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Yapper vs Smith.ai: which AI receptionist is right for your business?
Last reviewed
Reviewed by James McKinney, founder of Yapper. James builds Yapper for trades and small service businesses that need 24/7 phone coverage, emergency call routing, and simple flat-rate AI receptionist pricing.
Smith.ai receptionist plans now emphasize live agents backed by AI support. The Starter package starts at $300/month for 30 calls. Yapper is $199/month with 200 minutes included, built only for trade and service businesses. The right pick depends on what you do and how many calls you take.
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| Feature | Yapper Built for trades | Smith.ai AI From $95/mo | Smith.ai Human From $300/mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $199/mo (200 min) | Included in receptionist packages | $300/mo (30 calls) |
| Billing model | Flat rate | Per call (~$1.90) | Per call (~$10) |
| Overage | None | $2.40/call + $3 escalation | $9.75–$11/call |
| 24/7 coverage | |||
| Free trial | 7 days | 30-day refund | 30-day refund |
| AI or human | AI | AI (+ opt. agent) | Human + AI assist |
| Setup time | 5 minutes | Self-serve, hours | Days |
| Call transcripts | |||
| AI call summaries | |||
| Emergency detection and transfer | Per script | ||
| Revenue tracking | |||
| Common issues analytics | Limited | Limited | |
| Trades-specific | |||
| Custom AI instructions | Limited | Limited | |
| Bilingual | Coming soon | Limited | English/Spanish (Basic+) |
| CRM integrations | Coming soon | Yes (many) | Yes (many) |
The four differences that actually matter
Pricing model
Smith.ai bills per call across its receptionist packages. Its public Starter package starts at $300/month for 30 calls, with higher packages at 90 and 200 included calls. Calls over five minutes can count as more than one call. Yapper is $199/month flat with 200 minutes included. For 80 calls a month at 2 to 3 minutes each, that comfortably fits the plan, and Yapper costs less than the Smith.ai Starter package while including more usable call time for many service businesses.
Human vs AI
Smith.ai gives you the choice between an AI receptionist with optional live-agent handoff and a human-on-every-call service backed by AI. Yapper is AI end to end. If your callers need real empathy or the conversations do not follow any pattern, a human is better. If your calls look the same every day, AI handles them faster and cheaper, and it does not take breaks.
Trades focus
Smith.ai serves law firms, healthcare practices, agencies, and businesses of every shape. Yapper only serves trades and service businesses. That means every feature, from emergency detection to common-issues analytics, is tuned for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, contractor, and adjacent work.
Setup time
Smith.ai onboarding takes a few days while they learn your business and build your script. Yapper reads your website, pulls your services and pricing, and goes live in about five minutes.
Who should choose Smith.ai
Pick the Smith.ai Human plan if you need live humans on the phone. Law firms doing intake for sensitive cases, medical practices, and enterprise teams with complex transfer rules get real value out of a trained receptionist. If your callers need to feel heard before they can describe the problem, pay for a human.
Pick the Smith.ai AI plan if you already live inside HubSpot, Salesforce, or another CRM and need deep integrations on day one rather than later this year.
Who should choose Yapper
Yapper is built for trades: plumbers, HVAC techs, electricians, contractors, roofers, locksmiths, pest control, and anyone whose phone rings while they are under a sink or on a ladder. Trade calls follow a pattern. Someone has a broken thing, they want a price, they want a time. AI handles that shape well.
If you want 24/7 coverage at a flat price, emergency detection that transfers a real crisis to your cell with a spoken briefing, and a dashboard that tracks revenue from the calls it answers, Yapper is the better pick.
Frequently asked questions
Is Yapper cheaper than Smith.ai?
For steady call volume, usually yes. Smith.ai receptionist plans start at $300 a month for 30 calls, and higher call packages cost more. Yapper is $199 a month with 200 minutes included, so there is no per-call fee driving the price up.
What is the difference between Yapper and Smith.ai?
Smith.ai sells an AI receptionist and a human receptionist service, both billed per call and aimed at businesses of every type. Yapper is AI-only, flat-rate, and built just for trades and service businesses like plumbing, HVAC, and electrical.
Does Yapper charge per call like Smith.ai?
No. Yapper is one flat monthly rate with 200 minutes included and no per-call or escalation fees. Smith.ai charges per call on both its AI and human plans, and calls over five minutes can count as more than one call, so busy months cost more.
Does Yapper detect emergency calls?
Yes. Yapper flags urgent calls from what the caller says, transfers them to your cell, and briefs you first. Smith.ai's AI plan does not include automatic emergency detection, and its human plan handles urgency only if you write it into the script.
Is Yapper or Smith.ai better for trades?
Yapper is built only for trades and service businesses, so emergency routing, revenue tracking, and common-issues analytics are tuned for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, and contracting. Smith.ai is a generalist that serves law firms, agencies, and offices of every kind.
When is Smith.ai the better choice?
Smith.ai is the better pick if you need live humans on every call or deep CRM integrations on day one. Yapper is AI-only and its CRM integrations are still coming, so a firm that lives inside Salesforce or HubSpot may prefer Smith.ai today.
See Also
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