Every tool here has a free plan that does not expire. Some are enough for a small live bot, others only for testing the builder. The limits count different things, so compare each in the vendor's own unit.
The deciding criterion is whether the free plan includes AI answers. Most leave AI out or give a one-off sample, so a free bot is usually a rule-based flow. Voiceflow and Chatfuel are left off: Voiceflow's free credits never refill, and Chatfuel's free tier includes no credits.
Quick picks
- Large allowance for flows: Typebot — 200 chats a month and unlimited bots.
- Live website bot with an inbox: Tidio Lyro — 100 flows visitors and 50 human-answered conversations a month.
- Free CRM bot: HubSpot Chatbot Builder — free for 2 users, with no documented conversation cap for rule-based bots.
- Instagram and Messenger: Manychat — 25 Active Contacts a month.
The ranking
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.
Landbot
Marketing teams in Europe that want lead-capture flows on a website, with prices in euros and data hosted in the EU7.5- Paid plans from
- €40 per month
- Pricing model
- Plan plus usage meter
- Free plan
- Yes
- Channels
- Website widget, WhatsApp, Messenger
Landbot is a visual, no-code chatbot builder from Barcelona for websites, WhatsApp and Messenger. It is built mainly for marketing teams that want to capture and qualify leads with button-driven flows, with an optional AI Agent block inside the flow. It charges a flat monthly plan that includes a pool of chats and a smaller, separate pool of AI chats, and it bills a published price for each chat beyond the pool.
The catch: Branding removal, webhooks, CRM integrations and WhatsApp on your own number all start at Professional, so the €40 Starter plan is narrower than its price suggests.
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.
Manychat
Creators and social-first shops that sell through Instagram, TikTok or Messenger DMs6.9- Paid plans from
- $17 per month
- Pricing model
- By number of contacts
- Free plan
- Yes
- Channels
- Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, Telegram, TikTok, SMS, Email
Manychat is a marketing bot: a visual flow builder that replies to comments and direct messages on Instagram, TikTok, Messenger, WhatsApp and Telegram, with SMS and email as add-on channels. It is built for creators and social-first shops, not for website support, because it has no website chat widget. It charges a flat plan fee that includes a monthly allowance of Active Contacts, then a per-contact price above that allowance.
The catch: A broadcast makes every recipient an Active Contact for that month, so one send to a large list can use up the whole allowance and start per-contact overage unless you set a cap.
Typebot
Developers and technical marketers who want cheap per-chat pricing or a self-hosted bot builder6.7- Paid plans from
- $39 per month
- Pricing model
- Plan plus usage meter
- Free plan
- Yes
- Channels
- Website widget, WhatsApp
Typebot is a visual builder for chatbots and conversational forms that you can run on Typebot's cloud or host yourself. It is built for teams that want lead capture and scripted flows on a website, and that are comfortable adding their own AI provider key when they want AI. The cloud charges a flat monthly fee with a set number of chats included, starting at $39 a month; self-hosting is free under a source-available licence.
The catch: On a paid cloud plan, reaching your chat limit does not pause the bot: after two warning emails Typebot moves your workspace to the next usage tier, so the bill goes up instead.
Comparison table
| Product | Score | Type of tool | Paid plans from | Free plan | What the bill grows with | EU data hosting | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| Landbot | 7.5 | No-code flow builder | €40 per month | Yes | chats | Yes | Marketing teams in Europe that want lead-capture flows on a website, with prices in euros and data hosted in the EU |
| 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 |
| Manychat | 6.9 | Messaging-marketing bot | $17 per month | Yes | contacts | Yes | Creators and social-first shops that sell through Instagram, TikTok or Messenger DMs |
| Typebot | 6.7 | Open-source builder | $39 per month | Yes | chats | Partly | Developers and technical marketers who want cheap per-chat pricing or a self-hosted bot builder |
What it costs at three volumes
| Product | What the bill grows with | 100 | 1,000 | 5,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Botpress | conversations | $150 (Plus) | $750 (Team) | Custom quote |
| HubSpot Chatbot Builder | resolutions | $50 | $500 | $2,500 |
| Landbot | chats | €0 (Free) | €65 (Starter) | €225 (Professional) |
| Tidio Lyro | conversations | $75 (Lyro AI Agent 100) | $700 (Lyro AI Agent 1,000) | Custom quote |
| Manychat | contacts | $17 (Essential) | $39 (Pro) | $99 (Business) |
| Typebot | chats | $0 (Personal) | $39 (Starter) | $89 (Pro) |
How to choose
If you want the most room for a scripted flow bot on a website, pick Typebot because its free plan includes 200 chats a month and you can add AI with your own provider key.
If you want live chat and a bot on a store or small site, pick Tidio Lyro because its free plan includes an inbox with 10 seats and a live flows bot. Its AI allowance is a one-off sample.
If your contacts live in HubSpot, pick HubSpot's chatbot builder because it is free with no documented conversation cap for rule-based bots, as long as you do not need branching.
If you need a free Instagram or Messenger bot, pick Manychat because its free plan covers those channels, but 25 Active Contacts a month is a testing allowance.
If you want to try an AI agent before paying, pick Botpress because its free plan includes AI agents and WhatsApp. Budget for a paid plan before you go live.
Verdict
Typebot is the default pick if free means running a real bot at no cost: 200 chats a month on the cloud, or no licence fee if you host it yourself. Ignore it if you need a live-chat inbox or AI without your own provider account; Tidio Lyro's free plan covers live chat, and HubSpot's suits teams already in its CRM. How chatbot pricing models work covers what comes after a free plan.
For buyers in the United States
No federal law is written for chatbots, but three rules do most of the work. Some states make you say the bot is a bot: California when a bot is used to sell, Maine for any chatbot in commerce, and Colorado for public-facing conversational AI from January 1, 2027. Marketing texts need prior express written consent under the TCPA. And what your bot tells a customer falls under the FTC Act and state consumer-protection law, the same as any other statement you make.
Vendors in this category publish prices in US dollars, a few in euros; this site shows the published currency and never converts. There is no US cookie-consent law for a chat widget, but California chat-wiretap suits make a short notice above the chat box worth adding. If you serve customers in the EU or UK, check that the vendor documents EU or UK data hosting and offers a data processing agreement. If your customers also write in Spanish, check that the vendor documents AI answers in that language rather than assuming it.
Chatbots and the law in the United States
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free chatbot builder?
Typebot is our default pick for a free chatbot builder, with 200 chats a month on its permanent Personal plan and free self-hosting. Tidio Lyro is the better free choice if you also need live chat, and HubSpot's chatbot builder if your contacts are in HubSpot.
Which free chatbot builder includes AI?
Few include AI on an ongoing basis. Botpress's free plan includes AI agents with a small conversation allowance, Tidio Lyro gives 50 AI conversations once, and Typebot runs AI through your own provider key, which you pay for. HubSpot, Landbot and Manychat leave AI out of their free plans.
Why are Voiceflow and Chatfuel not on the free chatbot list?
Voiceflow's free plan never expires, but its 100 credits are a one-time grant that does not refill, and Voiceflow says the plan is not meant for production. Chatfuel's free tier replies to comments on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok but includes no credits, so its AI agent and WhatsApp do not run. Both offer trials instead; see the Voiceflow review and Chatfuel review.
What happens when a free chatbot plan hits its limit?
It depends on the chatbot builder. Landbot's fair-use policy says the bot stops at the limit without a warning email, and Botpress's free plan cannot buy extra conversation packs. Typebot does not document what happens on its free plan, so check before you run a campaign on any free tier.
Keep reading
- Best chatbot buildersbest list
- Best chatbot builders for small businessbest list
- Best chatbots for ecommercebest list
- Best chatbots for customer supportbest list
- Best chatbot builders for lead generationbest list
- Best chatbot builders for WhatsAppbest list
- Best chatbot builders for Instagram and Facebook Messengerbest list
- Best open-source and developer chatbot platformsbest list
- What is the difference between a chatbot and an AI agent?guide
- How is chatbot software priced?guide
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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