Tidio vs tawk.to: which free live chat is better, and what does the AI cost?
Tidio and tawk.to are the two names that come up most when a small business searches for free live chat. Both are genuinely usable at $0. They make their money in different ways, though: tawk.to sells add-ons and services around free software, while Tidio sells usage. This guide shows what each free plan covers, what AI costs on each, and where each one starts charging.
Quick answer
tawk.to is free with no conversation or seat limits, and charges only for extras: $29 a month to remove branding, AI Assist from $29 a month, and hired chat agents at $1 an hour. Tidio's free plan covers 50 human conversations a month; paid plans start at $29, and Lyro AI from $39 for 50 AI conversations. For pure free chat, tawk.to wins.
What you get for $0
tawk.to's free plan is unlimited in conversations and agents; Tidio's free plan caps human-answered conversations at 50 a month. Both are real products, not trials.
| On the free plan | tawk.to | Tidio |
|---|---|---|
| Live chat widget | Yes, unlimited | Yes |
| Conversations answered by your team | Unlimited | 50 a month |
| Seats | Unlimited agents | Up to 10 |
| Ticketing | Yes, free | Yes |
| Knowledge base | Yes, free hosted help center | Not on the plan card |
| AI | Forever-free AI Assist plan for low chat volume | 50 Lyro conversations once, for life |
| Automation | Shortcut FAQs used by AI Assist | 100 Flows visitors a month |
| Branding | "Powered by tawk.to" label stays unless you pay $29 a month | Custom branding is listed on Tidio's Plus plan |
Checked October 2026 on tawk.to's pricing page and Tidio's pricing page. tawk.to says most of its users stay on the free tier. For a shop that gets a few chats a day and answers them by hand, either is enough; once you pass 50 a month, Tidio's free plan runs out and tawk.to's does not.
How each one makes money
tawk.to gives the software away and charges for services; Tidio charges for usage. That shapes everything else.
- tawk.to earns from optional extras: removing its branding, AI Assist, and people it trains to answer chats for you. Its pricing page argues that this beats the per-seat model most chat vendors use.
- Tidio earns from conversation tiers, Lyro AI tiers and Flows tiers. The more chats your team or AI handles, the more you pay.
Neither model is a trick. tawk.to is cheaper the more chats you have; Tidio offers more polished store automation and a more developed AI product for the money.
Paid add-ons and plans
tawk.to extras
- Remove branding: $29 a month.
- AI Assist: from $29 a month, plus a forever-free plan for low volume.
- Hired chat agents: $1 an hour.
- Virtual assistants: from $7 an hour.
Tidio plans
- Starter: $29 a month for 100 conversations.
- Growth: from $59 for 250, up to 2,000.
- Lyro AI: from $39 a month for 50 AI conversations.
- Flows: from $24.17 a month (annual) for 2,000 visitors.
Tidio's annual billing gives two months free, and its trial is 7 days with no card. tawk.to's pricing page does not list higher AI Assist tiers, so ask what allowance the $29 plan includes for your volume. Our tawk.to pricing guide and Tidio pricing guide go deeper on each.
AI Assist versus Lyro
Both AIs answer website visitors from your own content. Lyro has the more detailed public pricing; AI Assist has the lower starting price.
tawk.to describes AI Assist as an AI chatbot that answers chats around the clock using your knowledge base and a set of shortcut FAQs. Tidio's Lyro answers from your help content and website and hands over to a person when it cannot help; it costs about $0.70 to $0.78 per AI conversation on monthly tiers, per our Tidio pricing guide. Tidio says Lyro averages a 75% resolution rate across its customers, which is Tidio's own figure.
Human cover: hired agents versus your own team
tawk.to offers something Tidio does not: trained human agents who answer chats for you at $1 an hour.
Covering every hour of a 30-day month would cost about $720 at that rate, or $120 to cover 4 evening hours a day. That can be useful for a business that wants a human voice on chat without hiring, though you are trusting an outside agent with your customers, so brief them well and check transcripts. With Tidio, all human answers come from your own team, and AI is the only way to cover nights.
Does either one handle WhatsApp?
Tidio includes WhatsApp on every plan with a clear allowance; tawk.to lists WhatsApp among its supported channels, but publishes less detail.
Tidio gives each connected WhatsApp number 1,000 free support messages a month, including Lyro replies, then bills at the local WhatsApp rate with no Tidio markup and an optional spending cap, per Tidio's WhatsApp page. tawk.to's AI Assist page lists WhatsApp alongside live chat, email, Facebook, SMS and ticketing; check in your dashboard how it connects and whether message fees apply. Behind both sit Meta's rules: since 1 October 2026, service replies are charged after 1,000 free per number each month on the official platform.
A tuition center's month, priced
A hypothetical tuition center gets about 300 website chats a month, mostly about fees, timetables and trial classes. It wants AI to answer after hours and the owner to reply in the day. About 120 chats need a person; the AI handles the rest.
| Line | tawk.to | Tidio |
|---|---|---|
| Live chat for 120 human chats | Free | Growth at 250, $59 (Starter covers only 100) |
| AI for about 180 chats | AI Assist from $29 | Lyro at 200, about $140 |
| Remove branding | Optional, $29 | Not on these tiers |
| Total a month | $29 to $58 | About $199 |
tawk.to is clearly cheaper here, provided AI Assist's starting plan covers 180 conversations; confirm that before you rely on the number. Tidio costs more but gives you more detailed AI pricing, store-oriented flows and a WhatsApp allowance spelled out on its site.
Which one to install
| Your priority | Choose |
|---|---|
| Spend nothing on live chat, ever | tawk.to |
| Free help center and ticketing | tawk.to |
| Humans answering chats without hiring | tawk.to hired agents |
| Polished store automation and Shopify flows | Tidio |
| Clear per-conversation AI pricing | Tidio |
| A clear WhatsApp allowance and cost | Tidio |
Comparing more widely? See our lists of tawk.to alternatives and free AI chatbots for websites.
When chat on your website is not the main channel
We build ReplyKit, so this section is our own interest. Many small businesses find most enquiries arrive on WhatsApp, not the website widget. ReplyKit answers both from your own content, books appointments into real open slots and flags hot leads, for $29, $49 or $99 a month with AI replies included and no Meta fees.
It is not free, and it connects WhatsApp by QR code as a linked device, an unofficial route Meta does not sanction, so a number can be restricted; a dedicated number is safer. It has no hired agents, help center or ticketing. If free website chat is all you need, tawk.to or Tidio is the better pick. If WhatsApp is where the questions are, try ReplyKit free for 7 days.
Frequently asked questions
Is tawk.to really free?
Yes. tawk.to's live chat, ticketing and knowledge base are free with no limit on conversations or agents. It charges for optional extras: removing its branding at $29 a month, AI Assist from $29 a month, and hired chat agents at $1 an hour.
Is Tidio free?
Tidio has a free plan with 50 human-answered conversations a month, 100 Flows visitors and 50 Lyro AI conversations once. Paid plans start at $29 a month for 100 conversations.
Which has better AI, Tidio or tawk.to?
Tidio's Lyro is the more established product with detailed pricing, about $0.70 to $0.78 per AI conversation. tawk.to's AI Assist starts lower at $29 a month with a free plan for low volume. Test both with your own questions.
Can tawk.to answer WhatsApp messages?
tawk.to's AI Assist page lists WhatsApp among its supported channels. Check in your dashboard how the connection works and whether message fees apply, because the pricing page does not explain it.
How do I remove tawk.to branding?
tawk.to charges $29 a month to remove the Powered by tawk.to label. If you keep the label, the software stays free.
Is tawk.to safe to use for a business?
tawk.to is widely used and free because it earns from add-ons and services. As with any chat tool, review its privacy terms, avoid collecting sensitive data in chat, and check any hired agents' transcripts.
Most questions arriving on WhatsApp?
ReplyKit answers WhatsApp and website chat from your own content and books appointments. Start a 7-day free trial, no credit card.
Sources and further reading
- tawk.to, Pricing · free software, $29 branding removal, AI Assist from $29, $1 an hour hired agents, virtual assistants from $7 an hour, checked October 2026
- tawk.to, AI Assist · what AI Assist does and the channels it lists, including WhatsApp
- Tidio, Pricing · free plan limits, paid plans, Lyro and Flows starting prices, trial
- Tidio, WhatsApp integration · 1,000 free support messages per number, local rates with no markup
- Meta, WhatsApp Business Platform pricing · service message charges after 1,000 free per number from 1 October 2026
ReplyKit is an independent product and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Meta or WhatsApp. Prices and features for other vendors are taken from their public pages as checked in October 2026 and may change. This article is general guidance, not financial or legal advice.