Do You Need Tow Deputy If You Already Have Towbook?
Yes — if the phone still goes to voicemail. Towbook is job-management software. Tow Deputy is the phone in front of it: an AI towing dispatcher that answers, quotes, and can take a deposit, then hands you a finished intake. Native two-way sync is on the roadmap and is not built yet.
Tow Deputy is not affiliated with Towbook or Omadi. Product names are trademarks of their owners. Details as of September 2026; verify on the vendor's site.
Two layers of a towing company
Operators search “Towbook vs Tow Deputy” as if they were substitutes. They are not. Towbook, per towbook.com as of September 2026, is cloud software for dispatching, impounds, billing, reporting, and motor-club workflows — the system of record after a job exists. Tow Deputy never becomes that system. It answers the inbound call in under two seconds so someone is not staring at a ringing desk while a driver is winching.
According to TheKeyBot (2026), 85% of emergency callers will not leave a voicemail. Towbook cannot catch that call if nobody is there to create it. That is the gap an AI towing receptionist is built for.
The phone in front of your TMS.
Answers 24/7, quotes your exact rate card including zone-based hook-up fees, and can send a PCI SMS deposit link (Growth). Then it texts you the job. Starter is $99/mo; Growth is $199/mo; 14-day free trial on both.
The job after it exists.
Towbook.com describes dispatching, impound/storage, billing (including QuickBooks), mobile apps, and 24/7 support. Pricing on towbook.com/pricing starts at $109/mo (Basic, 250 calls) through $429/mo (Enterprise), with a 30-day trial and no extra charge for additional users. It does not claim to be an AI voice receptionist.
How the handoff works today
We will not write that Tow Deputy pushes jobs into Towbook, because that path is not built. The honest sequence is:
- The caller reaches Tow Deputy (forwarded number or a dedicated AI line).
- The AI completes towing intake: vehicle, drivetrain, location, quote, optional deposit.
- You get SMS plus a dashboard row with the same fields.
- You create the call in Towbook the way you already do — typically faster because the questions are already answered.
That workflow is documented on Towbook AI dispatch. Native automatic job creation is on the roadmap. Until it ships, keep doing the last step yourself.
Side-by-side
| Job | Tow Deputy | Towbook (published) |
|---|---|---|
| Answers the inbound phone 24/7 | Yes. AI voice, simultaneous calls | A person or another product uses Towbook |
| Quotes your live rate card | Yes. Hook-up, per-mile, zones, night hours | Job software after the price is known |
| Collects a deposit on the call | Yes. SMS pay link (Growth) | Billing/invoicing after the job exists |
| Dispatch board, impounds, motor-club billing | No. Not a TMS | Yes. Core Towbook product (towbook.com) |
| Native two-way job sync | Roadmap — not built | Towbook is the destination system |
| Published starting price | Yes. $99/mo | $109/mo Basic (towbook.com/pricing, Sept 2026) |
| Trial | Yes. 14-day free trial | 30-day trial, no card (towbook.com) |
Omadi is the same story
Omadi is complementary fleet and job-management software for towing operations — dispatch, GPS, and the board after a job exists. A public monthly dollar price was not published on a page we could verify in September 2026; confirm current billing on Omadi’s site. Tow Deputy sits in front of Omadi the same way it sits in front of Towbook: SMS + dashboard today, native sync not built. Details live on Omadi AI dispatch.
If you run TOPS, InTow, Dispatch Anywhere, or a whiteboard, the phone layer is still the same. Tow Deputy does not need to replace that tool to stop missed calls. The seven intake fields that decide a wrecker — year, make, model, drivetrain, keys, pickup, drop-off — are collected before you open Towbook. That is the difference between creating a call from memory and creating one from a finished row.
Billing stays in Towbook: motor-club invoices, QuickBooks, and storage fees are that product’s job (towbook.com, Sept 2026). Tow Deputy’s job ends when the driver has a text and you have a quote. If you later want a deposit on long-distance cash tows, that is a Growth setting, not a Towbook replacement. An AI towing answering service that only emails “someone called” would still leave you typing the same screen — without a price the caller already heard.
When you should not add Tow Deputy
Keep the desk as-is if…
You already staff 24/7 humans who quote your exact card, collect deposits, and never miss a simultaneous ring. Or your inbound volume is almost entirely motor-club portal work with no cash-call phone. In those shops the TMS is the whole problem, and an answering layer will not pay for itself.
Everyone else is usually buying coverage for the hours the desk is empty. Jay D. at J&J Towing & Recovery set Tow Deputy on the 12 AM–6 AM window; Anthony G. at Gorillas Towing uses it because a one-man truck cannot answer while winching. Those write-ups are in the case studies.
Also compare Tow Deputy vs TowPilot if you are choosing among AI dispatchers, or the 2026 buyer’s guide.
Tow Deputy vs Towbook FAQs
Do I need Tow Deputy if I already have Towbook?
Yes if calls still hit voicemail while you are on a job or the desk is empty. Towbook manages the job after someone creates it. Tow Deputy is the phone in front of that software: it answers, quotes your card, and can take a deposit. You then enter the finished intake in Towbook. They solve different problems.
Does Tow Deputy replace Towbook or Omadi?
No. Tow Deputy does not replace Towbook, Omadi, or any dispatch software. Native two-way sync is on the roadmap and is not built yet. Today the handoff is SMS plus the dashboard. Keep the TMS you already pay for.
How does the Towbook handoff work today?
When a call ends, Tow Deputy texts you a structured summary and logs the same job in your dashboard: vehicle, drivetrain, pickup, drop-off, quoted price, and deposit status. You create the call in Towbook from that record. That is the current path described on the Towbook AI dispatch page.
What about Omadi versus Tow Deputy?
Same complementary story. Omadi is fleet and job-management software. Tow Deputy answers the phone. Public dollar pricing for Omadi was not published on a page we could verify in September 2026. Handoff today is still SMS plus the dashboard; native Omadi sync is not built yet.
How much does Tow Deputy cost on top of Towbook?
Tow Deputy Starter is $99/mo for 290 calls; Growth is $199/mo for 590 calls and Smart Deposits. Both include a 14-day free trial. Towbook’s own site (Sept 2026) lists Basic at $109/mo through Enterprise at $429/mo plus a 30-day trial. You would pay both if you keep Towbook and add the phone layer.
Keep Towbook. Stop missing the call.
Starter is $99/mo with a 14-day free trial. Hear the agent at (615) 205-9369.