The best Crisp alternatives for Shopify app teams (2026)

The best Crisp alternatives for a Shopify app team in 2026 are Intercom for funded teams that need depth and outbound messaging, Help Scout for email-first support with a strong free plan, Tidio for low-cost chat with visual chatbot flows, Chatwoot for teams that want open source or self-hosting, and Convot for teams running one or more apps that want each merchant’s Shopify revenue beside the conversation. Crisp itself remains a good choice for a single website, especially with its free plan, so switch only if one of its limits actually affects you.

This guide covers why app teams leave Crisp, what to look for, each alternative with verified prices, a comparison table and how to choose. Prices were checked on each vendor’s pricing page between 30 September and 1 October 2026.

Why do Shopify app teams look for a Crisp alternative?

Shopify app teams usually look for a Crisp alternative for one of three reasons:

Crisp pricing page, captured 3 October 2026.

• Running more than one app. Crisp bills each website as its own workspace, so Essentials at $95 a month becomes $285 for 3 apps, or about $228 if Crisp’s 20 percent multi-workspace discount applies to all three.
• Needing more than chat. Crisp’s public pricing lists no changelog, roadmap voting or in-chat scheduling, so teams add other tools for them.
• Wanting merchant context. Crisp does not show a merchant’s Shopify plan or what they pay you beside the conversation.

If none of these applies, Crisp may still be the right tool. Its free plan covers 2 seats, and Essentials includes 10 seats, a help center and an AI chatbot.

What should a Shopify app team look for in a Crisp alternative?

A Shopify app team should pick a Crisp alternative on six criteria: a widget that works in the embedded app, a searchable help center, replies from a phone, live translation, pricing that fits several apps and an easy Crisp migration.

Is Intercom a good Crisp alternative?

Intercom is a good Crisp alternative for funded teams that need outbound campaigns, product tours, deep automation and a mature AI agent. It is priced per seat, billed annually: Essential $29, Advanced $85 and Expert $132 a month, with no free plan. Its Fin AI agent is charged on top, from $0.99 per outcome, and running more than one brand needs the Expert plan.

Intercom pricing page, captured 3 October 2026.

For a small app team, the trade-off is cost: 3 people on Expert cost $396 a month before AI. The guide to Crisp vs Intercom for Shopify app developers compares the two in detail.

Is Help Scout a good Crisp alternative?

Help Scout is a good Crisp alternative for teams that handle most support by email and want a clean shared inbox and knowledge base. Its free plan covers up to 5 users with 1 inbox and 1 Docs site; Help Scout’s paid plans are Help Scout Standard $30, Help Scout Plus $54 and Help Scout Pro $90 per user a month billed monthly, or $25, $45 and $75 billed annually. Its AI Answers costs $0.75 per resolution.

Help Scout pricing page on annual billing, captured 3 October 2026.

Help Scout Standard includes 2 inboxes and 2 Docs sites, then charges for each extra one, so costs grow with each additional app. The Help Scout comparison has the full breakdown.

Is Tidio a good Crisp alternative?

Tidio is a good Crisp alternative for online stores that want low-cost live chat and visual chatbot flows. Tidio Starter is $29 a month billed monthly for 100 conversations with 10 seats, Tidio Growth starts at $59 for 250 conversations, and its Lyro AI costs $39 for 50 conversations, about $0.78 each. There is a free plan with 50 conversations a month.

Tidio pricing page, captured 3 October 2026.

Tidio is built around online stores and their shoppers, and a built-in help center was not found on its pricing page, so an app team would need another tool for self-serve articles. The Tidio comparison covers the details.

What is the best open source Crisp alternative?

Chatwoot is the best-known open source Crisp alternative, for technical teams that want the option to self-host; Convot and the other tools in this guide are not open source. Chatwoot’s cloud plans are priced per agent: Hacker is free for 2 agents and 500 conversations a month with 30-day data retention and no help center, then Startups $19, Business $39 and Enterprise $99 per agent a month, with a help center from Startups. Captain AI credits are included on paid plans, 300 a month on Startups.

Chatwoot pricing page, captured 3 October 2026.

Self-hosting avoids per-agent fees but means running and maintaining the software yourself. The Chatwoot comparison has more.

Is Convot a good Crisp alternative?

Convot is a good Crisp alternative for Shopify app teams, and especially for teams running more than one app. Each app gets its own widget, help center, changelog, roadmap with voting and status page, with in-chat scheduling, and every conversation lands in one shared inbox priced by how many apps you run: free under $1,000 MRR with 1 app and 3 seats, then $49 a month for 1 app, plus $20 per extra app.

The Convot inbox, with conversations from every app in one place.

For Shopify apps, Convot shows each merchant’s plan, MRR and lifetime revenue to date beside the conversation, once your app identifies the shop with a signed shop_hash. It also includes live translation in more than 60 languages on every plan, iOS and Android agent apps with push notifications, 9 signed webhooks and a REST API. The Cove AI agent is on paid plans at $0.20 per resolved conversation in which it sent an automatic reply.

Convot does not include WhatsApp, Instagram or SMS in the inbox, which Crisp does, and Crisp’s bundled AI credits work out cheaper per automated conversation than Cove.

How do Crisp, Tidio and Help Scout compare?

Crisp, Tidio and Help Scout differ mainly in what they charge for. Crisp charges per website workspace, with Mini at $45 and Essentials at $95 including 10 seats. Tidio charges by conversation volume, with Tidio Starter at $29 billed monthly for 100 conversations. Help Scout charges per user, with Help Scout Standard at $25 billed annually or $30 monthly. Crisp is strongest for WhatsApp, Instagram and SMS in one inbox; Help Scout is strongest for email-first support, with a free plan for up to 5 users; Tidio is strongest for visual chatbot flows. Crisp (from Essentials) and Help Scout include a help center; a built-in help center was not found on Tidio’s pricing page. The Crisp pricing breakdown lists which Crisp plan includes which feature.

How do the Crisp alternatives compare?

AI prices use different units, conversations, resolutions or outcomes, so compare the definitions as well as the numbers.

Which Crisp alternative has the best AI agent?

By headline price per unit, Crisp’s bundled AI is cheapest at about $0.055 per automated conversation, then Convot’s Cove at $0.20, Help Scout’s AI Answers at $0.75, Tidio’s Lyro at about $0.78 billed monthly and Intercom’s Fin from $0.99, with Chatwoot selling Captain credits. The units differ, conversations, resolutions, outcomes or credits, so compare the definitions too. Published AI prices, checked on 30 September 2026:

Whatever the price, AI answers are only as good as your help center, because these agents answer from your own content. Test each one on your ten most common questions and check that it hands off to a person when it does not know. The guide to what an AI support agent is explains what to look for.

What does Crisp still do better than the alternatives?

Crisp still does several things better than some of the alternatives, and it is worth knowing them before you switch:

• Messaging channels. Crisp brings WhatsApp, Instagram and SMS into the inbox; Convot does not.
• Cheap bundled AI. Crisp’s included AI credits work out to about $0.055 per automated conversation, lower per unit than per-resolution pricing.
• A free plan for 2 seats, and Mini at $45 for a single website that only needs chat.
• 10 seats on Essentials, more included seats than many per-app or per-seat plans.

If your app team runs one product, mainly needs chat and wants merchants to reach you on WhatsApp, Crisp may remain the better fit.

How much do the alternatives cost for three apps?

For a team running 3 apps with 3 people, monthly costs differ widely because of how each tool charges:

These figures exclude AI usage. Help Scout and Chatwoot cost less than Crisp for 3 apps, and Chatwoot costs less than Convot, because they charge by user or agent. Tidio charges by conversation volume, so check its pricing page at your real size.

What is the cheapest Crisp alternative for several apps?

For three apps and three people, Chatwoot Startups at $57 a month is the lowest published price we found, followed by Convot at $89, Help Scout Standard at $126 billed monthly and Crisp Essentials at $228 to $285, before AI usage. Crisp charges per website workspace, so its cost grows with every app; Convot charges $49 for the first app plus $20 per extra app. For a single app or website, free plans from Crisp (2 seats), Help Scout (up to 5 users), Tidio (50 conversations a month), Chatwoot (2 agents) and Convot (under $1,000 MRR) cost nothing. Prices checked 30 September 2026.

How do you choose the right Crisp alternative?

Choose by the reason you are leaving Crisp:

Test your top two on real conversations for a week before deciding, including the widget inside your embedded app. Price each one at the size you expect in a year, with your planned number of apps, people and AI conversations, because the cheapest tool today is not always the cheapest at that size.

How do you switch away from Crisp?

Switching away from Crisp takes three main jobs: bringing over contacts, conversations and help articles, replacing the chat script, and rebuilding settings such as saved replies and routing. Convot has a built-in Crisp importer that copies contacts, conversations from the last 180 days and help articles, and its widget accepts Crisp-style commands with small changes; the Crisp migration guide covers each step.

Common questions about Crisp alternatives

What is the cheapest Crisp alternative? For one product, several tools have free plans, including Help Scout, Tidio, Chatwoot and Convot under $1,000 MRR. For 3 apps and 3 people, Chatwoot Startups is $57 a month, Convot $89, Help Scout Standard $126 billed monthly and Crisp Essentials $228 to $285, before AI.

Which Crisp alternative is best for Shopify apps? For teams building Shopify apps, look for a widget that works inside the embedded app, a help center and merchant context. Convot is built for that case and shows each merchant’s Shopify revenue beside the conversation.

Should I switch away from Crisp at all? Switch only if a specific limit affects you: paying for several workspaces, adding separate tools for a roadmap or status page, or wanting merchant revenue beside the conversation. If you run one product and mainly need chat with WhatsApp or SMS, Crisp is still a good choice, and a migration costs time you could spend on the product.

Can I keep my Crisp conversation history? Convot’s importer brings over conversations from the last 180 days by default, with original timestamps; ask before switching if you need older history. Other tools have their own import options.

Crisp alternatives, in summary

1. Crisp is still good for a single website, with a free plan and messaging channels.
2. Intercom suits funded teams that need depth, at a higher cost.
3. Help Scout suits email-first teams, with a free plan for up to 5 users.
4. Tidio suits online stores wanting chatbot flows.
5. Chatwoot suits teams that want open source.
6. Convot suits Shopify app teams, especially with several apps.

Start free while you are under $1,000 MRR, with 1 app and 3 seats.

About the author

Tarang Agarwal is the founder of Convot. Convot is built by Sidepanda, a small studio that runs several Shopify apps of its own, including Appointo, Depo and Panda Bundle, and supports all of them from one Convot inbox.