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respond.io is monetizing AI usage directly while putting an assistant that builds agents in every workspace.
Alternatives · customer support software
LiveChat alternatives
The best LiveChat alternatives in customer support software, ranked by Sparkpulse's velocity_score.
Updated Aug 11, 2026
Looking for the best alternatives to LiveChat? Sparkpulse tracks and ranks 12 alternatives in customer support software by shipping velocity — how frequently each ships meaningful updates, verified from official changelogs. For reference, LiveChat shipped 0 meaningful updates in the last 30 days and carries a velocity score of 1.7 out of 10 in 2026. The alternatives below are ranked the same way, so you're comparing real release momentum, not marketing claims.
About LiveChat
LiveChat layers Workflows automation onto chat, then leans hard into Shopify checkout integration.
The two substantive moves visible are a January 2026 Workflows release — a visual automation builder for the kind of trigger-action work support teams have historically wired up in Zapier — and an April push to embed LiveChat into Shopify checkout and thank-you pages plus product-card and order quick access for agents. Several of the most recent feed entries are 'Copy link' share-button captures from news.livechat.com rather than the post content itself, so the feed quality has degraded over the last month.
Velocity 1.7 · Last update 3mo ago
Top 12 alternatives to LiveChat
Ranked by recent ship velocity. Tap any card for the full editorial breakdown, or pivot to a head-to-head.
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Twilio is closing gaps: email deliverability controls, WhatsApp parity, and regional network plumbing.
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Sidekick got skills and MCP; now Plain is clearing the path to move your history in.
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A near-daily fix stream, with Slack and Teams becoming where help desk work happens.
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Canny is quietly turning customer conversations into a feedback pipeline nobody has to maintain.
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Three release branches running in lockstep to backport one tenancy-isolation sweep
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HelpCenter.io just put a free, no-signup FAQ builder in front of its paid product.
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Sera AI crosses from assistant to autonomous agent while the ITSM core keeps its monthly grind.
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Hatz stopped shipping only AI and started shipping the MSP's selling motion.
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INKY is wiring an LLM into email security while binding itself tighter to Kaseya.
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Frill just made its feedback board readable by any AI assistant, on every plan.
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The cloud edition's only real news is Slack, restated twice in four days.
LiveChat vs alternatives — shipping velocity at a glance
Velocity score (0–10) and meaningful releases shipped in the last 30 days, from official changelogs. Higher = shipping faster.
| Product | Velocity | Sparks · 30d | Focus areas | Latest release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LiveChat (baseline) | 1.7 | 0 | customer-supportlive-chatautomation | Automate your work with Workflows |
| Respond.io | 7.5 | 2 | customer-messagingai-agentsusage-based-pricing | Get more done with uninterrupted AI usage ð |
| Twilio | 7.5 | 0 | email-deliverabilitywhatsappapi-parity | — |
| Plain | 7.5 | 2 | sidekickmcpmigration | Sidekick connects to any MCP server |
| ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus | 6.3 | 0 | chatopsai-assistdata-center-rollout | — |
| Canny | 6.3 | 1 | feedback managementautopilotcall capture | Upgraded reporting tab |
| Formbricks | 6.3 | 0 | multi-tenancymcprelease-branches | — |
| HelpCenter.io | 6.3 | 1 | self-serviceai-answersfree-tier | Introducing FAQs.me: Build a Beautiful FAQ Section in Two Minutes, Free |
| Xurrent | 6.3 | 0 | agentic-itsmsera-aicmdb | Sera AI's first two autonomous agents ship |
| Hatz AI | 6.3 | 1 | msp-channelmodel-aggregationshadow-ai | Hatz Activate: a Shadow AI scan and an MSP rollout console |
| INKY | 6.3 | 1 | email-securityphishing-detectionmsp-channel | v1.9.3: Smart Insights brings an LLM verdict to every message |
| Frill | 6.3 | 1 | feedback-managementmcpagent-native | Introducing the new Frill MCP! |
| ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Cloud | 5.0 | 0 | chatopsai-assistdata-center-rollout | — |
The 12 best LiveChat alternatives, in depth
1. Respond.io · velocity 7.5
Respond.io is monetizing AI usage directly while putting an assistant that builds agents in every workspace.
Over the last 30 days Respond.io shipped 2 meaningful updates vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “Get more done with uninterrupted AI usage ð”. Its velocity score of 7.5/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Respond.io focuses on customer messaging, ai agents and usage based pricing.
Over the last 30 days Respond.io has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
Full Respond.io trajectory → · Compare LiveChat vs Respond.io →
2. Twilio · velocity 7.5
Twilio is closing gaps: email deliverability controls, WhatsApp parity, and regional network plumbing.
Its velocity score of 7.5/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Twilio focuses on email deliverability, whatsapp and api parity.
Twilio and LiveChat have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
3. Plain · velocity 7.5
Sidekick got skills and MCP; now Plain is clearing the path to move your history in.
Over the last 30 days Plain shipped 2 meaningful updates vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “Sidekick connects to any MCP server”. Its velocity score of 7.5/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Plain focuses on sidekick, mcp and migration.
Over the last 30 days Plain has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
4. ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus · velocity 6.3
A near-daily fix stream, with Slack and Teams becoming where help desk work happens.
Its velocity score of 6.3/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus focuses on chatops, ai assist and data center rollout.
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus and LiveChat have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus trajectory → · Compare LiveChat vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus →
5. Canny · velocity 6.3
Canny is quietly turning customer conversations into a feedback pipeline nobody has to maintain.
Over the last 30 days Canny shipped 1 meaningful update vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “Upgraded reporting tab”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Canny focuses on feedback management, autopilot and call capture.
Over the last 30 days Canny has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
6. Formbricks · velocity 6.3
Three release branches running in lockstep to backport one tenancy-isolation sweep.
Its velocity score of 6.3/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Formbricks focuses on multi tenancy, mcp and release branches.
Formbricks and LiveChat have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full Formbricks trajectory → · Compare LiveChat vs Formbricks →
7. HelpCenter.io · velocity 6.3
HelpCenter.io just put a free, no-signup FAQ builder in front of its paid product.
Over the last 30 days HelpCenter.io shipped 1 meaningful update vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “Introducing FAQs.me: Build a Beautiful FAQ Section in Two Minutes, Free”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, HelpCenter.io focuses on self service, ai answers and free tier.
Over the last 30 days HelpCenter.io has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
Full HelpCenter.io trajectory → · Compare LiveChat vs HelpCenter.io →
8. Xurrent · velocity 6.3
Sera AI crosses from assistant to autonomous agent while the ITSM core keeps its monthly grind.
Its velocity score of 6.3/10 reflects longer-term release cadence; its most recent meaningful update was “Sera AI's first two autonomous agents ship”.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Xurrent focuses on agentic itsm, sera ai and cmdb.
Xurrent and LiveChat have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
9. Hatz AI · velocity 6.3
Hatz stopped shipping only AI and started shipping the MSP's selling motion.
Over the last 30 days Hatz AI shipped 1 meaningful update vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “Hatz Activate: a Shadow AI scan and an MSP rollout console”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Hatz AI focuses on msp channel, model aggregation and shadow ai.
Over the last 30 days Hatz AI has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
10. INKY · velocity 6.3
INKY is wiring an LLM into email security while binding itself tighter to Kaseya.
Over the last 30 days INKY shipped 1 meaningful update vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “v1.9.3: Smart Insights brings an LLM verdict to every message”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, INKY focuses on email security, phishing detection and msp channel.
Over the last 30 days INKY has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
11. Frill · velocity 6.3
Frill just made its feedback board readable by any AI assistant, on every plan.
Over the last 30 days Frill shipped 1 meaningful update vs LiveChat's 0, most recently “Introducing the new Frill MCP!”. Its velocity score of 6.3/10 blends that with longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, Frill focuses on feedback management, mcp and agent native.
Over the last 30 days Frill has been shipping faster than LiveChat — a point in its favour if release momentum matters to you.
12. ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Cloud · velocity 5.0
The cloud edition's only real news is Slack, restated twice in four days.
Its velocity score of 5.0/10 reflects longer-term release cadence.
Where LiveChat leans on customer support, live chat and automation, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Cloud focuses on chatops, ai assist and data center rollout.
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Cloud and LiveChat have shipped at a similar pace over the last 30 days, so the decision comes down to fit and feature depth.
Full ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Cloud trajectory → · Compare LiveChat vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Cloud →
Frequently asked questions
What are the best alternatives to LiveChat?
The top LiveChat alternatives we currently track in customer support software are Respond.io, Twilio, Plain, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus, Canny, ranked by recent ship velocity.
How is this list of LiveChat alternatives ranked?
Alternatives are ranked by Sparkpulse's velocity_score — release cadence + 30-day spark count + sector-relative ship rate.
Can I compare LiveChat directly with one of these alternatives?
Yes — every card has a "Compare with LiveChat" link to a side-by-side /compare page.