Smokeball Review Australia 2026

AU-MadeLegal
3.0 / 5— SoftwareHQ AU Rating
Pricing verified 2026-03-20

Overview

Smokeball is legal practice management with automatic time recording. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Sydney, NSW, Australia, it serves Australian businesses with local data hosting and AU-based support.

Legal practice management with automatic time recording

AU Compliance Scores

BAS Lodgement
0/5
STP Phase 2
0/5
Payday Super
0/5
Modern Awards
0/5
GST Handling
3/5
Bank Feeds
0/5
Modern Awards NoteNot applicable — Smokeball does not include HR or payroll features.

Pricing (AUD inc. GST)

All prices below are in Australian dollars (GST not included). Pricing verified as of 2026-03-20.

Bill
$49/mo
AUD exc GST
Entry-level billing plan. 'From' pricing based on 36-month contract, ex-GST. Designed for firms focused primarily on billing and invoicing.
  • Users: per_user
Boost
$99/mo
AUD exc GST
Web-based practice management with Microsoft 365 web app integration. 'From' pricing based on 36-month contract, ex-GST. 30-day free trial available for this plan. Add-on: Intake ($29/month), Archie AI (contact for pricing).
  • Users: per_user
Grow
$189/mo
AUD exc GST
Full desktop practice management with Microsoft Word and Outlook desktop integration, TemplateLab document automation. 'From' pricing based on 36-month contract, ex-GST. Add-ons: Intake ($59/month), AutoTime ($39/month), Archie AI (contact for pricing).
  • Users: per_user

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Transparent tiered pricing starting from $49/user/month (ex-GST) — significantly more affordable than LEAP's ~$339/user/month
  • Industry-leading ease of use with 9.2/10 Capterra score — smoother onboarding and faster staff adoption than LEAP (6.7) or Clio
  • AutoTime automatic time recording captures billable work passively in the background, reportedly saving firms ~4 hours/week in recovered time
  • Law Society of NSW approved trust accounting (Certificate Number 16) compliant with Legal Profession Uniform Law
  • Award-winning Australian support team (CSIA ASEA 2024 winner) with extended hours until 7:00pm AEDT and free unlimited training including 1-on-1 sessions
  • Native integration with both Xero and MYOB for office accounting — broader accounting integration than LEAP's Xero-only focus
  • 30-day free trial available on the Boost plan — unlike LEAP which offers no trial period
  • ISO 27001 certified with AES-256 encryption at rest and TLS 1.2+ in transit on AWS infrastructure

Cons

  • All published pricing is based on 36-month contracts — 'from' pricing suggests rates may be higher depending on firm size and negotiation
  • AutoTime is only included in the top-tier Prosper+ plan ($239/user/month) — it's a $39/month add-on on Grow and not available on Bill or Boost
  • Smaller precedent/template library than LEAP's 5,500+ pre-configured legal precedents across all Australian jurisdictions
  • No integrated office accounting — requires Xero or MYOB integration for full financial management, unlike LEAP's built-in office accounting
  • Specific AWS region for Australian data not publicly confirmed — data sovereignty cannot be independently verified from public documentation
  • Desktop app features (AutoTime, TemplateLab, deep Microsoft integration) only available on Grow and Prosper+ plans — Boost is web-only
  • Archie AI pricing not publicly disclosed — requires contacting sales for this increasingly important feature

Who Is Smokeball Best For?

  • Solo Practitioner
  • Small Law Firm
  • Firms Prioritising Ease Of Use
  • Conveyancing Practice

Smokeball may not be the best fit for:

  • Large Law Firm
  • Firms Needing Integrated Office Accounting
  • Firms Requiring Extensive Precedent Libraries

Smokeball Alternatives

If Smokeball doesn’t quite fit your needs, consider these alternatives for Australian businesses:

  • LEAP Legal Australia's largest legal practice management platform. From $339/mo inc. GST.
  • Actionstep Cloud-based legal practice management for midsize law firms. From $130/mo inc. GST.
  • Clio World's #1 cloud-based legal practice management platform. From $49/mo inc. GST.