Smith.ai vs Abby Connect

Smith.ai and Abby Connect both mix AI and live receptionists, and they start from opposite ends. Smith.ai leads with an AI receptionist billed per call and passes callers to its North America-based people when needed. Its Pro plan is $150 a month for 75 to 300 calls. Abby Connect leads with a dedicated US-based receptionist team billed in Abby Minutes, from $165 for 50, and counts an AI-handled minute as half an Abby Minute.

So the question is who you want on most calls. If a machine can handle the bulk and people cover the exceptions, Smith.ai prices that shape per call. If you want a person on most calls and AI on the overflow, Abby Connect's currency is built for it.

Smith.ai suits a business with steady call volume and a need to know the cost of each call in advance. Abby Connect suits a business that wants its own receptionist team, month to month, with AI stretching the minutes. Both pricing pages were read in September 2026.

Published pricing, side by side

What each vendor prints on its own site. The billing unit decides more of the final bill than the headline price does.

	Smith.ai	Abby Connect
Billing unit	Per call	Per minute (half-rate AI)
Entry plan	Free tier at $0 for 25 calls, then $3.00 a call	Starter $165/mo for 50 Abby Minutes
Higher tiers	Pro $150/mo covers 75 to 300 calls at $2.00–$2.17 each; Enterprise $500/mo covers 300 to 1,000+ at $1.60–$1.67	Essential $329 (100), Professional $599 (200), Growth $1,380 (500)
Overage rate	Published, and the per-call rate falls as the tier rises	Not published; one Abby Minute buys two minutes of AI handling

Read on each vendor's own website in September 2026. Prices move, so check before you buy.

What decides it

The dimensions that change the bill or the service, each as a fact read on the vendor's own site.

	Smith.ai	Abby Connect
Who answers first	An AI receptionist, with live receptionists for escalation	A dedicated US-based receptionist team, with AI as an option
Billing unit	Per answered call	Abby Minutes: a human minute uses one, an AI minute uses half
Entry price	Free plan for 25 calls, then Pro at $150 for 75 to 300 calls	$165 for 50 Abby Minutes
Larger plans	Enterprise from $500 for 300 to 1,000 or more calls	$329 for 100, $599 for 200, $1,380 for 500, then custom
Past the allowance	Printed per tier, falling to $1.60 to $1.67 a call	Billed at your plan's Abby Minute rate; the rate isn't printed
Setup	Dedicated onboarding on Pro, full-service setup on Enterprise	No setup fee; white-glove onboarding on every plan
Contract	Month to month, 30 days' notice	Month to month; move up anytime
Free trial	The free plan covers 25 calls a month	A free trial on every plan

Smith.ai: smith.ai/pricing/ai-receptionist. Abby Connect: abby.com/pricing. Both read September 2026.

How Smith.ai counts the month

Smith.ai charges for answered calls. You can start free with 25 calls a month and $3.00 for each call after that. Pro is $150 a month for 75 to 300 calls, at $2.00 to $2.17 a call. Enterprise starts at $500 for 300 to 1,000 or more, at $1.60 to $1.67.

Every answered call counts toward the quota by default. Smith.ai blocks spam and robocalls automatically, and you can remove up to 10% of a month's calls as spam.

Call length never changes the price. A ten-minute intake call costs the same as a thirty-second one. That matters most when your calls run long, as intake and quote calls often do.

How Abby Minutes convert

Abby Connect sells one currency. On a human-answered call, one minute uses one Abby Minute. On an AI-answered call, one minute uses half. A mixed call bills each part at its own rate.

Abby's own example uses the 200-minute Professional plan at $599. That's 200 minutes if people answer every call, 400 if AI does, or 300 as a mix of 100 human and 200 AI minutes.

Past your allowance, extra minutes bill at your plan's Abby Minute rate. Abby Connect doesn't print that rate on its pricing page, so ask for it before you pick a plan.

What each plan includes

Every Abby Connect plan includes a dedicated US-based receptionist team, a caller insights portal and app, and calling and texting through AbbyGO. You also get self-serve controls, more than 1,000 integrations, encrypted recordings, bilingual support, custom voicemail and call blocking. There's no setup fee.

Smith.ai's free plan already includes 24/7 AI answering, recordings, transcripts, lead qualification, AI scheduling and integrations. Pro adds dedicated onboarding, live support and custom SMS branding. Enterprise adds custom AI prompting, unlimited custom integrations and multi-location support.

Named Smith.ai integrations include Clio, Zapier and Calendly. Abby Connect lists more than 1,000 integrations, so ask it to confirm the one you use.

Pricing 150 calls a month both ways

Take a practice with 150 calls a month averaging three minutes. On Smith.ai, 150 calls sit inside the Pro range, priced by the call.

On Abby Connect, that's 450 minutes. If people answer all of it, you need the 500-minute Growth plan at $1,380. If AI answers all of it, you'd use 225 Abby Minutes, just past the 200 in Professional at $599.

Most businesses land in between. Split your log into calls that need a person and calls that don't, then price each side on both cards.

Where GreetKeeper fits

Disclosure: GreetKeeper is our product, and it's named only in this section. It's an AI receptionist that bills per answered call and transfers to your own team when a caller asks for a person.

Starter is $49 a month for 200 calls, Professional $149 for 750 and Scale $349 for 2,000. Each call past the allowance costs $0.45, $0.35 or $0.25, printed on the pricing page. Robocalls it screens out, and very short calls, don't count.

Every call arrives as a transcript and a short summary, and your on-call person can get a text with the caller's details. Booking writes into Google Calendar or Outlook on every plan, and the caller gets one text with the confirmation.

A dedicated local number comes with each plan, with no setup fee. Each plan starts with a 14-day free trial, every feature on and no card.

Plan	Monthly	Calls included	After that
StarterFor a single location taking calls one line at a time.	$49	200	$0.45 per call
ProfessionalBooking, routing and transfers included, not an add-on.	$149	750	$0.35 per call
ScaleFor busy phones and longer opening hours.	$349	2,000	$0.25 per call

Questions people ask about this comparison

Is Smith.ai or Abby Connect cheaper?

Smith.ai's Pro plan is $150 a month for 75 to 300 calls, and Abby Connect starts at $165 for 50 Abby Minutes (September 2026). For long calls, Smith.ai's per-call count usually costs less. If you want people on most calls, Abby Connect prices that directly.

How do Abby Minutes work with AI?

One minute of human answering uses one Abby Minute, and one minute of AI answering uses half an Abby Minute. So Abby's $599 Professional plan covers 200 human minutes, 400 AI minutes, or a mix (September 2026).

Does Smith.ai use real people?

Yes, as backup. Smith.ai's AI receptionist answers first, and calls transfer to its North America-based live receptionists when needed (September 2026).

Does Abby Connect charge a setup fee?

No. Abby Connect's pricing page lists no setup fee, month-to-month terms and a free trial on every plan. You can move up a plan at any time without a penalty (September 2026).

Transfers go to your own team

GreetKeeper answers every call and hands the rest to your people. Hear a demo call built for your business.

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