Best WhatsApp Chatbot: 11 Platforms Compared (2026)

The best WhatsApp chatbot for an online store is Kanal. It puts an AI agent inside WhatsApp that knows your catalog, answers order questions around the clock and actively sells. It is the WhatsApp platform for e-commerce that goes furthest on Shopify, and it also connects to PrestaShop.

That is our pick. The right tool still depends on your store, your channels and your budget. So we compared 11 WhatsApp chatbot platforms, Kanal included, on three things: the type of AI, the e-commerce integrations and the starting price each vendor displays.

This page compares platforms. For the step-by-step setup, use cases and ready-made flows, read our WhatsApp chatbot guide for e-commerce. To compare web chat apps you install on Shopify, see our best Shopify chatbot apps.

Scripted Chatbot or AI Agent: What Is the Difference?

Every tool below calls itself a chatbot. They do not all do the same job.

• A scripted chatbot follows a decision tree you build: buttons, menus, keywords. It is predictable. It also stops at the first question you did not plan for.
• An AI agent reads free text and answers from your own data: catalog, policies, order status. It can act, for example check an order or recommend a product. It passes the conversation to a human when needed.

In practice, most platforms now mix the two. Landbot combines AI agents with rule-based flows. Wati's Shopify app puts chatbots, automation rules and AI agents in one flow builder. Kanal covers both jobs: a WhatsApp AI chatbot for instant support, and an AI sales agent that recommends products and recovers carts.

Our e-commerce guide has a detailed rule-based vs AI comparison. If you are still choosing between a website widget and WhatsApp, read AI chatbot for ecommerce. Meta also has its own agent, covered in our Meta Business Agent guide.

How We Compared the Platforms

On September 10, 2026, we read each vendor's pricing page, product pages and, when it exists, its Shopify App Store listing. Every price and feature below comes from those pages. We looked at five points:

• Type of AI: scripted flows, AI agent, or both, and on which plan the AI is included.
• Store data: whether the bot can use your catalog and orders, not only a FAQ.
• E-commerce integrations: Shopify, WooCommerce, PrestaShop, or none named.
• Human handoff: whether a person can take over with the conversation history.
• Pricing model: flat fee, active contacts, conversations, AI credits or per message, plus Meta's own fees.

Prices are shown as each page displayed them. Some vendors show a different currency depending on the visitor's country. We did not convert anything.

Comparison Table

The starting price is the entry plan shown on the page we cite. AI features often sit on a higher plan, so read the section for each tool.

The 11 WhatsApp Chatbot Platforms

1. Kanal, the WhatsApp AI Agent Built for E-commerce

The Kanal app: automations list.

The Kanal app: home dashboard.

Kanal is a WhatsApp platform for e-commerce, installed as a native Shopify app. Its AI agent learns your product catalog, FAQ, store policies and brand voice. Then it answers on WhatsApp, 24/7.

It does more than deflect tickets. It recommends products, handles objections and guides shoppers to checkout inside WhatsApp. It gives order status and tracking, and walks customers through returns. When a question needs a person, it hands the conversation to your team with the full history.

• AI: AI agent trained on your Shopify catalog, FAQ and policies, answering in more than 96 languages
• E-commerce: native Shopify app (every Shopify plan, including Shopify Plus), plus Klaviyo, Recharge, Crisp and Gorgias. PrestaShop connects through the store API, with setup done by a Kanal expert (PrestaShop integration)
• Also included: abandoned cart recovery and WhatsApp campaigns on the same platform
• Price: From $89/month, with Meta fees passed through at cost (see plans)

Why it is our pick: the bot is connected to real store data, it sells as well as it supports, and it works in the app your customers open every day. It activates in minutes. The agent learns from your Shopify catalog automatically, and you set responses and escalation rules from the dashboard.

2. Wati, a WhatsApp Inbox With Chatbots and AI Agents

Screenshot of the Wati website.

Wati combines a WhatsApp team inbox, campaigns and a no-code chatbot builder. On Shopify, its app Wati: WA Cart Recovery & AI starts with cart recovery, then hands over to AI agents and a shared inbox. The app's flow builder combines chatbots, automation rules and AI agents.

• AI: an AI agent for FAQs and product assistance on the Pro plan of the Shopify app. On wati.io, Astra AI Agents for web, WhatsApp and voice are sold as a separate add-on
• E-commerce: Shopify app. The listing also names WooCommerce, HubSpot CRM, Zoho CRM and Zapier. The wati.io pricing page lists the Shopify integration as a $4.99/month add-on
• Price: Growth at $69/month on the Shopify App Store, Pro at $149/month, Business at $349/month, with a 7-day free trial. Message charges come on top and vary by country

Worth a look if you want a WhatsApp inbox with a visual chatbot builder, and you are ready to move to a higher plan or an add-on for AI. Our Wati alternative page compares it with Kanal.

3. Interakt, WhatsApp Automation With AI Agents on Its Top Plan

Screenshot of the Interakt website.

Interakt automates WhatsApp for marketing and support, with a Shopify app built around notifications and cart reminders. The chatbot grows with the plan: a basic WhatsApp chatbot on Growth, an advanced one on Advanced, and WhatsApp AI agents on Premier.

• AI: WhatsApp AI agents (sales, FAQ, lead qualification) on the Premier plan, which also adds Shopify actions in the workflow builder
• E-commerce: Shopify app with abandoned cart reminders (with a checkout link), order confirmations and FAQ auto-replies. Its website pricing page also lists WooCommerce, Razorpay and PayU
• Price: Starter at $21/month on the Shopify App Store, Premier at $99/month, with a 14-day free trial. WhatsApp conversation charges are extra

Worth a look if you want to start with notifications and simple auto-replies, then add AI agents later on a higher plan. See our Interakt comparison.

4. Gallabox, Chatbot Flows Plus AI Credits

Screenshot of the Gallabox website.

Gallabox is a WhatsApp, Instagram and web chat platform organized around capturing and qualifying leads. Every plan includes chatbot flows and a monthly pool of AI credits.

• AI: chatbot flow builder on all plans. AI agents on WhatsApp and Instagram start with the Essential plan. Advanced adds AI voice on WhatsApp and phone
• E-commerce: Shopify app (Gallabox WhatsApp Automation) for order notifications, abandoned cart messages and no-code bots for product discovery and cross-sell. Catalog and payments are included from the Basic plan
• Price: Basic at $112/month billed annually (500 AI credits), Essential at $248/month billed annually (2,000 AI credits). WhatsApp conversation fees are billed separately. The free trial includes 500 AI credits, with no credit card required

Worth a look if you want one tool for WhatsApp, Instagram and a web widget, with AI from the Essential plan up. See our Gallabox alternative page.

5. AiSensy, the WhatsApp API With an AI Agent Add-on

Screenshot of the AiSensy website.

AiSensy sells the WhatsApp Business API with campaigns, click-to-WhatsApp ads and a shared team inbox. Its pricing page is built for India: prices in rupees, and per-message rates shown for Indian users.

• AI: an AI Chat Agent add-on at ₹1,350/month, with natural-language replies, knowledge base Q&A, long-term memory and tool calling. A drag-and-drop chatbot builder is a separate add-on (₹2,500/month for 5 chatbots)
• E-commerce: Shopify and WooCommerce integrations on the Basic plan, for order, shipping and abandoned-cart notifications. The Shopify app also sends COD confirmations
• Price: a Free Forever plan (no broadcasting), then Basic at ₹1,500/month billed monthly. Replies within the 24-hour service window are free on every plan

Worth a look if you sell mostly to customers in India and want rupee pricing, with AI as an option. See our AiSensy comparison.

6. Respond.io, an Omnichannel Inbox With AI Agents

Screenshot of the Respond.io website.

Respond.io manages conversations from many channels in one inbox: WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, TikTok, email, web chat and more. Its AI Agents answer from approved knowledge sources, qualify leads, route chats, recommend products, update CRM fields and escalate when a conversation needs judgment.

• AI: AI Prompt and AI Assist on Starter, AI Agents from the Growth plan. AI usage is included at no extra cost on the self-service Growth, Advanced and Enterprise plans
• E-commerce: Shopify, WooCommerce and Magento, plus HubSpot, Salesforce, Zapier, Make and n8n
• Price: Starter at $79/month billed yearly, Growth at $159/month billed yearly, with a 7-day free trial and no credit card needed. WhatsApp fees are not included in any subscription

Worth a look if your team handles sales and support conversations across many channels and wants AI agents inside a shared inbox. See our respond.io comparison.

7. Tidio, the Lyro AI Agent in a Multichannel Helpdesk

Screenshot of the Tidio website.

Tidio is a helpdesk for chat, email and social, powered by its Lyro AI agent. WhatsApp is one channel of the inbox, next to live chat, email and Instagram.

• AI: Lyro answers from your knowledge base and hands off to a human. With Lyro Actions, it can process refunds and order edits in Shopify or via API. On product pages, it compares, recommends and adds to cart. AI usage is capped: Lyro pauses at your limit
• E-commerce: Shopify app with native Shopify actions on the Lyro plan. The listing also names Klaviyo, Judge.me, Mailchimp, Zapier and Zendesk
• Price: free plan, then Customer Service at $29/month and Lyro AI Chatbot at $39/month (up to 200 Lyro conversations) on the Shopify App Store, with a 7-day free trial

Worth a look if website chat is your main channel and WhatsApp is one channel among several. Our best Shopify chatbot apps list covers Tidio in detail.

8. ManyChat, Social Automation With a WhatsApp Channel

Screenshot of the ManyChat website.

ManyChat automates conversations for creators and social-first businesses. It works across Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, TikTok, Telegram, email and SMS, and it bills by active contacts.

• AI: automations on every plan, with Manychat AI and AI-powered conversations from the Pro plan
• E-commerce: no e-commerce platform is named on its pricing page
• Price: free plan (25 active contacts, 2 channels), Essential at $14/month billed annually, Pro at $29/month billed annually, with a 14-day free trial on Essential or Pro. The final price depends on the billing country

Worth a look if your conversations start on Instagram or TikTok and WhatsApp is a second channel. Read ManyChat pricing explained and our ManyChat comparison.

9. Gupshup, a Conversational AI Platform With a Shopify App

Screenshot of the Gupshup website.

Gupshup presents itself as a conversational AI platform for marketing, commerce and support automation. It offers autonomous AI agents for sales, marketing and customer support, on WhatsApp, Instagram, SMS and RCS.

• AI: on Shopify, an AI shopping assistant trained on your catalog for discovery and checkout, AI cart recovery messages, and AI post-purchase support for returns, exchanges and tracking, with escalation
• E-commerce: Shopify app (Gupshup: WhatsApp Marketing), which uses Shopify segments for campaigns
• Price: the Shopify app is free to install, with zero platform fee and per-message WhatsApp or RCS charges. Gupshup's self-serve pricing shows a $0.001 platform fee per message, with WhatsApp fees billed at actuals

Worth a look if you prefer paying per message rather than a fixed monthly plan, or you also plan to send RCS messages.

10. Landbot, a No-Code Builder Mixing Flows and AI

Screenshot of the Landbot website.

Landbot is a no-code builder for AI agents and chatbots on the web and WhatsApp. It combines AI agents with rule-based flows, and you feed the agent your own knowledge base. Its pricing page describes it as an EU-based platform.

• AI: AI agents on paid plans, with AI chats included (100 on Starter, 300 on Professional, 500 on Professional WA), then €0.10 per extra AI chat. Human takeover from a shared inbox
• E-commerce: its Shopify integration embeds the chatbot on your Shopify website (live chat, pop-up, embedded or full page). HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Zoho, Sheets, webhooks and API come with Professional
• Price: free plan with a WhatsApp test number, then Starter at €32/month billed annually. WhatsApp on your own number starts with Professional plus the WhatsApp add-on: Professional WA shows €160/month billed annually. Meta fees may vary according to Meta's price list

Worth a look if you want to design qualification flows visually and blend scripted steps with AI, on the web and on WhatsApp.

11. Botpress, an AI Agent Builder With a WhatsApp Integration

Screenshot of the Botpress website.

Botpress is a platform to build AI agents, priced by conversation rather than by seat. Its WhatsApp integration connects your AI chatbot to WhatsApp to handle inquiries, send notifications and perform actions.

• AI: 3 AI agents on the free plan, unlimited from Plus. Plus includes $25 of AI usage, and extra AI spend is bought at cost in $10 credit grants
• E-commerce: a Shopify integration in the Botpress Hub. Setup needs your Shop ID plus Admin and Storefront access tokens from a Shopify app you create, with read access to customers, orders and products
• Price: free plan (100 conversations), Plus at $150/month billed annually (250 conversations a month, extra packs of 100 for $65), Team at $750/month billed annually. WhatsApp is part of the Plus plan

Worth a look if someone on your team is comfortable with API tokens and wants to build a custom agent.

What a WhatsApp Chatbot Really Costs

Budget three lines: the platform, the AI and Meta.

1. The platform subscription. Pricing models differ a lot. Kanal charges a flat platform fee. ManyChat bills by active contacts, Botpress and Tidio by conversations, and Gupshup per message. Wati, Interakt, respond.io and Gallabox add WhatsApp message fees on top of the plan.

2. AI usage. Several vendors meter AI separately: Gallabox with monthly AI credits, Landbot at €0.10 per extra AI chat, Wati with AI credits on its Shopify plans ($30 per 1,000), Botpress with an AI usage allowance. Respond.io includes AI usage from the Growth plan. Tidio caps Lyro at your limit.

3. Meta's fees. Since July 1, 2025, Meta charges per delivered template message. Rates depend on the template category (marketing, utility, authentication) and on the recipient's country calling code. Non-template messages are free, and so are utility templates sent inside an open customer service window. Source: Meta's pricing documentation.

So a chatbot that answers incoming questions inside the customer service window adds no Meta fees. Campaigns, notifications and other template messages are what you pay for. For a country-by-country breakdown, read our WhatsApp Business pricing guide. To compare the underlying API providers, see WhatsApp API providers compared.

With Kanal, plans start from $89/month and Meta fees are passed through at cost.

How to Choose Your WhatsApp Chatbot

Five questions settle most decisions.

1. Where do you sell? On Shopify or PrestaShop, pick a platform that reads your orders and catalog natively. On WooCommerce, check the integration lists above.
2. What should the bot do? Menus and FAQ answers work with scripted flows. Product advice, order tracking and selling need an AI agent connected to your store data.
3. Which channels matter? A WhatsApp-first platform is built around templates, campaigns and the WhatsApp inbox. A multichannel inbox suits teams that also answer on Instagram, email or web chat.
4. Who takes over? Test the handoff. The agent should pass the conversation, with its history, to a person.
5. What is the full monthly bill? Add the plan, the AI usage and Meta's template fees at your volume.

Choose Kanal if you run an online store and want a WhatsApp chatbot that knows your catalog, sells and hands off cleanly, with abandoned cart recovery and campaigns in the same tool. It is the option that goes furthest on Shopify. Book a demo or see the plans.

The other tools fit specific needs: Wati, Interakt, Gallabox or AiSensy for a WhatsApp inbox with AI as an extra; respond.io, Tidio or ManyChat when WhatsApp is one channel among many; Gupshup for per-message pricing; Landbot or Botpress to design your own agent.

For a Shopify-only shortlist, see our best WhatsApp apps for Shopify.