Lawcus vs Smokeball (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Smokeball: it is third in our ranking of law practice software, though Lawcus grades higher (2.2 against 2.0) on value for money and the free plan.
Checked Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Smokeball grades higher on features. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Lawcus
Practice management with billing and trust accounting for law firms
Smokeball
Practice management with automatic time capture and court forms
Which one is for you
Pick Lawcus if
- Fits if you run a small firm and want cases, billing and trust accounting together
- Works for firms that want a mobile app for the team
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want workflow or marketing automation: that is Elite at $79 a user
- Tight if you e-sign a lot: 3 a user a month on Essential and 5 on Growth
- Watch out: two-way texting is an add-on at $10 per attorney a month
- Watch out: Enterprise needs at least 10 users and shows no price
Pick Smokeball if
- Fits if your firm files lots of court and agency forms, in areas like family law or personal injury
- Works for lawyers who want time logged against the matter without running timers
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: there's no published price, and a quote depends on users, plan, contract term and add-ons
- Skip it if you want to try it first, as there's no free plan or trial on record, only a demo
- Pricey if you want AutoTime, intake or workflows below Prosper+, as they cost extra on Grow, and Archie AI is an add-on from Boost up
- Not for you if your firm runs on Macs, as the desktop app is Windows only and Boost runs in the browser
- Watch out: online payments and eFiling carry fees, and eSignature runs through InfoTrack
How we grade them
| 2.2GPALawcusFair | 2.0GPASmokeballFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | B$39 a user a month billed annually, inside the cheapest quarter of law-practice tools ($49 or less). | CNo price is published. Smokeball gives a price only on a sales call, depending on your number of users, the plan, the contract term and any add-ons. |
| Free plan and trial | DA free trial is offered through a button, but its length and card terms are not stated. | FNothing free on record: no free plan and no trial, only a demo with the sales team. |
| Features | CMatters, billing, trust accounting, intake, portal and document automation. Text messaging is a paid add-on and workflows start at Elite. | BMatters, tasks and calendars, more than 20,000 court and agency forms, AutoTime, invoicing, online payments, a trust ledger, intake, workflows and the Archie AI assistant across its plans. That's the whole job, though the general ledger sits in QuickBooks Online. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You set up matters, billing and intake, so it is a C. | CWe have no store rating on file for it. It's a whole firm system with matters, form templates, trust accounts and a QuickBooks link to set up, and you can't sign up yourself: it starts with a demo. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Gmail, Microsoft 365, QuickBooks, Xero, Dropbox and Zapier listed. No desktop app. | BWeb, a Windows desktop app on Grow and Prosper+, and iPhone and Android apps, with Outlook, Word, QuickBooks Online and InfoTrack. No Mac app, and no API or Zapier on record. |
| Best for | small-firm case management and billing | small firms that file many court forms |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Lawcus and Smokeball. How we grade
Where they differ
- Lawcus also covers workflow automation.
- Smokeball also covers templates.
At a glance
| Lawcus | Smokeball | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Paid |
| Starts at | $39 per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly) | Not published |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | Free trial offered through the Start Trial button; length not stated on the pages read. | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Lawcus | Smokeball |
| Price read from | lawcus.com | Not confirmed |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 24, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Lawcus
- Prices are per user; Enterprise needs at least 10 users and has no published price.
- Text messaging is an add-on on the three paid tiers, and the pricing page does not give its price.
- E-signatures are capped per user each month (3 on Essential and 5 on Growth, per the plan table).
- Workflow automation, marketing automation and the custom report builder need the Elite plan.
Smokeball
- Smokeball publishes no prices: a quote depends on the number of users, the plan, the contract term and add-ons.
- Boost runs entirely in the browser; Grow and Prosper+ add the native desktop app, which Smokeball's site lists for Windows.
- AutoTime, Intake and Workflows come with Prosper+ only and cost extra on Grow; Archie AI is an add-on on Boost, Grow and Prosper+.
- Online payments and eFiling carry fees, and eSignature runs through InfoTrack.
Key features
Lawcus
- Matter and contact management
- Matters link to people and companies, with statute-of-limitation alerts, private matters and kanban-style pipelines.
- Billing and trust accounting
- Timers, expenses, invoices, retainers and trust accounting are included from the Essential plan; online payments accept ACH, eCheck and card.
- Client intake and portal
- Lead management, branded intake forms and a client portal for messages, invoices and document sharing.
- Document automation
- Templates generate pleadings and contracts, with storage integrations for Google Drive, OneDrive, Box and Dropbox.
- Workflow automation
- The Elite plan can auto-create tasks, send emails and move matters forward, with up to 100 workflows listed.
- Mobile app
- An app for the App Store and Google Play signs in with an existing Lawcus account.
Smokeball
- Matters, calendars and tasks
- Each matter holds its documents, tasks, events and contacts, with Microsoft 365 Outlook and calendar integration from Boost and iOS and Android apps for checking matters on the go.
- TemplateLab forms and documents
- A library of more than 20,000 court and agency forms and document templates that fill from the matter, with practice-area templates and calculators from Grow.
- AutoTime
- Logs each action against the matter being worked on, so time entries do not have to be started or written up. Included in Prosper+ and an add-on on Grow.
- Billing, payments and trust
- Invoicing, time and expense tracking, online payments and a trust ledger kept current as entries are made, with QuickBooks Online holding the general ledger.
- Archie AI
- An AI assistant that works inside a matter to draft, review documents and answer questions, sold as an add-on from Boost upward.
- Intake and lead management
- Intake forms are an add-on on Boost and Grow; Prosper+ includes them along with lead management, inquiry intake, custom workflows and profitability reporting.
Plans
Lawcus
Essential$39
per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
Case and matter management, billing and invoicing, and trust accounting. Includes 3 e-signatures per user per month.
Growth$59
per user / month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
Adds QuickBooks and Xero integration, Google and Office 365 integration, Nova AI and custom fields.
Elite$79
per user / month, billed annually ($89 billed monthly)
Adds workflow automation, marketing automation, advanced dashboards and a custom report builder.
EnterpriseCustom
For firms with at least 10 users: dedicated onboarding and account manager, custom feature development, private cloud and SLA options.
Smokeball
Pricing could not be confirmed. See smokeball.com.
Ways to pay less
Lawcus
- Annual discount
Annual billing is $10 less per user
Annual prices are $39, $59 and $79 per user per month against $49, $69 and $89 billed monthly.
Smokeball
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Lawcus or Smokeball?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Lawcus starts at $39 per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly), and Smokeball has no price we could confirm.
Which has a free plan, Lawcus or Smokeball?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Lawcus nor Smokeball has a free plan. Lawcus has a free trial.
Which platforms do Lawcus and Smokeball run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Smokeball lists a Windows app. Both list a web app and iOS and Android apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.