| Price from | $29/mo | $239/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 4 | 4 |
| Spec score · Chat APIs | 8.7 (#1) | 8.5 (#3) |
| Spec score · Chat Api | 8.7 (#1) | 8.5 (#2) |
| Founded | 2016 | 2009 |
| Headquarters | London, UK | Denver, Colorado, United States |
| Moderation | The product lists moderation integrations with Hive, Tisane, and Bodyguard, or the option to bring your own tools. | The chat product includes rule-based AI moderation, and the maker describes contextual moderation and integrations with OpenAI moderation models or a customer's own moderation service. |
| Product | Ably Chat is a chat API and SDK platform for building realtime chat applications at scale. | CometChat provides in-app chat, voice and video calling, and conversational AI agent capabilities for applications. |
| Security | Ably states that client-to-server communication is secured by TLS by default and that optional private-key encryption uses 256-bit AES. | The maker states that CometChat is HIPAA compliant and can enter into a BAA, and is certified for ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type 2. |
| Support | The Free package includes community and email support on a best-effort basis; Standard lists a one-day email support SLA. | CometChat describes multiple support tiers with options for faster response times, architectural reviews, and production guidance. |
