Intercom Fin has the highest rubric score here, but it is priced for funded support teams: seats on a helpdesk plus $0.99 for each resolution. Smaller teams, and teams that want a free plan or a flow builder on a cheap tier, often look elsewhere.
The alternatives below each answer a different reason for leaving. Some are cheaper AI agents for small shops, one lives inside a CRM you may already use, and two are agent platforms for teams with a developer. Every reason is taken from Intercom's own pricing and documentation. For a side-by-side view, see Tidio Lyro vs Intercom Fin and HubSpot vs Intercom Fin.
Why people look beyond Intercom Fin
- There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial.
- The visual Workflows builder starts at Advanced, at $99 per seat a month, not on the entry plan.
- Per-resolution billing means the bill grows as Fin succeeds, and seat fees are charged on top.
- Running Fin on another helpdesk carries a monthly minimum of $49.
The alternatives, ranked
Botpress
Support teams with a developer on hand that want agent building and a helpdesk in one tool8.0- Paid plans from
- $150 per month
- Pricing model
- Plan plus usage meter
- Free plan
- Yes
- Channels
- Website widget, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Telegram, SMS, Email, Slack, Voice
Botpress is a cloud platform for building AI agents: a visual Studio, LLM-driven steps the docs call Autonomous Nodes, a code SDK and, since May 2026, its own helpdesk called Desk. It is built for support teams that have someone technical on hand. Workspaces created after May 14, 2026 pay a flat plan fee for a monthly conversation allowance, and extra conversations are bought automatically in packs of 100.
The catch: On paid plans you cannot switch off overage: at 95% of your allowance Botpress buys a pack of 100 conversations for you, and that pack stays on the bill every month until you remove it.
HubSpot Chatbot Builder
Teams already running sales or support in HubSpot that want a bot writing straight into their CRM7.7- Paid plans from
- $20 per seat per month
- Pricing model
- Free tool, paid seats
- Free plan
- Yes
- Channels
- Website widget, Messenger, WhatsApp, Email
HubSpot's chatbot builder is a visual, rule-based bot tool (HubSpot calls the bots chatflows) that comes free with HubSpot's CRM, with the Breeze Customer Agent as a separate AI option. It is built for teams that already keep contacts, tickets and meetings in HubSpot. The builder itself costs nothing; you pay for seats to remove branding and unlock branching, and for HubSpot credits each time the AI agent resolves a conversation.
The catch: Free and Starter accounts cannot add if/then branches to a bot, so the first tier with real conversation logic is Professional at $100 per seat per month plus a required one-time $1,500 onboarding fee.
Tidio Lyro
Small online shops and support teams that want an AI agent, simple automations and a shared inbox from one vendor, with published self-serve prices7.5- Paid plans from
- $29 per month
- Pricing model
- Mixed
- Free plan
- Yes
- Channels
- Website widget, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Email
Tidio is a live-chat and help-desk suite for small and mid-sized online businesses, with two kinds of bot: Flows, a no-code rule-based builder, and Lyro, an AI agent that answers from your own support content. It is built mainly for e-commerce and support teams that want the bot and the human inbox in one tool. It charges flat monthly fees on three separate meters: human-answered conversations, Lyro AI conversations and unique visitors reached by Flows.
The catch: The $29 Starter plan buys human-answered conversations, not a working AI agent: its 50 Lyro conversations are a one-off allowance that never resets, and a renewing Lyro quota is a separate purchase starting at $39 a month.
Voiceflow
Technical CX teams and agencies that want a voice and web-chat agent with model choice, staging environments and code6.6- Paid plans from
- $60 per month
- Pricing model
- Credits
- Free plan
- Partly
- Channels
- Website widget, Voice, SMS
Voiceflow is a visual platform for building AI agents that answer customers by web chat, phone and SMS, with code, APIs and environments for developers. It is built for customer-experience teams and agencies with technical staff, not for a small business that wants a bot running in an afternoon. It charges a monthly plan fee that includes a pool of credits, and every user message, AI model call and phone minute uses credits.
The catch: Voiceflow's pricing page shows no plan prices, and a credit is not a conversation: every user message costs a credit before the AI model's own credit charge is added.
Comparison table
| Product | Score | Type of tool | Paid plans from | Free plan | What the bill grows with | EU data hosting | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intercom Fin | 8.2 | AI agent for support | $0.99 per resolution | No | resolutions | Partly | Funded support teams that want an AI agent, a shared inbox and ticketing in one tool |
| Botpress | 8.0 | Agent-building platform | $150 per month | Yes | conversations | Partly | Support teams with a developer on hand that want agent building and a helpdesk in one tool |
| HubSpot Chatbot Builder | 7.7 | Bot bundled with a CRM | $20 per seat per month | Yes | resolutions | Partly | Teams already running sales or support in HubSpot that want a bot writing straight into their CRM |
| Tidio Lyro | 7.5 | AI agent for support | $29 per month | Yes | conversations | Yes | Small online shops and support teams that want an AI agent, simple automations and a shared inbox from one vendor, with published self-serve prices |
| Voiceflow | 6.6 | Agent-building platform | $60 per month | Partly | credits | Not documented | Technical CX teams and agencies that want a voice and web-chat agent with model choice, staging environments and code |
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest alternative to Intercom Fin?
Among the tools we review, Tidio Lyro and Botpress both have free plans, and HubSpot's rule-based bot is free inside its CRM. Tidio's paid Lyro tiers start at $39 a month. The cheapest option depends on your volume, so compare the pricing pages on your own numbers.
Is there a free alternative to Intercom Fin?
Intercom Fin has no free plan. Botpress, Tidio and HubSpot all offer free plans, with different limits on AI use. Our free chatbot builders list compares them.
Can I keep my helpdesk and still use an AI agent other than Fin?
Yes. Voiceflow and Botpress both list integrations with helpdesks such as Zendesk, so the agent can hand off to the tool you already use. Intercom itself also sells Fin on other helpdesks, with a monthly minimum of $49.
Related pages
- Intercom Fin reviewreview
- Intercom Fin pricing explainedpricing
- Best chatbot buildersbest list
Sources
- Fin home page — Fin · September 18, 2026
- Fin pricing — Fin · September 18, 2026
- Intercom pricing — Intercom (Fin) · September 18, 2026
- Fin and Intercom plans explained — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Fin pricing: outcomes — Fin Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Manage Fin usage alerts and limits — Fin Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Fin FAQs — Fin Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Usage-based channels — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Workflows explained — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Workflows FAQs — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Workflow version history and rollback — Intercom (Fin) · September 18, 2026
- Workflows REST API reference — Intercom Developers · September 18, 2026
- Hand over conversations from Fin AI Agent to your support team — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Fin channels — Fin · September 18, 2026
- Set up Fin AI Agent's multilingual support — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Use Intercom in your preferred language — Intercom Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Regional data hosting — Fin Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Intercom security — Intercom (Fin) · September 18, 2026
- Lightspeed customer story — Fin · September 18, 2026
- Anthropic customer story — Fin · September 18, 2026
- Today, Intercom becomes Fin — Intercom (Fin) · September 18, 2026
- Salesforce signs definitive agreement to acquire Fin — Salesforce · September 18, 2026
- Salesforce completes acquisition of Fin — Salesforce · September 18, 2026
- Botpress pricing — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Pricing update, May 2026 — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress pricing (archived 10 April 2026) — Botpress, via the Internet Archive · September 18, 2026
- Botpress home page — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress Desk — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress Enterprise — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Configure your workspace — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress Academy: AI Spend — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Use your own LLM — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Knowledge Base: add sources — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Versions — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Import and export bots — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Human handoff — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- HITL integration: introduction — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Translator Agent — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress documentation index (llms.txt) — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress v12 sunset notice — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Data Processing Agreement — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Privacy statement — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Customer story: Super Dispatch — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Customer story: Extendly — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Customer story: hostifAI — Botpress · September 18, 2026
- Botpress Raises $25M Series B to Scale AI Agent Infrastructure — Botpress, via GlobeNewswire · September 18, 2026
- Service Hub pricing — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- Service Hub Preise (EUR list) — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- Marketing Hub pricing — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- HubSpot Credits — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- HubSpot Product and Services Catalog — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- Understand the customer agent — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- Create a bot — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- A guide to bot actions — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- HubSpot cloud infrastructure and data hosting: frequently asked questions — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- Free chatbot builder software — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- Breeze Customer Agent — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- Deploy the customer agent to channels — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- Set up and customize the customer agent's handoff process — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- Set up actions for the customer agent — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- Set up the customer agent — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 18, 2026
- Security and compliance — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- HubSpot Trust Center — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- HubSpot's Customer Agent and Prospecting Agent: now you pay when the task is complete — HubSpot · September 18, 2026
- HubSpot (HUBS) Q2 2026 earnings call transcript — The Motley Fool · September 18, 2026
- Tidio pricing — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- The free version and downgrading your account — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- The Lyro AI agent limit — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- The monthly conversations limit — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- The monthly flow limit — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Automatic upgrades — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Lyro AI Agent — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Lyro, the conversational AI agent — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Data sources: Lyro's knowledge base — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Lyro Actions — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Connect Lyro with MCP servers — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- How do flows, Lyro and live agents work together — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Tidio Flows — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Flow templates — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Flows: making an API call (HTTP request) — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Integration with Zapier — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Transfer flows between projects — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Flow and handoff analytics — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Developer resources in Tidio — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Lyro multilanguage support — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Change and add languages in your chat widget — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Privacy policy and GDPR compliance — Tidio Help Center · September 18, 2026
- Tidio trust center — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Tidio integrations — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- About Tidio — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Lyro achieves best resolution rates in industry (31 March 2025) — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Borrowell case study — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Tidio support team achieves 58% automation with Lyro — Tidio · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow home page — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow pricing (live page, no plan prices shown) — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow pricing page as archived on January 6, 2026 — Voiceflow (Internet Archive snapshot) · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow pricing service (JSON loaded by the docs credit table) — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Billing — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Credits pricing table — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Managing your subscription — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Introducing Voiceflow credits (April 2025) — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Collaboration — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Importing data sources — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Handoff step — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Export environment (API reference) — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Connect a phone number — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow documentation index (llms.txt) — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- PII redaction — Voiceflow Docs · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow integrations — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow security — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Security overview (legal) — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Data Processing Addendum — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- GDPR statement — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- How AI automation transformed Trilogy's customer support — Voiceflow · September 18, 2026
- Voiceflow, a platform for building conversational AI experiences, raises $15M — TechCrunch · September 18, 2026
Researched and drafted with AI assistance from the sources listed on this page. We have not built or tested bots on these platforms yet. Method: How we review