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Prices and features checked against official pages: October 2026.
Quick Answer
Choose LiveChat if you want per-seat pricing, a 14-day trial and a tool built around agents answering chats. Choose Tidio if you want to start free or your chat volume is small. Tidio’s own pricing page ties plans to billable conversations, so check which limit you would reach first.
Start with LiveChat’s 14-day free trial
For a step-by-step chat setup, see our guide on handling website chat as a small team.
Who is this comparison for?
A small team picking a chat tool for a website. Figures come from each vendor’s pricing pages; where a page is unclear, the table says so.
How do LiveChat and Tidio compare?
| Point | LiveChat | Tidio |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No; 14-day trial, no credit card | Yes: $0, 50 billable conversations, 10 seats |
| Entry paid price | $19 per user/month billed annually ($25 monthly) | Starter $24.17/month, 100 billable conversations (billing basis not stated on the page) |
| How pricing scales | Per user | Per billable conversation, with 10 seats on listed plans |
| Automatic chat assignment | Smart chat assignment is listed on Essential, Growth and Enterprise | Not on Free or Starter; from Growth upward |
| Operating hours | Not on Essential; Growth availability stated on a product page | Not on Free; from Starter upward |
| AI agent | 1 AI Agent, 10 AI resolutions/month on Essential; extra 50 for $49.50 | Lyro: first 50 conversations free (lifetime); paid add-on from $32.50/month |
What do LiveChat’s plans cost?
| Plan | Per user / month, billed annually | Per user / month, billed monthly | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential | $19 | $25 | 14 days, no credit card |
| Growth | $79 | $99 | 14 days, no credit card |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Request a call |
Some help pages still use older plan names (Starter, Team, Business); their prices and limits are not verified here, so this article uses the current pricing page. Check the page you see before you decide.
When should you choose LiveChat?
- you have two to five people answering chats and prefer a price per person;
- you want routing and team features on a defined plan;
- you are fine without a free plan.
When should you choose Tidio?
- you want to begin at no cost and test with low volume;
- you expect few billable conversations a month;
- you want AI answers included in the free allowance for your first conversations.
Where does each one fall short?
- LiveChat: no free version, and some plan details are hard to confirm on the comparison page.
- Tidio: automatic assignment starts at Growth, and costs depend on conversation volume, so a busy site can outgrow a plan.
This comparison is independent of either vendor and not an official statement from them.
FAQ
Which is cheaper for a tiny site?
Tidio’s free plan costs nothing within its limits. LiveChat has no free version.
Which is cheaper for five agents?
It depends on your conversation volume, since the two price differently. Check Tidio’s conversation tiers against your real traffic.
Do both offer AI?
Yes. LiveChat lists an AI Agent on each plan; Tidio lists Lyro.
Can I try before paying?
LiveChat offers 14 days without a card. Tidio has a free plan.
Summary
Match the pricing model to your team and traffic: per seat for LiveChat, per conversation for Tidio. Test the one that fits before you commit.
Start with LiveChat’s 14-day free trial
This article is general information, not a guarantee of results. Plans, prices and features change, so confirm them on the official pages before you decide.
