AICS vs Smith.ai: the Canadian alternative for law firms
Smith.ai answers your phone. AI Canadian Solutions answers your phone and website chat, checks conflicts, books the consultation and keeps the client file. Here is the honest side-by-side.
Smith.ai answers calls. AICS runs your whole intake.
If you only need calls answered, already have a CRM you like, and want the option of real people, Smith.ai is a solid choice and its AI plan is inexpensive for short calls. If you want the phone, website chat, conflict check, consultation booking, CRM and client documents in one Canadian system, billed in Canadian dollars, AI Canadian Solutions replaces several subscriptions at once.
A conflict check on every inquiry
Our AI checks the caller and the other party against your contacts before it books anything, and declines politely if there is a conflict.
Real bookings in your real calendar
It checks your Google or Outlook calendar, offers open times, books the consult and emails the client an invitation.
It knows who is calling
Existing clients are recognised by their phone number. New clients, court staff and other lawyers follow different rules.
AICS vs Smith.ai: feature by feature
Every row is something a law firm asked us about. Turn on "Show only the differences" to skip what both do.
| What you get | AI Canadian Solutions | Smith.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Answering your phone | ||
| Answers calls 24/7 with AI | Yes: Yes |
Yes: Yes |
| Human receptionists availableReal people who answer for you | No: AI only; transfers to your own team |
Yes: Separate plans from US$300/mo |
| Live transfer to your lawyerThe AI briefs the person before connecting the caller | Yes: Warm transfer with a private briefing |
Yes: Routes callers to your team with context |
| Recognises existing clientsLooks up the caller’s number in your contacts | Yes: Greets known callers by name |
Not published: Not published |
| Follows your firm’s own call scriptYour routing rules, wording and scripts | Yes: Custom script mode for every firm |
Partly: Custom prompting on Enterprise |
| Languages on the phone | Partly: English; website chat in 18 languages |
Partly: English and Spanish |
| Legal intake | ||
| Practice-area intake questions | Yes: Yes |
Yes: Yes |
| Conflict-of-interest checkChecks the caller and the other party against your records | Yes: Automatic, on phone and chat |
Partly: Listed, but not stated whether AI or staff do it |
| After-hours rules | Yes: Message, forward or voicemail, plus an urgent contact |
Yes: 24/7 coverage |
| Booking consultations | ||
| Books appointments during the call | Yes: Live Google and Outlook availability |
Yes: Through Calendly, Acuity and similar |
| Books from your website chat | Yes: Yes |
Partly: Web chat is a separate product |
| Sends the client a calendar invitation | Yes: Email invite with accept, maybe or decline |
Not published: Not published |
| Respects your hours, buffers and notice time | Yes: Your hours and timezone, 30-minute minimum notice |
Not published: Not published |
| Your client records | ||
| CRM and intake pipeline included | Yes: Yes |
No: Connects to Clio, MyCase, Lawmatics, Zapier |
| One inbox for calls, chats and email | Yes: Gmail and Outlook built in |
No: No |
| Clio connection | Partly: Sends new leads and matters to Clio; we set it up |
Yes: Native integration |
| Client document portal and e-signing | Yes: Secure portal, audit trail, e-signatures |
No: No |
| Email and text follow-up campaigns | Yes: Drip campaigns with STOP handling |
Partly: Follow-up after calls |
| Outbound AI call campaignsCalls a list of consenting contacts and asks your questions | Yes: Opted-in contacts only, with retries |
Partly: Human outreach; no AI outbound listed |
| Call recordings, transcripts and summaries | Yes: Yes |
Yes: Yes |
| Price and privacy | ||
| How you are billed | : Per minute: from C$349/mo for 400 minutes |
: Per call: AI from US$150/mo for 75 calls |
| Currency | : Canadian dollars |
: US dollars |
| Free plan | No: Try the live demo instead |
Yes: 25 calls a month |
| Contract | : Monthly; 3-month minimum on Elite |
: Monthly, 30 days notice |
| Where client records are stored | Yes: Toronto database, AWS Canada files |
Not published: Not stated on its website |
| Canadian company | Yes: Yes |
No: United States |
Smith.ai information comes from its public website, checked October 30, 2026; sources are listed at the bottom of this page. Smith.ai is a trademark of its owner; AI Canadian Solutions is not affiliated with Smith.ai. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we will correct it.
What would you pay each month?
Smith.ai charges per call. We charge per minute. Move the sliders to match your firm and see all three options in Canadian dollars.
AI Canadian Solutions
Smith.ai AI Receptionist
Smith.ai human receptionists
AICS prices are our published Legal plans: Intake Pro C$349/month with 400 phone minutes, and Platform Elite C$749/month with 900 minutes (one-time setup C$950, 3-month minimum), each with a 15% buffer before overages. Smith.ai prices are from smith.ai/pricing in US dollars: AI Receptionist Free, Pro and Enterprise tiers, and human receptionist Starter, Basic and Pro plans, checked October 30, 2026. The calculator picks the cheapest plan for your volume. Taxes not included.
What happens when a new client calls
Walk through this on your demo call. Smith.ai handles a similar call, but the details then go to a separate CRM.
- The AI answers in your firm’s name. Day or night, on the first ring, with your greeting.
- It works out who is calling. New client, existing client, court staff, another lawyer or a sales call. Known callers are recognised by their number.
- It asks your intake questions. Name, phone and email (spelled back), the type of matter and the key facts, in a natural conversation.
- It runs a conflict check. The caller and the other party are checked against your records. If there is a conflict, it declines politely and does not book.
- It books the consultation, or transfers the call. It offers open times from your calendar and books one, or warm-transfers the caller to your lawyer when your rules say so.
- Your team gets the full picture. The recording, transcript, summary and new lead land in your inbox and pipeline, and the client receives a calendar invitation.
Which one is right for your firm?
Both are good products. They are built for different firms.
Choose AI Canadian Solutions if…
- You want one system for calls, website chat, booking, CRM and client documents.
- You are a Canadian firm and want client records stored in Canada and billed in Canadian dollars.
- You want a conflict check on every new inquiry, automatically.
- You want the phone and website chat to follow the same rules and book into the same calendar.
- You want to call your own opted-in clients with AI for reminders, questionnaires and follow-ups.
Smith.ai may suit you better if…
- You want real human receptionists, not only AI.
- Many of your callers need Spanish on the phone.
- You get a small number of short calls, where per-call AI pricing is cheaper.
- You want a free plan to start (25 calls a month).
- You already run Clio Grow, Lawmatics or MyCase and only need calls answered.
Switching from Smith.ai
You can keep your existing phone number. Here is how firms move over.
- Book a walkthrough. Bring your current Smith.ai script and intake questions. We go through them with you.
- We set up your AI receptionist. Your greeting, practice areas, intake questions, transfer rules, office hours and the matters you do not take.
- Connect your calendar. Link Google or Outlook so the AI only offers times you are actually free.
- Test it yourself. Call as a new client, an existing client and someone with a conflict. Adjust anything you do not like.
- Point your number at it. Forward your current number, or connect a number you already own through Twilio or Telnyx. Then give Smith.ai its 30 days notice.
Frequently asked questions
Is AI Canadian Solutions cheaper than Smith.ai?
Does Smith.ai do conflict checks?
Can AICS transfer calls to my lawyers?
Does either one speak French?
Where is my client data stored?
Do I need a new phone number?
Does AICS work with Clio?
See AICS take a real legal intake call
Bring your Smith.ai script. In 15 minutes we will run it on our AI, do a conflict check, book a test consultation and show you the summary your team would get.