ShopBrain vs Ruby Receptionist

Ruby is a respected live receptionist service with 20+ years in business. But they charge per-minute, don't know auto repair, and can't look up your customers' repair orders. For auto shops, there's a better way.

The Per-Minute Problem

Ruby charges by the minute. For a law firm getting 5 calls a day, that works. For a busy auto repair shop? The math gets ugly fast:

20 calls/day × 3 min avg = 60 minutes/day
60 min × 22 work days = 1,320 minutes/month
Ruby 500-min plan: $1,640/mo + overage for 820 extra min
Estimated monthly cost: $2,500–$3,000+

Ruby

$2,500+/mo

20 calls/day, per-minute billing
$245/mo base only covers ~50 min/mo

ShopBrain
$349/mo
Pro plan: unlimited calls
Zero overage fees. Ever.

What Ruby Can't Do for Your Shop

Can't access your shop system — Ruby's receptionists take a message. They can't check Tekmetric for repair status, upcoming appointments, or customer history.
No automotive knowledge — they handle dental offices, law firms, and plumbers. Your callers get generic scripted responses.
"I'll have someone call you back" — the most expensive way to say nothing. ShopBrain gives real answers: "Your Camry brake job is almost done, Mike's doing the final inspection. Should be ready by 3pm."
No estimates or payments — can't send a quote or collect a payment. ShopBrain can.
No Spanish built-in — Ruby offers English and Spanish but at additional cost for Spanish-speaking agents.
Per-minute billing punishes busy shops — the more calls you get, the more you pay. ShopBrain Pro is flat $349 no matter what.

What Ruby Does Well

Ruby built their reputation for a reason:

Real humans — some customers genuinely prefer a human voice. Ruby delivers that with warmth and professionalism.
20+ years in business — 15,000+ businesses trust them, 1.1M+ conversations per month
Sub-10-second answer time — they're fast, no question
English & Spanish agents — bilingual support available

When Ruby Makes Sense

Ruby is a good choice if:

You get fewer than 5 calls per day and want a human voice
You don't use Tekmetric or need real-time data access
Your budget supports $1,500+ per month for phone answering
Your callers are primarily high-value clients who expect a human (lawyers, wealth managers)

For auto repair shops? You're paying premium prices for agents who can't tell your customers anything useful about their car.

The Verdict

Ruby is excellent at what it does — premium live receptionist services for professionals. But auto repair shops need more than message-taking. They need an AI that knows the difference between a rotor and a radiator, can check repair status in real time, and doesn't charge by the minute. ShopBrain costs 85% less than Ruby and gives 10x better answers for auto repair callers.

Better answers. 85% less cost. Zero per-minute fees.

Try ShopBrain free for 14 days. No credit card required.

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