Smith.ai Virtual Receptionists vs. Always Answer (previously MyReceptionist): In-Depth Comparison

Compare features and see how businesses like yours can better answer calls, capture leads, and serve clients 24/7 with Smith.ai Virtual Receptionists

Learn More About Smith.ai

Virtual receptionists can help your business!

(We serve thousands of businesses daily, just like yours.)

Let's talk!

Please complete the form and we'll be in touch shortly.

Smith.ai: The best alternative to Always Answer

Always Answer

COSTS
Pricing
Per call
Per minute
Cost
$6.50-$8.50/call
$1.17-$1.57/min
Starting cost
$255/month
$110
Setup fee
NO
Info unavailable
Money-Back Guarantee
14 days
7 day free trial (up to 100 minutes)
Spam & sales calls
Free
Free
Post-call wrap-up
Included
No
Contract
No contracts
No
Wrong numbers
Free
Free
Required deposit
NO
No
Overage Cost
$7.50-$9.50/call
$1.17-$1.57/minute
CAPABILITIES
Calls answered 24/7
North America-based receptionists
Lead qualification
New lead intake
Appointment scheduling
Payment collection
Call screening, routing & prioritization
Outbound sales campaigns
Unlimited FAQ
Call recording & transcription
✘ Call recordings only
Zip code lookup
Warm transfer
Call transfers via SMS & Slack
✘ SMS only
Instant call summaries by email & SMS
Daily call summaries
✔ Email, SMS, Slack
Receptionists make calls for you
✔ Same per-call pricing. Comes from your #
Receptionists know caller history
✔ Same per-call pricing. Comes from your #.
Spanish-speaking receptionists
Send follow-up messages
INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGY
Call tracking dashboard
Call analytics
✔️
CSV upload for direct transfer / blocked numbers
CRM, intake & marketing software
Calendaring software
Scheduling
Invoices and payments
Zapier
SMS & Slack
✘ SMS only
Read our reviews
Clutch Logo

Always Answer (previously MyReceptionist) offers limited answering, scheduling, and messaging taking services. If you’re looking for comprehensive and feature-rich virtual receptionist services, Smith.ai has more of what you need.

For basic call answering and appointment scheduling services, Always Answer (previously MyReceptionist) will charge you per minute. Smith.ai’s pricing is per call, which means your monthly bill is based on call volume, not call length. That way, your monthly costs can be predictable and affordable. Keep in mind that an average call lasts 6 minutes, so for an average call, you’ll be paying more with Always Answer than with Smith.ai.

Always Answer lumps multiple services into their plans you may not need or use. Smith.ai, on the other hand, allows you the freedom to purchase features a la carte and add on the services you know you’ll use, like appointment scheduling. That way, you only pay for the services you specifically need. Smith.ai also offers our customers the option to bundle our other services like website chat answering and Outreach Campaigns (services that Always Answer doesn’t offer).

Always Answer can answer calls, take messages, and book appointments, but that’s pretty much it — your in-house receptionist can do that. Smith.ai’s virtual receptionists can do far more for your business. Yes, we answer calls, book appointments, and take messages too, but beyond that, we become a true extension of your office. We qualify and intake leads, answer texts, collect payments, and make outgoing calls — all of which Always Answer can’t do.

As far as technology goes, Smith.ai’s capabilities stretch far beyond Always Answer’s. In fact, Always Answer doesn’t offer much in the way of advanced technological support — not like Smith.ai does. We integrate with more than 30 CRMs, marketing platforms, calendars, billing systems, and intake forms, including Zapier, which allows integrations between our services and over 5,000 apps. Furthermore, our AI-powered platform searches for zip codes, connects to you via SMS and Slack, and has open APIs (for our more tech-savvy users).

Always Answer doesn’t advertise any call-reporting capabilities like Smith.ai’s call intelligence, which provides valuable insight into your calls through detailed call analysis and reporting. We track key data, like caller type (e.g., new lead, existing client, spam), time of the call, priority, and even disposition, to give you insight into the actions taken on your calls. We even offer call recording and transcription when full call details are needed. Plus, with comprehensive customization options like complex call routing, it’s clear you get more out of your communication efforts with Smith.ai.

On top of that, Always Answer has a limited number of agents, which means they don’t have the bandwidth to handle bigger projects. Contrarily, Smith.ai has hundreds of highly trained and experienced virtual receptionists working from all over North America. We guarantee quick answering and quality service every time. We take the time to learn how you would like your calls to be handled, striving to build genuine connections with each of your callers. Our receptionists always work from quiet home offices, so your callers won’t get any of the distracting background noise like they would from a call center.

For growth-minded business owners who care about price transparency, seamless integrations, and robust customizations that deliver the experience of in-house customer engagement and sales development, Smith.ai is the superior choice for your 24/7 Virtual Receptionists partner, over Always Answer.

THE BASICS!

Live receptionists on duty 24/7. Forward all incoming calls or overflow phone calls only.
Appointment setting & call-back scheduling, with calendar software integration
Lead qualification & client intake with CRM integration for complete workflows
Outbound calls: web-form follow-ups, work status updates & appointment reminders
Payment collection, with integration to your credit card processing software
Spam & sales call blocking, call screening & prioritization, plus VIP pass-throughs

Try risk-free. 14-day money-back guarantee.

Get started NOW

What our customers are saying

“I rely on Smith.ai to handle all of my firm's calls. Their intake process integrates with my practice management software, which saves me time. Plus, their professionalism means I pay a fraction of the cost of an in-house receptionist without sacrificing quality. I recommend Smith.ai to every attorney I see.”
REGINA EDWARDS
“Having someone professionally answer our phones is essential to operating a business. We engaged with Smith about 3 months ago and have been extremely pleased with the service they are providing us. They are very flexible and their integration with technology has functionally made a huge difference for us. I receive a SMS message and an email within seconds of a call with all pertinent information regarding the call. They ensure critical calls make it through to me and sales calls are screened. This makes my day much more productive and we get a professional service answering the phones.”
"Smith.ai has been a major hack into improving my business flow. Playing phone tag with potential clients and constantly getting interrupted with sales calls was so tiresome. Smith.ai has completely alleviated this problem. They screen all calls that come into my main office number so only critical calls get through to me, and they schedule appointments with potential clients after having carefully screened them through my intake process. I now save so much time and only have quality appointments booked. Less stress, more appointments. It's a total win!"
“Having real, live people answering the phone has made a huge difference in the volume of my practice, and I'm all about Smith.ai's technology-driven approach. I can focus on my clients without interruptions from sales calls and spammers, yet I remain in the loop when I'm in court or a meeting thanks to their text summaries. I love that Smith.ai manages my web chats now, too! They're one of the key reasons I was able to grow from a solopreneur to an 8 person team!
“Smith.ai has been integral to my business at CMIT Solutions of Morristown. Their service was extremely easy to set up and they have been extremely professional with their customer care. Having a live-answer service handle all my incoming calls gives my business a level of professionalism that it was missing and allows me to easily prioritize all of my call-backs. I highly recommend Smith.ai to any business looking for a live-answer service.”
"As small business owners, it is very important to have a professional image with a quick response to our phone calls. We are at ease knowing that our clients are being greeted with a professional, friendly and upbeat voice when they call our office. The message taking is very clear, concise and effective, and allows our contact with our clients to be frictionless, effective and progressive. The service quality and superior communication skills of the Smith.ai team makes them a true extension of our office."
Get started risk-free. 14-day money-back guarantee.

Live receptionists available 24/7

Starter
$255
Per Month
30
Receptionist Calls
1
Transfer Destination
$9.50/Call after 30
Basic
$675
Per Month
90
Receptionist Calls
2
Transfer Destinations
$8.50/Call after 90
Pro
$1,170
Per Month
180
Receptionist
Calls
5
Transfer Destinations
$7.50/Call after 180
Custom pricing is available. Just let us know what you need!

QUESTIONS? LET'S TALK.

TALK TO US

Book a Free Consultation

Learn how Smith.ai can help your business. We’ll address your questions about our receptionist, chat, and campaign services.

Book a Consultation

We integrate with your software

Contacts and call notes are logged in your systems, including CRM, intake, calendaring, and billing software

Small businesses trust Smith.ai for superior receptionist services