Short answer
Aide, Zipchat and Chatbase charge per AI reply, while Fin, Gorgias and Yuma charge per resolution and Zendesk and Front add seats. Aide publishes a monthly cap on extra replies, eesel AI and Fin let you set one, and Aide, Zipchat, eesel AI and Yuma don't bill human-only conversations.- Tools compared
- Chatbase, Zipchat, Aide, eesel AI, Tidio Lyro, Fin, Gorgias, Yuma, Front, Zendesk.
- Pricing units
- Per AI reply, per AI conversation, per resolution, per seat plus AI usage.
- Recorded
- Unit, entry price, human-only conversation fees, spending cap, free plan or trial.
- Order
- By pricing unit, then alphabetical. Aide goes last in its group.
- Checked
- November 2, 2026, on each vendor's own pricing pages and help docs.
- Disclosure
- Aide makes this page and is one of the ten.
How each pricing model behaves is explained, without vendor names, in How is AI customer service priced? This page names the vendors and shows their published numbers.
What was checked
Ten AI customer service tools that ecommerce brands commonly shortlist, each checked on November 2, 2026 against the vendor's own pricing page, help center or Shopify App Store listing. For each, five things were recorded:
- Pricing unit: what one billable thing is.
- Published entry price: the lowest self-serve price and what it includes.
- Human-only conversations: whether conversations only your team handles cost anything, through seats, ticket fees or conversation counts.
- Monthly cap: whether the vendor publishes a limit on usage charges.
- Free plan or trial.
Where a vendor's own pages didn't confirm something, it says "Not confirmed" or "Not published" and isn't counted. Tools are grouped by pricing unit, from a single AI reply up to a seat. Within a group they run alphabetically, with Aide placed last because Aide publishes this page.
Side by side
| Tool | Pricing unit | Published entry price | Charges for human-only conversations | Published monthly cap | Free plan or trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chatbase | Message credits per AI response, 1 to 5 by model | $40 a month for 700 credits ($32 billed yearly) | Not confirmed; plans include 2, 3 or 5 members | No overage unless auto-recharge is on; no cap on recharges published | No free plan shown |
| Zipchat | Per AI reply | $64 a month billed yearly for 750 ($80 monthly) | No; counts AI replies, unlimited team members | Not confirmed; extra replies $49 per 250 | 7-day trial, 30-day money-back |
| Aide | Per AI reply | Free for 150 a month; $39 a month for 1,000 | No; your team's replies are never billed | Yes: $110, $350 or $1,000 by plan, then AI pauses | Free plan; 7-day trial on paid plans |
| eesel AI | Per ticket or chat its AI works on | $299 a month for 500 | No; only tickets its AI works on | Pauses at the limit; optional $0.80 overage with a cap you set | 100 free credits, no card |
| Tidio Lyro | Per Lyro conversation | $32.50 a month billed yearly for 50 | Yes, beyond 50 a month; Starter is $24.17 yearly for 100 | Fixed quota; no overage price published | Free plan with 50 Lyro conversations once; 7-day trial |
| Fin | Per outcome | $0.99 each; 50 a month minimum on other helpdesks | No on other helpdesks; Intercom seats $19 | Usage limits you configure; none published | 14-day trial |
| Gorgias AI Agent | Per automated interaction, plus the helpdesk ticket fee | AI Agent from $30 a month for 30, on a helpdesk from $10; $1.50 each past the allowance | Yes; any ticket with a helpdesk reply carries the ticket fee | Not confirmed | 7-day trial, no card |
| Yuma | Per full resolution | Not published | No; no charge for conversations or escalations | Not published | 30-day trial on real tickets |
| Front | Per seat, plus Autopilot per conversation by outcome | $25 a seat billed yearly; Autopilot $0.05 to $0.89 a conversation | Yes, through seats | Not published; a maximum limit on request | 14-day trial; Autopilot 30 days |
| Zendesk AI agents | Per seat, plus per automated resolution | $55 a seat billed yearly (Suite Team), 5 resolutions per seat included; then $1.50 | Yes, through seats | Not confirmed | 14-day trial |
Checked November 2, 2026 against each vendor's own pages. Sources below.
By pricing unit
Per AI reply or message: Chatbase, Zipchat, Aide
The bill follows how much the AI writes. Zipchat counts each outbound AI message on chat, email, WhatsApp and Instagram. Chatbase charges 1 credit per response on its Auto model and 2 to 5 on larger ones, and Actions can add a second model request; when credits run out the agent goes unavailable unless auto-recharge, $40 per 1,000 credits, is on. Aide counts each customer message it writes a reply or draft for, and never your team's replies.
Per AI conversation: eesel AI, Tidio Lyro
A conversation costs the same whether the AI writes one line or ten. eesel AI charges 1 credit per ticket or chat its AI works on, in monthly sizes from 500 to 5,000. Tidio counts a Lyro conversation when Lyro replies at least once, sells 50 to 1,000 a month self-serve, and starts a new one after 15 quiet minutes. Tidio bills human-replied conversations separately.
Per resolution or outcome: Fin, Gorgias AI Agent, Yuma
You pay when the vendor's definition of resolved is met, and each defines it differently. Fin charges $0.99 when no further help is requested after its last answer, or when a Procedure you set up ends in a handoff. Gorgias charges per automated interaction, a request with no human involvement within 72 hours, on top of the ticket fee for the same ticket. Yuma bills full resolutions and quotes through its team.
Per seat plus AI usage: Front, Zendesk
Your team's seats are the base, and AI is metered on top. Zendesk's Suite Team includes 5 automated resolutions per seat a month; more cost $1.50 committed or $2.00 pay as you go. Front charges each Autopilot conversation once at its highest level: $0.05 for triage, $0.39 for a handoff, $0.89 for a resolution, meaning no teammate follow-up within 24 hours on chat or 72 on email.
One store at 2,000 conversations a month
Take a store with 4 teammates and 2,000 conversations a month. The AI takes part in 1,500 and writes about 2.5 messages in each: 3,750 AI replies. Say it fully resolves 900 and hands 600 to the team, an assumption for the math rather than a measured rate. People alone handle the other 500. Prices are billed yearly where the vendor offers it.
| Tool | The math | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| Chatbase | 3,750 credits on a 1-credit model fit Basic's 4,000 | $120 |
| Zipchat | Pro at $240 for 3,000 replies, plus 3 packs of 250 at $49 | $387 |
| Aide | 3,750 AI replies fit Pro's 4,000, at $1,428 a year | $119 |
| eesel AI | 1,500 conversations its AI works on, the 1,500-credit size | $699 |
| Tidio Lyro | 1,500 Lyro conversations is above the 1,000 sold self-serve | Not published |
| Fin | 900 outcomes at $0.99 | $891 |
| Gorgias AI Agent | Helpdesk Pro $300 for 2,000 tickets, AI Agent $171 for 190, then 710 at $1.50 | $1,536 |
| Yuma | No published price | Not published |
| Front | 4 seats at $25, 900 resolutions at $0.89, 600 handoffs at $0.39 | $1,135 |
| Zendesk AI agents | 4 seats at $55, then 880 resolutions beyond the 20 included at $1.50 | $1,540 |
- Chatbase, Zipchat, Aide, eesel AI and Fin are the AI alone. If you keep Zendesk, Gorgias or Front beside them, those helpdesk fees continue; Aide's own helpdesk costs nothing extra. The Gorgias, Front and Zendesk totals include the helpdesk for 4 people.
- Chatbase needs 7,500 credits on a 2-credit model, or when Actions add a second request per reply.
- Gorgias's plan table lists $0.90 per automated interaction on Pro. At that rate for all 900, the total would be $1,110; the price of a larger allowance isn't on the page.
- Zendesk at $2.00 pay as you go comes to $1,980. Fin on the Intercom helpdesk adds 4 seats at $19, or $76.
- Resolution-priced totals move with how many conversations the AI resolves; per-reply totals move with how much it writes.
Sources
All facts were checked on November 2, 2026 against each vendor's own pages: Chatbase pricing, its AI model credits doc, FAQ and Shopify App Store listing; Zipchat pricing; eesel AI pricing; Tidio pricing and The Lyro AI agent limit; Fin pricing; Gorgias pricing and How you're billed for using Gorgias; Yuma pricing; Front pricing and Automate complex workflows with Autopilot; Zendesk pricing. Aide's facts come from its shipped product and pricing. More on Fin in Fin alternatives for ecommerce. Prices change; check each vendor before you buy. Aide makes this page and bills per AI reply; to correct a fact, write to support@aide.app.