How do HeyLead and CallRail work?
CallRail and HeyLead both connect leads to the marketing that produced them, but they start from different places. CallRail is built around phone calls and adds form tracking on some plans. HeyLead is built around website forms and the visits that led up to each one.
CallRail is one of the best-known call tracking tools. It uses dynamic number insertion: each visitor sees a phone number tied to the ad, keyword or page they came from, so when they call, CallRail knows which campaign earned the call. On top of that it offers call recording, AI conversation intelligence add-ons that analyse what was said, and form tracking on plans that include it. CallRail has also announced attribution for AI-powered search engines.
HeyLead is lead-source tracking software that shows which channel, campaign and page brought every lead, including leads from AI assistants. One script or the WordPress plugin detects your forms automatically and saves each submission with its first touch, last touch, every visit in between, device and country.
If phone calls drive your business, CallRail does a job HeyLead does not do yet. If most enquiries come through your website forms, HeyLead covers that job directly, without paying for call tracking.
Phone calls: where CallRail is stronger
CallRail is the better choice whenever phone calls are a large share of your leads. HeyLead does not track phone calls today. Call tracking is on HeyLead's roadmap, but it is not available now, and HeyLead has no call recording or call analysis.
CallRail's call features include:
- Dynamic number insertion, so each campaign, ad or page can show its own tracking number
- Call recording, so you can listen back to what a caller asked for
- Conversation intelligence add-ons that use AI to analyse calls
- Mature integrations with ad platforms, so calls can count as conversions in your ad accounts
These features matter for businesses such as dentists, law firms, home services and car dealers, where the phone is often how customers make first contact. They matter less for a consultancy, software company or B2B service that gets most enquiries through a contact, demo or quote form. In that case you would mostly be paying for call tracking you don't use.
CallRail is built for businesses where the phone rings with new customers every day, and for the agencies that run their ads. HeyLead is built for business owners whose new customers mostly fill in a form, and who want to see which marketing brought each one without building reports.
A simple test: look at last month's new enquiries. If more than a handful were phone calls you could not trace to a campaign, CallRail answers a question HeyLead cannot answer yet. If nearly all of them arrived as form submissions, HeyLead answers the questions you actually have: which channel, campaign and page brought each lead, what they did before getting in touch and whether AI assistants are sending you buyers. See how HeyLead works for small businesses.
How long does setup take?
HeyLead takes about 5 minutes to set up: add one script tag or install the WordPress plugin, and every form on your site starts tracking. There are no hidden fields to add and no phone numbers to set up. HeyLead works on WordPress, Webflow, Wix, Squarespace, Shopify and custom sites, with form tools such as Gravity Forms, Elementor, Contact Form 7, Typeform and Jotform. A live install checker confirms the script is working.
CallRail setup also starts with a script on your site, then involves choosing tracking numbers, deciding which campaigns get which numbers, forwarding them to your real line and setting up form tracking if your plan includes it. For a call-heavy business that work pays off. For a form-only business it is setup you can skip.
| Setup step | HeyLead | CallRail |
|---|---|---|
| Install a script or plugin | Yes, about 5 minutes | Yes |
| Set up tracking numbers | Not needed | Yes, for call tracking |
| Forms detected automatically | Yes | Check CallRail's docs |
| Check the install is working | Live install checker | Check CallRail's docs |
What do you see in the reports?
HeyLead's dashboard shows leads, customers and revenue by channel, campaign and landing page, with a plain-English summary of what changed. Each lead has its own page with every visit before they got in touch, so you can see the path from a first Google search to a later Facebook ad click to the form. You mark leads New, Qualified, Customer or Lost and add a deal value, and HeyLead shows which channels bring paying customers, not just enquiries. Read how to read the HeyLead dashboard.
CallRail's reporting is centred on calls: which campaigns and keywords drove calls, call recordings and, with conversation intelligence, what callers talked about. Form submissions appear alongside calls on plans with form tracking. Check CallRail's docs for how it shows the visit history behind a form lead.
How do they handle leads from ChatGPT and AI assistants?
HeyLead puts visits from AI assistants in an AI Referral channel and names the assistant: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot or Claude. Many analytics tools still count those visits as Direct or Referral, which hides a source that is now sending real buyers to business websites.
HeyLead checks for AI assistants early in its channel rules, right after your own custom rules and before ad click IDs, UTM tags and the referring website. A lead who clicked through from a ChatGPT answer is counted as an AI lead, and you can see which assistant sent them and which page they landed on. The AI Lead Tracker page explains how it works.
CallRail has announced that its attribution now includes AI-powered search engines. Check CallRail's docs for which assistants it recognises and how they appear in its reports.
CRM and ad platform integrations
CallRail is stronger on ad platform integrations. It has mature connections to ad platforms so calls and leads can be reported as conversions there. HeyLead does not sync conversions back to ad platforms.
HeyLead focuses on getting each lead and its source to your team. Zapier and webhooks send leads to HubSpot, Zoho CRM, Salesforce, Pipedrive and most other tools, Google Sheets connects directly, and native CRM sync is coming soon. You also get email alerts for new leads, team member access and custom channel rules. For CallRail's current list of CRM integrations, check CallRail's docs.
How does pricing compare?
HeyLead charges a flat monthly price with no usage fees. CallRail charges by plan, with annual billing listed as cheaper, and usage fees for extra minutes or numbers may apply. For a business that only needs form tracking, HeyLead costs less to start.
CallRail renamed its plans in April 2026. The listed plans are Call Tracking, Call Tracking + Conversation Intelligence, Call Tracking + Form Tracking and Call Tracking Complete, with a listed range of roughly $50 to $195 per month. The plan that includes form tracking is listed at around $100 per month for about 1,000 form submissions. CallRail lists a 14-day free trial and no free plan.
HeyLead single-site plans cost $29, $49, $99 per month for 1,000, 2,000 or 5,000 leads. Multi-site plans for agencies start at $199/month for 10 sites with unlimited leads. The 14-day trial costs $2.99, then you pay monthly and can cancel anytime. HeyLead has no free plan either. See HeyLead pricing for every plan.
| Pricing detail | HeyLead | CallRail (listed) |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price for forms | $29/month | Around $100/month |
| Usage fees | None | May apply for minutes or numbers |
| Billing | Monthly, cancel anytime | Monthly or annual (annual cheaper) |
| Trial | 14 days for $2.99 | 14 days free |
| Free plan | No | No |
Which should you choose?
Choose CallRail if phone calls are a major source of leads, if you want calls recorded and analysed, or if you need calls reported as conversions in your ad platforms. CallRail is the stronger product for anything involving the phone.
Choose HeyLead if most of your leads come from website forms and you want a lower entry price, no usage fees, a journey for every lead and AI assistants such as ChatGPT counted as their own channel. You can also compare HeyLead with WhatConverts, another tool that tracks both calls and forms.
If you are switching or want both, HeyLead and CallRail can run on the same site because both work from a script. If you only used CallRail for form tracking, install HeyLead, send a few test leads, check they arrive with the right channel and journey, then review whether you still need your CallRail plan.
If calls matter to you, keep CallRail for calls. Some businesses use CallRail for phone leads and HeyLead for form leads, the journey behind each lead and AI assistant tracking.