some customers already move from Smith to Ringly.io because of the pricing. Who wouldn't want to save 94% of what you pay at Smith.ai?

• Unreliable Call Handling: Multiple customers reported missed calls, dropped leads, and significant revenue loss due to inconsistent and unprofessional call management. Potential alternatives must demonstrate rock-solid reliability.

• Poor Communication: Users consistently highlighted communication breakdowns, including unresponsive support, ignored emails, and lack of transparency about service limitations and billing practices.

• Integration Failures: Critical integrations with platforms like HubSpot and RingCentral frequently did not work as promised, causing substantial operational disruptions for businesses relying on seamless tech connections.

• Billing Nightmares: Numerous reviews described ongoing billing after service cancellation, unexpected charges, and complex refund processes that created significant customer frustration and trust erosion.

• Customer Support Incompetence: Reviews emphasized support staff's inability to resolve issues, provide clear information, or take meaningful accountability for service failures.

• Inconsistent Quality: Many long-term customers noted a dramatic decline in service quality over time, suggesting the company struggled to maintain standards as they scaled.

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What to look for in top Smith AI alternatives

• 90% cheaper: find an AI receptionist like Ringly.io that is 90% cheaper than Smith.ai

• Rock-solid reliability and actual US-based agents who understand your industry

• Transparent pricing with no sneaky hidden fees or ongoing charges

• A responsive, empathetic customer support live chat that actually solves problems with responsiveness.

• A user-friendly client dashboard with call scripts, new leads, potential clients, etc.

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#1 Ringly.io – The best AI answering service

Best for: Online businesses & e-commerce stores that don't want to deal with customer service but just scale.

Product Hunt rating: 4.8/5 stars

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Founded in 2024 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, by Maurizio Isendoorn and Ruben Boonzaaijer, Ringly.io is revolutionizing e-commerce customer service with AI phone agents.

Designed for online businesses, Ringly handles customer calls on autopilot—solving support issues, recovering abandoned carts, and even boosting sales—at just 20% of the cost of human agents.

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With 1,300+ customers, Ringly.io is the go-to solution for e-commerce stores looking to scale without scaling their support team. With award-winning technology (BubbleCon 2024's "Most Innovative App"), Ringly.io transforms your phone system into a revenue-driving powerhouse—without the headaches of traditional call centers.

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Features that make Ringly.io the #1 Smith.ai alternative

• No-code setup, instant results – Ringly.io is ready to go in minutes. Just add your website, docs, or text—no engineering required—and your AI phone agent instantly understands your business. It even updates automatically as your website changes.

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• ‍AI-powered sales & support – Ringly.io does both inbound and outbound calls. Recover 35%+ of abandoned carts with automated follow-up calls, provide real-time order tracking from Shopify, and convert more customers with personalized AI-driven conversations—not just reactive support.

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• Advanced analytics for smarter decisions – Ringly.io gives you real-time call data, customer intent tracking, and performance reports—helping you optimize support and sales strategies.

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• Scalable pricing without enterprise contracts – Ringly.io offers transparent, scalable pricing—pay for what you use, no locked-in contracts.

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Ringly.io cons:

• Not built for large enterprise call centers – Best for e-commerce and SMBs rather than massive enterprise call centers with complex IVR needs.
• Outbound calls require consent – Unlike human agents, AI outbound calling requires opt-in compliance, which varies by region.
• No custom code options – The Ringly.io platform is designed to easily create no-code ai phone agents, but less friendly for developers with more technical expertise that need versatile tools like custom code options.

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Ringly.io pricing plans:

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If you're an SMB or e-commerce brand looking for a powerful AI phone agent without the headaches, Ringly.io delivers better value, flexible pricing, and risk-free test calls.‍

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Reviews

"it stands out significantly ahead"- Bertrand, Director. We are at the initial stage of testing and have made only a few calls so far. Consequently, I have rated the product with four stars for now. However, I must express that the product has shown significant promise. When compared to competitors, it stands out significantly ahead.‍

"This is such a great product"- Jim Miranda, Founder. This is such a great product. I have been with you for less than a week and already closed 3 deals with it."

"It really sounds like a human"- Laix, Founder. Tried Ringly.io today and the quality of the phone calls surprises me! It really sounds like a human, and it reacts really fast. Will need to deploy it in action to see the full capabilities.

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Get started with Ringly.io for free

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2. Retell AI

Best for: Developers that want to build AI voice agents for businesses

G2 rating: 4.6/5 (12 reviews)

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Founded in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2023 by Todd Li, Evie Wang, Bing Wu, Weijia Yu, and Zexia Zhang, Retell AI is crushing it as the go-to platform for lightning-fast AI voice agent creation.

With over 3,000 businesses already on board, they're helping developers build human-like voice agents in just one day instead of months - a total game-changer for contact centers looking to level up their operations without the usual headaches.

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Features

• Multilingual & Multi-Country Support: Expand globally by handling calls in multiple languages. While Smith.ai focuses on North America, Retell AI lets you scale across different countries with ease.
• Telephony Integration: Seamless SIP trunking that connects directly to your existing phone systems. Smith.ai is great for handling calls, but Retell AI gives you more flexibility for advanced telephony setups.
• Data Security & Compliance: SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR—Retell AI has the security credentials enterprises need. Smith.ai has strong security too, but Retell AI puts more emphasis on AI-driven compliance at scale.
• Real-Time Monitoring & Analytics: Get instant insights into every call. Smith.ai provides summaries, but Retell AI offers deeper call analytics, real-time transcripts, and AI-driven insights.

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Cons

• No Human Backup: Unlike Smith.ai, which offers live agents when AI falls short, Retell AI is purely AI-driven. If a call gets complex, there’s no human to take over.
• Voice Variety Needs Work: Retell AI is still expanding its voice options. Smith.ai uses live agents, so voice quality is naturally better.
• UI Could Use Some Love: The interface isn’t the most intuitive, especially for non-technical users. Smith.ai’s setup feels more polished and user-friendly.
• Customer Support Feels Slow: Some users report slow response times. Smith.ai’s human-staffed support is generally more responsive

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Pricing

• Pay-as-you-go: Starts at $0.07–$0.31 per minute with $10 free credits, 20 concurrent calls, and Discord support—great for small businesses testing AI phone agents.
• Enterprise: Custom pricing as low as $0.03 per minute, with 50+ concurrent calls, Slack support, and compliance features—ideal for companies needing high-volume automation.

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Reviews

"Made our customer service smarter and faster" - Utkarsh M. We’ve been using Retell to build these voice agents for our customer service, for over a year. It’s so natural, people don’t even realize it’s not a human half the time. The responses are super quick too, like you’re having a real convo. It’s actually helped us cut down on how many calls our team has to take, and customers are definitely happier..less hold time and better answers. If you’re on the fence about trying it, just do it.‍

"Extremely slow customer service on discord even when unannounced API changes break product" - Jerry Y. The product is the same as others on the market -- we would switch instantly if there were no switching cost, these guys are not a reliable vendor.

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3. Bland AI

Best for: Enterprise companies that want a voice ai platform to streamline customer support and lead generation.

Product Hunt rating: 3.0/5 (10 reviews)

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Founded in San Francisco in 2023 by Isaiah Granet and Sobhan Nejad, Bland AI is an innovative no-code platform designed to build artificial intelligence-powered phone calling agents that efficiently handle the bulk of enterprise call volume.

Bland AI is built for large enterprises that want to automate their customer support and sales operations, offering enterprise scalability and integrate seamlessly with CRMs. The platform stands out with its advanced capabilities like memory functionality across calls, conversational pathways, high-accuracy transcription, context-aware summarization, and confidence scoring.

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Features

• Voice Carnival: While Smith.ai sticks to live agents, Bland AI is like a voice costume party. Want a British or Australian accent? Their AI voices can make your customers do a double-take.
• AI Brain Levels: Think of it like ordering coffee—small, medium, or GIANT brain. Smith.ai uses human agents for complex calls, but Bland AI lets you dial up the AI’s intelligence like a volume knob.
• Talk How You Want: Smith.ai provides scripted responses, but Bland AI lets you fully customize the AI’s personality. It’s like hiring a voice actor who never goes off script.
• Background Noise Magic: Bland AI adds coffee shop sounds and background chatter to make calls feel more “human.” Smith.ai’s real humans naturally don’t need this trick.
• Language Superstar: Supports 28 languages! Smith.ai focuses on English and Spanish, but Bland AI is basically the United Nations of AI phone calls.
• Incoming Call Master: Smith.ai is strong in outbound calls and live answering, while Bland AI excels in handling inbound calls with AI.

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Cons

• Tech Hiccups Everywhere: Sometimes the AI just... stops mid-sentence. Smith.ai’s live agents don’t ghost your customers like that.
• Setup Takes Forever: Getting Bland AI working right feels like assembling IKEA furniture. Smith.ai is more “plug and play.”
• Support Slower Than a Turtle: Need help? Prepare to wait. Smith.ai’s support team is more responsive and human-staffed.
• Still Sounds Robotic: For emotional conversations, AI still sounds like AI. Smith.ai’s human agents naturally handle emotions better.

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Pricing

• Pay As You Go: $0.09 per minute. Smith.ai is way more expensive.
• Enterprise Options: Both offer business plans, but Bland AI’s strict “no refunds” policy is like a bad breakup contract.
• Real Talk Breakdown: Smith.ai is the reliable sedan that gets the job done. Bland AI is the flashy sports car—cool but unpredictable. If you want consistent, Smith.ai is your ride-or-die.

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Reviews

"Extremely impressed" ‍- Casper Boutens. Extremely impressed by Bland, the team is improving their product every week, they offer great support and all by all great phone calls made by their AI.

‍"Doesn't work at all" - Albert Salgueda. Doesn't work at all. I call and it doesn't speak, it gets interrupted... still not there.

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4. Synthfow AI

Best for: Small and medium-sized businesses looking for a powerful conversational ai platform.

Product Hunt rating: 4.7/5 (201 reviews)

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Founded in Berlin, Germany in 2023 by Albert Astabatsyan, Hakob Astabatsyan, and Sassun Mirzakhan-Saky, Synthflow AI offers a great conversational AI voice. With over 1,000 users, they're helping businesses stop missing calls and start making more money with their conversational ai technology designed for SMEs.

Their human-like voice AI agents don't just follow scripts—they actually understand what callers want and handle everything from appointments to customer questions without a human needing to step in.

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Features

• Human-like AI Voices: Synthflow’s AI adapts to conversation shifts. Smith.ai, on the other hand, uses real human agents who naturally handle any tone, emotion, or complexity without sounding robotic.
• Ready-to-Go Templates: Synthflow offers pre-built AI workflows. Smith.ai takes it further with real assistants who schedule meetings, screen leads, and handle calls with actual human reasoning—no script glitches.
• Smart Workflows: Synthflow automates steps with AI. Smith.ai doesn’t just follow a flow; their human agents and AI together think, qualify leads, and get results.
• Integrations Galore: Synthflow connects with 200+ tools. Smith.ai integrates with CRMs, calendars, Slack, and Zapier while giving you actual people to manage those connections effectively.
• Speaks 20+ Languages: Synthflow handles multiple languages well. Smith.ai’s human agents are fluent in English and Spanish, making conversations genuinely natural, not just translated.
• Always Working: Synthflow’s AI never sleeps. Smith.ai combines AI and human availability to ensure your business runs 24/7 with real people when it matters.

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Cons

• Pricing Gets Crazy Fast: Synthflow burns through minutes fast at $0.58/minute. Smith.ai has clear, predictable pricing that includes AI + humans for better value.
• AI Still Misses the Mark: Synthflow’s AI can struggle with complex, emotional, or nuanced conversations. Smith.ai’s live agents don’t get confused or drop the ball mid-call.
• Glitchy Software: Users report Synthflow freezing and crashing. Smith.ai’s hybrid model ensures reliability—AI automates, humans step in when needed.
• Not a Real Free Trial: Synthflow offers limited free minutes, not enough for a real test. Smith.ai gives clear upfront pricing with flexible plans, so you know what you’re getting.

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Pricing

• Simple & Transparent: Synthflow’s per-minute pricing jumps quickly. Smith.ai offers flat-rate plans with AI + human answering for predictable costs.
• More Than Just AI: Synthflow is all AI, no humans. Smith.ai’s hybrid AI + human system ensures reliability.

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Reviews

"Is a very good platform" - Alejandro Palacios. Is good, easy to use, I like the videos for guide.I've just started to use, hope this keep going well. I would like to see some other languages.

"Synthflow support is non existent" - Andrew Vernon. I used Synthflow for testing purposes to compare it against other VoiceAI platforms. Their support is non existent. I sent and email and opened a support ticket and none were answered. There's no way we could go ahead, what if we had issues, how long would the response times be.

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5. Goodcall

Best for: Local businesses that want to streamline customer service

Product Hunt and Trustpilot rating: 3.6/5 (6 reviews)

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Founded in 2021 in Palo Alto, California by Bob Summers, Goodcall is revolutionizing customer service and sales with its innovative Agentic Voice AI. With over 2,000 users, Goodcall helps local businesses streamline their operations by automating call handling and sales processes, ensuring no opportunity is missed.

Key features include 24/7 call handling, lead capture and qualification, realistic AI speech, appointment scheduling, and seamless integration with existing tools. By offering detailed call analysis and optimizing workflows, Goodcall is designed to enhance customer service, and stay ahead in today’s fast-paced market.

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Features

• Grabs Lead Info Fast: GoodCall automatically captures caller details and sends instant notifications. Smith.ai goes further by using real human receptionists to screen, qualify, and follow up with leads—not just send alerts.
• Gets Smarter Over Time: GoodCall’s AI learns and adapts. Smith.ai combines AI with human assistants, so your business always sounds intelligent, never robotic.
• Books Appointments For You: GoodCall schedules meetings automatically. Smith.ai doesn’t just book; their team qualifies leads before scheduling, so you don’t waste time on junk calls.
• Plays Well With Others: GoodCall integrates with CRM, Google Voice, and Slack. Smith.ai connects with HubSpot, Salesforce, Calendly, Zapier, and many more, ensuring your leads actually flow into your workflow.

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Cons

• Always Pushing Upgrades: GoodCall is aggressive with upsells. Smith.ai offers clear, flexible pricing with no hidden charges.
• Can Be Glitchy: GoodCall’s system sometimes fails on voicemail and call handling. Smith.ai ensures AI + humans for reliability—no frustrating breakdowns.
• Not as ‘Free’ as It Sounds: GoodCall’s free plan is limited. Smith.ai provides transparent pricing with a free consultation to see if it’s right for you.

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Pricing

• GoodCall Starter ($59/month): Covers 100 customers with unlimited minutes. Smith.ai offers pay-per-call or monthly plans with AI + human receptionists—more value per dollar.
• GoodCall Growing ($99/month): Includes 250 customers. Smith.ai’s comparable plans include live agents + AI + lead qualification—not just a chatbot answering calls.
• GoodCall Big ($199/month): Allows 500 customers. Smith.ai scales with you while ensuring real conversations, not just automated responses.

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Reviews

"Incredible product" - Danny Lannon. saves me so much time, and I've been able to capture leads in an entirely new way. 100% worth it and saves me a ton of time.

"Customer dis-service" - Merle Craner. When I call a customer service number, I expect a number of options to eventually get to a person to deal with the problem. Goodcall starts immediately with upsell options to service I don't want or need. There is no interaction, just a constant sales pitch. If you have the patience, you will be told they can't help with the problem and provide another number to go through the exact same process again.

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6. Play AI

Best for: Businesses looking to scale customer service operations and want many voices and characters.

Trustpilot rating: 3.6/5 (259 reviews)

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Founded in 2022 in Mountain View, California, Play AI was created by Hammad Syed and Mahmoud Felfel. The company specializes in transforming written text into realistic, natural-sounding voiceovers and AI voice agents, making it easy for anyone to integrate lifelike voices into their projects.

With a focus on AI voice generation, Play AI offers a wide array of features including voice cloning, support for 142 languages, emotion-driven voices, speaking styles, and advanced audio analytics. The intuitive user interface ensures that users, regardless of technical expertise, can easily create custom voice solutions.

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Features

• Multi-Voice Conversations: Play AI lets you mix multiple voices in a single conversation. Smith.ai focuses on real human receptionists + AI for smooth, natural calls—no need for artificial blending.
• Voice Cloning: Play AI clones voices with high accuracy. Smith.ai prioritizes real human-led conversations so callers feel trusted, not tricked.
• Expressive Speech Styles: Play AI offers emotional and expressive voice options. Smith.ai ensures a balance of AI and human interactions, so every call feels authentic.
• API Integration: Play AI’s voice tech can be embedded into apps. Smith.ai integrates directly with CRMs, calendars, and business tools to turn calls into real leads.
• Custom Pronunciations: Play AI lets you fine-tune word pronunciation. Smith.ai ensures proper communication by using trained professionals alongside AI.

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Cons

• Refund Issues: Play AI customers report long waits for refunds or never getting them. Smith.ai has clear, fair pricing with no shady refund policies.
• Misleading Claims: Users say Play AI doesn’t always deliver what it promises. Smith.ai is transparent—what you see is what you get.
• Poor Customer Service: Play AI’s support is slow and unresponsive. Smith.ai provides fast, real support with U.S.-based agents.
• Unstable Platform: Play AI users report bugs and glitches. Smith.ai combines AI with real humans to ensure reliability.

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Pricing

• Play AI Starter ($9/month): 50 minutes, 10 voice clones. Smith.ai starts at pay-per-call pricing, so you only pay for what you need.
• Play AI Pro ($99/month): 700 minutes, 500 voice clones. Smith.ai’s plans offer real receptionist services, not just AI-generated voices.
• Play AI Business ($999/month): 11,000 minutes, 2,000 voice clones. Smith.ai scales with businesses using AI + live agents for maximum impact.

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Reviews

"Disappointing experience" - Raja Mohammad Zishanullah. I purchased the unlimited plan on Play.ht. The service is incredibly slow and plagued with frequent errors, making it nearly unusable. The newer voice models sound robotic and lack the natural flow that was initially promised. Customer service has been consistently poor, with slow and unhelpful responses. Overall, Play.ht has been a huge disappointment, and I would strongly advise avoiding their service.

"Excellent convenient service" - Core Partners Studio. Excellent convenient service for voiceover, a large database of realistic voices, very convenient to work as a team, great tech support. We will continue to work further!

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7. Vapi AI

Best for: developers building AI voice products

Product Hunt + Trustpilot rating: 4.4/5 (19 reviews)

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Founded in San Francisco in 2020 by Jordan Dearsley and Nikhil Gupta, Vapi is a cutting-edge platform that combines conversational ai with a configurable API that enables developers to build sophisticated voice artificial intelligence products and scale phone operations effortlessly.

With over 100,000 developers building on Vapi's infrastructure, the company has quickly established itself as a go-to solution for creating great voice experiences.

Vapi stands out with its powerful features including multilingual capabilities, automated testing, tool calling functionality, API-native architecture, and the flexibility to bring your own models and run A/B experiments.

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Features

• Multilingual Support: Vapi supports 100+ languages. Smith.ai focuses on high-quality English & Spanish human receptionists, ensuring natural conversations.
• API-Native: Vapi is fully API-first, allowing deep customization. Smith.ai offers ready-to-go integrations with CRMs, calendars, and lead management tools—no coding required.
• Automated Testing: Vapi lets you test AI voice agents before going live. Smith.ai doesn’t require testing—because real people handle calls alongside AI.
• Tool Calling: Vapi can pull data from external tools. Smith.ai does more than fetch data—it actively books appointments, qualifies leads, and follows up.

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Cons

• Limited International Number Support: Vapi charges extra for non-U.S. numbers. Smith.ai supports international businesses with transparent pricing and no hidden fees.
• Account Management Issues: Users report difficulty canceling or updating billing on Vapi. Smith.ai has straightforward, no-surprise pricing and contracts.
• Automation-Heavy Support: Vapi relies on bots for customer support. Smith.ai has U.S.-based agents available for real assistance.
• Developer-Focused: Vapi is great for engineers but not user-friendly for non-tech teams. Smith.ai is built for business owners who need results without coding.
• Still Maturing: Vapi is newer and evolving. Smith.ai is a proven leader in AI-powered call handling with a track record of success.

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Pricing

• Vapi Startup Plan: $0.05/min + provider costs. Smith.ai offers AI + human receptionist services with clear pricing per call.
• Vapi Enterprise Plan: Custom pricing with add-ons from $2 to $5,000/month. Smith.ai scales with businesses, offering predictable pricing and full receptionist services.

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Reviews

"Amazing tool as well as after hours support on a Saturday night" - Robert Peter. Amazing system that they are building. I had issues on a Saturday night, and received a phone call from one of the technicians Sahil and he helped me through my issue. What dedication. I saw some of the other reviews, and they seem to be related to billings, and stuff that could easily be spoken about. I just wanted to give a shout out to this guy for his passion and dedication to the project.

"Unreliable" - Brent P, managing member. Support is non-existent and documentation is extremely poor. I spent a lot of time setting up an assistant which was working ok. Then they had a developer conference and rolled out a lot of new features and EVERYTHING broke. I spent hours and hours trying to get it working again to no avail. Emailed them and was told the "bugs" would be fixed tomorrow... then tomorrow.. then tomorrow. REALLY FRUSTRATING.

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What's the best alternative to Smith.ai? (Our top 3)

Choosing the right AI answering service can feel like finding a needle in a haystack. We've cut through the noise to give you the ultimate shortcut to leveling up your business communication.

Our Top 3 Smith.ai Alternatives:

1. Ringly.io: The absolute game-changer for e-commerce businesses. With 90% lower costs, no-code setup, and AI that actually drives sales, it's like having a superhuman sales rep working 24/7.
2. Retell AI: Perfect for tech-savvy teams wanting global reach. Their multilingual, developer-friendly platform lets you build custom voice agents faster than ordering a pizza.
3. Bland AI: The enterprise heavyweight. With 28 language support and crazy-smart AI personalities, it's like having a UN translator who can also crack jokes.

Look, here's the real talk: while these alternatives are solid, Ringly.io is the secret weapon that'll transform how you handle customer calls. We're not just another AI tool—we're your growth partner.

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