20 Best AI Chatbot Platforms to Improve Your Customer Service for 2022

The first-ever AI chatbot, ELIZA, was developed in 1966 by Joseph Weizenbaum, a professor at MIT. Chatbots have certainly come a long way since then! Today’s advanced technology can engage on an empathic and personable level.

The best AI chatbot uses machine learning techniques to hold a conversation based on a customer’s responses. Complex Natural Language Understanding (NLU) algorithms allow the software to understand words and phrases and give appropriate answers to questions asked by humans.

AI bots have had an immense impact on how businesses engage with their customers. They provide better customer support while also increasing productivity by automating tasks that were previously only achievable by humans. 

Which Are The Best AI Chatbot Platforms Out There?

There are many AI tools available today – I came across 60 chatbots while preparing this article! Here, we list 20 of the best AI chatbot platform options.

Botsify – A Premium Chatbot Platform for Everyone

Botsify is a simple to use chatbot platform that doesn’t require coding skills. With this chatbot builder, you can create advanced chatbots for education, customer service, sales, or the HR department. 

The tool features AI learning, stories, conversational forms, and bot training. Botsify is ideal in corporate or education settings.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Design advanced artificial intelligence chatbots  – no programming needed
Strong analytical tools
100+ integrations 
Good customer service 

Cons

User interface is not intuitive
Cannot create your own templates for your bot
No eCommerce integrations

Pricing

The Personal plan costs $49/m; the Professional is $149/m. Botsify also offers White-Label and Custom plans. Cheaper yearly plans are also on offer. A 14-day free trial is available.

Sign Up for Botsify Here

Vergic – For Sales and Customer Satisfaction

Vergic is a digital customer engagement chatbot platform that can help you improve the customer experience and increase revenue. The best AI chatbot acts on customer behavior, value, and journey, then selects the most efficient channel for each interaction. Vergic allows brand companies to chat with their customers through AI/BOT-supported messaging solutions such as Live chat, Chatbots, Co-browsing, Video chat, Analytic Rule Engine, and Messaging.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Affordable
Better functionality than similar products
Good customer service

Cons

No free plan and no free trial
No notification to mobile devices

Pricing

Vergic pricing starts at €35.00/m per user. Several packages are available.

Get Vergic Here

Landbot – An Intuitive No-Code Chatbot Builder

Landbot is a user-friendly no-code chatbot platform for creating conversational AI chatbots that helps you convert leads, capture data, and personalize client journeys in real-time. This bot builder allows you to manage and automate conversations on the leading messaging channels. 

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Simple to set up
Easy to use
API integration in minutes
Free trial on all packages

Cons

Pricing

The Starter package costs €30/m. The Professional plan costs €80/m, and a Business plan is available. Landbot also has a free Sandbox option with all the basic features. You get 20% off with the yearly plan.

Get LandBot Here

FuseDesk – The Only Helpdesk You Will Ever Need

FuseDesk is an easy-to-use customer service chatbot platform for all channels — from your first call to one hundred and beyond! It unites your social accounts and platforms like email, live chat, phone, SMS, Facebook Messenger with everything in one place from reports and templates to workflow automation to keep customers happy. 

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Notification system works well and easily integrates with Infusionsoft
Good customer metrics

Cons

Bugs in the process of closing tickets

Pricing

FuseDesk offers a free trial. There is also a free version available. Depending on the plan, other options cost $39/m to $59/m per seat.

Get FuseDesk Here

ManyChat – Engage Instantly With Your Customers

ManyChat provides the ideal chatbot platform for sales and marketing personnel to create automated conversations on Facebook Messenger, Instagram Direct Messages, and WhatsApp (beta). This chatbot platform can send welcome messages, book appointments, capture contact information, sell products, and improve customer experience. 

ManyChat integrates with tools like Google Sheets, Shopify, Zapier, Integromat, ActiveCampaign, HubSpot, ConvertKit, MailChimp, and many more.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easily build automated sequences
A simple user interface makes for easy bot implementation
A/B testing feature

Cons

Technical support is poor
Documentation needs improvement 

Pricing

The Free option allows you to test out ManyChat, but it does not have all the Pro plan features (like SMS and email). The Pro plan starts at $15/m and scales with the number of contacts.

Try ManyChat Here

SnatchBot – A Smart Chatbot for Multi-Channel Messaging

Snatchbot is an intelligent chatbot platform that helps you create chatbots for multi-channel messaging – no coding required. The tool has enterprise-grade security and robust administrative features.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Zapier integration
Receive payments within the chatbot
Low pricing

Cons

Difficult interface
Limited marketing options
Cannot send sequences to users
Minimal analytics
Not recommended for beginners

Pricing

Various plans are available. SnatchBot starts from $30/m and goes up to $999/m depending on the number of messages per month. It includes a free plan with access to all basic features.

Try SnatchBot Here

Rulai – Reduce Costs and Improve Customer Satisfaction

Rulai’s conversational AI chatbot platform is the most advanced all-in-one artificial intelligence solution on the market, designed to accelerate time value. Companies can use Rulai’s chat software for building sophisticated virtual assistants and the best AI chatbots at record speed with minimal coding or technical know-how. Its enterprise-minded design means it works seamlessly across cloud providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and inside your own data center.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Intuitive drag-and-drop development environment
Easily integrates with 3rd party services like Salesforce
Upload FAQs to the bot

Cons

Extensive training required

Pricing

Pricing depends on engagement volume and product features – contact Rulai for details.

Contact Rulai Here

ItsAlive – A Chatbot Solution for Facebook Messenger

ItsAlive is the only chatbot integration platform to use real-time connections to Facebook Messenger, SMS, and Amazon Alexa. Users can create the best AI chatbot that provides a better experience for customers while improving productivity and engagement. 

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Relatively easy to implement

Cons

No free trial is available

Pricing

ItsAlive pricing starts at $19.00/m per feature. There is a free version available.

Sign Up for ItsAlive Here

SmartLoop – Meaningful Insights, Bespoke User Experiences

SmartLoop targets businesses looking to use AI and machine learning to automate marketing tasks like handling and responding to customer inquiries through messaging. The chatbot platform targets and re-engages non-paying leads that might have otherwise gone ignored via automated messaging.

With this in mind, you can keep an open file on your prospects that goes beyond the usual scope of live chat or e-mail support. This can be especially helpful for boosting sales and leads.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Interest-based recommendations to customers
Effective upselling to existing customers

Cons

Requires integration with Facebook Messenger
Pay as you grow costs can become expensive

Pricing

SmartLoop calculates pricing per month per user. There is also a free version.

Try SmartLoop Here

ProProfs Chatbot – Grow Leads & Sales, Book Appointments & Automate Support

ProProfs Chatbot caters to both customers and organizations. It improves customer support by reducing staffing, delivering quick responses to queries about products and services, streamlining processes across the organization, and improving overall system adoption rates. ProProfs Chat does so by providing back-end as well as front-end tools for customizing user experience, defining workflow paths, and order management, among other features.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Intuitive and easy-to-use user interface – no coding skills required
Wide range of app and system integrations
Deep reporting features

Cons

Advanced features require extra effort to understand and use

Pricing

Pricing starts at $10.00/m. Features used determine the pricing. A 15-day free trial is available on all plans.

Try ProProfs Chatbot Here

Aivo’s AgentBot – Automate Your Customer Service

AgentBot is a Help Desk chatbot platform for companies that manage many customers and need to stay in touch with this fast-growing number. AgentBot will ease your customer service burden by giving you professional AI, helping handle requests from your customers, and providing them with helpful answers.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Collect customer insights
Increase sales

Cons

May not be able to resolve complex queries
Bots require ongoing maintenance and optimization in terms of their knowledge base 

Pricing

Pricing starts at $99/m. A 30-day free trial is available on the Starter plan.

Sign Up for AgentBot Here

Zendesk – Makes Customer Service Better

Zendesk is one of the fastest-growing business software companies in the world. It makes creating and managing customer support software a walk in the park! On average, it increases agent productivity and user satisfaction by 25% during its first year of use. With Zendesk, all your customer interactions live in a single interface where you can also create customizable web widgets.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easy implementation
Sales/conversion tracking
Keep records of information flows in chats, allowing follow-ups
Suits small and large businesses

Cons

Pricing

Support-only pricing starts at $19/m per agent. Suite Team pricing starts at $49/m per agent billed annually. The Suite Growth plan costs $79/m, and the Suite Professional plan costs $99/m. A free trial is available on all plans.

Try Zendesk Here

Intercom – The Best Way to Connect With Your Customers

With this powerful chatbot platform, you have the tools to listen in on what your users are doing and determine a course of action that is custom-fit for each user’s needs. Intercom chatbots use information gathered from users during their browsing experience and their behavior patterns to deliver an automated experience to interact with them based on their specific needs and preferences – all in real-time.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Customizable branding
Customizable CTAs
Lead monitoring and support for the customer service team
Efficient ticket serving
Customer feedback on team members
Excellent customer acquisition and onboarding processes

Cons

Poor customer service
No free version 

Pricing

Intercom Essential starts at $67/m – the features used determine pricing. A free trial is available.

Try Intercom Here

Pandorabots – Chatbots with Character

Pandorabots has been an industry leader in conversational interfaces since the company was founded in 2009 with more than 300,000 chatbots built on its platform, including the widely acclaimed Mitsuku chatbot. Developers and enterprises, including Fortune 500s and global brands, use Pandorabots’ cloud-based services to build conversational interfaces for applications.

The Mitsuku codebase can be licensed from Pandorabots and incorporated into another AI chatbot app.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

One of the best AI chatbots with open source libraries
Provides Sandbox development
Pre-defined content library provides shortcuts

Cons

AIML can make building a bot a long and complicated process as you need to define input/output pairs and rules
Less than 80% accurate in answering questions
Cannot run on your own platform 

Pricing

Pandorabots has a free trial. The Sandbox is free. The Developer plan costs $19/m; the Pro $199/m. They also have an Enterprise version – price on request. 

Try Pandorabots Here

Genesys (formerly known as Bold360) – Makes Every Customer Interaction Personal

Genesys is the world leader in customer experience with a proven track record of helping customers and partners create exceptional connections. Its core capabilities in omnichannel contact center technology, business process outsourcing, and advanced analytics give full agency to deliver seamless interactions across every channel. Genesys does so not simply by automating interactions but through empathetic meaningful conversations.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easy to use software
Multichannel capabilities

Cons

Customer service is difficult to reach
Expect to pay for features not included in the basic package
Unexpected package structure changes 

Pricing

No trial or free version is available. Several options are on offer, but it is best to discuss your requirements with Genesys’ sales department.

Contact Genesys Here

Chatbot – Make Automating Customer Service a Breeze

Automate your most important tasks by building and creating multipurpose chatbots with visual builders, including widgets and integrations. Zapier users can speed their work by a considerable margin with one-click integrations, open APIs, and webhooks.

Design smooth conversational experiences that encourage customers to engage and interact with your brand as often as possible by sending out dynamic responses that reference products or anything else you can think of. Mix and match text, images, buttons, and quick replies to make the best AI chatbot interfaces.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Good analytics allow you to improve services
Easy to use

Cons

Limitations depending on the plan
Support via email only 

Pricing

Chatbot is available in four pricing plans. It comes with a 14-day free trial. The Starter plan costs $42/m; the most expensive Businesses plan costs $424/m.

Try Chatbot Here

Olark – Full-Featured Live Chat

The Olark Live Chat chatbot platform is the easiest way to add live chat functionality to your site. Over 40 thousand organizations, including small businesses, large businesses, non-profits, government entities, and higher education, choose Olark.

Slap an Olark box on your website, and you’re ready to start helping more customers and closing more sales by using the intuitive interface. Larger businesses can also take advantage of powerful scaling tools that allow for bulk customization and improvements for better integration with your company’s infrastructure.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easy to learn and to use
Easy for customers to get in touch
Affordable
Reporting features

Cons

No image sharing
Only one user can log in to a chatbot at a time
Minor bugs  

Pricing

Free trial offered. Pricing starts at $29/m per seat. An Enterprise plan is also available.

Get Olark Here

Userlike – Turn Instant Chats into Long-Term Customers 

Userlike allows customers to contact clients directly on their website, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Telegram. It easily connects with different sales and support systems to help automate parts of the review process with simple shortcodes and more complex integrations via various APIs.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easy customer support and feedback
Integration with other applications
User-friendly interface

Cons

No phone app
Delayed offline email messages  

Pricing

Free trial available. Free plan option on offer. Pricing starts from $90/m up to $720/m depending on the package.

Learn More About Userlike Here

Pure Chat – An Easy & Fast Way to Add Live Chat to Your Website

Pure Chat helps small and mid-sized companies and organizations connect with their website visitors by providing powerful, easy-to-use live AI chatbots. Customers can provide information to visitors, nurture leads, answer questions, and even promote sales to improve satisfaction for both buyers and sellers.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Easy to use
Good customer service
Value for money

Cons

Bugs in notification system when the system is overloaded
Can improve on customizable options 

Pricing

Free 30-day trial available. Pricing on the Growth plan starts from $39/m. On the Pro plan, the pricing starts at $79/m. 

Get Pure Chat Here

Jivochat – Connect With Clients Where They Are

JivoChat is a business messenger chatbot platform for your online marketing team to increase web engagement. This is the one chat tool that lets you monitor site visitors and respond to them wherever they’re at – by phone, email, Facebook Messenger, Viber, or Telegram conveniently from inside the application! Never lose another opportunity to engage a customer when you’re offline with JivoChat’s instant message archive feature, even if you accidentally close an incoming chat request.

Features

Pros and Cons

Pros

Simple installation
All the usual features available in a single plan

Cons

No FAQs available
Package design needs an update 

Pricing

The free trial and the Basic package are free forever. The Professional version costs $19/m per agent if billed annually. You can negotiate options with the vendor.

Get JivoChat Here

FAQs

What are the benefits of using the best AI chatbots?

Customer Service can be available 24/7.
It saves you time and money.
A chatbot reduces person-to-person interaction with customers.
They eliminate tedious, time-consuming tasks.
They facilitate a smoother customer experience.
Chatbots can actually humanize your brand.
Marketing can be more targeted.
The best AI chatbot can help you grow your business.
With machine learning, the bot improves over time. 

Which features should I look for to find the best AI chatbot platforms?

The Ability to Learn

The best AI chatbot should absorb knowledge from an organization’s data without requiring manual teaching. Some examples include your chat logs, CRM records, and emails – it should learn dynamically and rapidly as employees communicate with each other or customers through this process.

Understanding

An artificial intelligence chatbot that understands your business is a must-have for any company looking to optimize its workflow. A chatbot can break down complex entities and intents and understand the unique language of enterprises to execute tasks more efficiently.

Training

The chatbot should learn from each interaction and become smarter using semantic modeling and machine learning. It should not require manual training unless it needs to learn a new vocabulary.

Deploying

The chatbot platform should have a behavior engine, dialog manager, and NLU tools to understand the meaning of a user’s input. 

Building chatbots should be easy. The best AI chatbot should take less than two months to set up and deploy. And the AI chatbot platform should meet user expectations and requirements within the shortest possible time frame.

What makes a “good” chatbot?

Chatbots need to be smart enough to figure out what the user wants without any extra input and quick-witted enough not to answer questions with answers already given.

A chatbot is as “good” as the degree to which it serves its purpose, how well it meets its goals, and the quality of interactions customers have with it. 

What are the advantages of using AI chatbots for customer service?

An AI powered chatbot is faster to answer in chats.
Customers don’t have to wait in queues.
Customers can be authenticated with back-office system integration, establishing personalized details such as invoice payments, order status, products or services used, etc.
They reduce the customer service agents’ workload.
Savings – You can reduce the number of Customer Service agents.
You can provide quality customer service 24/7.
Companies gain valuable insight into customer behavior, preferences, and common issues from analytics and conversation histories.
You can reach customers wherever they are, for example, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, SMS, and Slack.

How can chatbots help you make money?

An AI chatbot can target customers where they are in the sales funnel and lead them to purchase. Chatbots can also do upselling and cross-selling.   

What is the difference between a virtual agent and a chatbot?

Chatbots and virtual agents are similar in that they are both software, but not all chatbots use AI. Virtual agents utilize AI to deliver better assistance to customers. 

On which platforms can a chatbot be deployed?

You can deploy chatbots on websites, mobile apps, and messaging platforms like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, WeChat, etc.

Conclusion

Artificial intelligence chatbots are changing the way people interact with their customers. With natural language understanding, chatbot technology can comprehend what a person is saying and ask questions to find answers more quickly than ever before.

On top of that, Zendesk chatbot software offers a free trial on all plans. I suggest you give this interactive chatbot a try!