Comparison
ChatBouncer vs Tidio vs Chatbase. Which one fits you?
If you want an AI chat box on your website, three names come up a lot: Tidio, Chatbase and ChatBouncer. They overlap, but they're built for different jobs, and they charge in very different ways.
By Chris Gilliland · · For any business of any size · Plans from $29/month (USD)
This is an honest comparison. We make ChatBouncer, so for Tidio and Chatbase we've stuck to facts each company publishes on its own pricing and help pages, checked on October 9, 2026. Prices change, so check each site before you buy. Sources are listed at the end.
The short answer
- Pick Tidio if you want one tool for website chat, email, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, with a team answering alongside an AI agent. Its pricing page also lists native Shopify actions.
- Pick Chatbase if you want to build a customizable AI agent with lots of integrations, an API, a choice of AI models, voice and more training sources (Notion, text snippets, support tickets).
- Pick ChatBouncer if you want an AI chat box for your website that answers only from your own info, says "the owner will confirm" instead of guessing, bounces spam and prompt tricks, and costs one monthly price with customer messages included.
Pricing at a glance
Monthly billing, US dollars.
| ChatBouncer | Tidio | Chatbase | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free option | Free preview on the homepage, no signup needed | Free plan (50 billable conversations, 50 one-time Lyro AI conversations) | Free plan (50 message credits a month; agents deleted after 14 days of inactivity) |
| Entry paid plan | Starter $29/mo: 1,500 customer messages, 1 website | Starter $29/mo: 100 billable (human-handled) conversations | Hobby $40/mo: 700 message credits |
| AI answers | Every plan answers 24/7 from your own info | Lyro AI Agent from $39/mo for 50 Lyro conversations | Included; message credits are the limit |
| Mid tier | Pro $59/mo: 5,000 messages, up to 3 websites | Growth from $59/mo: from 250 billable conversations | Standard $150/mo: 4,000 credits |
| Upper tier | Business $119/mo: 15,000 messages, up to 10 websites | Plus from $300/mo + monthly usage | Pro $500/mo: 15,000 credits |
| Free trial | 14 days | 7 days, no credit card | 7 days on paid plans |
| Yearly billing | Monthly plans | "2 months free" | 20% off yearly plans |
A note on units: these companies count usage differently. ChatBouncer counts customer messages. Tidio counts billable conversations (conversations a human on your team replies to) and, separately, Lyro AI conversations. Chatbase counts message credits. They aren't the same unit, so compare on your own expected volume.
How each one works
Tidio
Tidio is a customer service platform. Its core is live chat and ticketing for your team, with three products you can mix: Customer Service (live chat, ticketing, email), Lyro AI Agent, and Flows (no-code automated chat paths). Lyro learns from your support content (Tidio lists FAQ upload, an FAQ scraper and a website scraper), and Tidio lists human handoff as a Lyro feature.
Tidio's pricing page lists Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and email integrations and native Shopify actions. Its self-serve plans include up to 10 seats. Removing Tidio branding is a paid add-on ($20/month on monthly billing).
Where Tidio is strong: handling every channel in one tool, with a team answering live chat.
Chatbase
Chatbase is a platform for building AI agents. You train an agent on your sources: it can crawl your website, read a sitemap or individual links, and it accepts uploaded .pdf, .txt, .doc and .docx files, plus text snippets, Q&As, Notion pages and support tickets. Paid plans add more members, integrations and analytics, and Standard and up add API access, voice and helpdesk features.
Its plan comparison lists integrations including Slack, Zapier, Shopify, WordPress, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Stripe and Zendesk, and AI models from several providers. Removing "Powered by Chatbase" is a $99/month add-on, and white-labeling is listed under Enterprise.
Where Chatbase is strong: flexibility, integrations, model choice and an API for teams that want to build.
ChatBouncer
ChatBouncer is an AI chat box for any business website, of any size. You give it your website, it pulls in your hours, prices, services and FAQs, you check them, and you paste one script tag on your site (or use the free WordPress plugin). It's built around a "bouncer at the door" idea:
- Answers only from your saved info. When it isn't sure, it says "the owner will confirm", takes the customer's contact and emails you the question.
- Bounces the junk. Prompt tricks, spam, off-topic requests and abuse get turned away.
- Protects your bill. Message limits per visitor, per IP address and per business; the chat box only runs on domains you allow; and extra messages on paid plans are $15 per 1,500, capped at $300 a month.
- Human takeover on every plan. Reply and the AI pauses.
Pro and Business add Slack & Zapier connections, more team seats (3 and 10), and PDF & Word knowledge documents (up to 15 and 50). Business adds white label, which hides "Powered by ChatBouncer".
Where ChatBouncer is strong: one monthly price with customer messages included, several websites on one plan, and built-in protection against made-up answers, abuse and runaway usage.
Feature comparison
| ChatBouncer | Tidio | Chatbase | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Learns from your website | Yes (reads your public pages) | Yes (website scraper) | Yes (crawl, sitemap or individual links) |
| Other knowledge sources | PDF & Word documents: up to 15 on Pro, 50 on Business | FAQ upload, FAQ scraper, Zendesk article import | Files (.pdf, .txt, .doc, .docx), text, Q&A, Notion, tickets |
| Human takeover | Yes, every plan (reply and the AI pauses) | Yes (live chat, plus human handoff listed for Lyro) | Helpdesk listed on Standard and up |
| Channels | Website chat | Website, email, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp | Website chat plus integrations (WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram), email and voice |
| Slack / Zapier | Pro and Business | Not named on its pricing page | Listed in plan comparison |
| Team seats | 1 / 3 / 10 | Up to 10 on self-serve plans | 1 / 2 / 3 / 5 by plan |
| Remove branding | Included on Business | $20/mo add-on | $99/mo add-on |
| Shopify | One-line theme install or private app-embed link (App Store app coming soon) | Native Shopify actions listed | Shopify integration listed |
| Multiple websites | Up to 3 (Pro) or 10 (Business) | Can be added to multiple sites, with shared settings | Extra agents $25 per agent a month |
Which should you choose?
Choose Tidio if your team already answers chats and you want AI to take some of that load, across website, email and social, inside one help desk.
Choose Chatbase if you want a configurable AI agent, a choice of models, an API, voice, or a long list of integrations, and its credit-based plans fit your volume.
Choose ChatBouncer if you want your website answered 24/7 without paying someone to watch a chat window, you'd rather the AI say "the owner will confirm" than guess, and you want one predictable monthly price. It's built for any business: restaurants, law firms, hotels, salons, dealerships, franchises and online stores.
The easiest way to decide is to try them. ChatBouncer has a free preview on the homepage: type your website and chat with a temporary chat box built from your own public pages.
Questions
Which is cheapest?
For AI answers on a website, ChatBouncer Starter is $29/month with 1,500 customer messages included. Tidio Starter is also $29/month, but it covers human-handled conversations; Lyro AI starts at $39/month. Chatbase has a free plan with 50 message credits and paid plans from $40/month. Your real cost depends on your volume.
Do all three have free trials?
Yes. ChatBouncer offers 14 days. Tidio and Chatbase offer 7-day trials, and both also have free plans.
Can I switch from Tidio or Chatbase to ChatBouncer?
Yes. ChatBouncer installs with one script tag. Remove the old widget's code from your site, then paste ChatBouncer's line.
Which one works on Shopify?
All three. Tidio lists native Shopify actions and Chatbase lists a Shopify integration. ChatBouncer installs by pasting one line into your theme, or through a private app-embed install link; its App Store app is coming soon.
Something else? Email [email protected]. A real person answers.
Sources (checked October 9, 2026)
- Tidio pricing, tidio.com/pricing: monthly Starter $29, Growth from $59, Plus from $300 + usage; Lyro AI Agent from $39; Flows from $29; free plan 50 billable and 50 one-time Lyro conversations; 7-day free trial without a credit card; 10 seats on Free, Starter and Growth; "No Tidio branding" add-on $20/mo; annual billing "2 months free"; FAQ upload, FAQ scraper, website scraper and Zendesk import; Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and email integrations; native Shopify actions; multiple sites share settings.
- Chatbase pricing, chatbase.co/pricing: monthly Free $0 / 50 credits; Hobby $40 / 700; Standard $150 / 4,000; Pro $500 / 15,000; members 1 / 2 / 3 / 5; 20% off yearly; 7-day trial on paid plans; add-ons: extra agents $25 per agent a month, remove branding $99/mo; free-plan agents deleted after 14 days of inactivity; API, voice and helpdesk on Standard and up; integrations and model providers as listed; white-labeling under Enterprise.
- Chatbase data sources, chatbase.co/docs: files (.pdf, .txt, .doc, .docx), website crawl, sitemap or individual links, text snippets, Q&A, Notion pages, tickets.
- ChatBouncer, chatbouncer.com/pricing.