Sendbird Chat vs Agora Chat

Sendbird Chat8.8Visit Agora Chat8.3Visit

Higher score Sendbird Chat #2 in Chat Api 8.8/10 Paid ✓ 1 of 4 features Visit Sendbird

vs

Agora Chat #6 in Chat Api 8.3/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 1 of 4 features Visit Agora Chat

• Sendbird Chat fits best

  Teams building chat into web, mobile, or game apps

• Agora Chat fits best

  Apps needing rich media and large-community chat

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Side by side

Feature	Sendbird Chat 8.8/10 Visit ↗	Agora Chat 8.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.8	8.3
Ranking	#2 in Chat Api	#6 in Chat Api
Best for	Teams building chat into web, mobile, or game apps	Apps needing rich media and large-community chat
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	$349/mo	$349/mo
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Mobile	Cloud, Desktop, Mobile
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web, Windows, iOS, Android
Integrations	2 integrations	2 integrations
Features Sendbird Chat 1/4 · Agora Chat 1/4
Group chat	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Self-hosted option	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
End-to-end encryption	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Moderation tools	✓	✓
Specs
SDK platforms	iOS, Android, JavaScript, Flutter, Unity, Unreal, .NET	Android, iOS, Web, Windows, Flutter, React Native, Unity
Group size limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Supports one-to-one, group, open, and supergroup channels Includes offline messaging, search, receipts, rich media, and push notifications Offers moderation tools, analytics, data export, and post-event webhooks	Supports one-to-one, group, and large-community messaging Rich media, offline delivery, receipts, translation, and moderation SDK coverage spans web, mobile, desktop, Flutter, React Native, and Unity
Cons	No permanent free plan; paid pricing starts at $349 per month billed annually Translation, data export, image moderation, and supergroup channels require Pro Enterprise pricing is custom	Starter and Pro plans charge $0.05 per user beyond included thresholds Enterprise requires a minimum commitment of 100,000 monthly active users Analytics integrations are centered on Agora Analytics and Datadog
Our verdict	Sendbird Chat provides SDKs, UI kits, a Platform API, and messaging infrastructure for adding real-time chat to web, mobile, game, and other applications. It suits teams that need more than basic direct messaging: channel options include… Read the review →	Agora Chat is a real-time messaging SDK and API from Agora, Inc. It targets developers adding private, group, or large-community chat to mobile, web, desktop, and cross-platform applications. Use cases named by the vendor include… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Sendbird Chat — where it wins

  • Supports one-to-one, group, open, and supergroup channels
  • Includes offline messaging, search, receipts, rich media, and push notifications
  • Offers moderation tools, analytics, data export, and post-event webhooks

  Where it doesn't

  • No permanent free plan; paid pricing starts at $349 per month billed annually
  • Translation, data export, image moderation, and supergroup channels require Pro
  • Enterprise pricing is custom

• Agora Chat — where it wins

  • Supports one-to-one, group, and large-community messaging
  • Rich media, offline delivery, receipts, translation, and moderation
  • SDK coverage spans web, mobile, desktop, Flutter, React Native, and Unity

  Where it doesn't

  • Starter and Pro plans charge $0.05 per user beyond included thresholds
  • Enterprise requires a minimum commitment of 100,000 monthly active users
  • Analytics integrations are centered on Agora Analytics and Datadog

• Sendbird Chat8.8/10 · Paid

  A feature-rich chat API for teams that can accommodate paid plans starting at $349 per month.

  Visit SendbirdFull verdict →
• Agora Chat8.3/10 · Free plan

  A media-rich chat SDK with community messaging, moderation, and usage-based plans.

  Visit Agora ChatFull verdict →