tawk.to alternatives, with real prices
tawk.to is free, and for many sites it's the right choice. These are the tools we'd look at if we were leaving it, with what each costs for one website and what each does better. We make one of them, Pidge, so read our part with that in mind.
Prices in US dollars, checked on 2 November 2026 on each vendor's own pages. Sources are linked at the end. Prices change, so check before you buy.
Why people look past tawk.to
The chat itself costs nothing, for any number of agents, chats and websites. The reasons to move are usually these:
- The badge. Every widget says "Powered by tawk.to". Removing it is an add-on, paid per website. tawk.to's help centre lists it at $39 a month, or $348 a year. Its pricing page says $29 a month, which is the yearly price split over 12 months. That's why other sites quote different numbers. If you pay month to month, it's $39.
- The add-ons. tawk.to earns its money from extras: AI Assist from $29 a month, video and voice at $49 a month, and hired agents from $1 an hour. Each is priced per website.
- Where data is kept. tawk.to stores data in Google data centres in the United States.
-
Ad blockers. AdGuard's widget filter blocks
embed.tawk.toon almost every site, so some visitors never see the chat. - Page speed. Every chat widget adds code to every page. If your page-speed score dropped after adding one, it's worth testing the others on your own site before you pick. In our test of ten widgets, tawk.to added about 260 KB to a blank page before anyone opened the chat.
If none of these bother you, staying on tawk.to is a fine answer.
The short list
| Free plan | Paid plans start at | Removing the branding | Data in Europe | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| tawk.to | Yes, no limit on agents, chats or sites | The chat is free. Add-ons are priced per website. | $39 a month, or $348 a year | No, stored in the US |
| Pidge | Yes: 1 website, 2 people replying | $10 per website a month | Not possible yet, on any plan | Yes, in Norway |
| Crisp | Yes, 2 seats | $45 a month (Mini, 4 seats) | On Plus, $295 a month | Yes |
| Tidio | Yes, 50 conversations a month | $29 a month for 100 conversations | A paid add-on on Growth (from $59 a month), or included on Plus | Yes |
| Chatwoot | Yes, 2 agents, or self-host it for free | $19 per agent a month | Self-hosted: on Premium, $19 per agent a month | Cloud is in the US. Self-hosted is wherever you run it. |
| Smartsupp | Yes, 1 operator, 25 conversations a month | $24 a month (Solo, 1 operator), or $17 billed yearly | Not possible, on any plan | Mostly, by Smartsupp's own account |
| Zoho SalesIQ | Yes, 3 operators, 100 chats a month | $10 per operator a month, or $7 billed yearly | Not stated on its pricing page | Yes, if you sign up from a European country |
What three people on one website pay
Month-to-month prices, for a small team answering chat on one site:
- tawk.to: $0, or $39 to remove the "Powered by tawk.to" badge.
- Pidge: $10. The free plan covers one or two people. The "Chat by Pidge" link stays either way.
- Crisp: $45 on Mini. Removing the Crisp badge means Plus, at $295.
- Tidio: $0 up to 50 conversations a month, $29 up to 100, $59 up to 250. Removing the Tidio badge is an extra add-on on Growth.
- Chatwoot Cloud: $57 on Startups, 3 × $19. The free plan stops at 2 agents. Self-hosted, it's free plus the cost of a server.
- Smartsupp: $35 on Plus, which has 3 operators, or $25 a month billed yearly. The free plan has 1 operator.
- Zoho SalesIQ: $0 on the free plan, which has 3 operators but only 100 chats a month. Basic is $30, 3 × $10.
Pidge
Our own. A chat widget and a shared inbox that also installs on your phone, free for one website with two people replying. The paid plan is $10 per website a month, with no limit on people or chats. Chats are stored on servers in Norway. The script on every page is 4.8 KB, and the rest of the chat loads only when someone opens it.
Good at
- Staying light on pages where nobody opens the chat.
- Showing up for visitors who use AdGuard's widget filter. It can load from your own subdomain.
- API keys and webhooks from the inbox, with no need to ask first.
- Replies by email when a visitor has left, on both plans. Translation both ways on the paid plan.
Worth knowing
- If the badge is why you're leaving tawk.to, Pidge doesn't fix that yet. Every widget shows a small "Chat by Pidge" link.
- Website chat only: no WhatsApp, Instagram or email inbox, no ticketing and no knowledge base.
- No AI agent of its own. Your bot can answer through the API.
- The phone inbox installs from the browser. There's no app store app.
- It can't import your tawk.to chat history.
Pidge and tawk.to, side by side
Crisp
A chat widget and shared inbox from France, priced per workspace rather than per seat, with a free plan for two people.
Good at
- A free plan with 2 seats, and a flat $45 a month for up to 4.
- Data stored in the EU.
- A REST API, a JavaScript SDK and webhooks, which many plugins are built on.
Worth knowing
- Removing "We run on Crisp" needs Plus, at $295 a month. It stays on during a trial.
- The free plan keeps 100 customer profiles and has no AI credits.
- Extra seats are $10 a month each.
Crisp alternatives · Pidge and Crisp, side by side
Tidio
Live chat with an AI agent, Lyro, and a flow builder. Plans are priced by billable conversations, meaning conversations a person on your team replies to.
Good at
- Lyro answers on its own, and the first 50 Lyro conversations are free.
- Shopify stores: it has native Shopify actions.
- Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp and email in the same inbox.
- Up to 10 seats on every self-serve plan, free included.
Worth knowing
- The free plan stops at 50 conversations a month. A busy site outgrows it fast.
- Free and Starter show Tidio branding. Removing it is an add-on on Growth, which starts at $59 a month.
- Lyro beyond the free 50 is billed on top: $39 a month for 50 AI conversations.
Chatwoot
An open-source support inbox. Use their cloud, or run it on your own server for free. This is the pick for people who left tawk.to because they want control over their data.
Good at
- Self-hosting, so your data stays wherever you put it.
- Many channels: website, email, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.
- A full REST API and webhooks.
- Mobile apps that also work with a self-hosted install.
Worth knowing
- The cloud is priced per agent: $19, $39 or $99 a month each.
- The free cloud plan has 2 agents, 500 conversations a month and 30 days of history.
- Chatwoot Cloud is hosted in the United States.
- Custom branding on a self-hosted install is on Premium, $19 per agent a month.
- Self-hosting means you look after updates and backups.
Smartsupp
Live chat from the Czech Republic, built for online shops. Plans are priced per account, with a set number of operators.
Good at
- Unlimited conversations on every paid plan.
- Live chat, WhatsApp, Messenger and email in one place.
- Apps for iPhone, Android and Windows.
- Data stored mainly in the EU.
Worth knowing
- The free plan has 1 operator, 25 conversations a month and 14 days of history.
- Month to month: Solo $24 (1 operator), Plus $35 (3), Expert $117 (5). Yearly billing is about 30% less.
- Smartsupp's help centre says the "Powered by Smartsupp" logo can't be removed on any plan.
- The API is on Plus and up.
Zoho SalesIQ
Zoho's live chat, priced per operator. A good fit if you already use Zoho CRM or Zoho Desk.
Good at
- The free plan has 3 operators, more than most.
- Visitor tracking and lead scoring on the paid plans.
- Chatbots, audio calls and screen sharing from Basic up.
- EU data centres, in Amsterdam and Dublin.
Worth knowing
- The free plan has only 100 operator chats a month.
- Per operator, month to month: Basic $10, Professional $17, Enterprise $25. Yearly billing is $7, $12.75 and $20.
- Basic caps you at 1,000 operator chats a month. Unlimited starts at Professional.
- Your data centre follows the country you pick at signup, so pick it with care.
Sources
- tawk.to, checked 2 November 2026: add-on pricing, pricing page, FAQs, AI Assist billing, where data is hosted
- Crisp, checked 2 November 2026: pricing, removing Crisp branding, Crisp EU GDPR compliance status
- Tidio, checked 2 November 2026: pricing, FAQ
- Chatwoot, checked 2 November 2026: cloud pricing, self-hosted plans, privacy policy, mobile apps
- Smartsupp, checked 2 November 2026: pricing, removing the logo, security and data storage
- Zoho SalesIQ, checked 2 November 2026: pricing, Zoho data centres
- Ad blockers: the AdGuard widget filter, checked 24 October 2026. More on which lists block chat widgets.
- Pidge: pricing
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More comparisons: Pidge vs tawk.to · Crisp alternatives · Pidge vs Crisp
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