12 Best Live Chat Software (2026)

Your customer has a question about pricing. They're on your website right now, credit card in hand. In 60 seconds they'll either get an answer or leave for a competitor. This is the problem live chat solves — and the reason it's become standard on every serious SaaS and ecommerce site.

But "live chat" in 2026 means something different than it did three years ago. Half of these tools now use AI to handle the first response (or the entire conversation) automatically. The pricing models have split too: some charge per agent seat, others per conversation, and a few per AI resolution. Picking the wrong model can mean the difference between $50/month and $5,000/month for the same volume of chats.

Here's what works, what's overpriced, and which AI features actually deliver.

Quick comparison

AI-first platforms

These tools treat AI as the primary responder, not a bolt-on feature. Human agents handle what the AI can't.

1. Intercom

Intercom has gone all-in on AI. Fin AI Agent handles front-line support across chat, email, and social — averaging a 66% resolution rate across 6,000+ customers, with top implementations hitting 93%. Every plan includes Fin; you pay $0.99 per successful resolution on top of your seat cost.

Pricing: Essential at $29/seat/month, Advanced at $85/seat/month, Expert at $132/seat/month (annual). Fin AI Agent at $0.99/resolution. Copilot AI assistant at $35/agent/month for unlimited use.

What works: The most mature conversational AI in customer support. Fin speaks 45 languages, asks clarifying questions, and compiles answers from multiple knowledge sources. The product messaging features (in-app tours, banners, tooltips) are unmatched. Knowledge base, ticketing, and live chat are tightly integrated into one platform.

The catch: The $0.99/resolution fee adds up fast. A team resolving 5,000 AI conversations per month pays $4,950 extra on top of seat costs. "Assumed resolutions" count even when customers abandon frustrated — you can't dispute them. SMS and WhatsApp have per-message overage fees. The Essential plan is quite limited; most teams need Advanced at minimum ($85/seat/month).

2. Tidio

Tidio brings AI-first chat to small businesses and ecommerce stores. Lyro, its conversational AI, handles up to 70% of common questions, understands context, and can interpret images. Setup takes minutes, not weeks — upload help articles or a CSV and Lyro starts answering.

Pricing: Free (50 conversations/month), Starter at $29/month (100 conversations), Growth at $59-$349/month (250-2,000 conversations). Lyro AI costs $39/month extra (50 AI conversations). All plans cap at 10 agents.

What works: The most accessible AI chatbot for SMBs. Lyro reduces first response time by 75% (from ~1 minute to under 15 seconds). The visual chatbot builder (Flows) is intuitive. Strong Shopify integration. Conversation-based pricing means you pay for actual usage, not idle seats.

The catch: The real cost is higher than it appears. Lyro ($39/month) and Flows ($29/month) are billed separately, so the effective price is often $97+/month. The 10-agent cap on most plans is restrictive for growing teams. Enterprise features are limited compared to Intercom or Zendesk.

3. Gorgias

Gorgias is purpose-built for ecommerce. Its AI Agent includes a Shopping Assistant (pre-sale product recommendations, 2.5x conversion lift) and a Support Agent (order tracking, refunds, subscription changes). It pulls order data from Shopify, processes returns, and modifies subscriptions directly — no human needed.

Pricing: Starter at $10/month (50 tickets, 3 seats), Basic at $50/month (300 tickets), Pro at $300/month (2,000 tickets), Advanced at $750/month (5,000 tickets). AI Agent at $0.90/resolution (annual). Overage: $0.36-$0.40/ticket beyond plan limit.

What works: The deepest ecommerce integration on this list. Deep Shopify, BigCommerce, and Magento connections. AI can take real actions — not just answer questions but actually process orders, issue refunds, update shipping. Ticket-based pricing means you pay for actual conversations, not idle agents.

The catch: Overage charges ($0.36-$0.40/ticket) can cause bill shock during peak seasons. The Starter plan (50 tickets, 3 seats) is barely usable for any real store. Pro at $300/month is a big jump from Basic at $50/month. Not suitable for non-ecommerce businesses — the entire product revolves around order workflows.

Enterprise platforms

Full-featured support platforms where live chat is one channel among many.

4. Zendesk

Zendesk is the enterprise standard for omnichannel support — email, chat, phone, social, and messaging from a single agent workspace. The "Essential" AI tier is included free in all Suite plans; the "Advanced" AI tier ($50/agent/month extra) adds autonomous AI agents, conversation flows, and API orchestration.

Pricing: Suite Team at $55/agent/month, Suite Growth at $89/agent/month, Suite Professional at $115/agent/month (annual). Advanced AI add-on at $50/agent/month. Workforce Management add-on at $25/agent/month.

What works: The deepest integration ecosystem in customer support. Mature ticketing, reporting, and workforce management. AI agents can resolve 80%+ of interactions on the Advanced tier. Supports 80 languages. Trusted by large organizations that need compliance, audit trails, and enterprise-grade security.

The catch: Expensive once you add the AI layer. A 10-agent team on Suite Professional with Advanced AI costs $1,650/month. The UI is aging and complex. Implementation for enterprises can take months. Per-agent pricing punishes growing teams — every new hire adds $55-$165/month.

5. Drift

Drift (now part of Salesloft) isn't really a customer support tool — it's a revenue generation tool. AI-powered chatbots qualify leads by asking tailored questions, then route hot prospects to the right sales rep instantly. The entire product is built around converting website visitors into pipeline.

Pricing: Premium starts at ~$2,500/month. Enterprise at $5,000-$10,000+/month. No transparent pricing — requires a sales demo and annual contract.

What works: The best AI for B2B conversational sales. Account-based marketing (ABM) targeting on higher tiers identifies and prioritizes high-value visitors. Deep Salesforce integration. If your sales team needs to convert inbound website traffic into qualified meetings, Drift does this better than any support-focused tool.

The catch: Extremely expensive — 10-50x more than alternatives. Completely wrong fit for customer support use cases. The Salesloft acquisition (2024) adds uncertainty about product direction. Most advanced features are locked behind Enterprise pricing. Annual contracts only.

Mid-market and SMB

6. Freshchat

Freshchat offers the best free tier in the category: 10 agents, ticketing, knowledge base, and pre-built reports at zero cost. Paid plans add WhatsApp, Messenger, real-time dashboards, and Freddy AI capabilities.

Pricing: Free (10 agents), Growth at $23/agent/month, Pro at $59/agent/month, Enterprise at $95/agent/month (monthly billing).

What works: The free plan with 10 agents is genuinely useful for startups. Clean, modern UI that's easier to learn than Zendesk. Strong integration with the Freshworks ecosystem (Freshdesk, Freshsales, Freshservice). Good value at every tier compared to Zendesk's equivalent plans.

The catch: AI features often require add-on purchases beyond the base plan. The free plan lacks automation. Freshchat vs. Freshdesk positioning can be confusing — they overlap significantly. Reporting on lower tiers is basic. Less customizable than Zendesk for complex workflows.

7. Crisp

Crisp charges per workspace, not per agent — a team of 10 people pays the same as a team of 4. That pricing model alone makes it worth considering for growing teams. MagicReply generates AI responses from your help center, with confidence controls to prevent hallucination.

Pricing: Free (2 agents), Mini at €45/month ($49), Essentials at €95/month ($103), Plus at €295/month (~$320). All prices are per workspace, not per agent.

What works: Exceptional value for small teams. A 10-person team on Essentials pays ~$10/person/month — roughly a third of Zendesk. Clean, modern interface. Multichannel support including WhatsApp, Instagram DMs, Facebook Messenger, email, and phone — all in one inbox. The free tier is functional for getting started.

The catch: AI capabilities are a step behind Intercom and Zendesk in autonomy. Free and Mini plans are quite limited (no AI, no knowledge base). Extra seats beyond included allocation cost €10/agent/month on Plus. Smaller ecosystem and marketplace than major competitors.

8. LiveChat

LiveChat has been focused on real-time human-to-human chat longer than most competitors. The chat widget is fast, reliable, and deeply customizable. But the AI chatbot (ChatBot.com) is a separate product with separate pricing — you pay for two subscriptions to get what competitors offer in one.

Pricing: Starter at $20/agent/month, Team at $41/agent/month, Business at $59/agent/month (annual). ChatBot.com starts at $52/month separately.

What works: The Starter plan at $20/agent/month is among the cheapest per-agent options. The chat widget is polished and highly customizable. A Copilot AI assistant provides reply suggestions and grammar fixes. Reliable performance — this is a mature product.

The catch: No free plan. The AI chatbot is separate (ChatBot.com, $52/month+). No built-in helpdesk or ticketing (HelpDesk.com, another separate product). The product family fragmentation means multiple subscriptions for a complete setup. Starter plan's 60-day chat history limit is restrictive.

9. Olark

Olark is the most straightforward live chat tool on this list. Setup takes minutes. The Standard plan at $29/agent/month includes unlimited chats, customizable chatbox, reporting, and integrations. WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility certification is a genuine standout.

Pricing: Free (1 agent, 20 chats/month), Standard at $29/agent/month (monthly) or $19/agent/month (2-year plan). Pro is custom pricing. PowerUp add-ons: $29-$99/month each (cobrowsing, translation, remove branding).

What works: Simplicity. A marketing manager can install it and start chatting with visitors in minutes. WCAG accessibility certification matters for government, education, and healthcare. The 2-year plan at $19/agent/month is competitive.

The catch: Very limited AI unless you upgrade to Pro (custom pricing). PowerUps add up fast — cobrowsing ($99/month) + remove branding ($59/month) + translation ($29/month) = $187/month in add-ons. No ticketing. No knowledge base. The product feels dated compared to modern alternatives.

Free and open-source

10. tawk.to

tawk.to is completely free live chat with unlimited agents, unlimited chats, and unlimited sites. That's not a typo. The business model relies on paid add-ons (branding removal, AI, video chat) and a hired-agents service ($1/hour for human chat agents tawk.to provides).

Pricing: Free (everything). Remove branding at $29/month. AI Assist from $29/month. Video + voice + screen sharing at $29/month. Hired agents from $1/hour.

What works: Free, forever, with no agent limits. Real-time visitor monitoring, proactive chat triggers, ticketing, knowledge base, and basic CRM — all free. The hired agents service ($1/hour) is unique for small businesses that can't staff chat 24/7.

The catch: The "Powered by tawk.to" branding is prominent and costs $29/month to remove. The UI and widget design are dated compared to Intercom, Crisp, or Tidio. Customization is limited. AI capabilities require the paid add-on and aren't as sophisticated as purpose-built AI tools. If you need advanced automation, routing, or analytics, you'll outgrow it.

11. Chatwoot

Chatwoot is the only serious open-source live chat platform. Self-host for free, audit the code, and customize everything. The cloud plans add managed hosting and Captain AI for reply suggestions and message summarization.

Pricing: Self-hosted is free (open source). Cloud: Hacker free (2 seats), Startups at $19/agent/month (300 AI credits), Business at $39/agent/month, Enterprise at $99/agent/month.

What works: Open-source flexibility with 22,000+ GitHub stars. Self-hosting keeps data in your infrastructure — critical for organizations with data sovereignty requirements. Multichannel support (live chat, email, social, WhatsApp). Cloud plans are well-priced for what you get.

The catch: Self-hosting requires technical expertise for setup, maintenance, and updates. Cloud data retention is limited (6 months on Startups). AI capabilities are basic compared to Intercom or Zendesk. Fewer integrations than commercial platforms. Enterprise features are still maturing.

12. HubSpot Live Chat

HubSpot Live Chat comes free with HubSpot CRM. Every conversation is automatically logged with full contact history. If you're already a HubSpot shop, adding live chat is frictionless — no new tool to manage, no data silos.

Pricing: Free CRM includes live chat, chatbot builder, and 2 seats. Service Hub Starter at $20/seat/month. Service Hub Professional at $100/seat/month (advanced automation, knowledge base, SLAs).

What works: Seamless CRM integration — chat conversations tie directly to contact records, deals, and tickets. The free plan is a genuine entry point. Breeze AI chatbot is bundled (not charged separately). Visual chatbot builder is easy to use. Marketing, sales, and support data in one place.

The catch: Live chat is a feature within HubSpot, not a standalone product — you're buying into the ecosystem. HubSpot branding on the free plan. Only 2 seats free. Service Hub Professional at $100/seat/month is expensive for what you get compared to dedicated support tools. Chat customization is limited on lower tiers.

How to choose

Budget is zero? tawk.to for unlimited free chat, or Freshchat free for 10 agents with better UI.

SMB ecommerce (Shopify)? Gorgias is purpose-built for this. Tidio is a strong budget alternative.

AI resolution rate matters most? Intercom Fin (66% average, up to 93%) is the clear leader.

Already using HubSpot? HubSpot Live Chat. Adding another tool creates unnecessary friction.

Enterprise omnichannel? Zendesk. Battle-tested, scalable, deepest integration ecosystem.

Small team, predictable pricing? Crisp. Per-workspace pricing means no per-seat surprises as you grow.

Self-hosted / open source? Chatwoot. The only real option.

B2B sales, not support? Drift if you can justify $2,500+/month. LiveChat for a budget option.

FAQ

Is AI chat actually good enough to replace human agents?

For tier-1 support (password resets, order tracking, FAQ answers), yes. Intercom's Fin resolves 66% of conversations on average. Tidio's Lyro hits 67%. But complex questions, angry customers, and nuanced situations still need humans. The realistic expectation in 2026 is AI handling 50-70% of volume, not 100%.

How much does live chat AI actually cost?

More than the advertised price suggests. Intercom charges $0.99 per AI resolution on top of seat costs — 5,000 resolutions/month adds $4,950. Gorgias charges $0.90/resolution. Tidio's Lyro is $39/month for 50 AI conversations (roughly $0.78 each). Zendesk's Advanced AI is a flat $50/agent/month. Calculate your expected volume before committing.

Can I use live chat for sales, not just support?

Yes, but choose the right tool. Drift is built specifically for B2B sales chat and lead qualification. LiveChat has strong sales features (canned responses, visitor info, CRM integrations). Intercom's product messaging works well for in-app sales nudges. Tools like Zendesk and Freshchat are support-first and less natural for sales workflows.

What about WhatsApp and social media messaging?

Most enterprise tools (Intercom, Zendesk, Freshchat, Crisp) support WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram DMs as channels alongside website chat. But watch for per-message fees — Intercom charges extra for WhatsApp and SMS. Budget tools (tawk.to, Olark) typically don't support social channels natively.

Compare all live chat and customer support tools on Toolradar, or browse our customer support directory.