Smokeball alternatives for plaintiff firms

Why firms look beyond Smokeball

• US prices aren't published, and Smokeball's Australian plans are based on a 36-month contract.
• Archie AI and Intake are add-ons on most plans, so the full cost depends on the quote.
• It is general practice software; PI chronologies and demands lean on partners such as Novo.
• Intake and workflow features sit in the higher tiers or cost extra.

The options

1. 1.

   PlaintiffStack

   Case management and AI on one record

   Built for

   High-volume plaintiff firms in California: personal injury, workers' comp and employment

   Price

   $250 per case, every app included, no monthly fee. AI usage is billed separately, with an estimate shown before each run.

   Bottom line

   Our own product, listed first because this is our page. It is young and California-only, and it doesn't read scanned records yet.

   PlaintiffStack vs Smokeball
2. 2.

   Clio

   General practice management with billing, trust accounting, an app ecosystem and AI

   Built for

   Solo, small and mid-size firms across most practice areas, in many countries

   Price

   Clio publishes one price: EasyStart from $49 per user per month. Essentials, Advanced and Expand were quote-only when a third party checked in July 2026. Manage AI is quoted (third-party reports of $39 to $59 per user per month are unverified). Clio Work launched at $199 per user per month in October 2025 and is now demo-only. Clio Grow (intake) and Clio for Personal Injury are add-ons, with Grow bundled in Expand.

   Bottom line

   Clio is the most widely used general practice platform, with mature billing and trust accounting, a large app ecosystem, SOC 2 reports and, since buying vLex, a serious AI research product in Clio Work. It isn't built for plaintiff volume work: PI depth comes from an add-on and partners. PlaintiffStack is the opposite trade: California PI, comp and employment built in, but no trust accounting and far fewer integrations.

   PlaintiffStack vs Clio
3. 3.

   MyCase

   General practice management with published prices, billing, trust accounting and built-in AI

   Built for

   Small and mid-size firms across practice areas, including personal injury

   Price

   Published: Basic $50, Pro $100 and Advanced $130 per user per month billed annually, or $60, $120 and $150 billed monthly. MyCase Accounting adds $39 per user per month on Pro and Advanced. LawPay payments have no monthly fee, with processing rates.

   Bottom line

   8am MyCase is a well-priced general practice system with published plans, trust accounting, payments, texting and an AI assistant that includes OCR on its top plan. It suits small firms that need billing and trust as much as case work. PlaintiffStack is built for California plaintiff volume work, with PI, comp and employment case tools on one record, but without trust accounting or OCR.

   PlaintiffStack vs MyCase
4. 4.

   CasePeer

   Personal injury case management with published per-user prices

   Built for

   Personal injury firms, especially those without dedicated IT staff who want PI workflows preconfigured

   Price

   Published: Basic $90, Pro $130 and Advanced $160 per user per month, with no long-term contract or setup fee. Intake, two-way texting and 8am IQ start at Pro.

   Bottom line

   8am CasePeer is a straightforward, PI-only system with published prices, no long-term contract and PI tools such as settlement negotiations, treatment tracking and statute alerts, backed by the company behind MyCase and LawPay. PlaintiffStack adds California workers' comp and employment, page-cited AI case tools and a per-case price, but it has fewer integrations and no trust tracking. A PI-only firm that wants simple and proven may prefer CasePeer.

   PlaintiffStack vs CasePeer
5. 5.

   Needles and Neos

   Personal injury case management from Assembly Software: on-premise Needles and its cloud successor, Neos

   Built for

   Personal injury firms, including the large base of firms still running Needles or TrialWorks on their own servers

   Price

   Neos publishes two tiers: Essentials at $109 and Premium at $139 per user per month, billed yearly. Platinum, which includes NeosAI, is quoted, and Demands Plus is an add-on on Platinum whose cost scales with caseload. Third-party listings show other figures (for example $99, $129 and $179), so confirm with Assembly. On-premise Needles pricing is not published.

   Bottom line

   Assembly has built PI case management for over 40 years, and Neos gives Needles firms a familiar path to the cloud, published prices for its first two tiers, OCR and an AI tier with cited chronologies and demands. PlaintiffStack is younger and narrower: California PI, workers' comp and employment on one record, with every app in one per-case price. A national PI firm that likes how Needles works will feel at home in Neos.

   PlaintiffStack vs Needles and Neos
6. 6.

   Filevine

   Configurable case management with the LOIS AI suite

   Built for

   Law firms of many sizes and practice types, legal teams and agencies, with personal injury among its core markets

   Price

   Not published: Filevine quotes each firm by headcount and modules. Third-party estimates put seats at roughly $65 to $100 per user per month and implementation at $5,000 to $20,000, and comparisons say AI tools such as MedChron are sold as add-ons. A free LOIS tier, LOIS Explore, launched in July 2026.

   Bottom line

   Filevine is a mature, deeply configurable platform with a large partner network, a SOC 2 Type II audit and a fast-growing AI suite. PlaintiffStack is younger and narrower: California PI, workers' comp and employment on one record, page-cited AI and a published per-case price. Choose Filevine for configurability and multi-state reach; choose PlaintiffStack for California depth and a simpler price.

   PlaintiffStack vs Filevine