Chatwoot

Overview

Chatwoot is customer-support software for teams that want live conversations, coordinated agent work and self-service content in one product. It is strongest for organizations serving customers across several channels, especially when they value the option to host the software themselves. The trade-off is a tightly capped free cloud plan and paid cloud tiers priced per agent.

Teams can handle customer support, sales or engagement through an inbox that brings together channels such as website chat, email, social networks, messaging, voice, SMS and API integrations. The product also includes a customizable Help Center, developer APIs and tools for coordinating agent work.

Key features

One inbox, with room for team coordination

Chatwoot brings website chat, email, WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, LINE, TikTok, X, SMS, voice and API conversations into a shared inbox. Agents can use private notes, assignments, labels, canned responses, mentions, typing indicators and activity logs to coordinate without putting internal discussion in customer replies. That range is useful for teams consolidating several queues; smaller teams using only one channel may not need the breadth.

WhatsApp support includes rich-content messages. The live-chat widget can be customized for color, language, text and design, while visitor tracking helps teams follow website conversations.

AI and self-service

Captain, Chatwoot’s built-in AI agent, can answer customer questions, suggest replies, summarize conversations and draw on Help Center content. Cloud plans include between 300 and 800 credits depending on tier; extra credits cost $20 per 1,000. That makes the AI capability part of the package, but teams expecting frequent AI use should account for additional credits.

The customizable Help Center supports multilingual content, AI-powered search and multiple portals for different brands, products or customer segments. This gives teams more than a single general-purpose knowledge base, though maintaining several portals will require content work.

Customization, hosting and security

REST API access, webhooks and an API channel let teams create and manage conversations through custom integrations. The Agent Bot API can connect bots built with Claude, OpenAI, Gemini, LangChain, n8n, custom code or Dialogflow. These options suit teams with development resources; they are less compelling for organizations seeking a support workflow that needs no tailoring.

Chatwoot can run in its cloud service or on customer infrastructure, including cloud and on-premises deployments. Its Community Edition is free to host but excludes Captain AI, voice calls and SSO/SAML. Chatwoot states that it is SOC 2 Type II certified and GDPR compliant, and that it encrypts data at rest and in transit using AES-256 with AWS KMS hardware security modules. Cloud hosting runs on AWS servers in the United States.

Pricing

The cloud plans are billed per agent annually, so the entry price is not the whole team’s monthly cost. Chatwoot offers a 15-day trial. Cloud plans are refundable according to the cancellation date and unused time.

PlanPrice and termsWhat it includesHackerfreeUp to 2 agents, 500 conversations per month and 30-day data retention.Startups$19 a month; $19 /agent/month, billed annuallyUnlimited conversations subject to fair use, all channels, 300 Captain AI credits and 1-year data retention.Business$39 a month; $39 /agent/month, billed annuallyUnlimited conversations subject to fair use, all channels, voice, 500 Captain AI credits and 2-year data retention.Enterprise$99 a month; $99 /agent/month, billed annuallyUnlimited conversations subject to fair use, all channels, voice, SSO/SAML, audit logs, 800 Captain AI credits and 3-year data retention.Hacker is a reasonable starting point for a team of no more than two agents with modest volume, but 500 monthly conversations and 30-day retention make it a poor fit for sustained growth or longer record-keeping. Startups removes the conversation cap subject to fair use and extends retention to a year; its per-agent annual price suits teams willing to commit for broader capacity. Business adds voice, another year of retention and more AI credits. Enterprise is for organizations needing SSO/SAML and audit logs alongside the longest retention period.

Self-hosting has a separate set of plans. Community Edition is free forever, with community support, but no Captain AI, voice calls or SSO/SAML. Premium Support is $19 /agent/month, billed annually, and adds Captain AI, voice calls, custom branding, agent capacity and priority support. Enterprise Edition is $99 /agent/month, billed annually, and adds SSO/SAML, SLA policies and priority support alongside Captain AI, voice calls, custom branding and agent capacity. These plans suit teams that want infrastructure control and can weigh the support and feature trade-offs against the work of hosting.

Platforms

Chatwoot supports Android, iOS, web, API and Linux, as well as self-hosted deployment. Self-hosted installations can use AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean, Docker, Kubernetes, Linux or Heroku. This is a broad deployment choice for teams with infrastructure requirements, but self-hosting means taking responsibility for operating the software.

Who it's for

Chatwoot is a strong match for support, sales and customer-engagement teams that need a shared inbox across channels, a knowledge base and internal coordination tools. It is also a practical option for developers who want API and bot integration choices, or for organizations that require a self-hosted deployment. Teams with only a small support workload may be well served by the free cloud tier, provided its two-agent, 500-conversation and 30-day retention caps are sufficient. Look elsewhere if you need more free capacity or do not want to budget per agent for a larger team.

Pros and cons

Pros: Broad channel coverage brings web, social, messaging, voice, SMS and API conversations into one inbox, with specific tools for team coordination.

Pros: Multiple customizable, multilingual Help Center portals support separate brands or customer segments.

Pros: Cloud and self-hosted options let teams choose between managed hosting and their own infrastructure.

Cons: The free cloud tier stops at two agents and 500 conversations per month, with only 30 days of retention.

Cons: Cloud pricing is per agent and billed annually, so growing teams face a larger commitment than the entry price alone suggests.

Cons: The free self-hosted edition omits Captain AI, voice calls and SSO/SAML; getting those features requires a paid self-hosted plan.

Alternatives

For a wider comparison, see Help desk software, WhatsApp Business API Providers, Social Media Customer Service Software, WhatsApp Customer Service Software and Live chat software.

Vtiger Help Desk is another freemium option, with a free One Pilot account for up to 10 users and 3,000 records; consider it if that stated free allowance better fits your starting needs.

Desk365 offers a free plan capped at 50 tickets per month and a $12 a month Standard plan billed annually. It may suit a team whose ticket volume fits that free cap or that is comparing a lower stated paid entry price.

Intercom has no free plan and starts with an Essential plan at $19 a month, billed annually per seat, including an AI agent, messenger, shared inbox and ticketing system. Consider it if those listed components align with your requirements and you are prepared to pay from the start.

Help Scout has a free plan for five users, with one inbox, one Docs site, 100 contacts per month, 10 saved replies and 10 tags. That is a more suitable comparison for teams whose needs fit those specific free limits.

Freshdesk has a free program for one or two agents for six months, followed by a Growth plan at $19 a month billed annually. Consider it if a time-limited free start for a small agent team is more useful than Chatwoot’s ongoing but capped free tier.

Jitbit Helpdesk is a paid alternative with a Small one-time perpetual license priced at $2,199 a month for 10 agents. Its stated perpetual-license term may appeal to teams considering a one-time license rather than per-agent annual billing.

LiveAgent starts at $15 a month, billed annually, with ticketing, live chat, a knowledgebase, customer portal, contact forms and automation rules. Compare it if that listed combination and lower starting price fit the job.

Comm100 Contact Center offers a Comm100 Voice plan at $27 a month with pay-monthly billing, inbound and outbound calling, IVR and call flows. It is a relevant alternative when those voice features and monthly billing terms are the priority.

Verdict

Choose Chatwoot if your team needs a shared workspace for many customer channels, coordination and knowledge-base self-service, with the flexibility to self-host or grow into paid cloud plans. Its main strength is combining that breadth with API and deployment options; its main caveat is that the free cloud tier is small and paid cloud pricing scales per agent on annual billing. Look elsewhere if those caps or terms do not fit your team.