Top 10 AI Chatbots for Startups

Are you a startup founder wondering how to scale your customer support without breaking the bank? Or maybe you want to automate repetitive tasks and improve engagement without hiring a huge team? The solution is right here — AI chatbots. These intelligent assistants work 24/7, can handle multiple customers at once, and provide fast, personalized help that builds trust and drives sales.

I’m Riten, founder of Fueler — a platform that helps freelancers and professionals get hired through their work samples. In this article, I’m going to walk you through the best AI chatbots for startups in 2025. Choosing the right chatbot can give your startup an edge, just like a smart portfolio gives you a hiring edge. A chatbot isn’t just software; it’s a powerful tool that automates tasks, boosts customer satisfaction, and helps your startup grow faster.

1. Drift

Drift is not just a chatbot; it’s a full conversational marketing platform designed to generate leads and close deals faster. Startups love Drift because it connects marketing and sales teams, turning website visitors into qualified buyers automatically. It’s perfect for startups that want to use chatbots for more than just customer service — Drift’s AI can book meetings for your sales reps, qualify leads, and personalize conversations based on user behavior.

Key Features:

• AI-powered lead qualification and routing.
• Multi-channel support including website chat, email, and mobile.
• Integration with Salesforce, HubSpot, Marketo, and other CRMs.
• Customizable chatbots with pre-built templates.
• Real-time visitor tracking and engagement insights.

Pricing:

• Starts around $50 per month for essential conversational marketing features.
• Advanced and enterprise plans are customized depending on scale and features.

2. ManyChat

ManyChat is a powerhouse chatbot for startups focused on social media, especially on Facebook Messenger and Instagram. It’s highly popular among e-commerce startups for automating marketing funnels and customer engagement on social platforms. ManyChat’s user-friendly drag-and-drop bot builder lets you create complex flows without coding, making it accessible for non-technical founders.

Key Features:

• Supports Facebook Messenger, Instagram DM, SMS, and email.
• Visual chatbot builder with no-code drag-and-drop interface.
• Ecommerce integrations like Shopify and WooCommerce.
• Automation for lead generation, product promotion, and customer support.
• Detailed analytics for campaign performance tracking.

Pricing:

• Free tier available for up to 1,000 contacts.
• Paid plans start at $15/month and scale based on number of contacts.

3. Ada

Ada specializes in customer support automation through AI chatbots that deliver personalized, self-service experiences. It’s built for startups aiming to cut support costs and increase customer satisfaction by automating common inquiries. Ada’s no-code platform allows your team to build powerful bots without technical skills, making it scalable and easy to maintain.

Key Features:

• AI-powered natural language understanding for precise intent detection.
• Multilingual support for global customer bases.
• Easy no-code bot building and training.
• Integrations with Zendesk, Salesforce, Shopify, and more.
• Real-time analytics to optimize customer experience.

Pricing:

• Custom pricing tailored to your startup’s size and usage.
• Focused on enterprises and startups scaling customer support.

4. Intercom

Intercom is a customer messaging platform that combines live chat, bots, and customer engagement tools. It’s perfect for startups wanting to build strong relationships through personalized, real-time communication. Intercom’s bots automate lead capture, answer FAQs, and hand off complex queries to human agents seamlessly.

Key Features:

• AI chatbots that can answer questions and qualify leads.
• Product tours and onboarding automation.
• Deep CRM and marketing automation integrations.
• Mobile and web chat support.
• Robust segmentation and targeting for personalized messaging.

Pricing:

• Starts at $74 per month for basic messaging.
• More advanced plans with automation and support features available.

5. LivePerson

LivePerson is an enterprise-grade conversational AI platform that’s highly customizable and perfect for startups ready to scale quickly. It supports messaging across SMS, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and more, making customer engagement seamless across all platforms. LivePerson’s AI can handle complex conversations with human fallback and deep analytics for improving customer service.

Key Features:

• Multi-channel messaging across SMS, social media, and web.
• AI intent recognition with fallback to live agents.
• Powerful analytics and reporting tools.
• API access for custom integrations.
• Scalable for startups growing into mid-market and enterprise.

Pricing:

• Custom pricing based on business needs.
• Ideal for startups that need robust features and flexibility.

6. Tidio

Tidio is an easy-to-use chatbot combined with live chat, designed specifically for small startups and ecommerce stores. It allows you to automate common questions, generate leads, and engage visitors in real-time. The platform’s pre-built chatbot templates help you get started quickly, and it integrates with Shopify, WordPress, and other platforms for smooth operations.

Key Features:

• AI chatbots combined with live chat support.
• Customizable chatbot templates for various industries.
• Integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, and others.
• Real-time visitor monitoring.
• Simple setup and user-friendly interface.

Pricing:

• Free plan with basic chatbot and live chat features.
• Paid plans start at $19 per month with advanced automation.

7. MobileMonkey

MobileMonkey is a marketing-focused chatbot platform that shines for startups wanting to capture leads via social media messaging apps like Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and SMS. It offers omni-channel chat marketing and powerful automation that can nurture leads, qualify prospects, and book appointments.

Key Features:

• Supports Facebook Messenger, Instagram DM, SMS, and web chat.
• Omni-chat inbox for managing all conversations in one place.
• Chat drip campaigns and lead qualification.
• Integration with CRM and marketing tools.
• No-code chatbot builder for easy setup.

Pricing:

• Free plan available for basic features.
• Pro plans start at $29 per month with advanced automation and analytics.

8. Freshchat

Freshchat by Freshworks is a modern messaging platform with AI chatbots that help startups engage visitors and customers effortlessly. It supports contextual conversations, chatbot handoffs to live agents, and automation to reduce support workload. Freshchat integrates well with other Freshworks tools for CRM, making it ideal for startups building a customer-centric ecosystem.

Key Features:

• AI chatbots for FAQs, lead capture, and customer support.
• Seamless transition between bots and live agents.
• In-depth analytics and customer insights.
• Integration with Freshsales CRM and other Freshworks products.
• Multi-channel support including mobile apps.

Pricing:

• Starts free with limited features.
• Paid plans begin at $15 per user per month.

9. ChatBot.com

ChatBot.com is a powerful, easy-to-use platform designed for startups to build intelligent chatbots with drag-and-drop interfaces. It supports complex conversation flows, integrates with popular CRMs, and can be embedded across websites, Facebook, and WhatsApp. ChatBot.com helps startups automate sales, support, and lead generation with a scalable approach.

Key Features:

• Visual drag-and-drop bot builder.
• Multi-channel support including Facebook, WhatsApp, and website chat.
• AI-powered conversation flow and triggers.
• CRM and helpdesk integrations (Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk).
• Real-time analytics and optimization tools.

Pricing:

• Starts at $50 per month for basic plans.
• More advanced plans and enterprise pricing available.

10. Boost.ai

Boost.ai is an advanced conversational AI platform designed to deliver smart, human-like customer experiences. It focuses on complex conversations and is widely used by startups in fintech, insurance, and telecom who need highly accurate AI responses and easy escalation to human agents. The platform includes powerful analytics and continuous AI training.

Key Features:

• Conversational AI with natural language understanding.
• Supports escalations from bot to human agent.
• Multi-channel support across web, mobile, and messaging apps.
• Advanced analytics and AI training tools.
• Compliance and security features suitable for regulated industries.

Pricing:

• Custom pricing based on scale and industry.
• Offers tailored solutions for startups needing enterprise-level AI.

Strategic Tip: Using AI Chatbots to Hire Smarter

If you’re building a startup team while scaling your customer interactions, consider tools like Fueler, which help you hire through real work assignments, not just interviews. Combining AI-powered customer engagement with a portfolio-based hiring platform like Fueler means you get better results from both your customers and your team.

FAQs

Q1: What is the best AI chatbot for startups with limited budget?

For startups on a tight budget, ManyChat and Tidio offer free tiers and affordable pricing while providing strong features for social media and ecommerce.

Q2: Can AI chatbots replace human customer support?

AI chatbots handle repetitive queries and provide instant answers 24/7, but complex issues often require human agents. The best systems combine bots with live support.

Q3: How do I integrate AI chatbots with my existing CRM?

Most leading chatbot platforms like Drift, Intercom, and ChatBot.com offer native integrations with CRMs such as Salesforce, HubSpot, and Zendesk to ensure smooth data flow.

Q4: Are AI chatbots multilingual?

Yes, many advanced platforms like Ada and Boost.ai support multiple languages to serve customers worldwide.

Q5: How do AI chatbots help with lead generation?

AI chatbots can qualify visitors in real-time, book meetings, capture contact info, and even send follow-up messages, automating the entire sales funnel process.

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You can create your portfolio on Fueler, thousands of freelancers around the world use Fueler to create their professional-looking portfolios and become financially independent. Discover inspiration for your portfolio

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