The Smith.ai Alternative That Answers Calls and Calls Your Leads Back

The DBT AI is a Smith.ai alternative for businesses that want more than call answering. Like Smith.ai’s AI receptionist, it answers calls 24/7 and books appointments. The difference is that The DBT AI also calls every new ad and form lead within seconds, follows up by call and text until they book, sends reminder calls before appointments, and reactivates old leads. It is set up for you and priced as a setup fee plus a per-minute rate instead of per call.

If your callers must always reach a live human, Smith.ai’s human receptionists remain the better fit. If you want an AI that fills your calendar from the leads you already pay for, The DBT AI is built for that.

Smith.ai is a well-known name in virtual receptionists, and many businesses use it happily. So why look for a Smith.ai alternative? Usually because the need has changed. Answering the phone is only half the job. The other half is the lead who filled in a form at 9 p.m. and never got a call back.

This guide explains what Smith.ai offers today, how The DBT AI differs, where each one fits, and how to switch if The DBT AI is the better match. Smith.ai details below come from Smith.ai’s own website, checked in August 2026.

What Smith.ai Offers Today

Smith.ai started as a live virtual receptionist company and now offers three service levels:

• AI Receptionist (AI-first): from about $1.60 per call. Answers 24/7, qualifies leads, books appointments, answers FAQs, and emails call summaries in English and Spanish.
• Hybrid: from about $2.50 per call. AI handles routine calls and live agents take complex ones.
• Virtual Receptionists (human-first): from about $7 per call, staffed by a North American team, with outbound follow-up calls available on these plans.

Smith.ai also offers a free tier of 25 AI calls per month, and its comparison pages list a $150 per month AI plan for 75 calls. Live agent escalation from the AI plan costs about $3 extra per call. Billing is per call, and Smith.ai says spam calls are not billed.

Its homepage now leads with law firms, with native connections to legal software such as Clio, Filevine, MyCase and Smokeball, plus thousands of other tools through Zapier and Make.

Why Businesses Look for a Smith.ai Alternative

Based on how Smith.ai is built and priced, these are the usual reasons:

• They want new leads called, not just calls answered. Smith.ai recommends its hybrid or human plans for follow-up calls rather than the AI plan alone. Businesses running ads often want AI that calls every new lead automatically.
• Per-call billing in busy months. When call volume jumps, a per-call bill jumps with it.
• Add-ons on top of the base plan. Features such as live agent handoff are priced separately.
• A legal-first product. Contractors, clinics, and real estate teams may want a provider set up around their industry.
• HIPAA. Smith.ai’s main pages do not make a HIPAA claim, so medical practices often want a vendor that states it signs a business associate agreement.

Why The DBT AI Is a Strong Smith.ai Alternative

The DBT AI covers the inbound side, answering every call around the clock, and adds the outbound work most answering services leave to your team.

It Calls Your Leads Within Seconds

When a lead comes in from a Facebook or Google ad, your website, or a new contact in your CRM, The DBT AI calls them, usually in under 10 seconds, day or night. Research consistently shows why that matters. In the InsideSales study led by James Oldroyd, leads contacted within 5 minutes were 21 times more likely to qualify than those contacted after 30 minutes. Tools that do this are often called speed to lead software.

It Keeps Following Up

If the lead does not answer, the AI leaves a voicemail, sends a text, and keeps trying on a schedule you set. Every attempt is logged, and follow-up stops as soon as the lead books or opts out.

It Books, Reminds, and Rebooks

Qualified leads are booked straight into Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, or Cal.com. Before each appointment, the AI sends reminder calls and texts, and it calls back anyone who cancels or misses the visit to book a new time.

It Answers Every Inbound Call

As an AI receptionist, it answers calls 24/7 with your business name, handles several callers at once, and books routine requests during the call.

It Brings Old Leads Back

The DBT AI can call old lead lists and past customers to restart conversations, which often fills a calendar without buying new leads.

It Is Done for You

Our team learns your business on a short call, writes the script in your tone, connects your lead sources, CRM, and calendar, then tests everything. Most businesses are live within 7 days, with every call recording and transcript in a dashboard.

Smith.ai vs. The DBT AI: Side by Side

	Smith.ai	The DBT AI
Service type	AI, hybrid or live human receptionists	Done-for-you AI receptionist and appointment setter
Answers inbound calls 24/7	Yes	Yes
Calls new ad and form leads automatically	Follow-up recommended on hybrid or human plans	Yes, within seconds
Follow-up when leads do not answer	On hybrid or human plans	Calls, voicemail, and texts over several days
Appointment reminder calls and rebooking	Outbound on virtual receptionist plans	Included
Old lead reactivation	Not listed on its main pages	Included
Live human agents	Yes	No, AI only
Pricing model	Per call (AI from about $1.60, live from about $7)	Setup fee plus per minute
Setup	No-code, self-serve setup for AI plans	Fully set up by our team
Key integrations	Clio and legal software, Zapier, Make	GoHighLevel, HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Cal.com, or a built-in dashboard
Languages	English and Spanish	10 languages
HIPAA	No claim on main pages	HIPAA-ready, BAA for medical practices

Per Call vs Per Minute: How to Compare the Cost

Smith.ai bills each call. The DBT AI bills a setup fee, then the minutes the AI actually spends on calls. Neither model is cheaper for everyone. It depends on your calls.

• Many short calls, such as hours and directions questions, can favor per-minute billing, because a 40-second call costs a fraction of a minute’s rate.
• Fewer long calls, such as detailed intake, can favor per-call billing.
• Outbound calls change the picture. If you would pay a person or a human plan to call back leads, compare that cost too, not just inbound answering.

The fairest test is to take one real month of your calls, note the count and average length, and price that month on both. Ask us for a quote on a demo call, and we will run the numbers with you.

What You See in The DBT AI Dashboard

Switching providers is easier when you can see exactly what the AI did. The DBT AI dashboard shows:

• Contact rate: how many leads the AI reached, and how many calls and texts it took
• Speed to first call: the seconds between a new form fill and the AI’s first call
• Booked appointments: every booking, with the call recording and transcript right behind it
• Show-ups after reminders: how many booked leads actually turned up after their reminder calls

These numbers make it simple to judge results in your first month, instead of guessing from a monthly invoice.

Which One Fits Your Industry?

Law Firms

Smith.ai is strongly focused on legal, with native links to Clio and other practice management tools. If those direct integrations matter most, Smith.ai is a natural fit. Firms that care more about calling every web inquiry fast and booking consultations often choose The DBT AI. For a wider look, see our guide to the best virtual receptionist for law firms.

Medical Practices

Practices need a signed business associate agreement before any vendor handles patient calls. The DBT AI is HIPAA-ready and signs a BAA, books visits, sends reminders and calls overdue patients. See how it works for clinics on our page for a virtual receptionist for medical practices.

Home Services

HVAC, plumbing, roofing and electrical companies lose jobs when ad leads wait and emergency calls hit voicemail. The DBT AI calls new leads in seconds, books jobs during the call and alerts your on-call tech for urgent calls. Our HVAC answering service page shows the setup for one trade.

Real Estate

Portal and ad leads often arrive after hours and go cold fast. Calling them within seconds and booking a showing is where The DBT AI does its best work. In one published case study, a real estate team reached a 98% contact rate with calls placed within 10 seconds.

When Smith.ai May Still Be the Better Choice

An honest comparison includes this. Smith.ai may suit you better if:

• Every caller must reach a live person. The DBT AI is AI only.
• You rely on native legal software integrations such as Clio, Filevine or MyCase.
• You want to start free. Smith.ai offers a free tier of 25 AI calls a month, while The DBT AI is a done-for-you setup with a setup fee.

If none of those apply and your bigger problem is leads that never get called back, The DBT AI is the stronger fit. Still unsure whether AI or a person suits your callers? Our comparison of AI receptionist vs human receptionist covers the trade-offs, and our explainer on how AI receptionists work shows what happens on each call.

How to Switch From Smith.ai to The DBT AI

1. Book a demo call. We learn your services, common questions, booking rules and lead sources.
2. Export what you have. Download call history and contacts from your current account before cancelling.
3. We build and connect. We write your script and connect your forms, CRM and calendar.
4. Test together. You place test calls and submit a test form to hear the AI call it back.
5. Change call forwarding. Point your business number to the new setup. Your number stays yours.
6. Review the first week. We listen to calls with you and adjust the script.

One compliance point: AI calls and texts to mobile numbers need the lead’s prior consent under the TCPA. We help you check that your forms collect it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best alternative to Smith.ai?

If you want an AI that both answers calls and calls your new leads back within seconds, The DBT AI is built for that. It also follows up, books appointments, sends reminders, and reactivates old leads, and it is fully set up for you.

How much does Smith.ai cost?

Smith.ai lists its AI receptionist from about $1.60 per call, its hybrid plan from about $2.50 per call, and its human virtual receptionists from about $7 per call. A free tier covers 25 AI calls a month, and live agent escalation costs extra.

How is The DBT AI priced compared with Smith.ai?

The DBT AI uses a one-time setup fee plus a per-minute rate for call time, instead of a fee per call. The best way to compare is to price one real month of your calls on both models.

Is Smith.ai an AI or a live answering service?

Both. Smith.ai offers an AI receptionist, a hybrid plan with live agents for complex calls, and a human-first virtual receptionist service. The DBT AI is AI only.

Is Smith.ai HIPAA compliant?

Smith.ai’s main pages do not make a HIPAA claim, so medical practices should ask the vendor directly. The DBT AI is HIPAA-ready and signs a business associate agreement for medical practices.

Can I keep my phone number if I switch from Smith.ai?

Yes. Most setups forward calls from your existing business number, so switching usually means changing where your calls forward to.