Free · Business · 4 of 9 tools · updated Oct 26, 2026
Free AI tools for customer support chatbot
Chatwoot is the strongest tool for customer support chatbot you can use without paying, at 69/100. What you get for nothing: Self-host free; cloud plans paid. 4 of the 9 tools tracked for this job have a free tier, an open-source licence, or are free outright. It is also the top-ranked tool for this job overall, free or not.
Same evidence score as the ranking — GitHub stars, Hacker News mentions, release activity, free access — recomputed nightly, never sold. See all 9 tools for customer support chatbot.
Top 3
evidence / 100
+ Self-host the whole helpdesk - the AI is an add-on, not the lock-in.
− You run the infrastructure, and the AI features need your own model key.
+ Flow editor with real code escape hatches, and it deploys to WhatsApp and Slack.
− Free credits run out quickly once a bot gets traffic.
+ Paste a URL and have a working embedded bot in minutes, with actions for lookups and lead capture.
− Message credits are tight on lower tiers, and answers drift when the source content is thin.
All 4, side by side
| Tool | Score | Pricing | What you get free | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chatwoot | 69 | Open source | Self-host free; cloud plans paid | web, linux, api, ios, android |
| Botpress | 64 | Free tier | Free monthly credits; pay as you go after | web, api, linux |
| Chatbase | 16 | Free tier | Hobby $40/mo | web, api |
 Tidio | 11 | Free tier | no limits published | web, ios, android, mac, windows |
A free tier counts, and so does an open-source licence you can self-host — both are in the table, so a tool that is only free for a trial is not here.
Head to head: Chatwoot vs Botpress Chatwoot vs Chatbase Botpress vs Chatbase