The 9 Best WordPress Live Chat Plugins in 2020 (Compared)

Want to create a better connection with your website visitors and give them a more responsive channel to get in touch with you?

If so, one of these WordPress live chat plugins might be just the ticket. With the nine plugins on this list, you’ll be able to easily add a live chat feature to your WordPress website and chat from your computer or mobile devices.

Some plugins are more focused on sales and lead generation, while others target customer support. Some can also do both! All of these plugins are great options, so you can pick the one that matches your budget and focus.

All of these live chat plugins will also work perfectly with the Avada theme for WordPress, and most give you options to customize the style of your live chat box to match Avada (or any other WordPress theme).

Ready to get chatting? Let’s dig into the best WordPress live chat plugins.

HubSpot is a free WordPress live chat plugin and CRM that’s focused on helping you build better relationships with your customers. The unique thing about this tool is that it’s all integrated with the free HubSpot CRM, which lets you manage, track, and analyze all of your live chat interactions with customers.

With the free WordPress plugin, you can create both human live chat boxes and automatic chatbots.

You’ll be able to intelligently route incoming chat requests to the right spot. For example, routing an incoming chat request to the salesperson associated with that user in your CRM. Unlike a lot of other solutions, HubSpot lets you have unlimited agents/owners responding to live chat inquiries.

To chat with your customers, you can respond directly from your HubSpot inbox or on-the-go with the HubSpot mobile app or an integration for Slack.

You can also create chatbots to help you qualify leads or book meetings, which can save you time and create a better experience for visitors as compared to a static form.

Beyond live chat, HubSpot also helps you create forms and popups. And no matter which channel your customers choose to engage through, the plugin will automatically add their details to the free HubSpot CRM.

The plugin also helps you track user activity on your site, which gives you a comprehensive view of your customers and all of your interactions with them.

Both the HubSpot live chat plugin and CRM are free. To get started, you can install the free HubSpot plugin from WordPress.org.

You can also learn more about how to use HubSpot with Avada and WordPress in this post.

WP-Live Chat is a free native WordPress live chat plugin that, unlike most of these other plugins, gives you the option of using your WordPress site’s server to host your live chat or using a hosted server from the developer.

Most other plugins rely entirely on using externally hosted servers. Using an externally hosted server is a better option for most sites as it’s more reliable and lessens the load on your WordPress site’s server, but privacy-conscious users might prefer the 100% self-hosted approach.

As for the features themselves, WP-Live Chat lets you create unlimited agents and chat with your customers directly from your WordPress dashboard. You can also set up desktop notifications so that you know as soon as a new chat comes in.

Other notable features include the ability to:

Overall though, the two most notable features about this WordPress live chat plugin are that it’s 100% free and that it gives you the option to host your entire live chat service on your WordPress site’s server.

LiveChat is a premium live chat service with a dedicated integration plugin at WordPress.org.

Starting at $16 per month per agent, it’s a little pricier than many of the other tools on this list, but it backs up its price tag with great frontend and backend interfaces and a lengthy feature list, though many of the advanced features are only available on higher-tier plans.

You (or your agents) will be able to respond to live chat messages from the LiveChat website or using a dedicated desktop or mobile apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.

You’ll get useful features like:

Higher-tier plans also get you access to new features like:

To use LiveChat with WordPress, you’ll need to create an account at the LiveChat website and then install the dedicated WordPress integration plugin. LiveChat also offers a separate integration plugin for WooCommerce stores.

Tawk.To is a free live chat service that also has a dedicated integration plugin at WordPress.org.

One of the most notable things about Tawk.To is its pricing strategy – instead of charging you for access to its features or agent seats like most WordPress live chat plugins, it gives you every single feature for free and monetizes itself in two ways:

To respond to live chat inquiries, you can use the web interface as well as dedicated apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.

As for the live chat itself, you’ll get lots of helpful features like:

There’s also an in-chat payment feature that’s in beta, which has interesting use cases for a more sales-focused live chat. To use Tawk.To on WordPress, you’ll need to register for a free account and then install the integration plugin at WordPress.org.

Tidio is another popular WordPress live chat plugin with a dedicated plugin at WordPress.org and a generous free plan.

The setup process is quick and painless – you don’t even need to create a Tidio account to get started (though you will want to eventually). Tidio claims that you can be up and running in under 20 seconds, which is pretty accurate.

Once you set it up, you’ll be able to respond to inquiries from the Tidio web app or dedicated apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. There’s also a dedicated Chrome app if you prefer to use that vs the Tidio website.

It has a great user experience on both the frontend and backend, along with helpful features like:

Like HubSpot, Tidio also supports chatbots, which you can use to automate customer support and lead generation.

Tidio is free for up to three active agents and 100 chatbot interactions per month. You can increase the chatbot limits for $18 per month and/or access some advanced features for $18 per month (the two are separate plans and you’ll need to stack them if you want both).

As the name suggests, the Facebook Chat plugin is focused on one specific type of live chat – Facebook Messenger.

It’s probably not the best option for a serious business, but if you have a casual website or you just think your audience would prefer Facebook Messenger, this one offers a unique approach to WordPress live chat.

With the plugin, you’ll be able to add a “normal” looking live chat box that connects to your Facebook page. You’ll then be able to respond to inquiries from anywhere using the Facebook website or mobile apps.

Because it uses Facebook Messenger, you’ll also get other useful features like:

You can also use this as a way to boost your page’s likes by including a like button in the chatbox. Facebook Chat costs $25 with lifetime updates and six months of support.

JivoChat is a free WordPress live chat plugin with an omnichannel approach. It offers four platforms in one:

Like many of the other tools, it’s a standalone tool with a dedicated WordPress integration plugin.

Zooming in on just the live chat feature, you’ll get features that let you:

You can chat with visitors via the JivoChat web dashboard or dedicated apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.

JivoChat offers a free plan with limited features for up to five active agents. After that, the paid plans start at $13 per month per active agent.

Formilla Live Chat is another free live chat service that integrates easily with WordPress thanks to a dedicated plugin.

You’ll be able to customize the chat widget’s appearance to match your website and chat with visitors using the web interface or dedicated mobile apps for iOS and Android. The mobile apps are only available on premium plans though.

You can group chat agents into departments and make sure to route incoming requests to the right spot. You can also transfer chats between departments if needed.

Other useful features include:

You can also create chatbots and automated messages (like a welcome message for returning visitors).

Formilla offers a very limited free plan for one agent and up to 30 chats per month. After that, paid plans for a single agent start at $10 per month with a two-year commitment or $19.99 per month month-to-month.

Wise Chat offers a different take on the meaning of “WordPress live chat plugin”. Where all of the other live chat plugins are focused on creating one-to-one conversations between you and your visitors, Wise Chat focuses on creating a social community chat.

With the premium version, you can also offer private one-to-one chats, but the unique thing about this plugin is definitely the social nature of its chatbox.

Like WP-Live Chat, everything happens on your WordPress site’s server – no need to connect to an external server.

You’ll be able to create unlimited chat rooms (called channels) and use passwords to restrict access to channels if needed. You can also restrict access by requiring users to log in, and Wise Chat automatically syncs with the regular WordPress login process.

If you want a one on one live chat service for sales or customer support, this one is definitely not for you. But if you do like the social aspect of Wise Chat, give it a look. You can use Wise Chat for free and there’s also a $40 premium version that adds private messaging and other advanced features.

All of these WordPress live chat plugins have something to offer, which is why they’re on this list. Your choice should come down to your budget, focus, and needs.

For example, if you want to use live chat to connect with customers and potential sales prospects, you might like the HubSpot plugin’s tight integration with the HubSpot CRM and built-in chatbots to automate lead generation.

On the other hand, if you’re more focused on customer support and don’t need to manage leads and customer lifecycles, you might prefer something like Tawk.To or LiveChat.

And no matter which plugin you choose, you’ll be able to integrate it with the Avada WordPress theme.