A sourced field guide for US home-service contractors
Four ways to handle the next inquiry.
Compare the intake channels, detail gathering, scheduling, follow-up, and published pricing described on each company’s public pages. “Not established” means the cited pages do not make that detail clear; it does not mean the feature is absent.
PUBLICLY STATED DETAILS
Compare the service before the first visit.
Each cell links to its supporting source. Unknown details are labeled rather than inferred.
Jobber Receptionist
AI receptionist inside Jobber’s field-service platform.
Smith.ai
AI Receptionist plans with call handling and scheduling.
AgentZap
AI phone answering with intake and calendar booking.
Prybar
Text-first contractor assistant with optional AI voice.
Detailed breakdown
Compare what matters
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| Capability | Jobber Receptionist | Smith.ai | AgentZap | Prybar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lead intake and detail gathering | ||||
| Lead-intake channels | Phone, text, and website chat [1] | Inbound phone calls; 24/7 AI call answering [2] | Inbound phone calls; SMS messaging integration is also described [4] [5] | 24/7 text; website chat widget; AI voice is an add-on [6] |
| Detail gatheringWhat each company says it asks or captures before the next step. | Answers business questions and can take requests. Specific intake fields are not established [1] | Lead qualification is listed; specific questions or fields are not established [2] | Custom criteria plus up to 10 short-answer intake questions [4] | Lead capture, qualification, and enrichment; asks diagnostic questions [6] |
| Scheduling and follow-up | ||||
| Scheduling | Can book jobs in the Jobber calendar [1] | AI scheduling with Calendly and other listed tools [2] | Books appointments directly into connected calendars [4] | Books jobs and appointments by text [6] |
| Follow-up | Creates and assigns follow-up tasks; can text a caller who disconnects before interaction [1] | A product post describes configurable immediate follow-up texts; current plan inclusion is not established [3] | Sends call summaries to email, Slack, and Teams; also lists appointment SMS reminders and follow-ups [4] [5] | Lists customer follow-up sequences and SMS reminders for unpaid invoices [6] |
| Publicly stated pricing | ||||
| Published pricePrices below follow the linked public pages checked on the review date. | $29/month add-on on select plans, including 30 conversations; $0.79 per additional conversation. Included with unlimited usage on Plus [1] | Free: 25 calls/month, then $3/call. Pro: $150/month plus $2/call. Enterprise: $500/month plus $1.67/call [2] | Starter: $109/month for 150 minutes, then $0.85/minute, plus a $499 setup fee [4] | $39/month for unlimited texts; optional AI voice add-on is $29/month with 150 minutes, then $0.25/minute [6] |
LATCHBIRD · PRODUCT DIRECTION
Latchbird: available today, with a clear roadmap
Latchbird is an intended product direction for independent plumbing contractors, not a live answering-service alternative. The current workflow is a homeowner inquiry form and a private place to review leads.
Available today
- Public homeowner inquiry form
- Private lead workspace for reviewing submitted and manually added leads
- Daily in-app summary of new leads and follow-up activity
Planned — not available today
- Inbox monitoring
- Estimate booking through a connected calendar
No Latchbird price, live answering, or calendar-booking capability is presented here. Daily reports are available in the private workspace and are not emailed.
EVIDENCE
Sources and review notes
- 1Jobber Receptionist — Help Center
Checked October 18, 2026
- 2Smith.ai AI Receptionist — Plans & Pricing
Checked October 18, 2026
- 3Smith.ai — AI Receptionist text follow-up
Checked October 18, 2026
- 4AgentZap AI Receptionist — Pricing and features
Checked October 18, 2026
- 5AgentZap — SMS/Text integration
Checked October 18, 2026
- 6Prybar — Pricing and features
Checked October 18, 2026
Sources are linked below and were checked on the review date. Features, eligibility, integrations, usage limits, and prices can change. “Not established” identifies details not stated by the cited pages, not a claim that a capability is unavailable. This is a comparison of public descriptions, not a hands-on product test.