Best Free Live Chat for Small Business Websites (2026)

Short answer

For a small business that wants free live chat, start with tawk.to (free product, optional paid branding removal) or Tidio (free plan with a mobile app, capped at 50 billable conversations a month). Crisp is the pick if you want two agents on a free plan. All three install in minutes, and you can switch later if you outgrow them.

This page is about live chat, meaning a real person answers. If you want a bot to answer for you, see the best AI chatbot for small business.

Free-plan comparison (as of October 2026)

Figures below come from each vendor's own pricing page, checked in October 2026. Free plans change often, so confirm before you sign up. "Not stated" means the vendor's pricing page does not say, not that the answer is no.

Tool	Agents on free plan	Limits	Branding removed?	Mobile app	Integrations
tawk.to	Not stated on pricing page	Described as "free for life"	No; removal costs $29/month per its pricing page	iOS and Android apps listed	Snippet can be added to WordPress, Shopify and Squarespace sites
Tidio	10 seats	50 billable conversations/month	No, removal not available on Free	Included	WordPress, Shopify, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, email
Crisp	2 agents	100 customer profiles; history limit not stated	No; "white label" is on the Plus plan	Included	Shopify, WooCommerce and other e-commerce integrations
HubSpot free live chat	Not stated on chat page	Not stated	Not stated	HubSpot mobile app	Free Slack integration; part of HubSpot's free CRM
Zoho SalesIQ	3 operators	10K visitors/month, 100 operator chat sessions/month	Not stated	Included	Mobile SDK; not stated for WordPress/Shopify
Smartsupp	1 operator	25 conversations/month, 14-day history	Not stated	Apps listed, not tied to a tier	WordPress and Shopify supported
JivoChat	Page says both "5" and "up to 2"	2 months of history	Not stated	Included	Telegram, Facebook, Instagram, Viber
LiveChat	No free plan	14-day free trial only	n/a	Yes	Many; paid

A few notes on reading the table:

• Conversation caps matter more than seats. Tidio's 50 billable conversations and Smartsupp's 25 a month are fine for a quiet site and tight for a busy one. Zoho's 100 operator chats a month is a middle ground.
• History limits are easy to miss. Smartsupp keeps 14 days and JivoChat 2 months on free plans. If you want to search old chats for customer questions, check this first.
• Branding is the usual price of "free". Expect a small "powered by" badge on most free widgets.

Quick picks: who should choose what

Solo owner, zero budget: tawk.to. The product is free, and you only pay if you want the badge gone.

You also use Shopify or WordPress and want chat plus automation later: Tidio. It has plugins for both, and paid plans start at about $24/month if you outgrow the free plan.

Two people share the inbox: Crisp (2 agents free) or Zoho SalesIQ (3 operators free).

You already use HubSpot for contacts: HubSpot's free live chat keeps chats and contacts in one place. Check its seat and branding limits in your account before relying on it.

You have a support team and a budget: LiveChat, from $19 per user per month on annual billing ($25 monthly) as of October 2026, after a 14-day trial. Crisp's paid plans start at $45/month for 4 seats, and JivoChat's start at $28 per agent per month billed annually.

How to add live chat to your website in 10 minutes

1. Sign up with your chosen tool and enter your site's address.
2. Pick your install method from the dashboard. Every tool above gives you either a plugin/app or a one-line script.
3. Install it using the steps for your platform below.
4. Install the mobile app and sign in, so you get a notification when someone writes.
5. Set your office hours and away message (next section), then open your own site in a private window and send yourself a test message.

WordPress

Search for the tool's plugin under Plugins > Add New (tawk.to, Tidio, Crisp and Smartsupp all list WordPress support), install, activate, and connect your account. No code is needed.

Shopify

Install the tool's app from the Shopify App Store, then approve the connection. Tidio, Crisp and Smartsupp list Shopify support. Starting a store? See how to set up a Shopify store, and Shopify is where you would sign up.

Squarespace and Wix

Neither needs a plugin. Copy the widget script from your chat dashboard and paste it into your site's custom code area (Code Injection in Squarespace, Custom Code in Wix). These areas may only be available on certain paid site plans, so check yours. Not sure which builder you have? Compare them in Wix vs Squarespace.

Any other site

Paste the script just before the closing </body> tag on every page, or in the footer area of your theme.

Live chat without staff: hours, away messages and response times

Live chat only helps if someone answers. A widget that says "we are online" and then goes quiet is worse than no widget.

• Set office hours. Show chat as available only when you can actually reply. Most tools let you set a schedule, and outside it visitors see your away message.
• Write a useful away message. Say when you will reply ("We answer chats Monday to Friday, 9 to 5 Eastern") and ask for an email address so you can follow up.
• Decide on a reply target and keep it. Within a minute or two while chat is online is what visitors expect from a chat box. If you cannot manage that, shorten your hours instead of answering late.
• Use saved replies. Turn your top five questions (pricing, shipping, hours, booking, returns) into shortcuts.
• Turn on phone notifications, and mute them out of hours.
• Review missed chats each morning. Reply by email while the question is still fresh.

If you cannot staff chat at all, a contact form or an automated assistant may be a better fit. The AI chatbot guide covers that.

Other options worth knowing

Intercom is aimed at software companies and larger support teams, and is usually more than a small business needs. Facebook Messenger is a different approach: customers message your Facebook page instead of a chat box on your site. It can work if your customers already live on Facebook, but it ties you to Meta apps.

What to look for in a live chat tool

• Mobile app so you can answer from your phone.
• Offline mode that collects an email address when you are away.
• Canned responses for repeat questions.
• Widget customisation to match your colours and position.
• Easy installation by plugin or one script, not a developer project.
• Honest limits. Check seats, conversation caps and history before you commit, because those are where free plans differ.

Does a small business need live chat?

Not always. It pays off most where visitors have questions before buying, such as services, bookings and higher-priced products. A simple store with a clear FAQ page may not need it. If you add it, track whether chats lead to enquiries or sales; see what a conversion rate is.

Related questions

• What is the best AI chatbot for a small business?
• How to automate your business
• What is a conversion rate?