Top 10 support chatbots for small SaaS teams, ranked
A ranking you can check and change: the scoring is published, every figure is sourced, and you can re-weight it to what matters to you.
By the Relay team · Figures checked · List prices in US dollars
The short answer
On our balanced scoring the top three are Relay, Tidio and Chatwoot. The order depends on what you value, so you can change the weights on this page. Relay, which made this ranking, is #1 on Balanced, #1 on Lowest cost, #9 on Most features, #10 on Easiest to try. The scoring looks at price for three people, how predictable the AI bill is, how easy the tool is to try, and the features each vendor lists. It does not measure how good any tool's answers are.
Who wrote this: Relay is made by the team that wrote this ranking, and it is one of the ten. Read the method and what it leaves out before you rely on the order.
The ranking
Ten tools, one scoring rule
Pick a priority to re-rank, or set your own weights. The table below is the same ten tools every time; only the order moves.
Price 35%, AI bill 25%, easy to try 15%, features 25%
Set your own weights
| # | Tool | Score (of 10) | 3 people a month | AI billing | Try it | Features listed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Relayour product | 6.9 | $19 | Included | Demo only | 1 of 6 |
| 2 | Tidio | 6.2 | $24.17 | Allowance, then metered | Free plan | 1 of 6 |
| 3 | Chatwoot | 5.8 | $57 | Allowance, then metered | Free plan | 4 of 6 |
| 4 | Crisp | 5.3 | $45 | Allowance, then metered | Free plan | 2 of 6 |
| 5 | Freshdesk | 5.2 | $57 | Allowance, then metered | Free trial | 4 of 6 |
| 6 | Zendesk | 4.8 | $207 | Allowance, then metered | Free trial | 5 of 6 |
| 7 | Featurebase | 4.7 | $87 | Metered | Free plan | 4 of 6 |
| 8 | Help Scout | 4.0 | $75 | Metered | Free plan | 2 of 6 |
| 9 | Intercom | 3.7 | $87 | Metered | Free trial | 3 of 6 |
| 10 | Gleap | 3.3 | $179 | Metered | Free trial | 3 of 6 |
The price column is what three people pay each month on the lowest paid plan that covers them, before AI usage fees. How each figure was reached is in each tool's card below.
Quick picks
Best for, one need at a time
| If you need… | Look at |
|---|---|
| Lowest list price for three people | Relay ($19), then Tidio ($24.17) and Crisp ($45) |
| A free plan | Chatwoot, Featurebase, Tidio, Crisp and Help Scout |
| An AI bill with no separate meter | Relay |
| The most capabilities listed on its pages | Zendesk (5 of 6) |
| Self-hosting | Chatwoot |
| A place for customers to post and vote on ideas | Relay, Featurebase, Zendesk, Freshdesk and Gleap |
Method
How we ranked them
The imagined buyer is a small SaaS team of three people who all reply to customers. Each tool scores 0 to 10 on four criteria that can be checked on a vendor's own pages, and the total is a weighted average. The default weights are shown here; the table above lets you change them.
| Criterion | Default weight | How it is scored |
|---|---|---|
| Price for three people | 35% | 10 × (lowest price in the table ÷ this tool's price), so the cheapest tool scores 10 |
| Predictable AI bill | 25% | 10 if AI has no separate meter, 6 if an allowance is included and the rest is metered, 3 if it is metered from the first resolution |
| Easy to try | 15% | 10 for a free plan, 6 for a free trial, 3 for a demo only, 0 for neither |
| Features listed | 25% | 10 × (capabilities the vendor lists ÷ 6). A capability a page doesn't mention scores nothing |
The six capabilities counted under “features listed”
A tick means the vendor's own pages list it on some plan. “Not listed” means the pages we read don't mention it. That can understate a tool whose pricing page is brief, so treat this column as a rough guide to breadth, not a feature audit.
| Tool | Channels beyond website chat and email (social, messaging apps, SMS, phone) | Workflows, automation rules or assignment | Multilingual support | SSO or SLAs | A self-hosted option | A public board or forum where customers post ideas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Relay | ||||||
| Intercom | not listed | |||||
| Chatwoot | not listed | not listed | ||||
| Featurebase | not listed | |||||
| Tidio | not listed | not listed | not listed | not listed | ||
| Crisp | not listed | not listed | not listed | |||
| Help Scout | not listed | not listed | not listed | |||
| Zendesk | ||||||
| Freshdesk | not listed | |||||
| Gleap | not listed | not listed |
What the ranking does not measure
- How accurate, fast or well-worded any tool's AI answers are. We did not test them.
- Uptime, deliverability, security, integrations, support quality or the quality of the mobile apps.
- Features beyond the six counted, or anything that sits behind a sales call.
- How a tool behaves at ten or fifty agents. The imagined buyer is three people.
Because the criteria favour a low, predictable price, they favour Relay's flat plan, and Relay lists only 1 of 6 capabilities. That is why the page lets you move the weights: Relay is #1 on Balanced, #1 on Lowest cost, #9 on Most features, #10 on Easiest to try.
The ten
Each tool, in the balanced order
1.Relayour product
Score 6.9 of 10
- Three people a month
- $19. Pro, 3 seats, flat.
- AI billing (no separate AI meter)
- Included in the plan. Answers come only from your help center, with citations.
- Try it (a demo only)
- No free plan or trial; a live demo needs no sign-up.
- Features listed
- 1 of 6: a public board or forum where customers post ideas.
- Best for
- Small teams that want a flat price with a help center, AI answers and a feedback board together.
- Watch out for
- Website chat and email only, one shared inbox, no workflows, multilingual support, SSO or SLAs, and no free plan.
Sub-scores: price 10.0 · AI bill 10 · easy to try 3 · features 1.7
2.Tidio
Score 6.2 of 10
- Three people a month
- $24.17. Starter, capped at 100 billable conversations a month.
- AI billing (an included allowance, then metered)
- Lyro: 50 one-off conversations on Free and Starter, more by plan.
- Try it (a free plan)
- Free plan with 50 conversations a month.
- Features listed
- 1 of 6: workflows, automation rules or assignment.
- Best for
- Low-volume teams that want a free tier and visual chatbot flows.
- Watch out for
- The entry plan is limited by conversations, so the price isn't comparable with seat-based plans.
Sub-scores: price 7.9 · AI bill 6 · easy to try 10 · features 1.7
3.Chatwoot
Score 5.8 of 10
- Three people a month
- $57. 3 × $19 Startups agents on Cloud.
- AI billing (an included allowance, then metered)
- Captain AI: 300 credits a month on Startups, then $20 per 1,000.
- Try it (a free plan)
- Free Hacker plan (2 agents, live chat only) and free self-hosting.
- Features listed
- 4 of 6: channels beyond website chat and email; workflows, automation rules or assignment; sso or slas; a self-hosted option.
- Best for
- Teams that want to self-host, or to start on a free plan.
- Watch out for
- The help center and the extra channels start on the paid Startups plan; self-hosting means you run it.
Sub-scores: price 3.3 · AI bill 6 · easy to try 10 · features 6.7
4.Crisp
Score 5.3 of 10
- Three people a month
- $45. Mini plan, per workspace (4 seats included).
- AI billing (an included allowance, then metered)
- AI credits included in paid plans; Mini's $5 covers about 90 automated conversations.
- Try it (a free plan)
- Free plan with 2 seats and no AI, and a 14-day trial of paid plans.
- Features listed
- 2 of 6: channels beyond website chat and email; workflows, automation rules or assignment.
- Best for
- Teams that want flat pricing and many channels, including WhatsApp, social, SMS and phone.
- Watch out for
- Prices step up with seats and AI credits: Essentials, for 10 seats, is $95 a month.
Sub-scores: price 4.2 · AI bill 6 · easy to try 10 · features 3.3
5.Freshdesk
Score 5.2 of 10
- Three people a month
- $57. 3 × $19 Growth agents, billed annually (its pricing page shows no monthly-billing price).
- AI billing (an included allowance, then metered)
- Freddy AI Agent: 500 sessions included on all plans, then $49 per 100 sessions.
- Try it (a free trial)
- 14-day trial; no free plan is listed on its pricing page.
- Features listed
- 4 of 6: workflows, automation rules or assignment; multilingual support; sso or slas; a public board or forum where customers post ideas.
- Best for
- Budget-minded teams that want automations, SLAs and SSO at a per-agent price.
- Watch out for
- Priced per agent, billed annually on the page we checked, and sessions are metered after the first 500.
Sub-scores: price 3.3 · AI bill 6 · easy to try 6 · features 6.7
6.Zendesk
Score 4.8 of 10
- Three people a month
- $207. 3 × $69 Suite Team agents, billed monthly ($165 billed yearly).
- AI billing (an included allowance, then metered)
- AI agents: 5 automated resolutions per agent per month included, then $2.00 each pay-as-you-go.
- Try it (a free trial)
- 14-day trial of the Professional plan; no free plan.
- Features listed
- 5 of 6: channels beyond website chat and email; workflows, automation rules or assignment; multilingual support; sso or slas; a public board or forum where customers post ideas.
- Best for
- Larger or fast-growing teams that need many channels, SLAs and community forums.
- Watch out for
- The highest entry price of the ten for three people, and automated resolutions cost $2.00 after the allowance.
Sub-scores: price 0.9 · AI bill 6 · easy to try 6 · features 8.3
7.Featurebase
Score 4.7 of 10
- Three people a month
- $87. 3 × $29 Growth seats, billed yearly.
- AI billing (metered from the first resolution)
- Fibi AI agent, $0.49 per resolution on paid plans; none on the free plan.
- Try it (a free plan)
- Free plan with 1 seat and no AI agent.
- Features listed
- 4 of 6: workflows, automation rules or assignment; multilingual support; sso or slas; a public board or forum where customers post ideas.
- Best for
- Teams that want support together with a feedback board, roadmap and changelog.
- Watch out for
- Per-seat pricing, and AI resolutions are billed on top.
Sub-scores: price 2.2 · AI bill 3 · easy to try 10 · features 6.7
8.Help Scout
Score 4.0 of 10
- Three people a month
- $75. 3 × $25 Standard users.
- AI billing (metered from the first resolution)
- AI Answers, $0.75 per resolution, with a 3-month free trial for new accounts.
- Try it (a free plan)
- Free plan for up to 5 users, 1 inbox and 1 Docs site, without AI Answers.
- Features listed
- 2 of 6: channels beyond website chat and email; workflows, automation rules or assignment.
- Best for
- Email-first support teams.
- Watch out for
- Live chat starts on the paid Standard plan, and AI is billed per resolution.
Sub-scores: price 2.5 · AI bill 3 · easy to try 10 · features 3.3
9.Intercom
Score 3.7 of 10
- Three people a month
- $87. 3 × $29 Essential seats.
- AI billing (metered from the first resolution)
- Fin AI Agent, from $0.99 per outcome, on every plan.
- Try it (a free trial)
- 14-day free trial; no free plan.
- Features listed
- 3 of 6: workflows, automation rules or assignment; multilingual support; sso or slas.
- Best for
- Teams that need workflows, multilingual support, SSO or SLAs and a mature AI agent.
- Watch out for
- Per-seat pricing, and the AI agent is billed per outcome on top.
Sub-scores: price 2.2 · AI bill 3 · easy to try 6 · features 5.0
10.Gleap
Score 3.3 of 10
- Three people a month
- $179. Team plan, unlimited seats, billed monthly ($149 billed yearly); the Starter plan has 1 seat.
- AI billing (metered from the first resolution)
- Kai AI is included, with usage billed separately from prepaid credits; the trial includes $50 of credit.
- Try it (a free trial)
- 14-day free trial; no free plan.
- Features listed
- 3 of 6: channels beyond website chat and email; sso or slas; a public board or forum where customers post ideas.
- Best for
- Teams that want seven support channels with a public roadmap and feature requests.
- Watch out for
- No free plan, and AI usage is billed from prepaid credits on top of the plan.
Sub-scores: price 1.1 · AI bill 3 · easy to try 6 · features 5.0
Questions
About this ranking
- What is the best support chatbot for a small SaaS team?
- It depends on what you value. On our balanced scoring the top three are Relay, Tidio and Chatwoot. Weighted toward the lowest cost, the leader is Relay; weighted toward features, Zendesk; weighted toward ease of trying, Tidio.
- How was this ranking made?
- Each tool gets 0 to 10 on four criteria that can be checked on a pricing page: price for three people, how predictable the AI bill is, how easy it is to try, and how many of six capabilities the vendor lists. The weights are shown and can be changed. All figures come from vendors' own pages, listed under Sources.
- Is this ranking biased, since Relay made it?
- Relay is made by the team that wrote this page, and it is in the table, so treat the order with care. We published the scoring so you can check it, and the page lets you change the weights: Relay is #1 on Balanced, #1 on Lowest cost, #9 on Most features, #10 on Easiest to try. The criteria favour a low, predictable price, which is where Relay is strongest, and Relay lists only 1 of 6 capabilities.
- Does the ranking measure how good the chatbots are?
- No. We did not test the accuracy, speed or tone of any tool's AI answers, or their uptime, integrations or support. Run two tools on your last month of real questions before you decide.
- How often is the ranking updated?
- Every 90 days, or sooner when a vendor changes pricing. This edition was checked on 2026-10-03.
Sources and how we wrote this
Relay is made by the team that wrote this ranking. Figures come from each vendor's own public pages, listed below, and are list prices in US dollars that can change. Where a page doesn't mention something we write “not listed” rather than “no”. The first six tools' prices are the ones on our comparison pages. If something is out of date, tell us on the feedback board and we'll correct it.