Smith.ai vs. AnswerFirst

AnswerFirst’s virtual receptionist service charges per minute (plus $30/month on all plans) but they are vague on their process. You’re charged per minute for setup (averaging 60-90 minutes), all post-call wrap-up time, calls from salespeople, wrong numbers, and spam — the minutes could really add up. Smith.ai charges per call, which is easier to predict and can help you easily calculate ROI and overall value. Plus, we never charge for setup, cancellation, spam, sales calls, or wrong numbers.

Smith.ai’s receptionists are also backed by technology that allows them to personalize calls and give seamless service. AnswerFirst receptionists spend time looking up your business information (with the clock running), but Smith.ai’s receptionists are instantly fed your custom instructions — that way they can 100% focus on giving excellent service to your leads and clients. And while both AnswerFirst and Smith.ai offer call recording, only Smith.ai goes above and beyond to transcribe your calls. That way, you don't have to listen to hundreds of hours of conversations to get the information you need.

Both Smith.ai and AnswerFirst have APIs and offer integrations, but Smith.ai integrates with more popular CRMs and scheduling platforms regularly used by solopreneurs and businesses of all sizes — and your first CRM integration is free. AnswerFirst advertises that they can integrate with in-house solutions, which would likely be a very expensive setup and implementation — not ideal for smaller budgets and agile companies.

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 AnswerFirst.