Crisp

Crisp suits teams that want customer conversations, self-service content and automation in one workspace, especially those supporting customers across web and app channels. Its free tier is unusually open on conversation volume, but its strict seat and profile caps—and lack of AI credits—make it a limited long-term fit for teams that need automation or room to grow.

Overview

Crisp brings inbound conversations into a shared workspace for customer support, sales and marketing teams. Its combination of live chat, a help center, AI training and no-code workflows covers both agent-led support and customer self-service. Founded in 2015 and based in Nantes, France, Crisp says it is bootstrapped and has more than 600,000 users.

Key features

One inbox across channels

The shared inbox gathers conversations from different channels so agents can collaborate in one place. Website chatbot, live-agent chat and visitor tracking give teams tools for both automated and human support. The chat widget also works in web apps and native iOS, Android and React apps, a useful reach for businesses that support customers beyond a desktop website.

Help content and AI workflows

Teams can create and manage help articles in Crisp’s help center, then train its AI using website content, PDFs, those articles, past conversations and private snippets. No-code workflows handle internal automation as well as customer-facing AI agents. That breadth can reduce repetitive work, but the free plan has no AI credits, and paid plans impose conversation and credit allowances.

Integrations, API and security

Crisp’s directory includes 2,000 integrations across CRM, CMS, marketing, messaging and teamwork, including Salesforce, HubSpot, Shopify, Slack, WhatsApp and Jira. A REST API provides access to and control over data such as conversations and contacts, giving teams a route to connect custom systems. Crisp says it uses encrypted backups, applies GDPR protections and limits access to customer data by need to know; public network channels use TLS with forward secrecy and HSTS. Messaging servers are hosted in the Netherlands and plugin servers in Germany, with replicated architecture and databases.

Pricing

Crisp is freemium, with a 14-day trial of all features for new accounts and no card required. Paid plans are priced per workspace per month, so the listed prices are not per-seat rates; the tradeoff is that seats, AI credits, automated conversations and customer profiles are capped by tier.

Free: free, billed forever. It includes 2 seats and unlimited conversations, but no AI credits and a 100-profile cap. It suits a very small team whose priority is keeping chat volume unrestricted rather than using AI or maintaining a large contact base.

Mini: $45 a month, per workspace. It raises the limits to 4 seats and 5,000 profiles, with around 90 automated conversations and $5 in AI credits. This is the entry paid tier for a small team that needs some automation, though its quotas leave little room for heavier use.

Essentials: $95 a month, per workspace. It includes 10 seats, around 450 automated conversations, $25 in AI credits and 50,000 profiles. It is a more credible fit for a growing support team, with substantially higher allowances than Mini.

Plus: $295 a month, per workspace. It includes 20+ seats, around 1,350 automated conversations, $75 in AI credits and 200,000 profiles. The higher limits suit larger teams, though the monthly commitment is considerable if the team does not need that capacity.

Enterprise: custom pricing. It adds dedicated onboarding, a personalized SLA, enhanced rate limits, custom features and team training, for organizations whose needs extend beyond the standard tiers.

The trial gives teams two weeks to explore the full feature set before choosing a plan. The listed paid prices are monthly; no annual rate or renewal terms are given.

Platforms

Crisp supports web, Windows and macOS, plus iOS and Android. Its API is also a platform option for teams integrating Crisp with their own systems. The chat widget’s stated support for native mobile and React apps extends customer-facing chat beyond the core desktop and web clients.

Who it's for

Crisp is a strong candidate for customer-facing teams that want a shared inbox alongside website or app chat, a help center and configurable automation. The free plan can work for two agents handling many conversations if 100 customer profiles are enough and AI is unnecessary. Teams needing more agents, more customer records or AI-driven volume must move to paid tiers; the plan limits make Crisp less suitable for teams that need uncapped scale at a fixed low price.

Pros and cons

Pro: The free plan allows unlimited conversations, making it useful for small teams with variable chat volume.

Pro: The chat widget supports websites, web apps and native iOS, Android and React apps, giving teams options across customer touchpoints.

Pro: AI training can draw on several kinds of company material, including conversations and private snippets, rather than only public help content.

Pro: A REST API and a directory spanning 2,000 integrations offer routes to connect Crisp with existing tools and custom systems.

Con: The free tier is capped at 2 seats and 100 profiles, and includes no AI credits; unlimited conversations do not make it unrestricted.

Con: Paid tiers ration automated conversations and AI credits, so teams relying heavily on AI need to weigh quotas as well as seat counts.

Con: Enterprise uses custom pricing, making the cost less predictable for organizations that need its additional services.

Alternatives

Consider Freshchat if a free shared inbox for up to 10 agents matters more than Crisp’s broader stated mix of profiles, AI training and workflow tools; its free plan also includes a web and mobile chat widget and email. Chatwoot is worth considering for teams that want open-source or self-hosted options, though its free Hacker plan is limited to 2 agents and 500 conversations a month. Zoho SalesIQ may fit a team comfortable with a free allowance of 3 operator licenses, 100 chats a month and 10,000 visitors a month. tawk.to offers a free Hobby plan with 100 monthly message credits, one AI chat agent and 100 crawled web pages, a different set of limits to weigh against Crisp’s unlimited free conversations. JivoChat has a free plan for 5 agents. Chaport is another freemium option with a free plan showing 2 operators. Intercom is a paid alternative with an Essential plan at $19 a month, billed annually per seat/month, and no free plan. Smartsupp has a free tier for one operator and 25 conversations per month, making its stated free allowance narrower on volume than Crisp’s.

Browse Live chat software, SMS Chatbot Software and Social Media Customer Service Software for category options.

Verdict

Choose Crisp if your team wants a shared omnichannel workspace that combines chat, help content, AI training and workflow automation, and can match its plan caps to expected demand. Its unlimited-conversation free tier is a practical starting point for very small teams, while Essentials and Plus provide a path to more seats and profiles. Look elsewhere if your team needs uncapped AI usage, more free seats or clearer enterprise costs before committing.