Cally24 and Smith.ai both answer your business calls with AI, day and night, in English and Spanish. On paper they look alike. The real difference shows up on your bill: Smith.ai charges for every call, Cally24 charges for the minutes Cally talks. For a small business with lots of short calls, that one detail decides which is cheaper.
Prices checked October 25, 2026 on Smith.ai's AI receptionist pricing page and AI receptionist page. Prices change, so check there before you buy.
Per call or per minute: why it matters
Think about the calls you actually get. Many are quick: "Are you open Saturday?", "Do you come out to my area?", "Can I move my appointment?". They take a minute, sometimes less. A few are long, like a new customer explaining a big job.
On a per-call plan, the one-minute question costs exactly as much as the ten-minute conversation. On a per-minute plan, the quick question uses one minute and the long call uses ten. If most of your calls are short, per-minute pricing works in your favor.
What a month costs on each
Here are three example months, each with Smith.ai's cheapest plan that covers it:
| Your month | Smith.ai | Cally24 |
|---|---|---|
| 60 calls of about 2 minutes (120 min) | $105 on Free (25 free + 35 × $3.00) | $99 |
| 100 calls of about 1 minute (100 min) | $212.50 on Pro ($150 + 25 × $2.50) | $99 |
| 150 calls of about 1 minute (150 min) | $270 on Pro | $99 |
With longer calls Cally24 still costs a little less. With short calls, the gap gets bigger every month: at 150 quick calls, Cally24 costs less than half.
$99 a month. Cancel anytime.
Side by side
| Smith.ai | Cally24 | |
|---|---|---|
| How you pay | Per call | Per minute |
| Monthly price | Free for 25 calls, or Pro from $150 for 75 calls | $99 with 240 minutes |
| Bigger plans | $270 for 150 calls, $500 for 300 | Same plan, extra minutes $0.29 |
| Extra use | $3.00 a call on Free, from $2.50 a call on Pro | $0.29 a minute |
| Setup fee | None ("No setup fees") | None |
| Contract | Month to month, 30 days' notice to cancel | Month to month, cancel anytime |
| 24/7 | Yes | Yes |
| Booking | AI scheduling with Calendly and more | Google, Outlook, iCloud, Calendly, Cal.com, Zoho, Square |
| Languages | English and Spanish | English and Spanish |
| Live human backup | Can transfer to a live North America-based receptionist | Urgent calls are flagged and put through to you |
| After each call | Recording, transcript, summary and call history | Summary and full transcript, by email, dashboard and phone alert |
| Spam | Known spam numbers filtered; up to 10% of calls can be taken off your bill | Spam calls ended politely |
Where Smith.ai is strong
Smith.ai can hand a call to a live receptionist in North America. If you want a person to step in on tricky calls, that's a real reason to choose it, and you should weigh it against the higher price for short calls.
Where Cally24 fits better
Cally24 is built for owners who are busy on the job and want one simple price: $99 a month with 240 minutes and every feature included. Cally books callers into the calendar you already use, answers up to 20 calls at the same time, and puts urgent calls through to you. Every other lead arrives as a short summary by email, in your dashboard and as a phone alert, so you know who called before you call them back.
Switching takes an afternoon
You keep your phone number. You set your phone or carrier to forward the calls you don't answer to your Cally number, make a test call, and you're done. See how to forward calls.
Want to hear the difference yourself? Hear your own Cally receptionist, built from your website in 30 seconds, or see Cally24 pricing and what other AI receptionists cost.
Common questions
Does Cally24 charge per call?
No. You pay for minutes, so short calls use only a little of your plan. Extra minutes are billed at $0.29 per minute.
Does Cally24 have live receptionists?
No. Cally24 is an AI receptionist. Urgent calls are flagged and put through to you.
Can I switch from Smith.ai to Cally24 and keep my number?
Yes. You keep your number and forward the calls you don't answer to your Cally number.
