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Crulon vs Smith.ai. An AI agent and a phone system.

Smith.ai answers the calls you forward to it. Crulon is the AI agent and the phone system together: you build the agent yourself on every plan, step into any call, hand calls to your team inside the same system, and pay by the minute, not the call.

Start at $24 a seat See the full table

Based on Smith.ai's pricing pages and help centers, 16 Oct 2026. Prices are for monthly billing.

Four differences that matter.

Most of a phone system is the same everywhere. These are the parts that aren't.

A phone system, not an answering service.

Smith.ai answers calls you forward to it from your phone system, so you keep paying for that system too.

Crulon is both: the AI agent answers, and phone menus, queues and team calling ring your people in the same place.

Smith.ai
Forward your calls to it from the phone system you already pay for
Crulon
The AI agent, phone menus, queues and team calling, in one plan

Build the agent yourself, on every plan.

On Smith.ai's Free and Pro plans, custom AI prompting and custom integrations aren't included; they start at $500 a month, set up by Smith.ai.

In Crulon you write the agent's instructions and connect any API as a Tool on every plan, then test, version and roll back.

Add a Custom Action for any API
Update CRM contactcrm.update_contact@1.0.0published
PATCHhttps://api.yourcrm.com/v1/contacts/{contact_id}
YourCRM API key · Test call ok · 200
Give it to your agent as a Tool
Business ToolsFront desk agent
Look up customerREAD
Update CRM contactWRITE
Add Tool
The agent uses it on the call
AgentI'll note that on your account before I hand you over.
Update CRM contactcrm_update_contact184 ms00:48
AI Saved to Dana Whitfield.

Step into any call.

Live listen-in and takeover aren't anywhere in Smith.ai's documentation. You read the transcript afterwards.

On every Crulon plan you hear the AI's call without being heard, and take it over when it matters. Every listen-in is logged.

Listening00:41

Dana Whitfield

(555) 014-2290

Main line · AI Front desk agent

No one on the call can hear you.

Transcript

CallerOur heat just went out, and it's 9 at night.

AII've opened ticket 4821 for 418 Alder Street. Connecting you to the on-call technician now.

Pay by the minute, not the call.

Smith.ai bills every answered call: $150 a month for 75 on Pro, then $2.50 each, however short the call.

Crulon's AI minutes are pooled across the workspace, then 25¢ a minute. A three-minute call past the pool is 75¢.

Smith.ai Pro
$150 for 75 calls, then $2.50 a call
Crulon Starter
$24 a seat with 60 AI minutes, then 25¢ a minute

Keep what already works.

Crulon doesn't ask you to throw out your setup. It adds an AI agent and a modern phone system on top of it.

Keep your desk phones
Connect the SIP desk phones and softphones you already own, Yealink, Polycom, Cisco and more, on Scale.
Keep your carrier and numbers
Bring your own SIP trunk on Scale and keep your numbers for calls, with Crulon on top. Number porting is coming soon.
Keep your CRM
Custom Actions connect the agent to the systems you use today. Native Apps are coming.

Where Smith.ai is ahead, for now.

Worth knowing before you choose.

Human receptionists
Live agents around the clock, as a plan or a backup for the AI.
Website chat
A chat box for your website, answered by AI and live agents.
Number porting
Free, in or out. Crulon's is coming soon.

The full table.

The AI agent

Write the agent's instructions: Crulon: Every plan, in the agent builder; Smith.ai: No on Free or Pro; custom AI prompting from $500 a month
Works in other systems during the call: Crulon: Custom Actions call any API, and the agent uses them as Tools; Smith.ai: No on Free or Pro; built for you from $500 a month
What it knows: Crulon: Typed text, website pages and documents, plus live answers from your systems through Custom Tools; Smith.ai: No documents or website; up to 50 written questions and answers
Outbound AI calls: Crulon: Outbound AI campaigns on Scale; Smith.ai: No. Outbound is by human agents, from $600 a month plus a $750 setup fee
Versions with rollback: Crulon: Yes. Every change is a version you can roll back; Smith.ai: No versions or rollback in Smith.ai's documentation
How AI is priced: Crulon: 60, 150 or 300 minutes a month, pooled; then 25¢ a minute; Smith.ai: Per answered call: 75 for $150 on Pro, then $2.50 a call

Staying in control

Listen in on a live call: Crulon: Every plan, the AI's calls and your team's; Smith.ai: No live monitoring in Smith.ai's documentation
Take over a call from the AI: Crulon: Every plan, at any moment, after a confirm; Smith.ai: No takeover in Smith.ai's documentation
Hands the call to: Crulon: Up to ten destinations, including a whole Call Flow, with a note; Smith.ai: One destination per caller type, on your own phones

The phone system

A phone system for your team: Crulon: Every plan: team calling, extensions and the AI in one place; Smith.ai: No. You forward calls to it from your own phone system
Phone menus and call queues: Crulon: Every plan; Smith.ai: No. It answers the calls you forward
Desk phones and softphones: Crulon: SIP desk phones and softphones on Scale; Smith.ai: No. Your team answers on its own phones
Bring your own carrier: Crulon: On Scale; your numbers stay with your carrier for calls; Smith.ai: No. Calls are forwarded from your carrier
Number porting: Crulon: Coming soon; Smith.ai: Yes, free

Texting

A shared inbox for calls and texts: Crulon: Every plan, in Conversations; Smith.ai: No. Text replies are forwarded to a phone
Two-way texting from your business number: Crulon: US and Canada texts included, with fair use; Smith.ai: No. One-way follow-up texts after a call

Starting price, billed monthly

Entry plan: Crulon: Starter, $24 a seat: the AI agent, 60 AI minutes and the phone system; Smith.ai: Free for 25 calls, then $3 a call, with “Sent via Smith.ai” on every follow-up text; Pro $150 for 75 calls

Based on Smith.ai's pricing pages and help centers, 16 Oct 2026. Prices are for monthly billing. Smith.ai is a trademark of its owner. See every Crulon plan.

Questions about switching.

Is Crulon a Smith.ai alternative?

Yes, for teams that want the AI agent and the phone system in one place. Smith.ai answers calls you forward to it. Crulon answers on your own line, builds on every plan, lets you listen in and take over, and hands calls to your team in the same system.

Is Crulon cheaper than Smith.ai?

Usually, once calls add up. Smith.ai bills every answered call: $150 a month for 75 on Pro, then $2.50 a call. Crulon Starter is $24 a seat with 60 pooled AI minutes, then 25¢ a minute, so a three-minute call past the pool is 75¢. And Crulon's seat includes the phone system, which Smith.ai doesn't replace.

Does Crulon have live receptionists?

No. Crulon's AI agent answers, and hands the call to your own team with a note, inside the same system. If you need a human answering service, that's what Smith.ai is built for.

Can I build and change the agent myself?

Yes, on every plan. Write the agent's instructions, give it typed text, website pages and documents, connect your systems with Custom Actions, test it in the browser, and roll back any change.

Does Crulon speak Spanish?

Yes. The agent speaks eight locales across English, Spanish and French.

Can I keep my phone numbers?

On Scale, bring your own SIP trunk and keep your numbers for calls, with Crulon on top. Number porting is coming soon.

How did you compare?

From Smith.ai's pricing pages and its help centers, on 16 October 2026. Prices and features change, so check Smith.ai's pages before you decide.

See the difference on a call.

Start at $24 a seat Talk to the agent