ChatwootIntercomChatwoot vs Intercom

Chatwoot vs Intercom: $190 or $850 for ten people

An open-source customer support platform against a customer messaging platform: Chatwoot is $330 a month cheaper for five people. Where Chatwoot and Intercom split, and a third option for small teams.

By Khalid Nouri, founder of SellioPricing check dates are listed with each vendor below

Try the third optionSellio pricing

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The short answer

Pick Chatwoot if you want to self-host and own the data, and have someone to run it. Pick Intercom if your support lives in the website messenger and in-app, and you want product tours and outbound messages in the same tool. For five people, Chatwoot is $330 a month cheaper than Intercom ($95 a month on Chatwoot against $425 on Intercom), before AI. Sellio Mini, at $45, comes in $50 below Chatwoot. Chatwoot and Intercom both include website chat and email in the price; only Chatwoot has WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram. Between them Chatwoot and Intercom cover every channel Sellio ships. For a team of two to ten weighing Chatwoot against Intercom, the third option below puts chat and tickets at one workspace price.

At a glanceChatwootChatwootIntercomIntercom
Built aroundOne inbox, self-hostable · open sourceThe Messenger · tickets came later
Entry plan$19/agent/mo · Startups, yearly$29/seat/mo · Essential: inbox and Messenger
Chat in the price$0 · Hacker: 2 agents, website only$29/seat/mo · Essential, with tickets
AI agent$20 per 1,000 credits · Captain, after the plan's allowanceFrom $0.99 per outcome · Fin, printed on the pricing page
Copilot for agentsIn Captain · credits$29/agent/mo
Free planYes · 2 agents, 500 conversationsNone · 14-day trial

The six differences that decide it

Everything else on this page follows from these.

  1. 01

    Where a conversation starts

    ChatwootChatwoot

    As a conversation in one inbox, whatever the channel, with labels and assignment rather than a ticket. Intercom raises a ticket where Chatwoot keeps a conversation.

    IntercomIntercom

    As a message in the Messenger, with ticketing available from Essential. Chatwoot has no ticket queue behind its conversations.

  2. 02

    What the seat buys

    ChatwootChatwoot

    $19 buys every channel on Startups; the Hacker plan is free for two agents on website chat only. $95 for five people, against $425 on Intercom.

    IntercomIntercom

    $29 buys the inbox, Messenger and ticketing. Advanced at $85 adds workflows and round-robin routing. $425 for five people, against $95 on Chatwoot.

  3. 03

    How the AI is billed

    ChatwootChatwoot

    Captain, the AI agent, runs on credits: 300 a month on Startups, 500 on Business, then $20 per 1,000. Intercom meters AI (from $0.99 per outcome) above the seats as well.

    IntercomIntercom

    Fin is $0.99 or more per outcome on every plan, printed on the pricing page, on top of seats. Chatwoot meters AI ($20 per 1,000 credits) above the seats as well.

  4. 04

    Channels in the price

    ChatwootChatwoot

    Website, email, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram, SMS, Messenger, TikTok and Line on the paid plans. WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram are here and not on Intercom.

    IntercomIntercom

    Messenger and email on every plan; WhatsApp, SMS and phone are pay-as-you-go lines. Chatwoot adds WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram, which Intercom lacks.

  5. 05

    Beyond the inbox

    ChatwootChatwoot

    Self-hosting on your own servers, an open API and a help center; no campaigns or contact center. Intercom is a customer messaging platform instead.

    IntercomIntercom

    Product tours, banners, surveys and outbound campaigns; Proactive Support Plus is $99 a month. Chatwoot is an open-source customer support platform instead.

  6. 06

    Time to the first reply

    ChatwootChatwoot

    An afternoon on the cloud; a day or two self-hosted. Intercom is an afternoon for a website-first team.

    IntercomIntercom

    An afternoon for a website-first team: install the Messenger, invite the team, answer. Chatwoot is an afternoon on the cloud.

Sources: Chatwoot pricing · Intercom pricing. Each vendor’s own comparison of the other is linked so you can weigh both sides against ours.

What each one looks like

A look at the agent workspace. Interfaces can vary by plan and product version.

The Chatwoot inbox: the conversation list with channel icons and the contact panel
ChatwootChatwoot. The Chatwoot inbox: the conversation list with channel icons and the contact panel
The Intercom Inbox: a conversation list with the Messenger thread and the customer profile
IntercomIntercom. The Intercom Inbox: a conversation list with the Messenger thread and the customer profile

What your team would pay

Move the sliders. Yearly-billing rates from each vendor’s pricing page, next to Sellio’s plan for the same number of seats.

5 people who answer customers

50

300 Captain credits on Chatwoot, Fin outcomes on Intercom

3000+
ChatwootChatwoot

$95/mo

All channels, 300 Captain credits a month.

5 × $19 seats
$95
0 Captain credits × $0.02
$0

Yearly billing; monthly costs more. $20 per 1,000 Captain credits beyond the plan's allowance; a reply uses at least one credit. Rates recorded on 2026-09-13.

IntercomIntercom

$722/mo

Adds workflows, multiple inboxes and round robin.

5 × $85 seats
$425
300 Fin outcomes × $0.99
$297
Copilot, 5 × $29
$0

Yearly billing; monthly costs more. From $0.99 per Fin outcome on every plan, as printed on the pricing page. Rates recorded on 2026-09-06.

Sellio · Mini

$55/mo

One price for the workspace: 3 channels, 2 AI agents, $5 AI credit a month.

Workspace, 5 of 5 seats
$45
AI past 100 included conversations
$10
Copilot for agents
Included

About $0.05 per AI conversation past the credit, with a daily and monthly cap you set. Yearly billing takes 20% off. See every plan.

Pricing references: Chatwoot pricing page (recorded 2026-09-13); Intercom pricing page (recorded 2026-09-06). Calculator uses yearly-billing rates. Prices change; confirm current terms with each vendor.

5 people, website chat plus 2 more channels, 2 AI agents: $45 a month. Start free, no card.

Start freeSee every plan

Chatwoot, Intercom and Sellio, side by side

Fifteen things a support team checks. A dash means the product does part of it or charges extra for it.

FeatureChatwootChatwootIntercomIntercomSellio

Pricing

Pricing model
Per agent; AI by credits
Per seat; Fin per outcome; channels metered
Per workspace; seats and channels are plan limits
Free plan
2 agents, 500 conversations, website chat
None; 14-day trial
2 seats, 1 channel, 1 AI agent, no trial clock

Channels

Website live chat
All plans
The Messenger, all plans
One script tag; guides for HTML, React, Next.js and more
Email in the inbox
Startups and up
All plans
From Mini: forward your support address; reply from the thread
WhatsApp
Startups and up
Pay-as-you-go
From Mini: WhatsApp Business API, several agents on one number
Instagram DMs
Startups and up
Via integration
From Mini: Instagram DMs beside web chat
Telegram
Startups and up
Not native
From Mini: paste a bot token; the webhook is set for you
Slack, Discord, Teams (two-way)
Slack integration
Slack notifications
From Mini: two-way threads; a reply there reaches the customer

AI

AI agent trained on your docs
Captain, on credits
Fin, trained on your help center
Crawl your site, upload PDFs and FAQs; answers only from those
How AI is billed
Credits by plan, then $20 per 1,000
From $0.99 per outcome, on top of seats
Metered from an included credit, with caps you set
AI hands off to a person
Hands to an agent
Fin hands to a teammate
On low confidence, a keyword, or a teammate taking over

Support operations

Tickets
Conversations with statuses
Included from Essential
On Plus: raise from any chat; customer, back-office and tracker
Visual workflow automation
Automation rules
Visual builder, Advanced and up
From Mini: 11 triggers, 18 actions, no code
Analytics and CSAT
Reports and CSAT
Reports; custom on higher plans
From Essentials: response times, resolution, CSAT; topics and email reports on Plus

Apps

Desktop app (Windows, macOS)
Browser and mobile
Browser and mobile only
Native Windows and macOS apps

Which one, for whom

Pick Chatwoot if

  • You want to self-host and own the data, and have someone to run it.
  • Telegram and WhatsApp must be native, at a per-agent price.
  • Five people cost $330 a month less than on Intercom ($95 against $425), before AI.
  • You need WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram in the price, which Intercom does not include outright.

Pick Intercom if

  • Your support lives in the website messenger and in-app, and you want product tours and outbound messages in the same tool.
  • Fin's AI quality matters more to you than its per-outcome price.
  • You need a ticket queue, which Chatwoot does not have.
  • Time to the first reply is an afternoon for a website-first team here and an afternoon on the cloud on Chatwoot.

The third option: Sellio

  • Your team is two to ten people on chat, messaging and email. Weigh workspace pricing against $95 a month on Chatwoot against $425 on Intercom for five people; the billing units and included features differ.
  • You want a ceiling on AI spend: Chatwoot meters AI ($20 per 1,000 credits) above the seats, Intercom meters AI (from $0.99 per outcome) above the seats, and Sellio stops at the cap you set.
  • You need native Windows and macOS apps, which neither Chatwoot nor Intercom includes.

What two, five and ten people pay

Chatwoot on Startups: $38, $95 and $190 a month for two, five and ten people, before AI. Intercom on Advanced: $170, $425 and $850 a month for two, five and ten people, before AI. Sellio: Free for two seats; Mini at $45 for five, $50 less than Chatwoot and $380 less than Intercom for five people; Essentials at $95 for ten, the AI credit included. At ten people, Essentials at $95 is $95 under Chatwoot and $755 under Intercom.

Where the two agree, and where they split

Chatwoot is an open-source customer support platform built around one inbox, self-hostable; Intercom is a customer messaging platform built around the Messenger. Only Chatwoot has a free plan (2 agents, 500 conversations); Intercom offers a 14-day trial, no card. Chatwoot and Intercom both include website chat and email in the price; only Chatwoot has WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram. Between them Chatwoot and Intercom cover every channel Sellio ships. Chatwoot ($20 per 1,000 credits) and Intercom (from $0.99 per outcome) both meter AI above the seats. Intercom has tickets and Chatwoot does not, and neither Chatwoot nor Intercom ships a desktop app. Chatwoot is an afternoon on the cloud; Intercom is an afternoon for a website-first team.

What each price leaves out

Chatwoot: Captain AI credits included by plan (300, 500, 800), then $20 per 1,000 credits. Intercom: Fin AI agent from $0.99 per outcome on every plan; Copilot $29 per agent per month yearly ($35 monthly). WhatsApp, SMS and phone are pay-as-you-go. Beside Chatwoot's $20 per 1,000 credits and Intercom's from $0.99 per outcome, Sellio includes an AI credit with each paid plan. Usage consumes that credit; additional credits cost extra, and you can set a spending cap.

How to decide in an afternoon

  1. Step 1

    Count agents and channels

    Anyone who replies is a seat. List the channels customers actually use.

    5 people reply5 seats
    Website chat61%
    WhatsApp27%
    Email12%
  2. Step 2

    Price the AI you would use

    Estimate monthly conversations the AI could close, then apply each vendor's per-resolution or per-session rate.

    1,200 conversations × 40% AI closes480
    ChatwootChatwoot$0.02$4
    IntercomIntercom$0.99$475
    Sellio$0.05$19

    Illustrative AI-only estimate; vendor units differ. Pack billing is rounded up. Sellio assumes Mini’s $5 credit and $0.05 per conversation.

  3. Step 3

    Trial the shortlist

    Check each vendor’s trial, free plan or demo terms. Where access is available, test one real channel before committing.

    ChatwootChatwoot · 15-day trial
    IntercomIntercom · 14-day trial, no card
    Sellio · Free plan, no card

    Confirm trial access and limits, then evaluate one real channel on each.

Continue your research

FAQ

Chatwoot vs Intercom: the questions people ask

Chatwoot is an open-source customer support platform built around one inbox, self-hostable; Intercom is a customer messaging platform built around the Messenger. Intercom has tickets and Chatwoot does not, and neither Chatwoot nor Intercom ships a desktop app.

  • Entry plan: Chatwoot $19/agent/mo (Startups, yearly); Intercom $29/seat/mo (Essential: inbox and Messenger).
  • Chat in the price: Chatwoot $0 (Hacker: 2 agents, website only); Intercom $29/seat/mo (Essential, with tickets).
  • Sellio puts every channel in one inbox: all five channels on every paid plan, where Chatwoot and Intercom each include only some.

Sellio's side of the Chatwoot and Intercom rows is on the shared inbox page.

Still have a question? Contact us or browse the docs.

Or the third option: one price, every channel.

Sellio puts website chat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram and email in one inbox with tickets and an AI agent, for $45 to $295 a month per workspace.

Get startedRead the docs

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