The Best Conversational Chatbots Software in 2026
We researched conversational chatbot software using vendors’ official websites, including pricing pages, plan tables, and product documentation. Rankings focus on the category’s core job, value for money, and verified features, so buyers can compare tools for building and deploying chat-based conversations.
Our top picks
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Top ranked
Amazon Lex#1 of 289.2/10A usage-priced AWS chatbot service for teams building multichannel conversational experiences.
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Runner-up
Intercom#2 of 289.1/10A broad customer service suite pairing Fin AI Agent with live chat, ticketing, and omnichannel support.
14-day trial
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Top-ranked free plan
IBM watsonx Assistant#3 of 289.0/10A flexible assistant builder with multichannel publishing and cloud or self-hosted deployment.
Free plan · 30-day trial
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
The full ranking 28 tools, best first
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Best forTeams building multichannel bots in AWS
A usage-priced AWS chatbot service for teams building multichannel conversational experiences.
- Human handoff
9.2/10★★★★★Visit Amazon Lex -
Best forSupport teams wanting chatbots with a full service inbox
A broad customer service suite pairing Fin AI Agent with live chat, ticketing, and omnichannel support.
9.1/10★★★★★Visit Intercom -
Best forMid-market and enterprise assistant teams
A flexible assistant builder with multichannel publishing and cloud or self-hosted deployment.
- Human handoff
Free plan · 30-day trial Our IBM watsonx Assistant verdict → Visit IBMFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #3 · $79/mo →9.0/10★★★★☆Visit IBM -
Best forLarge businesses automating customer messaging
An enterprise chatbot builder combining reusable flows, knowledge integrations, analytics, and human handoff.
- Human handoff
8.9/10★★★★☆Visit LivePerson -
Best forTeams wanting affordable chatbots with visitor tracking
A flexible chat and visitor-tracking suite, with a free tier and higher limits on paid plans.
Free plan · 15-day trial Our Zoho SalesIQ verdict → Visit Zoho SalesIQFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #5 · $59/mo →8.7/10★★★★☆Visit Zoho SalesIQ -
Best forEnterprises already building on Oracle applications
A multichannel chatbot platform with visual flows, enterprise integrations and agent handoff.
- Human handoff
8.6/10★★★★☆Visit Oracle -
Best forSupport teams automating routine service actions
Automates routine service workflows across messaging and email, with usage charges beyond included sessions.
- Human handoff
8.5/10★★★★☆Visit Freshworks -
Best forBuilders wanting a free start and visual AI tools
A visual, multichannel chatbot platform with a free starting tier and AI-assisted building.
- Human handoff
8.4/10★★★★☆Visit Botpress -
Best forEnterprises building self-hosted, multichannel assistants
A multichannel customer-service AI platform with visual flows, knowledge grounding, and human handoff.
- Human handoff
8.4/10★★★★☆Visit NiCE Cognigy -
Best forMid-size and enterprise service teams
Visual AI agent building, knowledge grounding and multichannel service, with a limited free plan.
- Human handoff
8.3/10★★★★☆Visit Yellow.ai -
Best forEnterprises needing multilingual, omnichannel service bots
A low-code, multilingual bot platform for enterprises coordinating service across channels.
- Human handoff
8.2/10★★★★☆Visit Haptik -
Best forEnterprises with private deployment requirements
A low-code, multichannel assistant platform with private deployment and enterprise integrations.
- Human handoff
8.1/10★★★★☆Visit Kore.ai -
Best forTechnical teams needing controlled self-hosted agents
A self-hosted agent platform for teams that need control over logic, data, and deployment.
- Human handoff
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Rasa -
Best forEnterprise service teams needing managed AI automation
Managed AI service automation with connected knowledge, structured flows, and human routing.
- Human handoff
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Ada -
Best forEnterprises automating voice and chat support
Enterprise chat and voice automation with transactional actions and human handoff.
- Human handoff
7.9/10★★★★☆Visit boost.ai -
Best forSmall support teams needing chat, bots, and ticketing
A customer-service chatbot that pairs AI replies with live-agent handoff and ticketing.
7.9/10★★★★☆Visit ChatBot -
Best forTeams launching knowledge-grounded bots on a free plan
Build knowledge-grounded AI agents, then deploy and monitor them across channels.
- Human handoff
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit Chatbase -
Best forSmall teams building guided web and WhatsApp flows
A visual chatbot builder for guided flows, AI answers and human handoff across web and messaging.
- Human handoff
7.7/10★★★★☆Visit Landbot -
Best forCreators automating social messaging and lead capture
A visual chatbot and marketing automation tool for social messaging and lead capture.
- Human handoff
7.6/10★★★★☆Visit Manychat -
Best forMid-market and enterprise multichannel support teams
A multichannel support bot platform with visual and prompt-based building and human handoff.
- Human handoff
7.6/10★★★★☆Visit Verloop.io -
Best forSmall teams building bots across channels and apps
A flexible no-code chatbot builder with AI answers, live-agent handoff, and broad app connections.
- Human handoff
7.5/10★★★★☆Visit Flow XO -
Best forBusinesses needing paid multichannel bots and agent tools
Visual flows, AI responses and agent handoff, with plans starting at $149 monthly.
- Human handoff
7.4/10★★★★☆Visit Botmaker -
Best forTechnical teams seeking an open-source assistant platform
A self-hostable assistant toolkit with dialog design, knowledge search, and text and voice support.
7.2/10★★★★☆Visit SOVA -
Best forDevelopers wanting flexible bot deployment
Flexible bot building and deployment for teams comfortable extending an open-source platform.
- AI-generated replies
- Visual flow builder
7.1/10★★★★☆Visit Tock -
Best forBanks automating approved customer service transactions
Policy-aware banking automation with authentication, approved actions, and human escalation.
- Human handoff
7.0/10★★★★☆Visit Engageware -
Best forTeams adding voice agents to speech-generation workflows
A speech-generation platform with voice agents, rather than a general-purpose chatbot builder.
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit ElevenLabs -
Best forIndividuals seeking a general-purpose AI assistant
A flexible general assistant, not a dedicated customer-service chatbot builder.
6.5/10★★★☆☆Visit site -
Best forEnterprises managing content across business processes
Document workflows and archiving for enterprises—not conversational chatbot deployment.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit OpenText
No tools match those filters.
Compare at a glance
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Deployment channels | Human handoff | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amazon Lex | No | $0.00075/unit usage-based | multichannel | Yes | 9.2 |
| 2 | Intercom | No | $29/seat/mo | 9.1 | ||
| 3 | IBM watsonx Assistant | Yes | multichannel | Yes | 9.0 | |
| 4 | LivePerson Conversation Builder | No | multichannel | Yes | 8.9 | |
| 5 | Zoho SalesIQ | Yes | 8.7 | |||
| 6 | Oracle Digital Assistant | No | multichannel | Yes | 8.6 | |
| 7 | Freshworks Freddy AI Agent | No | $29/seat/mo | Yes | 8.5 | |
| 8 | Botpress | Yes | $150/mo | multichannel | Yes | 8.4 |
| 9 | Cognigy | multichannel | Yes | 8.4 | ||
| 10 | Yellow.ai | Yes | multichannel | Yes | 8.3 | |
| 11 | Haptik | multichannel | Yes | 8.2 | ||
| 12 | Kore.ai | multichannel | Yes | 8.1 | ||
| 13 | Rasa | Yes | multichannel | Yes | 8.0 | |
| 14 | Ada | No | multichannel | Yes | 8.0 | |
| 15 | boost.ai | No | Yes | 7.9 | ||
| 16 | ChatBot | No | $19/user/mo | 7.9 | ||
| 17 | Chatbase | Yes | $40/mo | multichannel | Yes | 7.8 |
| 18 | Landbot | Yes | €32/mo | multichannel | Yes | 7.7 |
| 19 | Manychat | Yes | multichannel | Yes | 7.6 | |
| 20 | Verloop.io | multichannel | Yes | 7.6 | ||
| 21 | Flow XO | Yes | $25/mo | multichannel | Yes | 7.5 |
| 22 | Botmaker | $149/mo | multichannel | Yes | 7.4 | |
| 23 | SOVA | Yes | Free | multichannel | 7.2 | |
| 24 | Tock | Yes | Free | Web, mobile, social networks, smart speakers, messaging platforms | 7.1 | |
| 25 | Aivo AgentBot | Yes | 7.0 | |||
| 26 | ElevenLabs | Yes | $6/mo | 6.8 | ||
| 27 | Microsoft Copilot | Yes | $99.99/yr | 6.5 | ||
| 28 | SAP Extended Enterprise Content Management by OpenText | 6.0 |
Head-to-head All 17 comparisons →
- Amazon Lex vs Zoho SalesIQ
- Amazon Lex vs Freshworks Freddy AI Agent
- Amazon Lex vs Botpress
- Intercom vs LivePerson Conversation Builder
- Intercom vs Botpress
- IBM watsonx Assistant vs Zoho SalesIQ
- IBM watsonx Assistant vs Freshworks Freddy AI Agent
- IBM watsonx Assistant vs Botpress
- LivePerson Conversation Builder vs Zoho SalesIQ
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How we rank conversational chatbots software
Every tool on this page was researched by iTechGuides Editors from its official website — pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. We rank on how well each one does this category's core job, what the free or entry plan includes, and where it falls short. Where we have enough verified facts, the score out of 10 is a rubric — job fit, value and how much we could verify — shown with its breakdown on every tool's page; a tool we have not verified enough to score yet shows its rank without a number. Scores are re-checked when a product changes its plans. Read the full editorial policy, or submit a tool we missed.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update