Best Intercom Alternatives for 2026

Intercom's pricing made sense when your team was three people. Now you're paying $39 per seat per month on the Essential plan — and that's before the $0.99-per-resolution fee for Fin AI kicks in. A 10-person support team running 2,000 AI resolutions per month faces a bill north of $2,300. If the cost is growing faster than your support quality, these seven alternatives deliver more for less.

Why Teams Leave Intercom

The frustration follows a pattern. Teams sign up for Intercom's polished UI and powerful automation, then hit the same walls:

Per-resolution AI pricing. Fin charges $0.99 per AI resolution. At volume, that single line item rivals the cost of the entire platform. Teams with 5,000+ monthly conversations report AI costs exceeding their seat fees (source: Reddit r/SaaS).

WhatsApp as a premium add-on. Intercom supports WhatsApp, but it's not native. You pay extra per conversation, configuration requires technical setup, and the experience never matches their web widget.

Seat-based scaling pain. Every new agent means another $39–$99/month. Growing teams hit $500+/month before adding any extras. Contrast this with tools that charge per conversation or offer flat rates.

12-month contracts on higher tiers. The Advanced and Expert plans require annual commitments, locking you in even if the platform stops fitting your needs.

Feature bloat. Intercom has grown into a sprawling platform with product tours, email campaigns, and a help center bundled in. Teams that only need conversational support end up paying for tools they never open. According to G2's Intercom reviews, "overwhelming complexity" and "too many features" appear consistently in negative feedback.

What We Evaluated

We tested each alternative against seven criteria that matter most when replacing Intercom:

1. Transparent pricing — no hidden fees, no per-resolution charges
2. WhatsApp support — native, not bolted on
3. AI capabilities — beyond rule-based bots
4. Setup speed — minutes, not weeks
5. Lead capture — built-in, not requiring third-party forms
6. Multi-channel deployment — website, WhatsApp, Slack from one platform
7. Free tier or trial — test before committing

7 Best Intercom Alternatives

1. Andy Partner

Andy isn't a single chatbot — it's a multi-agent platform. Create separate AI agents for support (website widget), sales (WhatsApp), and internal knowledge (Slack), each with its own training data and personality. WhatsApp is a first-class channel, not an afterthought.

Pros

• Deploy multiple agents across website, WhatsApp, and Slack simultaneously
• Built-in lead scoring detects pricing questions and demo requests mid-conversation
• Predictable pricing with no per-resolution fees

Cons

• Newer platform with a smaller integration ecosystem than Intercom
• Advanced analytics still maturing

Pricing: Free tier available. Paid plans start with 2,000 messages/month. See pricing and plans.

Best for: SMBs that need WhatsApp as a primary support and sales channel. One customer cut repetitive support questions by 60% in the first month after deploying Andy agents.

2. Freshchat (Freshworks)

Freshchat plugs into the broader Freshworks ecosystem — CRM, helpdesk, marketing automation. If you already use Freshdesk or Freshsales, the integration is seamless. Their Freddy AI handles common queries and routes complex ones to agents.

Pros

• Deep CRM integration through the Freshworks suite
• Freddy AI for auto-resolution and agent assist
• Supports WhatsApp, Apple Business Chat, and Facebook Messenger

Cons

• Freddy AI capabilities locked behind higher-tier plans
• WhatsApp requires separate Freshworks add-on pricing

Pricing: Free tier for up to 10 agents. Growth plan starts at $19/agent/month (as of 2026).

Best for: Teams already invested in the Freshworks ecosystem.

3. Crisp

Crisp targets startups and small teams with a clean interface and generous free tier. The shared inbox, knowledge base, and chatbot builder cover core needs without complexity. Their co-browsing feature lets agents see exactly what customers see — useful for troubleshooting.

Pros

• Free plan supports 2 agents with live chat and inbox
• Co-browsing and video calls built in
• Clean, modern UI with fast setup

Cons

• AI capabilities are basic compared to Intercom's Fin
• WhatsApp integration only available on the Unlimited plan ($95/month per workspace)

Pricing: Free for 2 seats. Pro at $25/month per workspace. Unlimited at $95/month per workspace (as of 2026).

Best for: Early-stage startups wanting a free, capable live chat tool.

4. HubSpot Chat

HubSpot's live chat and chatbot tools come free with the CRM. For teams already running marketing and sales through HubSpot, adding chat means zero new vendors. The chatbot builder uses visual flows, and conversations feed directly into contact records.

Pros

• Completely free with HubSpot CRM
• Chatbot builder with visual flow editor
• Every conversation enriches CRM contact data automatically

Cons

• Advanced bot features require Service Hub Professional ($450/month)
• WhatsApp integration requires Marketing Hub Professional or higher
• AI chatbot quality trails purpose-built tools

Pricing: Free live chat with CRM. Service Hub Starter at $20/month. Professional at $450/month (as of 2026).

Best for: Teams already using HubSpot for marketing and sales.

5. Tawk.to

Tawk.to is completely free — no paid tiers, no usage limits. They monetize through optional hired agents ($1/hour) and a paid AI assist add-on. If your primary need is live chat without a budget, Tawk.to delivers with surprising depth: ticketing, a knowledge base, and 45+ language support.

Pros

• 100% free with unlimited agents and chat volume
• Built-in ticketing, knowledge base, and screen sharing
• Optional hired-agent service for overflow

Cons

• No native WhatsApp integration
• AI capabilities require the paid AI Assist add-on
• Branding removal costs $29/month

Pricing: Free. AI Assist and branding removal are paid add-ons.

Best for: Budget-conscious teams that need basic live chat and ticketing.

6. Chatwoot

Chatwoot is open-source, self-hostable customer engagement software. For teams with technical resources who want full control over their data, Chatwoot offers WhatsApp, email, Telegram, and website chat from one inbox. The self-hosted version is free forever.

Pros

• Open-source with self-hosting option (free)
• Native WhatsApp via the official Cloud API
• Supports 15+ channels including Telegram and Line

Cons

• Self-hosting requires DevOps resources
• AI features are community-contributed and less polished
• Smaller support community than commercial tools

Pricing: Self-hosted: free. Cloud: starts at $19/agent/month (as of 2026).

Best for: Technical teams wanting data sovereignty and self-hosting.

7. LiveChat

LiveChat has been in the live chat space since 2002. The product is mature, reliable, and focused on one thing: real-time customer conversations. Their ChatBot add-on (separate product) handles automation, while LiveChat handles the human side.

Pros

• Battle-tested reliability with 99.99% uptime SLA
• Rich analytics and reporting out of the box
• 200+ integrations including Salesforce, Shopify, and WordPress

Cons

• AI chatbot sold as a separate product (ChatBot by LiveChat)
• No free tier — starts at $20/agent/month
• WhatsApp integration only on the Business plan ($59/agent/month)

Pricing: Starter at $20/agent/month. Business at $59/agent/month (as of 2026).

Best for: E-commerce teams needing rock-solid live chat with deep integrations.

Quick Comparison

Here's how these Intercom alternatives compare on the criteria that matter most:

Best Alternative by Use Case

Not every team has the same priorities. Here's which tool fits which situation:

• Best for WhatsApp-first businesses: Andy Partner — WhatsApp is native, not an add-on, and lead capture works across all channels
• Best free option with no limits: Tawk.to — unlimited agents, unlimited chats, zero cost
• Best for Freshworks users: Freshchat — seamless CRM and helpdesk integration
• Best for data control: Chatwoot — self-host your entire customer support stack
• Best for HubSpot teams: HubSpot Chat — already included with the free CRM
• Best all-rounder for SMBs: Andy Partner — multi-agent architecture, predictable pricing, and channels that matter

How to Switch from Intercom Without Losing Data

Switching doesn't have to be a cliff jump. Most teams run both tools in parallel for two weeks:

1. Export your Intercom data — conversations, contacts, and help center articles all export as CSV or JSON from Settings → Data Management.
2. Set up your new tool on one channel first — start with your website widget or WhatsApp, not everything at once.
3. Migrate your knowledge base — most alternatives accept markdown or HTML imports. Andy Partner lets you upload documents directly to train each agent.
4. Run parallel for 1–2 weeks — compare response quality, resolution speed, and agent satisfaction side by side.
5. Cut over — redirect your widget code, update WhatsApp Business API settings, and cancel your Intercom subscription before the next billing cycle.

The biggest risk isn't the migration itself — it's waiting too long and absorbing another quarter of escalating Intercom costs. If your AI chatbot ROI doesn't justify the spend, the math is straightforward.

Make the Switch

Intercom built a category, but you don't have to pay category-leader prices to get great customer messaging. Every tool on this list offers a free tier or trial — pick two that match your needs, test them with real conversations, and compare the results.

Ready to try a WhatsApp-first approach? Start your free trial and deploy an AI agent in minutes.