Smokeball is a polished, easy-to-use legal platform with great automatic time capture — but it's general-practice, not migration-specific, priced per user on multi-year terms. LodgeHQ is built for visa work and is $99/mo flat for unlimited users.
No credit card. No setup fees. No per-user charges.
Smokeball is excellent general legal software. LodgeHQ is built specifically for lodging visas — at a flat price.
Smokeball
LodgeHQ
Total savings
A 3-seat firm saves ~$3,400+/year
Smokeball Boost at ~$129/user/mo × 3 ≈ $387/mo vs LodgeHQ $99/mo flat. Approximate — based on Smokeball's published AU pricing.
An honest, line-by-line look at what each platform includes in its base subscription.
| Feature | LodgeHQ | Smokeball |
|---|---|---|
| Starting monthly price | $99 flat | From $129/user |
| Unlimited users included | ||
| Multi-year contract lock-in | None | Reported (36-mo) |
| Built specifically for migration agents | ||
| ImmiAccount auto-fill (Chrome extension) | ||
| DHA form auto-fill (956, 80, 1221 and more) | ||
| Smart visa questionnaires by subclass | ||
| Points test calculator | ||
| Occupation search & visa pathway tools | ||
| AI document review for visa files | ||
| AI refusal-risk analysis | ||
| OMARA compliance tools (file notes, CPD) | ||
| Automatic time capture | ||
| Trust accounting | ||
| Document automation | ||
| Built-in e-signatures |
Feature availability compiled from Smokeball's public website and product documentation. If anything has changed, please let us know and we'll correct it.
Three reasons we hear most often from migration agents who make the move.
Not chatbot gimmicks — real tools that cut hours off every file.
Our Chrome extension — live on the Chrome Web Store — pulls client data straight from LodgeHQ and types it into every ImmiAccount field, across every page, every subclass.
No surprises on your next invoice. $99/mo buys the whole platform.
A practical, honest migration path. It's not one-click, but it's straightforward.
Use Smokeball's built-in export to pull clients, matters, and contacts to CSV / Excel. Bulk-download any documents you want to bring across.
LodgeHQ accepts CSV imports for clients, contacts, and matters. Map the fields once, preview, and import. Documents are uploaded per matter — you can bulk-drag folders in.
Start lodging new matters in LodgeHQ while keeping Smokeball read-only for your in-flight files. Most practices are operating entirely on LodgeHQ within 5–10 days.
Once every active matter is live in LodgeHQ, cancel your old subscription and bank the savings. We're happy to help with the transition — email [email protected].
We won't pretend this is a one-click migration. It does involve some structured data entry, but most practices complete it in under a week.
Smokeball is well-regarded general legal practice-management software, especially for its automatic time capture and document automation. But it isn't migration-specific — there's no ImmiAccount auto-fill, no visa questionnaires, no DHA form generation and no OMARA tooling. If your practice is migration, you'd be running those parts manually.
Smokeball is priced per user on reported 36-month terms, so the cost scales with headcount and locks you in. LodgeHQ is $99/mo (AUD + GST) flat for the whole firm, unlimited users, no lock-in.
Yes — LodgeHQ includes time tracking and billing and a full trust account ledger with reconciliation and audit-ready statements, plus the migration-specific tools Smokeball doesn't have.
Yes. Export clients, contacts and matters to CSV / Excel and import into LodgeHQ. Documents are uploaded per matter; our team can assist with the transition.
Start your 14-day free trial of LodgeHQ. Full access to every feature. No credit card. Import your Smokeballdata when you're ready.
Start your 14-day free trialNo credit card. No setup fees. Set up in 30 seconds.