Automated customer support has become essential for businesses of all sizes. Chatbots, powered by artificial intelligence, offer a cost-effective solution to handle customer queries 24/7, improve response times, and enhance user experience.
But with numerous chatbot builders available, choosing the right one can be overwhelming. This comprehensive guide explores the 10 best chatbot builders to streamline your automated support needs.
From the versatile ChatGPT to the integration-friendly Zapier Chatbots, we’ll dive into the unique features, strengths, and use cases of each platform.
Whether you’re a small business owner, an e-commerce giant, or a customer service professional, you’ll discover the perfect chatbot builder to elevate your customer engagement strategy.
The Evolution of AI Chatbots: From Basic to Brilliant
In recent years, the landscape of chatbot technology has undergone a dramatic transformation. The advent of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) has revolutionized user expectations and capabilities of these digital assistants.
The Pre-ChatGPT Era
Before the arrival of ChatGPT, customer support chatbots faced significant challenges:
- Basic message comprehension was a major hurdle
- Limited functionality restricted their usefulness
- User experiences often left much to be desired
The AI-Powered Chatbot Revolution
Today’s AI-driven chatbots have leaped forward in capabilities:
1. Enhanced Understanding: Modern chatbots can comprehend complex user messages with ease.
2. Helpful Responses: They provide genuinely useful answers, not just pre-programmed replies.
3. Simplified Development: Paradoxically, creating advanced chatbots has become easier.
Key Technologies Driving Chatbot Advancements
Several cutting-edge technologies are powering this chatbot evolution:
- Large Language Model APIs: Handle sophisticated natural language processing tasks
- Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG): Enables access to up-to-date information
- Fine-Tuning Techniques: Allow chatbots to deliver on-brand, accurate responses
Benefits for Businesses and Developers
The new era of AI chatbots offers numerous advantages:
- Streamlined Development: No need for extensive conversation mapping
- Reduced Manual Configuration: Keyword setup and stock responses are largely automated
- Improved User Satisfaction: More accurate and helpful interactions lead to better experiences
List Of The Best Chatbot Builders
1. ChatGPT
ChatGPT is the application that brought chatbots back into fashion. It’s no surprise they have an integrated chatbot builder that is highly effective.
These are called GPTs by the owner of ChatGPT, OpenAI. If you buy a $20/mo ChatGPT Plus plan, you can also access the builder and build your chatbot.
The chatbot helps you through the development process, and you can also set custom instructions for your bots.
With ChatGPT Plus, you can upload files that act as a source of information. The uploaded file can also create actions through instructions that help your chatbot connect to third-party APIs.
ChatGPT also offers a chatbot that can help you configure your actions throughout the development process.
The only downside of the GPT developer is that you can only access the application through ChatGPT. This restriction poses a limitation on how you can deploy your applications in the real world.
But it’s highly user-friendly, and the development process is fun. So if you’re looking to start learning chatbot development, ChatGPT is a great place to get started.
2. Zapier Chatbots
Zapier takes the idea of integrating your chatbots into important functions and services and takes it to a whole new level. Zapier chatbots can connect to more than 7000 other tools. These include:
- Collecting leads and sending them straight to your CRM
- Customer feedback auto logging on Google Sheets or Slack
Zapier utilizes GPT-4o or GPT-4o Mini depending on your subscription plan. Since ChatGPT allows you to upload sources of information, Zapier also has the same option.
In Zapier’s case, you can upload or connect up to 20 sources of knowledge and context to scrape directly, whether it’s from your website or help docs.
In Zapier, you also have the option of customizing how your chatbot looks and behaves. The chatbot can also collect information throughout your conversation for you to follow up after, but you have to add logic for the bot to perform that action.
Once the development process is complete, you can integrate the chatbot either directly within your website or as a popup.
With Zapier, lead gen or customer chatbot support is easy to create and integrate – as easy as a matter of minutes. The chatbots are also highly compatible with the rest of your tech stack.
Zapier lacks in a few features but makes up for it with its high flexibility, easy automation, and integration abilities. Zapier is a great option if you are looking to integrate chatbots with a wide range of tech stacks and internal systems.
Zapier offers 2 different pricing plans, one of which is completely free. The free plan offers 2 chatbots but with limited features.
The Pro version is priced at $20/mo, with up to 5 chatbots. The chatbots allow integration of up to 20 knowledge sources as well as website embedding.
3. Chatbase
Chatbase is another easy-to-use chatbot developing platform that lets you train chatbots within a very short time. The time required to train a chatbot for a certain operation can take as little as 20 minutes.
Chatbase doesn’t offer extended customization options like Zapier, but it still offers plenty of features for it to be considered one of the best.
Chatbase runs on multiple models, and you can choose which model you want to develop and train your chatbots depending on your plan. Chatbase offers GPT, Claude, and Gemini models for you to choose from.
Chatbase bots are easy to embed on your website. It can also integrate with social media platforms like Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp to automate replies to your customers. You can also integrate it with Slack for interdepartmental usage.
Chatbase offers simple business bots, but they come with a lot of potential. Chatbase can support customer support queries if you give it information such as product info or return policies.
Chatbase can capture and list leads through any of the messaging channels. If you still feel like Chatbase isn’t enough and you need more efficiency, you can always integrate Chatbase with Zapier.
Chatbase has three pricing plans:
- Free Plan: Comes with limited functionalities and 1 chatbot
- Hobby Plan: $19/mo, comes with 2 chatbots, third-party integrations, and 2000 message/month
4. Botpress
Botpress is one of the most powerful ones on the list because it offers:
- LLM-Powered Language Processing
- Advanced Logic & Flows
- Knowledge Bases
- A Sophisticated Database
- A Web Browser
- Integrations With Different Apps
- AI Agent Creation Capabilities
As the famous quote says “With great power comes great responsibility”, Botpress comes with a lot of complexities because of its vast functionalities.
Botpress offers a ton of customization options with various features that you can integrate with your chatbot. But Botpress has a steep learning curve, meaning it will take you hours to come to grasp how the platform works before you can start developing anything.
Botpress offers chatbot integration capabilities with different messaging applications like WhatsApp and Messenger. It can also help you integrate with payment options like Stripe.
This allows you to turn Botpress chatbots into a smart reservation manager for your business, or an ever-ready sales assistant for your small business.
The starter plan for Botpress is completely free, meaning you can start building highly efficient chatbots without spending a dime.
Botpress is a more sophisticated platform compared to others, so it’s a better chatbot builder option for individuals who already have experience with chatbots and prompt engineering.
Botpress has 2 different pricing plans:
- Free Plan: Comes with 5 bots, 2000 incoming messages & 100mb of vector database storage & $5/mo of AI Usage.
- Paid Plan: Pay-as-you-go, comes with unlimited features.
5. Botsonic
Botsonic stands somewhere in between Chatbase and Botpress. It offers a lot of functionalities, but it’s not as complicated as Botpress to use. This makes Botpress a great choice for online businesses.
Botsonic offers you different AI models to choose from similar to Chatbase, and can also integrate into different messaging applications.
Botsonic uses your website and uploaded documents as sources of knowledge. Botsonic utilizes these resources to improve its responses, whether it’s answering you or your customers.
The most notable feature of Botsonic is the AI Agent creation feature, where you can create a powerful AI Agent that can interact with other tools integrated into your internal systems.
AI Agents are different from regular bots, as they require you to create and specify their abilities as well as their behavior.
A behavior is triggered when a user is interacting with the bot for a certain purpose like booking flights or checking orders.
Botsonic uses its AI model to understand the user intent through the input of an individual. You can also use training phrases to update your understanding of the user intent.
If you customize it right, Botsonic can query the user for any necessary inputs for understanding the user intent and then connect to the right service for performing the intended action.
If you’re less experienced with APIs, you can also integrate Botsonic with Zapier to increase its functionalities such as:
- Adding leads to CRM
- Adding data to email marketing tools
- Adding leads to databases for running campaigns later
Botsonic doesn’t have any free plans, and here lies one of the downsides of Botsonic. All the options are paid based on number of users, and the ultimate plan is too expensive for small businesses.
The starter package is $49/mo, which comes with access for 3 team members and 3000 messages/month.
The AI Agent package is $299/month with five team members and 12,000 messages/month.
6. Intercom
Intercom is a chatbot platform that emphasizes help desk apps. If you’re looking for chatbots exclusive for customer support, Intercom is a great choice for you to work with.
Intercom has a lot of other features as well, but its Fin AI Agent is the tool that is customer support-focused.
The tool can use your Intercom Help Center and different customer conversations as sources of knowledge to improve its responses and operations. Intercom can also use your website and your uploaded content as additional sources of knowledge.
Intercom can simultaneously work across:
- Live Chat
- SMS
- Messenger
Some of these channels only work when you’re subscribed to a higher tier package, but it’s still impressive as to how much versatility it offers in terms of integration with messaging applications.
The Fin AI Agent package in Intercom charges you a monthly seat fee, as well as a $0.99/mo resolution fee. While the platform can get pretty expensive, it’s highly transparent and flexible.
In a world where support chatbot integration is slowly becoming a feature and less of a standalone application, it’s not a feasible choice to work with Intercom in terms of costs.
But if you’re still looking to build an amazing help desk chatbot from scratch, Intercom is a perfect choice for the occasion. And yes, Intercom can be integrated with Zapier as well.
Intercom’s starter package is priced at $39/seat/mo along with a $0.99/resolution With Fin AI Agent.
7. Tidio
Tidio is another great chatbot builder for small and medium businesses that requires a live chat with integrated custom chatbots.
Tidio comes with a drag-and-drop editor that allows you to create and customize your chatbots. The platform also offers a wide range of chatbot templates that are suitable for different businesses.
It also offers Lyro AI, a tool that can help you automate the answers to the most common queries without requiring constant human support.
Tidio can integrate with various e-commerce platforms such as Shopify or Wix as well as messaging applications and social media platforms.
Tidio also has NLP chatbots that can process natural languages.
Tidio has a detailed pricing plan:
- Free Version
- Starter ($29/mo)
- Flows ($29/mo)
- Lyro AI ($39/mo)
- Growth ($59/mo)
- Tidio+ (starts at $759/mo)
8. Hubspot
Hubspot’s chatbot builder is geared toward marketing and can work as a great marketing assistant by improving the lead-generation process through automation.
Hubspot offers its chatbot builder software as part of the tool’s free CRM service. Among other features, your chatbot can be configured to:
- Send an automated welcome message
- Answer repetitive questions with preset answers
- Book appointments
- Set team availability for letting clients know if they can contact a live agent
The app seamlessly integrates with other Hubspot services and products, which makes the process of lead generation a lot more convenient.
The app offers a calendar booking option for clients in case they want to set a meeting through the customer support inbox, where you can find all customer communication in a single inbox.
Hubspot has four different pricing plans.
- Free Version
- Starter (Starts at $30/mo)
- Professional (Starts at $1781/mo)
- Enterprise (Starts at $5000/mo)
9. Chatfuel
Chatfuel is a chatbot maker which focuses on social media communications and is a great tool for freelancers, influencers, and startups who want to keep their clients engaged through active responses.
Chatfuel is limited in terms of functionalities, since it’s a Messenger chatbot builder, and only works with Facebook & Instagram to give the apps a central platform where you can access a few editing tools and other integrations.
Chatfuel offers NLP to offer a better customer experience through human-like responses. The platform also offers you different templates for you to choose from, and it helps you create the right conversational flow for your audience.
Chatfuel also has reporting and chatbot analytics for you to measure the success of your interactions and improve as needed through necessary integrations and improvements.
Similar to Hubspot, Chatfuel also handles all your incoming communication in a single inbox to make it easier for you to manage.
Chatfuel has three different pricing plans with a free trial.
- Pro Facebook & Instagram Package (Starting from $10.79/mo)
- Business Package (Starting from $35.39/mo)
- Enterprise (Starting from $300)
10. Pandorabots
Pandorabots is a great choice for small businesses, but the catch here is that you have to get introduced to all its different features and functionalities.
Pandorabots is an open-source platform that uses artificial intelligence as a chatbot builder service. Pandorabots framework is based on (Artificial Intelligence Markup Language).
AIML is a scripting language that you can use for creating conversational chatbots for interacting with your clients.
Chatbots developed on Pandorabots can be deployed on messaging social media platforms and your website simultaneously. Pandorabots is a great platform for businesses that want to maintain an omnichannel presence.
Pandorabots offers you pre-build dialogues so you can get started with a chatbot as soon as possible. The platform is completely cloud-based with highly customizable content.
But there are a couple of downsides to Pandorabots. You need an external database to store information, and it’s not possible to pass the chatbot conversations to any human agent anytime you want.
Pandorabots has a free version with three different pricing packages:
- Developer: 19/mo
- Pro: $199/mo
- Enterprise: Get A Quote
To Wrap It All Up
Before we wrap up, here’s our top 10 best chat builder’s list:
1. ChatGPT
2. Zapier Chatbots
3. Chatbase
4. Botpress
5. Botsonic
6. Intercom
7. Tidio
8. Hubspot
9. Chatfuel
10. Pandorabots
Want to move away from automated chatbot builders, and want a tailor-made custom chatbot for your business? Discuss your idea with the developers at Impala Intech, and let us help you out!
FAQ
A chatbot builder is a platform or tool that allows users to create AI-powered conversational agents for websites, apps, or messaging platforms without extensive coding knowledge.
ChatGPT can be integrated into custom chatbot solutions through its API, allowing developers to create sophisticated conversational AI experiences for various applications.
Zapier Chatbots stand out for their ability to integrate with over 5,000 apps, enabling seamless automation of workflows and data exchange between different platforms.
Yes, Chatbase is an excellent choice for small businesses due to its user-friendly interface, customizable templates, and ability to create chatbots trained on specific website content.
Botpress supports multiple programming languages, including JavaScript and Python, making it versatile for developers with different coding backgrounds.
Yes, Botsonic offers multilingual support, allowing businesses to create chatbots that can communicate with users in various languages.
Intercom distinguishes itself by combining chatbot functionality with a comprehensive customer messaging platform, offering a holistic approach to customer engagement.
Yes, Tidio provides seamless live chat integration, allowing human agents to take over conversations from chatbots when needed for complex inquiries.
HubSpot’s chatbot seamlessly integrates with its CRM, allowing for personalized conversations based on user data and automatic logging of interactions.
Absolutely! Chatfuel specializes in creating chatbots for Facebook Messenger, making it an excellent tool for social media marketing and customer engagement.
Pandorabots utilizes AIML (Artificial Intelligence Markup Language) and machine learning algorithms to create sophisticated chatbots with natural language processing capabilities.
While several options are suitable, Chatfuel and Tidio are particularly strong choices for e-commerce due to their product recommendation features and integration capabilities.
Yes, several builders offer free plans or trials, including Chatfuel, Tidio, and HubSpot, allowing users to test their features before committing.
Most chatbot builders, including Intercom and HubSpot, prioritize data privacy with encryption, GDPR compliance, and customizable data retention policies.
While primarily text-based, some builders like Botpress and Pandorabots offer voice integration capabilities for creating voice-enabled chatbots.
Chatbase and Botsonic are excellent choices for non-technical users, offering intuitive interfaces and pre-built templates for easy chatbot creation.
Most builders, including Zapier Chatbots and Intercom, provide detailed analytics dashboards to track chatbot performance, user engagement, and conversion rates.
Yes, many of these builders, such as ChatGPT and Botpress, incorporate Machine Learning capabilities that allow chatbots to improve their responses over time.
While all offer support, Intercom and HubSpot are known for their comprehensive customer support options, including documentation, tutorials, and responsive support teams.
Most of these chatbot builders receive regular updates, with companies like ChatGPT and Zapier frequently rolling out new features and improvements to keep up with evolving AI technologies.
