MyCase vs Smokeball (2026): which should you pick?

Pick MyCase if

• Fits if you're a solo or small firm that wants cases and billing in one place
• Works for firms that already take card payments through LawPay

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you need intake forms, eSignature, workflows or texting, which all need Pro at $100 a user billed yearly
• Tight if you want conflict check tracking, split billing, Desktop Drive or the open API, as those are Advanced only at $130
• Watch out: three-way trust reconciliation is the $39 a user MyCase Accounting add-on, and Basic can't have it
• Watch out: court-rules calendaring is a separate subscription, and fees already paid aren't refunded if you cancel
• Skip it if you want to stay free, as there's only a 10-day trial and no free plan

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

MyCase

• Intake forms, the legal CRM, eSignature, workflows and two-way texting all need Pro at $100 per user / month, billed annually.
• Conflict check tracking, split billing, Desktop Drive and the open API are limited to Advanced.
• MyCase Accounting, for three-way trust reconciliation, is a $39 per user / month add-on on Pro and Advanced only.
• Court-rules calendaring needs a separate subscription, and fees already paid are not refunded on cancelling.

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.

MyCase

Cases, calendar and documents

Each case holds its notes, tasks, events, documents and contacts. A shared firm calendar shows statute of limitations dates, and document storage is unlimited on every plan.

Time, billing and trust accounting

Track time and expenses, turn them into invoices, and keep trust ledgers per client and per case with reconciliation. LEDES and batch billing, payment plans and interest come with Pro.

Payments through LawPay

Clients pay by card, eCheck or financing through 8am LawPay, with next-business-day deposits. LawPay has no monthly fee; processing rates apply.

Client portal and texting

Clients see their case and messages in a secure portal (limited on Basic). Pro adds unlimited two-way texting with images, a call log, internal chat and online intake forms.

8am IQ assistants

Pro includes AI writing and document assistants. Advanced adds a Case Assistant for summaries and timelines and a Discovery Assistant that runs OCR on 5,000 pages per user a month.

Claude connector and open API

An official read-only MCP connector lets Claude look up cases, documents and firm financials. The open API for building other links is on the Advanced plan.

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.

MyCase

• MyCase Basic$50

  per user / month, billed annually ($60 billed monthly)

  Case and contact management, time entry, invoicing, trust accounting, online payments, unlimited document storage and a limited client portal.

• MyCase Pro$100

  per user / month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly)

  Adds unlimited eSignature, document generation, workflows, intake forms and legal CRM, two-way texting, premium billing and the 8am IQ writing assistant.

• MyCase Advanced$130

  per user / month, billed annually ($150 billed monthly)

  Adds the 8am IQ Case and Discovery assistants, advanced document automation, Desktop Drive, conflict check tracking, split billing and the open API.

Smokeball

Pricing could not be confirmed. See smokeball.com.

MyCase

• Annual discount

  Save up to 16% with yearly billing

  MyCase's pricing page lists savings of up to 16% for paying a year upfront: $120 a year per user on Basic and $240 a year per user on Pro and Advanced.

• Other savings

  Bar association member discounts

  MyCase lists a member benefit for each of its partner bar associations and legal groups; ABA Advantage members, for example, get a 20% lifetime discount.

Smokeball

No public discounts listed.