LiveChat charges per seat with no free plan; tawk.to is free and sells add-ons per property. LiveChat Team costs $59 per agent a month billed monthly, and Starter at $25 is limited to one user. tawk.to's free core documents unlimited agents, conversations and history, with branding removal at $39 a month per property.
tawk.to costs nothing in all three worked examples, while LiveChat's bill grows with every agent. tawk.to suits small teams that want to spend nothing on chat and accept US data storage. LiveChat suits teams that need EU hosting, mobile SDKs or a large app marketplace. Details in the LiveChat review, the tawk.to review and free live chat software.
Bottom line
- tawk.to is the better pick for most small teams, because it costs nothing where LiveChat bills every agent. Choose LiveChat if you need EU data hosting, mobile SDKs or a HIPAA agreement.
Side by side
| LiveChat | tawk.to | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 5.5 | 8.8 |
| Pricing model | Per seat | Free, with paid add-ons |
| Paid plans from | $19 per seat per month, billed annually | Free |
| Free plan | No free plan · 14-day trial | Yes — Free |
| Free plan: Free seats | — | Unlimited |
| Free plan: Conversations | — | Unlimited |
| Free plan: Chat history | — | Unlimited |
| Free plan: Remove branding | — | Paid add-on |
| Free plan: AI on the free plan | — | 100 / month |
| Free plan: Beyond website chat | — | Yes |
| AI chatbot | AI Agent (sold in Text and ChatBot.com plans) — billed per resolution | AI Assist — billed per credit |
| Channels | Website chat, Email, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, SMS | Website chat, Email, WhatsApp, Messenger, Telegram, SMS, Voice |
| Languages | Widget in 48+ languages | Widget in 49+ languages |
| EU data hosting | Yes | No |
| Compliance | GDPR DPA, HIPAA (Enterprise, BAA), CSA STAR | GDPR DPA (SCCs, UK Addendum), Data Privacy Framework (self-certified), CCPA notice, FERPA support, UK ICO registration |
| Best for | Established teams with budget per agent | Budget teams wanting unlimited free agents |
What it costs at 2, 5 and 10 seats
| Product | 2 seats · 100 conversations a month | 5 seats · 500 conversations a month | 10 seats · 2,000 conversations a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| LiveChat | $118 a month (Team) | $295 a month (Team) | $590 a month (Team) |
| tawk.to | Free (Free) | Free (Free) | Free (Free) |
Choose LiveChat if
- you need EU hosting: LiveChat lets you choose EU or US hosting at sign-up on every plan, while tawk.to stores data in the United States.
- you are adding chat to a mobile app: LiveChat documents iOS and Android SDKs, while tawk.to says a customer-facing mobile SDK is on its roadmap.
- you rely on integrations: LiveChat claims 200 marketplace apps, against 50 integrations claimed by tawk.to.
- you need a HIPAA agreement: LiveChat lists HIPAA with a BAA on Enterprise.
Choose tawk.to if
- you want no chat bill: tawk.to's free core covers unlimited agents, while LiveChat bills $59 per agent a month on Team.
- you want the logo off: tawk.to sells a Remove Branding add-on per property, while none of LiveChat's Starter, Team or Business plans lists branding removal.
- you want AI included: tawk.to's AI Assist gives 100 message credits a month per property for free, while LiveChat's AI Agent is sold in separate Text and ChatBot.com plans.
- you want to try without a deadline: tawk.to's core has no time limit, while LiveChat offers a 14-day trial.
Score breakdown
| Criterion | Weight | LiveChat | tawk.to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free-plan usability | 25% | 1/5 | 5/5 |
| Cost as you add agents | 25% | 2/5 | 5/5 |
| AI billing clarity | 20% | 4/5 | 5/5 |
| Channels and integrations | 15% | 5/5 | 4/5 |
| Data location and compliance | 15% | 3/5 | 2/5 |
Frequently asked questions
Why pay for LiveChat when tawk.to is free?
The documented reasons are hosting and development: LiveChat offers EU hosting on every plan, iOS and Android SDKs and a public marketplace, while tawk.to stores data in the United States and has no customer-facing mobile SDK. If none of that matters to you, the published prices favor tawk.to. See LiveChat pricing.
How much does LiveChat cost for five agents?
LiveChat Starter is limited to one user, so five agents need Team at $59 per agent a month billed monthly, or $49 billed annually. tawk.to's free core covers the same team at no cost. The free-plan audit runs the numbers for your team.
Can I remove branding on LiveChat or tawk.to?
tawk.to sells a Remove Branding add-on per property, though its pricing page ($29) and help centre ($39 billed monthly) list different prices. LiveChat's pricing page does not list branding removal on Starter, Team or Business.
Related pages
- LiveChat reviewreview
- LiveChat pricing explainedpricing
- tawk.to reviewreview
- tawk.to pricing explainedpricing
- Free-plan audit: does your team fit a free live chat plan?
Sources
- WooCommerce integration — Text · September 18, 2026
- LiveChat pricing — Text · September 18, 2026
- Text pricing (plans with the AI Agent) — Text · September 18, 2026
- ChatBot.com pricing — Text · September 18, 2026
- Pay-per-agent pricing model — Text · September 18, 2026
- LiveChat subscription policy — Text · September 18, 2026
- Data storage policy — Text · September 18, 2026
- Data Processing Addendum — Text · September 18, 2026
- List of sub-processors — Text · September 18, 2026
- How to change the chat widget language — Text · September 18, 2026
- LiveChat Marketplace — Text · September 18, 2026
- LiveChat features — Text · September 18, 2026
- tawk.to pricing — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- tawk.to add-ons — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Add-on pricing and key features — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Why is tawk.to free? — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- tawk.to live chat — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- How to manage billing for AI Assist — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- How to add message credits (overages) to your AI Assist plan — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- How to purchase tawk.to's Hired Agent service — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Why do you need my personal data? — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Data Processing Addendum — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Sub-processors — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Data protection — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- GDPR — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- What languages does tawk.to support? — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- An introduction to integrations in tawk.to — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- How to add the tawk.to widget to your mobile application — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Viewing, deleting and exporting your chat history — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- Q1 2026: omnichannel grows, automation expands and AI gets smarter — tawk.to · September 18, 2026
- tawk.to company profile — Dealroom · September 18, 2026
This page was researched and drafted with AI assistance from the sources listed on it. We have not installed or tested these products ourselves. Method: How we review