Chatwoot
Open source live-chat and support desk
The Lens
By Erik Loyd, SaaS CEO and former COO/CFO of an AWS Premier Partner.
Updated Jun 2026
Chatwoot is an open source customer support and live-chat platform, a self-hosted alternative to Intercom and Zendesk. Customer messages come in from any channel, your team responds from one dashboard. Self-hostable with Rails and PostgreSQL. Used by startups and mid-size companies that want multi-channel support without Intercom's pricing.
Self-hosted is free with no feature restrictions. Their cloud plan starts at $19/agent/mo and includes the same features plus managed hosting and support.
The catch: Chatwoot is a support tool, not a product analytics or engagement platform. Intercom bundles marketing automation, product tours, and user tracking; Chatwoot doesn't. The self-hosted setup requires Ruby on Rails, PostgreSQL, Redis, and Sidekiq. That's a meaningful ops commitment. And the UI, while functional, lacks the polish of Intercom's refined experience. If you just need a chat widget and basic ticketing, it's great. If you need a full customer engagement platform, you'll outgrow it.
Free vs Self-Hosted vs Paid
open coreSelf-hosted (free): Live chat widget, multi-channel inbox (email, social, WhatsApp, Telegram), canned responses, team collaboration, CSAT surveys, automation rules. No agent or conversation limits. Requires Rails + PostgreSQL + Redis.
Cloud Starter ($19/agent/mo): Same features, managed hosting. Includes 5,000 contacts and basic integrations.
Cloud Business ($39/agent/mo): Adds SLA management, custom roles, audit logs, advanced automation, priority support.
Cloud Enterprise (custom pricing): Dedicated infrastructure, custom SLA, onboarding support.
The math: A 5-agent support team: self-host for $0 + server ($20-40/mo) vs. cloud Starter at $95/mo. Intercom Starter for 5 agents starts around $295/mo. Chatwoot is dramatically cheaper.
Self-host for free. Cloud at $19/agent/mo, a fraction of Intercom's pricing.
Get tools like this every Wednesday
One featured tool, three on the radar. No fluff.
Similar Tools
Open source Slack/Teams alternative
Self-hosted modern web IRC client
Open source chatbot builder
Zammad is a web based open source helpdesk/customer support system.
FreeScout — Free self-hosted help desk & shared mailbox (Zendesk / Help Scout alternative)
A low score is not a verdict on quality. Young and niche tools start low by design. How we calculate scores
Trust Signals
About
- Stars
- 35,557
- Forks
- 8,535
Explore Further
More tools in the directory
openclaw
Your own personal AI assistant. Any OS. Any Platform. The lobster way. 🦞
385.4k ★everything-claude-code
The agent harness performance optimization system. Skills, instincts, memory, security, and research-first development for Claude Code, Codex, Opencode, Cursor and beyond.
238.3k ★hermes-agent
The agent that grows with you
226.7k ★Featured in The Open Source Drop #14