Smokeball vs CARET Legal
Side-by-side from the Top 11 rankings of The 11 Best Legal CRMs & Case Management Software (2026) and The 11 Best Legal Billing Software (2026). Last verified May 31, 2026.
The short answer
Smokeball ranks higher on Top 11 (#4 vs #9) for Law firms and solo attorneys managing matters and clients / Solo attorneys, small and midsize law firms, and legal operations teams that bill hourly, on contingency, or on flat fees and must keep client trust accounts bar-compliant. Unrivaled automatic time tracking and deep Microsoft Office integration for document-heavy practices.
At a glance
| Smokeball | CARET Legal | |
|---|---|---|
| Top 11 rank | #4 / The 11 Best Legal CRMs & Case Management Software (2026) | #9 / The 11 Best Legal Billing Software (2026) |
| Score (out of 9.4) | 8.6 | 7.6 |
| Best for | Best for document automation | Midsize billing with built-in accounting |
| Pricing | $$$ ($100 to $200/user/mo est.) | $$$ (from ~$59/user/mo, higher tiers ~$99-$129) |
| HQ | Chicago, USA | Los Angeles, USA |
| Founded | 2010 | 2012 |
Smokeball
Unrivaled automatic time tracking and deep Microsoft Office integration for document-heavy practices.
www.smokeball.comSee full entry in The 11 Best Legal CRMs & Case Management Software (2026)
Methodology and scoring weights live at /methodology. No vendor pays for placement — see about.