12 Best Crisp Alternatives

Our Pick for SaaS Companies

Sequenzy

Email marketing for SaaS with AI content generation and native Stripe integration. Not a chat platform like Crisp, but purpose-built for SaaS email marketing.

Sequenzy fills a completely different niche than Crisp — while Crisp bundles live chat, email, and support into one platform, Sequenzy focuses exclusively on email marketing for SaaS companies. The AI sequence generator creates complete onboarding, trial conversion, and churn prevention flows from a text description, and the native Stripe integration syncs billing events automatically. At $49/month for 10,000 subscribers versus Crisp's €295/month Plus plan, the cost difference is dramatic if email is your primary need. The obvious tradeoff: no live chat, no shared inbox, no knowledge base, no multi-channel support. Sequenzy only makes sense as a Crisp replacement if you realize you're paying for Crisp's chat and support features but primarily using it for email.

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Best for

SaaS teams needing email marketing with Stripe sync

Pricing

$49/month for 10k subscribers

Pros

Purpose-built for SaaS email marketing
AI generates entire email sequences
Native Stripe integration
6x cheaper than Crisp Plus for email
Unified transactional + marketing

Cons

No live chat
No shared inbox
Email only - not multi-channel
Different purpose than Crisp

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Intercom

The industry leader in customer messaging. More expensive than Crisp but more polished and powerful.

Best Crisp alternative for premium experience. Intercom is the most direct upgrade from Crisp for teams that want the most polished customer messaging experience available. The AI-powered Fin chatbot handles support conversations more intelligently than Crisp's AI, product tours and onboarding features are industry-leading, and the integration ecosystem is extensive. The tradeoff is pricing complexity: per-seat fees starting at $29/seat/month plus AI resolution charges at $0.99 each can make the total cost unpredictable and potentially higher than Crisp's flat €295/month. The platform is also significantly more complex to configure than Crisp's simpler setup. For funded startups and growing companies that prioritize customer experience quality and can absorb the pricing, Intercom delivers a premium product; for budget-conscious teams, the cost variability makes it harder to justify.

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Best for

Funded startups wanting best-in-class messaging

Pricing

From $29/seat/mo + usage fees (AI resolutions $0.99 each)

Pros

Most polished customer messaging platform
Excellent product tours and onboarding
AI-powered Fin chatbot
Strong integrations ecosystem
Well-documented APIs

Cons

Expensive and unpredictable billing
Per-seat pricing adds up fast
AI resolution costs surprise teams
Complex pricing structure

Tidio

Budget-friendly live chat with chatbot builder. Good Crisp alternative for small businesses wanting affordable chat.

Tidio has found its niche as the affordable live chat option for small businesses, particularly e-commerce stores on Shopify. The Lyro AI chatbot handles common support questions automatically, reducing the need for live agents, and the generous free plan lets you test before committing. Paid plans start at $29/month — a fraction of Crisp's €295/month Plus plan. The Shopify integration is particularly strong, allowing agents to see order history and process returns directly in the chat interface. The tradeoff is sophistication: Tidio doesn't offer Crisp's shared inbox depth, multi-channel capabilities, or knowledge base features. It's also primarily e-commerce focused, which limits its appeal for SaaS and service businesses. For small businesses wanting affordable, easy-to-setup live chat without Crisp's pricing complexity, Tidio delivers solid value.

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Best for

Small businesses wanting affordable live chat

Pricing

Free plan, paid from $29/mo

Pros

Very affordable
Generous free plan
Easy to set up
Good chatbot builder (Lyro AI)
Shopify integration

Cons

Less sophisticated than Crisp
Limited enterprise features
E-commerce focused
Fewer integrations

Zendesk

Enterprise support platform with ticketing, chat, and help center. More expensive but built for scale.

Zendesk is the industry standard for customer support at scale — if you're outgrowing Crisp's capabilities and need enterprise-grade ticketing, SLA management, and a comprehensive help center, Zendesk is the established choice. The marketplace of 1,500+ apps and the extensive reporting capabilities exceed what Crisp offers. At $55/agent/month for Suite Team, per-agent pricing can get expensive for larger teams but provides more granular cost control than Crisp's per-workspace model. The platform is significantly more complex to configure than Crisp — expect a dedicated implementation period and possibly a consultant for complex setups. For growing support teams that need enterprise-grade infrastructure and comprehensive ticketing, Zendesk is the proven upgrade; for smaller teams that valued Crisp's simplicity, it may feel like trading one set of frustrations for another.

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Best for

Larger teams needing enterprise support infrastructure

Pricing

From $55/agent/mo (Suite Team)

Pros

Industry standard for support
Comprehensive ticketing system
Robust help center
Extensive marketplace
Enterprise-ready

Cons

Expensive for small teams
Complex to configure
Steep learning curve
Can feel bloated

Freshdesk

Zendesk alternative with better pricing. Full support suite with ticketing, chat, and knowledge base.

Freshdesk positions itself as the budget Zendesk alternative, and for teams leaving Crisp who want a full support suite, it offers the best value on this list. The free plan supports up to 10 agents, which is remarkably generous compared to Crisp's limited free tier. Paid plans start at $15/agent/month — much cheaper than both Crisp Plus and Zendesk. The Freddy AI capabilities handle common support questions automatically, and the full feature suite covers ticketing, live chat, knowledge base, and reporting. The tradeoff versus Crisp is that Freshdesk is primarily a support tool rather than a messaging platform — it's built around ticket resolution rather than conversational engagement. Some features feel a generation behind Zendesk's polish, and the integration ecosystem is smaller. For support teams that want a comprehensive helpdesk without Zendesk's pricing or Crisp's feature limitations on lower tiers, Freshdesk hits the value sweet spot.

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Best for

Teams wanting Zendesk features at lower cost

Pricing

Free plan, paid from $15/agent/mo

Pros

More affordable than Zendesk
Good free tier
Full feature support suite
AI capabilities (Freddy)
Good mobile apps

Cons

Less polished than Zendesk
Some features feel dated
Integration ecosystem smaller
Can be slow at times

Help Scout

Customer-focused help desk with shared inbox. Clean interface, excellent for small to mid-sized teams.

Help Scout stands out for its customer-centric philosophy and clean, distraction-free interface — the shared inbox experience is one of the best in the industry, making it easy for support teams to collaborate on customer conversations without the complexity of Zendesk or the limitations of Crisp's lower tiers. The built-in knowledge base (Docs) and email-based support tools are polished and well-integrated. At $22/user/month for the Standard plan, pricing is competitive with Crisp's per-workspace model for small teams. The tradeoff is that Help Scout is primarily email and knowledge-base focused — live chat is only available on higher plans, and there's no AI chatbot comparable to Crisp's or Intercom's. For small to mid-sized support teams that handle most conversations via email and value a clean, human-focused approach over chatbot automation, Help Scout is excellent.

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Best for

Teams wanting simple, effective support tools

Pricing

$22/user/mo (Standard)

Pros

Clean, intuitive interface
Shared inbox done right
Built-in knowledge base
Excellent email support
Customer-centric philosophy

Cons

No live chat on lower plans
Fewer automation features
Limited integrations
Less AI capabilities

Chatwoot

Open-source customer engagement platform. Self-host for free or use their cloud. Best Crisp alternative for open-source.

Chatwoot is the leading open-source alternative to Crisp, offering a multi-channel inbox with live chat, email, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Telegram integration — all without vendor lock-in. Self-hosting is completely free and gives you full control over your data, which matters for teams with strict compliance or data residency requirements. The cloud option starts at $19/agent/month for teams that don't want to manage infrastructure. The active open-source community means regular updates and contributions. The tradeoffs versus Crisp are real: the interface is less polished, self-hosting requires DevOps resources and ongoing maintenance, documentation has gaps, and AI capabilities are basic compared to Crisp's chatbot. For teams that value platform independence, data ownership, and customization over polish and convenience, Chatwoot is the most compelling Crisp alternative.

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Best for

Teams wanting open-source customer messaging

Pricing

Free (self-hosted), Cloud from $19/agent/mo

Pros

Open-source and self-hostable
Multi-channel inbox
WhatsApp, Messenger integration
Active community
Full control if self-hosted

Cons

Self-hosting requires DevOps
Less polished than Crisp
Smaller ecosystem
Documentation gaps

Drift

Conversational marketing platform for B2B. Premium pricing but excellent for revenue-focused chat.

Drift (now part of Salesloft) is built for a completely different use case than Crisp — instead of customer support, Drift focuses on converting website visitors into sales meetings through conversational marketing. The AI chatbots qualify leads, the calendar integration books meetings directly from chat, and revenue attribution tracks the pipeline generated from conversations. Starting at $2,500/month for Premium, it's dramatically more expensive than Crisp but serves B2B sales teams rather than support teams. Conversational landing pages and account-based marketing features target enterprise sales workflows. For B2B companies where chat is a revenue driver rather than a support channel, Drift delivers measurable ROI; for customer support use cases that Crisp handles, Drift is the wrong tool entirely. The acquisition by Salesloft adds CRM integration depth but may shift product direction.

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Best for

B2B sales teams using chat for revenue

Pricing

From $2,500/mo (Premium)

Pros

Built for B2B sales
Excellent chatbots for lead qual
Revenue attribution
Calendar booking integration
Conversational landing pages

Cons

Very expensive
Overkill for support use cases
B2B focused, not general support
Complex to configure

LiveChat

Pure live chat focused on sales and support conversations. Simpler than Crisp, focused on doing chat well.

LiveChat takes a focused approach — instead of Crisp's all-in-one messaging platform, it does live chat extremely well and lets you add other tools from the LiveChat ecosystem (ChatBot, HelpDesk, KnowledgeBase) as needed. At $20/agent/month, it's significantly cheaper than Crisp Plus, and the chat experience is clean, reliable, and optimized for both support and sales conversations. The mobile apps are solid, and the integration ecosystem includes major CRMs and e-commerce platforms. The tradeoff is that you're buying a chat-focused product: no built-in email marketing, no shared multi-channel inbox, and AI chatbot capabilities cost extra through the separate ChatBot product. For teams that primarily need excellent live chat without the bloat of a full messaging platform, LiveChat delivers a focused, reliable experience at a reasonable price.

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Best for

Teams wanting focused live chat solution

Pricing

From $20/agent/mo

Pros

Clean live chat experience
Good mobile apps
Easy to set up
Solid integrations
Reliable performance

Cons

Less feature-rich than Crisp
No built-in email
Separate products for ticketing
AI chatbot costs extra

#10

HubSpot Service Hub

Support tools integrated with HubSpot CRM. Great if you're already in the HubSpot ecosystem.

HubSpot Service Hub makes the most sense for teams already using HubSpot's CRM, Marketing Hub, or Sales Hub — the native integration means customer support conversations are automatically linked to contact records, deal stages, and marketing interactions without any setup. The free tier includes basic ticketing, live chat, and a chat widget, making it a genuine zero-cost Crisp alternative for smaller teams. Paid plans start at $45/month for more advanced features. The tradeoff is ecosystem dependency: Service Hub works best as part of the full HubSpot suite, and using it standalone feels incomplete compared to Crisp's self-contained platform. Pricing climbs quickly when you add marketing and sales hubs, and features are split across products in ways that can feel frustrating. For teams already invested in HubSpot's ecosystem, adding Service Hub is a natural choice; for everyone else, the ecosystem dependency makes it hard to recommend over Crisp.

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Best for

Teams already using HubSpot CRM

Pricing

Free CRM, Service Hub from $45/mo

Pros

CRM integration built-in
Good ticketing system
Knowledge base included
Chat widget included
Free tier available

Cons

Best with full HubSpot suite
Can get expensive
Features split across products
Learning curve

#11

Tawk.to

100% free live chat. Ad-supported but genuinely free with no catch. Best budget Crisp alternative.

Tawk.to is genuinely 100% free with unlimited agents, unlimited chat history, and full-featured live chat — the business model relies on optional paid add-ons like removing branding ($19/month) and hiring live agents ($1/hour). For teams that can't justify Crisp's pricing but need functional live chat, Tawk.to eliminates cost as a barrier entirely. The included knowledge base and mobile apps make it a surprisingly complete offering for free. The tradeoffs versus Crisp: the interface is less modern, "Powered by tawk.to" branding is visible unless you pay to remove it, customization options are limited, and there's no AI chatbot. Support for the free product is understandably limited. For startups, small businesses, and budget-conscious teams that need basic live chat on their website without any financial commitment, Tawk.to is hard to argue against.

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Best for

Budget-conscious teams wanting free chat

Pricing

Free (100%), optional paid add-ons

Pros

Completely free
Unlimited agents
Full-featured chat
Mobile apps
Knowledge base included

Cons

Shows "Powered by tawk.to" branding
Less modern than Crisp
Limited customization
Support for free product is limited

#12

Gorgias

E-commerce focused customer support. Deep Shopify integration. Not for SaaS but great for e-commerce.

Gorgias is the e-commerce-specific Crisp alternative that integrates so deeply with Shopify that support agents can view orders, process refunds, and manage returns directly from the conversation interface without switching tabs. Macros and auto-responses handle common e-commerce queries (order status, shipping info, return requests) automatically, and revenue tracking attributes sales to support interactions. Starting at $10/month for the Starter plan (limited tickets), it's dramatically cheaper than Crisp for small e-commerce teams. The tradeoff is narrow focus: Gorgias is built exclusively for e-commerce and offers limited value for SaaS, service businesses, or general support use cases. Ticket-based pricing on higher tiers can also become expensive for high-volume stores. For Shopify and e-commerce stores where product support is the primary chat use case, Gorgias is purpose-built; for general customer messaging needs, Crisp is more versatile.

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Best for

E-commerce teams with Shopify stores

Pricing

From $10/mo (Starter, limited)

Pros

Built for e-commerce
Deep Shopify integration
Order management in chat
Macros for common responses
Revenue tracking

Cons

E-commerce only
Not suitable for SaaS
Ticket-based pricing at scale
Limited outside e-commerce

Why Consider Alternatives to Crisp

Most teams need the €295/mo Plus plan

Crisp's €45/mo Mini and €95/mo Essentials plans have significant limitations. For automation, unlimited AI, and full integrations, you need Plus at €295/mo (~$320). The lower plans feel like trial tiers.

You only need email, not chat

If you don't need live chat, shared inbox, or real-time support, you're paying for capabilities you won't use. Purpose-built email platforms like Sequenzy are more affordable for email-focused teams.

AI is limited on lower plans

Crisp's Essentials plan only includes 50 AI uses per month. If you want Crisp's AI chatbot features, you need the Plus plan. Budget-conscious teams may find this restrictive.

Per-workspace pricing hurts agencies

Crisp charges per workspace. Agencies or businesses managing multiple sites pay separately for each. This adds up fast compared to per-agent pricing models.

What Users Say About Crisp

Trustpilot

I've been using Crisp for about 6 months. The AI answers were often off topic or inaccurate. I've spent weeks to get it to an 'okay' level. Support is slow and unhelpful.

THIBAUT2026-02

Trustpilot

Poor customer support and broken features. You have to wait multiple days just to receive a response. Their AI Crawler doesn't work properly with custom knowledge bases.

Dominik Rapacki2025-12

Trustpilot

Incredibly frustrating experience. We subscribed to a higher plan than originally planned. I did exactly what any normal business would do - test the chat widget on a staging site before going live. Then they suspended my account.

Dustin2025-12

Trustpilot

The platform has deteriorated - constant reloads, freezes, and broken features have become the norm. It feels unacceptable for a paid service. The support team is dismissive.

Dan2025-12

Feature

Crisp

Sequenzy

Intercom

Tidio

Chatwoot

Help Scout

Live chat

Higher plans

Email marketing

Limited

AI chatbot

AI emails

Basic

Knowledge base

Shared inbox

Free tier

Limited

100 subs

Generous

Free OSS

Full price

€295/mo

$49/mo

$29+/seat

$29/mo

$19/agent

$22/user

When to Use Each Platform

Choose Sequenzy if...

You primarily need SaaS email marketing
Native Stripe integration is valuable
AI-generated email sequences sounds appealing
$19/mo is more appealing than €295/mo

Choose Stay with Crisp if...

Live chat is essential for your support
You need a unified multi-channel inbox
The €295/mo Plus plan fits your budget
You want chat + email + knowledge base in one

Choose Intercom if...

You want the most polished experience
Budget isn't a primary concern
You need excellent product tours
Enterprise features matter

Choose Chatwoot if...

Open-source and self-hosting is important
You want to avoid vendor lock-in
You have DevOps resources
Budget is tight

Choose Tidio if...

You run an e-commerce store
You want simple, affordable chat
Lyro AI chatbot is appealing
You don't need complex features

Why people look for Crisp alternatives

Crisp is a solid customer messaging platform, but it's not right for everyone. Here's why teams look elsewhere. The French-based company has built an impressive all-in-one messaging tool, but the pricing tiers create a frustrating dynamic — the Mini (€45/month) and Essentials (€95/month) plans feel deliberately limited to push teams toward the €295/month Plus plan. Recent Trustpilot reviews consistently mention platform stability issues, broken features, and slow support response times, which is concerning for a tool that handles live customer conversations.

The pricing reality

Crisp looks affordable at €45/mo Mini, but that plan is very limited. Most teams end up on the €295/mo Plus plan for full features - automation, unlimited AI, advanced integrations. The jump from €95 Essentials to €295 Plus feels steep. Read our Crisp comparison page for a detailed breakdown.

You only need email

Crisp shines with live chat, shared inbox, and multi-channel support. If you only need email marketing, you're paying for capabilities you won't use. Email-focused platforms like Sequenzy are more affordable and purpose-built.

Per-workspace billing hurts multi-brand teams

Crisp charges per workspace. If you run multiple products or sites, each needs its own subscription. Agencies managing client sites find this adds up fast compared to per-seat pricing models.

The alternatives, honestly

For SaaS email marketing: Sequenzy

If you don't need live chat, why pay for it? Sequenzy is purpose-built for SaaS email marketing with AI-generated sequences and native Stripe integration. At $19/mo vs Crisp's €295/mo Plus, it's significantly cheaper for email-focused use cases.

The catch: email only. No live chat, no shared inbox. If you need those, Sequenzy isn't the answer.

For premium messaging: Intercom

Intercom is the industry leader in customer messaging. More expensive than Crisp but more polished, with excellent product tours, AI-powered Fin chatbot, and extensive integrations. Read our Intercom comparison for details.

The trade-off: expensive and complex pricing. Per-seat fees plus AI resolution charges add up. But for funded startups wanting best-in-class, Intercom delivers.

For open-source control: Chatwoot

Chatwoot is the leading open-source Crisp alternative. Self-host for free, or use their cloud from $19/agent/mo. Multi-channel inbox with WhatsApp and Messenger integration.

The catch: less polished than Crisp. Self-hosting requires DevOps resources. But for teams wanting control and avoiding vendor lock-in, it's the best option.

For budget live chat: Tidio

Tidio offers affordable live chat with a generous free plan and paid tiers from $29/mo. Their Lyro AI chatbot is solid for the price. E-commerce focused with good Shopify integration.

Trade-off: less sophisticated than Crisp. Fewer enterprise features. But for small businesses wanting affordable chat, Tidio delivers value.

The pricing comparison

At comparable usage:

Crisp Plus: €295/mo (~$320) for full features
Sequenzy: $49/mo for 10k subs (email only)
Intercom: From $29/seat + usage fees
Chatwoot Cloud: $19/agent/mo
Tidio: $29/mo paid plans
Tawk.to: Free (ad-supported)

Note: Different platforms charge differently (per workspace, per seat, per agent). Compare based on your team size and needs. Check our pricing page for Sequenzy's simple per-subscriber model.

When Crisp is still the right choice

Crisp wins if:

You need live chat + email + knowledge base in one platform
The €295/mo Plus plan fits your budget
Multi-channel shared inbox is important
You want a single vendor for messaging needs

Don't switch just to save money if Crisp's unified platform is valuable to you. Managing multiple tools (separate chat, email, help desk) has its own costs. But if you're primarily using one channel, specialized tools are often better and cheaper. Use our email validator tool to ensure list quality when evaluating any platform.

Frequently Asked Questions

All Pricing Tiers

0-100 subscribers: Free (Free annually) - 3k emails/month

101-1,000 subscribers: $19/month ($205/year annually) - 15k emails/month

1,001-5,000 subscribers: $29/month ($313/year annually) - 60k emails/month

5,001-10,000 subscribers: $49/month ($529/year annually) - 120k emails/month

10,001-25,000 subscribers: $99/month ($1069/year annually) - 300k emails/month

25,001-50,000 subscribers: $199/month ($2149/year annually) - 600k emails/month

50,001-100,000 subscribers: $349/month ($3769/year annually) - 1.2M emails/month

100,000+ subscribers: Custom pricing (Custom annually) - Unlimited emails/month

Yearly billing: All plans offer a 10% discount when billed annually.

12 Crisp Alternatives Worth Considering

TL;DR

12 Best Crisp Alternatives

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Why Consider Alternatives to Crisp

What Users Say About Crisp

Feature Comparison

When to Use Each Platform

Why people look for Crisp alternatives

The pricing reality

You only need email

Per-workspace billing hurts multi-brand teams

The alternatives, honestly

For SaaS email marketing: Sequenzy

For premium messaging: Intercom

For open-source control: Chatwoot

For budget live chat: Tidio

The pricing comparison

When Crisp is still the right choice

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the best Crisp alternative for SaaS?

Is Chatwoot a good Crisp alternative?

Why is Crisp's Plus plan so expensive?

Does Sequenzy have live chat like Crisp?

Can I use Crisp's free plan forever?

What's cheaper than Crisp for live chat?

Crisp vs Intercom: Which is better?

Does Crisp have email marketing?

How hard is it to migrate from Crisp?

Is Tidio cheaper than Crisp?

How do I cancel my Crisp account?

What is Crisp's pricing structure?

How do I export my data from Crisp?

Does Crisp offer a free trial?

What is Crisp's refund policy?

Ready to try Sequenzy?

Sequenzy vs Crisp: Direct Comparison

More Alternatives

Intercom Alternatives

Drift Alternatives

Sequenzy - Complete Pricing Guide

Pricing Model

All Pricing Tiers

Free Plan Features (2,500 emails/month)

Paid Plan Features (1,000 - 100,000 subscribers)

Enterprise Plan Features (100,000+ subscribers)

Important Pricing Notes

Contact