Chatbot Free Plans Compared 2026 — Side-by-Side Spec Sheet for 14 Platforms

Quick answer: Of the 14 Tier-1 chatbot platforms we review, 11 offer permanent free plans and 3 only offer time-limited trials (Chatfuel, Intercom, WATI). The most generous permanent free plans for SMB use are SendPulse (10,000 messages/mo + 4 channels + 500 subscribers), BotPenguin Baby (1,000 messages/mo + 5 channels + unlimited subscribers), and AiSensy Free Forever (unlimited WhatsApp service-window conversations). The tightest are Chatbase Free (50 message credits/mo) and Tars Freemium (50 conversations/mo) — those are evaluation-only, not production-viable. Open-source self-hosted options (Botpress, Typebot) are the only routes to zero-cost long-term deployment but require technical setup. This guide compares all 14 platforms side-by-side with verified specs from our 2026-Q2 review cycle.

For ranked editorial picks of the best free-tier paths for specific use cases, see our Best Free Chatbot Platforms 2026 list. This article is the underlying spec sheet — the raw side-by-side data that informed those rankings.

What counts as "free" — three categories

Before comparing specifics, it helps to know that "free" means three quite different things in this category:

1. Permanent free (Free Forever / Sandbox / Baby). A plan that stays free indefinitely with hard caps on usage. You can run a small chatbot in production essentially forever as long as you stay under the limits. Examples: SendPulse Free, Manychat Free, BotPenguin Baby, Tidio Free, Landbot Sandbox, AiSensy Free Forever, Typebot Personal, Botpress Free, Chatbase Free, Tars Freemium, Blip Free.

2. Open-source self-hosted. The platform code is genuinely free but you run it on your own infrastructure. Operating cost is the server bill (typically $10-30/month for SMB volumes), not a vendor subscription. Examples: Botpress (self-hosted variant), Typebot (self-hosted variant).

3. Time-limited trial. The platform doesn't have a permanent free plan — only a 7-to-14-day full-feature trial before payment is required. Examples: Chatfuel (7-day trial), Intercom (14-day trial), WATI (7-day trial).

A 7-day trial is fundamentally different from a Free Forever plan. A trial lets you evaluate; it doesn't let you run a small chatbot in production indefinitely. If your use case is "test before I commit," any of the three categories works. If your use case is "run a small-volume chatbot forever without paying," only categories 1 and 2 work.

Side-by-side comparison table

All 14 permanent-free platforms plus the 3 trial-only ones in one view. Channel counts reflect FREE-tier availability only (paid tiers add more on most platforms). Sources: vendor pricing pages + authenticated workspace walkthroughs verified during our 2026-Q2 review cycle.

The most generous free plans (production-viable)

These four free plans give you enough headroom to run a real small-volume chatbot in production indefinitely — not just evaluate the platform for a week.

SendPulse Free — best multi-channel SMB free plan

What you get. 500 subscribers across all your bots (aggregated, not per-bot), 10,000 messages per month aggregated, 3 chatbots, and four native channels: Telegram, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Live Chat. The aggregated-across-bots metering is genuinely unusual in the category — most competitors meter per-bot, which forces you to choose between running 1 medium bot or 3 tiny ones. SendPulse lets you run 3 small bots that share the 10K-message pool.

What you don't get. ChatGPT integration is gated to Pro. SMS broadcasting, advanced segmentation, and team collaboration require paid tiers. The 500-subscriber cap is the practical bottleneck, not the message cap — at SMB engagement rates a single active subscriber generates 5-20 messages per month, so the 10K message ceiling rarely gets hit before the subscriber ceiling.

Best fit. SMB running multiple small bots (e.g., lead capture + onboarding + support FAQs) across Telegram + WhatsApp + Messenger, without needing AI generation on the bot side. The free tier is honest production-grade for that profile. Try SendPulse → (referral link)

BotPenguin Baby — widest channel coverage on a free tier

What you get. 1,000 messages per month, unlimited subscribers (rare on free tiers), 1 chatbot, and 5 channels: WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, Telegram, and Website widget. The unlimited-subscribers angle means you can collect leads aggressively even on the free tier — the cap only bites on outbound message volume.

What you don't get. Zero AI on the Baby tier. Multi-LLM access (their differentiator) is gated to King at $99/month. Voice Bots and Smart Department Routing are also King-tier. 1,000 messages = roughly 30-50 conversations per month at typical SMB transcript depth.

Best fit. Lead-gen-focused SMB that prioritizes contact capture over AI sophistication, across WhatsApp + Instagram primarily. The unlimited-subscribers + multi-channel combination is unbeatable at $0/month if you can live with rule-based flows. BotPenguin review →

AiSensy Free Forever — the WhatsApp specialist option

What you get. Unlimited WhatsApp service-window conversations (24-hour reply window from any user-initiated message) plus a small marketing-conversation credit. Full access to the Flow Builder, AI Orchestrator UI, Tool Calling configuration, and Knowledge Base setup — even though the AI tier itself is paywalled. You can build, test, and run a real WhatsApp service-window chatbot indefinitely for free.

What you don't get. Single channel only — no Instagram, Messenger, web widget, or anything else. Marketing-template conversations (the proactive broadcasts you initiate) consume credits and run out fast. AI Orchestrator runtime is Pro+AI at ₹3,500/month.

Best fit. SMB whose chatbot use case is "answer customer questions on WhatsApp" — that's it. If WhatsApp is your primary channel and you can rely on user-initiated conversations (vs. proactive broadcasts), this is the strongest free plan in the WhatsApp specialist category. AiSensy review →

Tidio Free — widest channel coverage period

What you get. 50 billable conversations per month plus 50 Lyro AI conversations (one-off — see catch), and access to 7 channels: website widget, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, email, in-app, and Shopify storefront chat. The 7-channel coverage on a free plan is the widest in our review set.

What you don't get. The 50 Lyro AI conversations are a one-off allotment, not a monthly refresh — once you exhaust them, you have to upgrade to Growth ($49/month) for more AI. The 50-conversation cap on billable conversations bites quickly — SMBs typically hit it within a week of meaningful traffic.

Best fit. Shopify-store operators or solo SMBs who need channel breadth to test which surface gets traction before committing. Excellent evaluation tier; tight production tier. Tidio review →

The "evaluation only" free plans

These free plans are useful for trying the platform but not for running a chatbot in production.

Manychat Free (post-March 2026)

The 25-active-contact cap means the free tier became evaluation-only after the March 2026 tier restructure. Pre-March, Manychat Free supported 1,000 contacts and was production-viable for solo creators; the new cap is roughly 25× tighter. The only feature that still impresses on Free is the AI Step inclusion — most competitors paywall AI entirely. Useful for testing comment-to-DM workflows before committing to Pro at $39/month.

Landbot Sandbox

100 chats per month, website widget only, no AI included, no WhatsApp (WhatsApp is on a separate paid ladder regardless). The Sandbox is genuinely useful for evaluating Landbot's drag-drop builder (the polished web-widget surface is their differentiator) but not for production. WhatsApp deployment requires the Pro ladder entry at €80/month.

Typebot Personal

200 chats per month plus unlimited typebots — and crucially, BYOLLM support (you connect your own OpenAI or Anthropic API key). For a developer-leaning SMB, that combination lets you run a small AI chatbot at $0 vendor cost + pay-only-LLM-tokens. No WhatsApp, no multi-seat, no custom domains. Production-viable for very small developer-built deployments; ceiling is the 200-chat cap.

Botpress Free

100-conversation hard cap with no overages, but bundled AI Spend (LLM inference + embeddings included) — meaning Botpress eats the LLM cost up to your monthly conversation limit. Single channel (webchat) with forced "Powered by Botpress" branding. If you're a developer evaluating Botpress for an internal project, the free tier is enough to assess the agent framework. Not for production.

Chatbase Free

50 message credits per month and 1 agent. The 50-credit allowance is tight for any real testing — the model-comparison panel doubles credit consumption per query, so a serious evaluation eats the entire allowance in one session. "Powered by Chatbase" badge is forced (removable for $1,188/year). Pure evaluation tier; production starts at Hobby ($40/month) or Standard ($120/month) for the full agent stack.

Tars Freemium

50 conversations per month, web widget only, basic LLM access, $0-to-$499 jump to the next tier (no mid-budget option). The Freemium tier is useful for evaluating Tars's form-bot specialization but the $499 cliff makes paid adoption hard for most SMBs.

Blip Free

2 agents and limited conversations (specific number not publicly disclosed). The bigger blocker is that paid tier pricing is contact-sales only — there's no transparent SMB tier between Free and Enterprise. Useful for Brazil-market evaluation; not viable for self-serve scaling.

Voiceflow Free Sandbox

Free trial on the Agencies path with specific limits demo-gated. Distinct in that you get full multi-LLM access (GPT-5.1 Codex, Claude Sonnet, Gemini) plus BYOLLM option on the free trial. Voice deployment requires a separate Twilio account. Strongest free tier for AI-agent-platform evaluation; weakest for budgeting clarity.

The trial-only platforms

If you want to evaluate Chatfuel, Intercom, or WATI, you'll get full features for a limited window — but no path to free production usage. Plan your evaluation tightly.

Intercom's "no credit card" trial is the most evaluator-friendly — you can spin up a full Fin AI deployment without committing payment information. Chatfuel and WATI both require commitment to evaluate.

How to choose the right free plan

The free-plan decision usually comes down to channel coverage first, then volume cap, then AI inclusion.

If your primary channel is WhatsApp: AiSensy Free Forever (unlimited service-window) or SendPulse Free (10K messages, WhatsApp included). Skip Landbot Sandbox (WhatsApp paywalled separately) and Chatbase Free (no WhatsApp on free).

If your primary channel is Instagram + Messenger: SendPulse Free (4 channels) or BotPenguin Baby (5 channels including IG). Manychat Free's 25-contact cap is too tight for serious IG automation post-March 2026.

If you need to test multiple channels in parallel: Tidio Free (7 channels) or SendPulse Free (4 channels). BotPenguin Baby's 5 channels with unlimited subscribers is the best lead-capture-focused option.

If you need AI on the free tier: Voiceflow Sandbox (multi-LLM + BYOLLM), Typebot Personal (BYOLLM), Botpress Free (bundled AI Spend), Manychat Free (AI Step). Skip BotPenguin Baby, Landbot Sandbox, Chatbase Free (basic-model-only) if AI quality matters.

If you need a permanently free production setup with zero vendor cost: Self-host Botpress or Typebot (open-source). Plan for a $10-30/month VPS bill + technical setup time. No vendor-supported route to zero-cost production exists at SMB scale.

If you only need to evaluate before committing: Any trial-only platform (Chatfuel, Intercom, WATI) works. Intercom's no-card 14-day trial is the most friction-free.

When the free tier stops being enough

Across our review set, the operators who outgrow their free tier hit one of three triggers, almost always within 90 days of launch:

Trigger 1: Volume cap. You blow through the conversation or message ceiling. The fastest-growing SMB deployments hit Tidio's 50-conversation cap in the first week; SendPulse's 10K-message cap in week 3-4; BotPenguin Baby's 1K-message cap in 2-3 weeks. Free-tier headroom is rarely more than a month for actively growing SMBs.

Trigger 2: AI requirement. You realize rule-based flows aren't enough and need real LLM-powered understanding. Free tiers with no AI (BotPenguin Baby, Landbot Sandbox, basic Chatbase) force this upgrade fastest. Plan for $40-99/month at the first paid AI tier.

Trigger 3: Branding or compliance. Forced "Powered by X" badges become unacceptable when you scale past hobby use. Removing branding alone costs $1,188/year on Chatbase, requires Starter+ ($39/month) on Typebot, requires King ($99/month) on BotPenguin. Budget for this earlier than you'd expect — branding fatigue hits before volume caps for many operators.

When you cross any of those triggers, the natural upgrade ladder is: Tidio Plus ($29/mo) → SendPulse Pro (variable) → BotPenguin Little ($29/mo) → Manychat Pro ($39/mo) → Chatbase Hobby ($40/mo) → Tidio Growth ($49/mo) → Chatbase Standard ($120/mo) → enterprise/sales-led for the bigger platforms.

About this guide

We verify every free-plan claim in this article directly against vendor pricing pages within 30 days of publication. Where we cite limits (message caps, conversation caps, channel availability), the source is our authenticated workspace walkthroughs from the 2026-Q2 review cycle — meaning we created free-tier accounts on each platform, observed the actual constraints in-product, and matched them against the publicly-listed pricing. Where vendors update pricing between our review cycles, we update this guide on our 90-day re-verification schedule (next scheduled re-verification: 2026-09-10).

This article cross-references our individual Tier-1 platform reviews — click any platform name in the comparison table to see the full evaluation. For ranked editorial picks rather than spec-sheet data, see Best Free Chatbot Platforms 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Which chatbot platform has the most generous free plan in 2026?

SendPulse Free offers the most usable production-grade free plan for multi-channel SMB use: 10,000 messages per month aggregated across up to 3 bots, 500 subscribers, and 4 native channels (Telegram, Messenger, WhatsApp, Live Chat). BotPenguin Baby is close behind with unlimited subscribers + 5 channels at 1,000 messages/month. AiSensy Free Forever wins for WhatsApp-only use cases with unlimited service-window conversations.

Are there any truly free chatbot platforms with no time limit?

Yes — 11 of the 14 Tier-1 platforms we review offer permanent free plans with no time limit. Only Chatfuel (7-day trial), Intercom (14-day trial), and WATI (7-day trial) require payment after a trial period. Open-source self-hosted options (Botpress, Typebot) are also genuinely free indefinitely but require you to run your own infrastructure.

Which free chatbot plan includes WhatsApp?

SendPulse Free (WhatsApp + 3 other channels), BotPenguin Baby (WhatsApp + 4 other channels), Tidio Free (WhatsApp + 6 other channels), and AiSensy Free Forever (WhatsApp only) all include WhatsApp on their permanent free plans. Landbot Sandbox does NOT include WhatsApp — it requires entering Landbot's separate WhatsApp paid ladder at €80/month.

Do free chatbot tiers include AI features?

Mixed. Yes: Manychat Free (AI Step), Tidio Free (50 one-off Lyro), Voiceflow Sandbox (multi-LLM + BYOLLM), Typebot Personal (BYOLLM), Botpress Free (bundled AI Spend). Basic only: Chatbase Free (basic model), Tars Freemium (basic LLM). None: BotPenguin Baby, Landbot Sandbox, AiSensy Free Forever, SendPulse Free (ChatGPT integration is Pro-gated), Blip Free.

What's the catch with free chatbot plans?

The most common catches: forced branding ("Powered by X" badges on Botpress and Chatbase free tiers), AI being paywalled even on otherwise-generous free plans (BotPenguin Baby, SendPulse Free), low conversation caps that bite within a week (Chatbase 50 credits, Tars 50 conversations, Tidio 50 conversations), and WhatsApp gating (Landbot moves WhatsApp to a separate paid ladder). Read the "Notable catch" column in our comparison table above.

Is a 7-day chatbot trial enough to evaluate a platform?

For Chatfuel, Intercom, and WATI specifically — yes, if you focus the evaluation. Spend the first day on onboarding + building one representative flow, days 2-4 on testing real conversations with internal stakeholders or willing customers, days 5-6 on measuring response quality and gathering feedback, day 7 on the buy/don't-buy decision. Don't try to evaluate everything — pick the 2-3 capabilities most critical to your use case and test those deeply.

Should I use an open-source self-hosted chatbot to avoid vendor fees?

Only if you (or your team) have the technical capacity to run a small server, configure a database, monitor uptime, apply security patches, and handle backups. The vendor fee you save ($30-100/month on entry-tier paid plans) gets reallocated to hosting ($10-30/month) plus your own time. For a developer SMB this is a clear win. For a non-technical SMB, the vendor-supported free tiers (SendPulse, BotPenguin, Tidio) are almost always better TCO.

Related

• Best Free Chatbot Platforms 2026 — ranked editorial picks (6 platforms across use cases)
• Chatbot ROI Guide — how to model upgrade timing as your bot grows
• Chatbot ROI Quick Math — single-screen calculator for upgrade economics
• All chatbot platform reviews — full Tier-1 review set

Methodology

Pricing and feature claims were verified against vendor pricing pages between 26 May and 3 June 2026. Where pricing pages serve different content depending on detected region or currency, we tested with both default and explicit ?country=US parameters and report the higher-friction tier (which is what most non-US-IP visitors will encounter). Free-plan account walkthroughs were conducted on each platform during our 2026-Q2 review cycle; the limits reported in this article were observed in-product on authenticated free-tier accounts, not just read off marketing pages. Next re-verification: 2026-09-04. See our full methodology for the 17-dimension review protocol that underpins every individual platform review linked in this article.