Smith.ai is one of the best-known answering services in the US. It sells live receptionists and a separate AI answering product, and it has a mature set of CRM integrations. If you run a business in Auckland, Christchurch, Sydney or Perth, though, it was not built with you in mind.

Its pricing is in US dollars. Its receptionists are based in North America. Its setup guides cover US phone carriers. None of that stops it working for you, but it changes the maths and the caller experience.

This guide looks at what Smith.ai actually offers New Zealand and Australian businesses as of September 2026, then six local alternatives. We build Help Genie in New Zealand, so weigh our entry accordingly. For the general roundup, see /compare/best-smith-ai-alternatives.

What Smith.ai actually offers NZ and AU businesses

Pricing, in US dollars. Smith.ai’s live receptionist plans run from US$300 a month for 30 calls to US$2,100 for 300 calls. Extra calls cost US$8.50 to US$11.50 each. The AI answering plans start with a free tier of 25 calls at US$3 per extra call, then Pro at US$150 a month and Enterprise at US$500. No NZD or AUD pricing is published. Your bill moves with the exchange rate. For the full breakdown, see /compare/smith-ai-pricing-explained.

Who answers. Smith.ai says on its why us page that its receptionist team is based in North America, from Washington to Florida and Canada to Mexico. The pricing page promises “No overseas agents.” For a US business that is a plus. For a New Zealand business it means your callers speak to someone overseas.

Hours. The live service is staffed 24/7, so time zones do not leave gaps. A 9am call in Auckland is answered like any other.

Phone numbers. Smith.ai offers “Worldwide service” framed as a way to “establish a North American presence,” and says it can “transfer calls to anywhere in the world” on its features page. We found no mention of New Zealand or Australian numbers. Its forwarding guides cover US carriers and platforms such as Vonage, RingCentral and Google Voice, with none for Spark, One NZ, 2degrees or Telstra. One guide notes the destination must be “a U.S. or Canada number.” In practice you would forward your local number to a North American one. Ask your telco what that forwarding costs per minute.

Where Smith.ai genuinely wins. A polished live service with 24/7 humans, an AI tier with human fallback, a dedicated Spanish line, and deep integrations. If most of your callers are in the US, it is a serious option.

Where it fits NZ and AU less well. US dollar pricing, international call forwarding, a North American team answering for a local business, and per-call billing that rises with every busy week.

Six local alternatives for NZ and Australia

1. Help Genie (disclosure, we build it)

Help Genie is built in New Zealand. It trains one genie on your website, manuals, FAQs and price lists, then answers customers by voice and chat on your phone line, website, email and QR codes. It is the first layer of support for businesses that sell, rent, service or support physical products, like trades, marine and equipment dealers.

Best for: Product businesses whose callers ask about stock, specs, parts, servicing and how-to, at any hour.

Honest trade-off: It is voice AI, not a person. There is no human answering team, and deep CRM write-back is scoped per deal.

Pricing: Free plan to build and test. Pro is $299 a month and includes the phone number, phone, chat, web, QR and email from one knowledge base. Prices are the same number in NZD and AUD, flat monthly, with no per-call or per-minute meter. See /pricing.

Wins over Smith.ai: Local currency. Answers from your own documents, not a script. A long troubleshooting call costs the same as a short one. More than 40 languages. Ring the demo line on +64 9 886 4856 or hear it work online.

Where it falls short: Smith.ai gives you real people and mature integrations out of the box. If every caller must reach a human, Smith.ai or a local live service is the better fit.

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2. ReceptionHQ

ReceptionHQ is a live answering service with separate sites and pricing for New Zealand, Australia and the US.

Best for: Small businesses that want local receptionists taking messages and transferring calls.

Honest trade-off: Entry plans are message taking only. Transfers, lead capture and bookings cost more.

Pricing: The NZ pricing page starts at NZ$19 a month excluding GST for MessageExpress, with MyReceptionist 50 at NZ$149 a month. MyAssistant and MyDiary start at NZ$49 a month plus a setup charge from NZ$50. No lock-in contracts and a 7-day free trial. The Australian site did not load when we checked, so confirm A$ prices directly.

Wins over Smith.ai: Local pricing ex GST, far lower entry cost, local receptionists and 24/7 coverage offered.

Where it falls short: Per-call and per-minute billing still rises with volume. Fewer integrations than Smith.ai.

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3. CallCare (New Zealand)

CallCare is a New Zealand live answering service with 24-hour call handling by NZ-based staff.

Best for: NZ businesses with complex call flows, emergency response or calendar management.

Honest trade-off: You cannot price it without asking.

Pricing: Not published. The pricing page lists three plans, Lite, Freedom and Complete, and sends a pricing PDF on request. An 0800 number is NZ$50 a month plus GST.

Wins over Smith.ai: NZ-based answering, NZ currency, and emergency response sequences on Freedom and above.

Where it falls short: No public price and no AI tier listed.

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4. Hey Jodie

Hey Jodie is an AI answering service with pricing for Australia, New Zealand and other markets.

Best for: Small businesses that want always-on AI phone answering at a flat monthly price.

Honest trade-off: AI answering only, with no human team.

Pricing: A$99, A$199 and A$399 a month on the AU page, and the same numbers in NZ$ on the NZ page. Unlimited minutes, month to month, 7-day free trial.

Wins over Smith.ai: Local currency, unlimited minutes, and a far lower entry price than Smith.ai’s live plans.

Where it falls short: No human team to fall back on. Check how much of your own product detail it can be trained on before you commit.

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5. Johnni

Johnni is an Australian AI answering service aimed at trades, with natural Australian accents.

Best for: Australian tradies who want calls answered, transferred and logged.

Honest trade-off: Minute-based plans with per-minute overage.

Pricing: From A$49 a month for 60 minutes to A$809 for 1,500 minutes, excluding GST, with overage from A$0.35 to A$0.50 a minute, per Johnni’s pricing page. Month to month with a 7-day free trial. SMS notifications are A$50 a month extra.

Wins over Smith.ai: Local accents, A$ pricing, and a much lower entry point.

Where it falls short: Minutes run out on long calls. Focused on Australian trades.

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6. Sophiie

Sophiie is an Australian AI answering service with scheduling and job features for service businesses.

Best for: Australian service businesses that want AI answering tied to quoting and scheduling.

Honest trade-off: Pricing is not on its site. You book a demo to get a number.

Pricing: Not published on the Sophiie site. ServiceScale reports around A$300 a month plus a one-time A$400 setup fee, verified April 2026, not confirmed by the vendor.

Wins over Smith.ai: Local business, A$ pricing on third-party reports, and job workflow features.

Where it falls short: No public pricing, and a setup fee on reported figures.

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Side-by-side comparison

Service	Based in	Currency	Who answers	Entry price	Billing unit
Smith.ai	US, agents in North America	US$	Live receptionists and AI	US$300 for 30 calls (live), free tier (AI)	Per call
Help Genie	New Zealand	NZ$ or A$	Voice AI	Free plan, Pro $299 a month	Flat monthly
ReceptionHQ	NZ and AU sites	NZ$ or A$	Live receptionists	NZ$19 a month ex GST	Per call or per minute
CallCare	New Zealand	NZ$	Live receptionists	Not published	On quote
Hey Jodie	AU and NZ pricing	A$ or NZ$	AI phone answering	A$99 a month	Flat, unlimited minutes
Johnni	Australia	A$ ex GST	AI phone answering	A$49 for 60 minutes	Per minute
Sophiie	Australia	A$	AI phone answering	Not published (third party reports about A$300)	On quote

Best alternative by scenario

Your callers are mostly in the US. Stay with Smith.ai. It is built for that.

You want a local human on every call. ReceptionHQ or CallCare. Ask each for a quote with your real monthly call count.

Most calls are product questions. Help Genie. Callers get answers from your own manuals and price lists, and your team gets the rest with context. Send yours through /send-us-your-manual.

You are a tradie who needs calls answered and logged cheaply. Hey Jodie or Johnni. Compare minutes against a flat plan.

You are weighing live answering against AI. Read /compare/help-genie-vs-answering-services, then price your missed calls at /roi-calculator.

Frequently asked questions

Does Smith.ai work in New Zealand and Australia? It can. Smith.ai offers worldwide service and says it can transfer calls anywhere in the world. You would pay in US dollars and forward your local number to a North American number, and your callers would speak to North America-based agents.

Does Smith.ai offer NZ or Australian phone numbers? We found no mention of New Zealand or Australian numbers on Smith.ai’s site or support guides as of September 2026. Ask sales before you sign.

How much does Smith.ai cost in NZ dollars or Australian dollars? Smith.ai prices only in US dollars. Live plans start at US$300 a month for 30 calls. Convert at the day’s rate and add any international forwarding charges from your telco.

What is the best local alternative to Smith.ai? For live humans, ReceptionHQ or CallCare. For AI answering on a budget, Hey Jodie or Johnni. For product businesses whose callers ask detailed questions, Help Genie.

Can I try these before I switch? ReceptionHQ, Hey Jodie and Johnni offer 7-day free trials. Help Genie has a free plan with no credit card. Call the Help Genie demo line on +64 9 886 4856 to hear a genie answer.

The bottom line

Smith.ai is a good service for businesses whose callers are in North America. For New Zealand and Australian businesses it means US dollar bills, international forwarding and overseas agents.

Local options cover every need. ReceptionHQ and CallCare for people. Hey Jodie, Johnni and Sophiie for AI answering. Help Genie when your callers ask about the products you sell. For more comparisons, see /compare/answerconnect-pricing and /compare/davinci-alternatives.

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