Smith.ai alternative with a CRM built in: GateKeeperAI compared

Smith.ai sells both live and AI answering. Which one you use changes the comparison: live human receptionists billed per call, or an AI receptionist also billed per call at a much lower rate. As a Smith.ai alternative, GateKeeperAI sells an AI receptionist billed by the minute with a CRM included, plus CRM plans where calls ring through to you. This comparison is published by GateKeeperAI. Every Smith.ai detail below comes from their own pages, checked on October 2, 2026.

What Smith.ai sells and who it suits

The Virtual Receptionist plans put people on your line. Starter is $300 a month for 30 calls, Basic is $810 for 90, and Pro is $2,100 for 300, with extra calls at $11.50, $10.50 and $8.50. Lead screening, intake questions and 24/7 live staffing are listed as included, with no setup fee. Booking, recording, a Spanish line and payment collection are per call add ons.

The AI Receptionist plans start with a free tier of 25 calls a month, which takes a card at signup, then Pro at $150 for 75 calls, $270 for 150, or $500 for 300, with extra calls at $2.50, $2.30 and $2.17. Recording, transcripts, scheduling through tools such as Calendly, and native integrations are core features. Their AI product page says calls can be escalated to their North America based live receptionists, with no fee when the AI starts the escalation.

It suits a business that already runs a CRM it likes, wants the phone handled, and wants a person available on harder calls.

When Smith.ai is the better pick

• You want a human on the line. Smith.ai staffs live receptionists around the clock, and GateKeeperAI does not offer human answering.
• You want a person behind the AI after hours. Our live transfer reaches your own team during your business hours. Smith.ai's AI can escalate a caller to their live receptionists at any hour, free when the AI starts the escalation.
• Your calls run long. Smith.ai bills per call rather than per minute. Its live service charges separately for extended intake and other additional work under its reasonable use policy, so confirm the price for your intake. We bill by the minute past 500, so long calls cost more with us. The worked example below uses their AI plan prices, with one live plan row for reference.
• Your callers speak Spanish. Their AI plan lists English and Spanish on every tier, and the live plans offer a Spanish line at $1.00 a call. Our plan pages do not list Spanish answering.
• You already live in another CRM. Their pricing page names HubSpot, Salesforce and Clio, and their integrations directory lists tools such as Calendly, Acuity and 3CX. If moving off your CRM is not on the table, sending calls into it is the shorter path.
• You get only a few calls a month. Their free AI tier covers 25 calls with a card at signup, and they say setup takes about 15 minutes on your own. Our AI plan starts at $200 with a setup call.

Where GateKeeperAI is a different kind of Smith.ai alternative

Smith.ai counts calls and sends the details to whatever CRM you connect, at $0.50 a call for each CRM past the first on the live plans. GateKeeperAI counts minutes, and the CRM is part of the plan: the AI Receptionist plan includes everything in Operate, from the pipeline to web forms, lead ads and online booking. A call the AI answers is written into that pipeline as a lead. Replies to 4 star and up Google reviews are written by the AI and posted automatically, and under 4 stars arrive as a draft you approve. Smith.ai's pricing pages do not list a review tool.

Our setup is a call where we write your intake questions with you, set business hours and transfer numbers, and train your team on the pipeline. You approve the questions before the AI takes a call, and the setup fee, from $250, is quoted on that call. If you do not want an AI answering at all, the CRM plans start at $40 a month: your number rings through to you, and callers hear a short recording notice before the forwarded call connects.

What each costs at 120 calls a month

Take a home service business that gets 120 answered calls a month and books 40 of them. Swap in your own numbers. Assumes GateKeeperAI's $200 starting monthly price, plus setup from $250 one time.

With 4 minute calls, our starting price is lower: $200 a month plus setup from $250, CRM included. With 10 minute calls, Smith.ai AI Pro plus extra calls is lower, at $262.50 against our $445. At 120 calls the two meet at about 5.65 minutes a call. Live receptionists cost well above either AI option here.

The Smith.ai AI figures do not include a separate CRM, so add yours if you pay for one. Neither vendor charges for every ring: their AI plans filter known spam numbers, and we bill talk minutes. For more, see what an AI receptionist costs at your call volume.

Confirm which calls are billable

1. Which calls count toward my quota, and how do I take spam calls off the bill?
2. At my call count, is a higher tier cheaper than the lower tier plus extra calls?
3. Does my intake fit inside the standard call, or will it be billed as extended intake?
4. Does the money back offer cover the plan I am choosing, and how much notice do I give to cancel?

For us, the matching question is your average call length. For the wider choice, our AI receptionist vs answering service breakdown lays out what each does well.

Switching from Smith.ai, or running both

Their AI plans ask for 30 days notice to cancel, and their live plans bill through the end of the current monthly cycle. New clients on the live plans get a 30 day money back offer, up to $1,000 for the plan and add ons, overage calls excluded. The same FAQ answer also mentions deciding in the first two weeks, so confirm the window with them. Give notice, then set up GateKeeperAI and run a test call before you move your call forwarding.

To keep Smith.ai's live receptionists, you could still put web forms, website chat and lead ads into a GateKeeperAI pipeline on the $40 Capture plan. Trade specific details are on the home services page, and every plan is on the pricing page.