Relay vs Chatwoot
Open-source customer support platform, hosted or self-hosted.
Prices checked . Written by the Relay team, so check the sources below.
The short answer
Chatwoot is open source and can be self-hosted for free, and its cloud plans start at $19 per agent per month. Relay is hosted only, at $19 a month for 3 seats or $49 a month for unlimited seats. Choose Relay if you want a finished, hosted tool with a feedback board and nothing to run. Choose Chatwoot if you want to self-host, need many channels, or want to customise the software.
Which one should you choose?
Choose Relay if…
- You want a finished, hosted product and no servers, updates or email setup to manage.
- You want a public feedback board and a help center in the same tool.
- You prefer a flat price to per-agent billing and credits.
Choose Chatwoot if…
- You want to self-host for control over your data or cost.
- You need many channels such as social, SMS or voice.
- You want open-source code you can read and change.
- You need teams and automation rules.
Pricing
What a team of three pays
Relay Pro
$19 /month
3 seats, flat. AI answers, the email channel and the feedback board are included.
Chatwoot
$57 /month
3 × $19 Startups agents. Captain AI includes 300 credits a month on Startups; more are $20 per 1,000.
List prices in US dollars. Relay costs $19 a month for Pro (3 seats) or $49 a month for Team (unlimited seats), with AI answers, the email channel and the feedback board in both plans. Paying yearly gets 2 months free.
Chatwoot pricing in detail
- Hacker: $0, up to 2 agents, 500 conversations a month, live chat only, no Captain AI.
- Startups: $19 per agent per month, with all channels, the help center and 300 Captain AI credits a month.
- Business: $39 per agent per month, adding voice, teams and automation rules, with 500 Captain credits.
- Enterprise: $99 per agent per month, adding SSO and audit logs, with 800 Captain credits.
- Extra Captain AI credits are $20 per 1,000. Unlimited conversations are subject to a fair use policy.
- Self-hosted plans are also available.
Features
Relay and Chatwoot, side by side
Chatwoot is an open-source customer support platform with a shared inbox, live chat and many channels. You can run it yourself, or pay for Chatwoot Cloud, which charges per agent.
| Feature | Relay | Chatwoot |
|---|---|---|
| Price for a 3-person team | $19 a month, flat | $57 a month (3 × $19) on Cloud; free if you self-host |
| How you are charged | Per plan | Per agent, plus AI credits above the allowance |
| Free plan | No free plan or trial | Hacker plan (2 agents, live chat only), and free self-hosting |
| Self-hosting | Yes, open source | |
| AI answers | Claude answers from your help center, with citations. Included in the plan price | Captain AI, 300 credits a month on Startups |
| Channels | Website chat and email | All channels on Startups and up, voice on Business |
| Help center | Startups and up | |
| Teams and automation rules | Not yet | Business plan and up |
| Public feedback board | Not listed on its pricing page | |
| Nothing to host or update | On Cloud |
Questions
Relay vs Chatwoot: common questions
- Is Chatwoot cheaper than Relay?
- It can be, if you self-host: the software is free, though you pay for servers and your own time to run it. On Chatwoot Cloud, a 3-person team on Startups pays $57 a month ($19 per agent) against $19 a month for Relay Pro. Prices checked 2026-10-02.
- Can I self-host Relay like Chatwoot?
- No. Relay is proprietary software offered only as a hosted service. There is no self-hosted edition and no source code download. If self-hosting matters to you, Chatwoot is the better choice.
- Does Chatwoot have a public feedback board?
- A feedback board is not listed among the features on Chatwoot's pricing page. Relay includes a public feedback board with voting, comments and statuses in both plans.
- Which has more channels, Relay or Chatwoot?
- Chatwoot. Relay supports website chat and email. Chatwoot's Startups plan and above include all of its channels, and Business adds voice.
- Does Relay have a free plan or free trial?
- No. Relay is a paid, hosted service with two plans: Pro at $19 a month and Team at $49 a month. There is no free plan and no trial, but you can try the live demo without signing up, and refunds follow the window in the terms.
Sources and how we compare
Prices checked . Figures come from each vendor's own public pages, listed below, and are list prices that can change. Where a vendor's page doesn't mention a feature we write “not listed” rather than “no”. Relay is made by the team that wrote this page. If something here is out of date, tell us on the feedback board and we'll correct it.