Smith.ai is a per-call subscription with its own live receptionists backing up the AI and direct CRM integrations. FirstReply is IG Digital Lab's own live line, built the same way the agency builds one for a client: into a phone number, a CRM, and a calendar, not sold as a shared platform. Below is a sourced, side by side comparison, covering price, integrations and who each one suits, so you can pick the one that fits.
Smith.ai's pricing and program details below were checked directly against smith.ai on August 5, 2026. FirstReply is IG Digital Lab's own line, built the same way the agency builds one for a client.
| FirstReply | Smith.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing structure | One project price after a free audit, typically $2,500 to $6,000 to build, optional $300 to $500 a month care after launch | Monthly plan, $300 to $2,100, plus per-call and per-booking add-ons |
| How it's built | Custom, into your own phone number, CRM, and calendar | Shared platform, per-call billing |
| Appointment booking | Built in, on your own calendar tool | +$1.50 per booking |
| SMS / chat alert | Owner gets an instant alert (Telegram or email) with caller name and a CRM link | +$0.50 per SMS or Slack alert |
| Call recording | Per-client on/off switch; when on, the caller hears a recording notice first, as CA law (Penal Code 632) requires; every call gets a transcript either way | Optional recording + transcript, +$0.25 per call |
| Answers from your documents | Built in, trained on your own files | Not part of Smith.ai's published add-on pricing |
| Live human backup | Warm transfer to your own staff | Smith.ai's own receptionists, roughly 25% of calls |
| Conflict check | Not offered | Included |
| CRM integrations | Built directly into whatever CRM you already run, per client | Clio, Filevine, Lawmatics, MyCase, 7,000+ via Zapier |
| Getting started | Free audit, then a scoped, priced build | 30-day money-back guarantee, no contract |
Answered directly first, then explained.
IG Digital Lab builds a custom AI receptionist into a business's own phone line, CRM, and calendar instead of selling a shared per-call plan. A single connected assistant typically runs $2,500 to $6,000 to build, with optional care after launch at $300 to $500 a month, against Smith.ai's per-call plans that run $300 to $2,100 a month plus add-on fees.
Smith.ai is a recurring subscription billed by call volume. A custom build is a one-time project price plus optional maintenance, so the two numbers aren't directly comparable. Smith.ai backs its AI with its own live receptionists and a built-in conflict check; a custom build backs it with the client's own staff and whatever CRM they already run. FirstReply, IG Digital Lab's own line at (916) 618-0502, is a working example of what gets built rather than a product sold on its own.
Smith.ai bills in tiers: Starter is $300 for 30 calls with $11.50 per call after that, Basic is $810 for 90 calls at $10.50 overage, and Pro is $2,100 for 300 calls at $8.50 overage. Add-ons like appointment booking and SMS cost extra on top.
Those add-ons add up: $1.50 for an appointment booking, $0.50 for an SMS or Slack alert, $0.25 for a recording with transcript, $1.00 for a Spanish-language line, $1.00 for taking a payment, and $1.50 for complex routing, plus $10 a month for caller ID and $15 a month per extra transfer point. Smith.ai does not charge a setup fee, offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, and does not lock you into a contract.
Both. By Smith.ai's own numbers, its AI resolves about 75% of calls on its own, and the remaining 25% get handed to one of Smith.ai's live receptionists. FirstReply's assistant is AI only and warm-transfers directly to your own staff, not to a third-party receptionist team.
That live-receptionist layer suits calls that need a human touch immediately, such as an angry caller or an emotionally difficult intake. FirstReply's warm transfer calls your staff, says out loud who is on the line and why, and connects once someone answers, but if nobody picks up the call goes back to the assistant.
Smith.ai connects to a fixed list of platforms: Clio, Filevine, Lawmatics, and MyCase, plus more than 7,000 other apps through Zapier, and it includes a built-in conflict check. IG Digital Lab builds directly into whatever CRM a client already runs, as part of every custom deployment.
If your practice already lives inside one of Smith.ai's supported platforms, that off-the-shelf integration is a real reason to pick them. A custom build looks the caller up in your CRM while the phone is still ringing and greets a known caller by name. A new caller who gives a name gets flagged for a one-tap "add to CRM" prompt, so the CRM never grows on its own. FirstReply's own line runs the calendar side on Cal.com as a live example of that pattern.
For a firm that already runs on Clio or Filevine and wants a conflict check on every call, Smith.ai fits the existing workflow better. For a firm that wants an intake assistant built around its own CRM and its own intake script, IG Digital Lab can build that as a custom project, scoped and priced after a free audit.
Both firms are making a reasonable call, just optimizing for different things. Smith.ai fits into an established legal tech stack with a conflict check already built. A custom build fits the firm's own CRM and lets the firm control the intake script and where the data lives, priced once instead of billed per call. FirstReply's own line is a way to hear what a custom-built assistant sounds like before committing to one.
The differences that can decide it, taken from Smith.ai's published details.
About a quarter of Smith.ai's calls escalate to Smith.ai's own live receptionists, and FirstReply warm-transfers to your own staff instead, people who already know your customers, with the assistant briefing them before it connects.
25M+ calls handled over 10 years, 5,000+ businesses, and reviews at Clutch 4.8, G2 4.9 and Capterra 4.8, plus direct integrations with Clio, Filevine, Lawmatics, MyCase and Zapier, and a built-in conflict check. IG Digital Lab's founder has built IT systems since 2012. A build has no built-in conflict check; CRM integration is per client.
Here is how to tell which one fits your business.
You need a conflict check on every call, you already run on Clio, Filevine, Lawmatics or MyCase and want a pre-built integration, you want live human receptionists backing up the AI, or you want a service running today with no custom build.
You want the assistant built into your own CRM and calendar instead of a shared platform, you want it answering from your own documents, you'd rather pay once for the build than keep paying per call, or you want a system that's yours once it's built.
More on what IG Digital Lab builds, and how the free audit works, on the main FirstReply page.
It depends on what you need. If you want an assistant built into your own CRM and calendar instead of a shared platform, priced once as a project instead of billed per call, that's what IG Digital Lab builds, and FirstReply is the live example of it. If you need a conflict check on every call or a pre-built connector to Clio or Filevine today, Smith.ai already has that live.
Smith.ai bills a monthly plan by call volume, from $300 to $2,100 a month, plus per-call and per-booking add-ons. FirstReply itself is IG Digital Lab's own line. What the agency sells is a custom build: typically $2,500 to $6,000 as a one-time project price, with optional care after launch at $300 to $500 a month.
Yes. IG Digital Lab builds the assistant on your own number, either forwarding your existing line or provisioning a new one, and wires it into your CRM and calendar as part of the build. It starts with a free audit; if you move ahead, the build is scoped and priced before any work starts.
No. FirstReply is AI only, with a warm transfer straight to your own staff when a caller asks for a person or the assistant flags something urgent. Smith.ai backs its AI with its own live receptionists for roughly a quarter of calls; FirstReply sends the call to your own staff.
Smith.ai states plainly that it is not HIPAA compliant and cannot take calls containing protected health information. FirstReply is not positioned as HIPAA compliant either. If your practice needs a HIPAA compliant intake line, neither product is built for that today.
Call the number below and talk to the actual assistant. Then compare it against Smith.ai's own demo line at (380) 333-6907 and pick whichever one fits your business.
Tell us how your calls get answered today. We'll look at your setup and tell you what a build like this would take for your business. Fifteen minutes on the phone, no obligation.