Best Live Chat Software
Let’s face it; live chat is the most effective customer support system. Sure, email and telephone support get the work done, but if you want to increase the support efficiency while enhancing the user-experience on your website, live chat is the way to go. Furthermore, live chat support has never been easier to set up.
There are hundreds of live chat software options available, but unfortunately, many of them are subpar. That is why I have put together following list of best live chat software for all those of you who prefer live chat over live phone answering services. I evaluated the features, support, pricing, performance and other minor factors of few top live chat support systems to pick out these bests.
I also have a compact, but comprehensive review for each of these.
Without further ado, let's look at what top 10 live chat companies have on the offer.
1. LiveChat
LiveChat is a hugely popular live chat software. More than 22,000 companies from all around the world are using their services. They have a top-notch software with clean and straightforward visuals.
Features – LiveChat comes with a ton of features. Automatic greetings, chat window themes, reports and analytics, applications for different devices and feedback tools are just some of the many features you can get if you sign up for LiveChat services.
Customer support – LiveChat offers an excellent customer support service on their website as well. Of course, they are available via live chat, but there are also other ways you could solve your problems.
LiveChat has an extensive FAQ section where you could find answers to all of your questions.
Free trial – LiveChat offers a 30-day free trial period, which is more than enough to test all of their features.
Pricing – When it comes to pricing plans, LiveChat offers five of them. Starting with the Starter plan, which is intended for small or home businesses, and ending with the Enterprise Plus plan, which can efficiently serve Fortune 500 companies.
The cheapest plan costs $16, and the most expensive one is $149 when billed annually.
Pros
- A wide set of features
- Beautiful design
- Intuitive software
Cons
- Limited customization with cheaper plans
- Starter plan has a 60-day chat history limit
2. LiveAgent
Another awesome live chat solution comes from the company called LiveAgent. Some big-names like BMW, Huawei, and Yamaha use their services.
So, let’s see what they have to offer.
Features – LiveAgent offers a plethora of features. In fact, they have too many features to go over all of them here, so we will just highlight a couple of important ones.
First, LiveAgent has a real-time live chat. Second, they offer popular social media integrations. Third, you will be able to customize your live chat as much as you want. Finally, LiveAgent has powerful analytics tools that will help you measure your customers’ satisfaction.
Customer support – If you come across any problem, you will be able to contact the LiveAgent customer support team through a phone call, email, and of course, live chat.
Free trial – LiveAgent offers a 14-day all-inclusive free trial period. That means that you will get to test all of their features and services without any limitations.
Pricing – LiveAgent has two different pricing plans for their live chat software. The first one is the Ticket+Chat plan, which will cost you $29 per month. The second one is the All-Inclusive plan, which comes just under $60 per month.
Pros
- Powerful live chat software
- Affordable pricing plans
- Trusted name in the industry
Cons
- Disappointing customer support
- Text editor lacks some features
3. Userlike
If you are basing your selection just on live chat software reviews, then Userlike would be one of the best options. Don’t get us wrong, Userlike is a fantastic company, and they offer one of the best pieces of live chat software. Still, let’s have a more detailed look at what they have to offer.
Features – LiveAgent comes with all features that you come to expect from a top company. They have tons of customization options, spectacular visuals, extensive analytics tools, and much, much more.
Customer support – You can contact Userlike by phone, live chat, and email. Furthermore, if you don’t feel like talking, you can find all necessary information on their FAQ page.
Free trial – Userlike offers a 14-day free trial period, and you won’t have to submit any billing information.
Pricing – Userlike is one of the rare companies that offer free live chat software. Additionally, they also offer a paid version, which is a lot more powerful. The cheapest plan, besides the free one, will cost you $29 per month.
Pros
- Has a free version
- Tons of features
- Beautiful visuals
Cons
- Not so user-friendly
- Free version extremely limited
4. PureChat
PureChat is the best free live chat software available right now. If you are on a tight budget but still want to be one of those companies with live chat support, then PureChat might be the perfect solution for you.
Features – PureChat might seem simple at first glance, but an impressive software is under the hood. It has all necessary features like analytics tools, customization options, apps for different platforms, regular updates, and so on.
Customer support – If you have a question for PureChat, you can contact them via live chat and email. Alternatively, you can find some answers on their FAQ page.
Free trial – As we said, PureChat is an entirely free platform. You just need to create an account on their website, and you are good to go.
Pricing – Even though PureChat is an entirely free software, they are also selling an upgraded version called PureChat PRO. It comes with some extra features, and it will cost you $99 per month. Moreover, you will get a 30-day money back guarantee, in case you are not satisfied with PRO features,
Pros
- Completely free live chat software
- Easy to use
- Wide variety of features
Cons
- Expensive PRO version
5. Chatra
Chatra is simply a spectacular free real-time live chat software. Its free version takes care of everything, but if you want to upgrade, you will get to do so for a reasonable price unlike with PureChat. So, let’s take a closer look at those features.
Features – Chatra has a massive number of features. Surprisingly, even their free version is impressive and comes with a lot of customization options and live chat tools. For example, you can get to view your complete chat history, which is a feature normally found in paid software.
Customer support – If you have any questions for Chatra’s staff, you can ask them via email or live chat.
Free trial – Chatra has no free trial period. Instead, it has an entirely free version, which is better even than some premium software.
Pricing – Chatra’s paid version will cost you $15 per agent/month. The per-agent payment system is great for small companies, but it can get quite expensive for larger ones.
Pros
- Superb free version
- Cheap upgrade to the Pro version
- Extensive set of features
Cons
- Small number of integrations
6. Zendesk Chat
Zendesk Chat will help you reach your customers via web, mobile, and messaging. They have a fantastic software with gorgeous design and intuitive interface. Furthermore, Zendesk Chat is suitable both for small and big companies.
Features – Zendesk Chat comes with a wide selection of features like ticketing system, community forums, analytics tools, offline forms, customization options, and much, much more.
Customer support – Zendesk customer support is easy to reach. They are available via phone call, live chat, and contact form.
Free trial – Zendesk Chat offers a 30-day free trial period, where you can test all of their features with no limitations.
Pricing – Zendesk Chat’s cheapest plan is free, but it is incredibly bare-bones. You should at least subscribe to the Team plan, which is $14/month. On the other hand, the most expensive plan is the Enterprise plan, and it costs $59/month.
Pros
- Gorgeous design and visuals
- Responsive customer support
- Wide selection of features
- 30-day free trial
Cons
- Bare-bones free plan
7. Zoho Desk
Zoho Desk is one of the best live chat solutions available right now. Their services are used by some of the most prominent companies in the world like Intel and Sears. Additionally, they offer a fantastic free plan, as well as a reasonably priced paid plan.
Features – Zoho Desk comes with an excellent set of tools and features to help you organize your live chat support. The best part about Zoho is their approach to tickets. The Zoho Desk app is arranged by which phase of the sales cycle the customer is in. That means you will get more context about the ticket so that you can answer it with more precision.
Customer support – Zoho Desk has a superb customer support, and you can reach them by phone and email.
Free trial – Zoho Desk has a free version, which is a little bit lackluster. However, they also offer a free 15-day trial for their paid versions.
Pricing – The only plan that comes with a live chat is the Enterprise plan, and it costs $25/month.
Pros
- Reliable and secure software
- Powerful set of features
- Reasonable pricing
Cons
- Live chat support only in the Enterprise plan
- Lacklustre free version
8. Olark
As they state on their website, Olark will help you make your business “human”. More than 12,000 companies from every corner of the earth use their live chat app, so they must be doing something right.
Features – Olark has all fan-favorite live chat features like customization options, real-time reporting, automated messages, unlimited conversations, searchable transcripts, real-time chat, as well as some analytics tools.
Customer support – If you need help, you can reach the customer support team via live chat, email or phone call.
Free trial – Olark has a 2-week free trial period. However, they also offer a forever-free plan, which comes with one agent, 20 chats per month and some basic features.
Pricing – Olark offers three different pricing plans. $17-plan that is billed monthly, $15-plan billed yearly, and $12-plan billed every two years.
Pros
- Great live chat app with tons of features
- Cheap plans
- Responsive customer support
Cons
- Bare-bones free version
- Simple customization options
9. Tawk
Tawk is a 100% free live chat application for websites. With it, you will get to monitor, chat, and interact with the visitors on your website. So, let’s see what the hype is all about.
Features – Unlike some other free live chat solutions, Tawk doesn’t lock features behind the paywall. Their free version is feature packed. From real-time monitoring to the built-in ticketing system, Tawk truly has it all.
Customer support – You can contact Tawk staff through all of their social media accounts, as well as via live chat.
Free trial – There is no need for a free trial if you have a completely free software; don’t you agree?
Pricing – Tawk won’t bill you for additional features. However, if you want to remove their branding from the apps, you will have to pay $15/month when paid monthly, or $9/month when paid on an annual basis.
Pros
- Completely free app
- Easy to use
- Powerful set of features
Cons
- No cons worth mentioning
10. LivePerson
LivePerson software is a fantastic solution if you want to transform customer care from voice calls to mobile messaging. It has clients of all sizes, from small home businesses to Fortune 500 companies.
Features – This Live Chat software comes packed with powerful features like mobile and web messaging, robust analytics system, real-time analysis, and much more.
Customer support – If you wish to talk to LivePerson’s staff, you can contact them via live chat and email.
Free trial – There is no free trial period.
Pricing – LivePerson doesn’t have any pre-built pricing plans. Instead, they offer a free quote after which they will create a custom pricing plan just for your business.
Pros
- Trusted and reliable software
- Wide selection of features
Cons
- No free trial period
Conclusion
As you can see, live chat software comes in many different shapes and sizes. While the core features remain the same, live chat companies try to outdo one another by offering better pricing plans, extensive customization options, as well as fast and reliable services. So, it will be up to you to choose the one that suits your needs.
Finally, for more articles, reviews, and other website builder content, we recommend hopping by our website. Our team is publishing fresh and new content regularly.
[…] Live chat software is usually set up to help customers navigate the website or get quick responses to general questions. It acts as a virtual help desk for customers interested in purchasing items or just visiting a physical store. […]