Best Live Chat Software for Ecommerce

Gorgias: best for Shopify order work inside support

Gorgias is a strong shortlist option for Shopify teams that want customer and order information visible in support conversations. Its Shopify integration surfaces order data and supports actions such as refunds and order edits inside a ticket. That can matter when agents spend their day answering order questions and need to move from a conversation to a concrete support action without switching systems.

The trade-off is that the useful cost comparison is not just a seat price. Gorgias lists ticket allowances and per-automated-interaction charges, so a team should model its ticket volume and AI use together. A ticket resolved entirely by AI may incur both a ticket fee and an automation fee. Check how those units fit your own support pattern before estimating a monthly bill. The evidence for Gorgias order actions is specific; do not assume every ecommerce chat tool offers the same order context or actions.

Tidio: best for chat, bots, and sales automation together

Tidio combines live chat, chatbots, and marketing automation. Its Shopify listing describes order history beside chats, order-status answers, and actions such as cancelling an order, offering a refund, or changing a shipping address. It also describes product recommendations and abandoned-cart automation. For a store that wants customer service conversations and shopper engagement in one product, that combination is the concrete differentiator.

The trade-off is that chat, bot, and AI usage can be separate things to price. Tidio’s listed plans and limits vary by product and usage, and its AI agent has its own conversation allowance and price. Before comparing headline prices, check the plan, included usage, and Shopify actions your team needs. For more pricing context, see the live chat comparison of plans, AI, and five-agent costs.

LiveChat: best for teams that want a customizable agent-led widget

LiveChat is a general-purpose option for teams that value control over the appearance and behavior of the chat widget. It is described as a human-led support tool with customization options, and a secondary plan listing gives a price of $19 per agent per month. That is a different billing unit from a flat plan with included AI conversations, so compare it against your staffing model rather than treating the figures as equivalent.

The trade-off is that the evidence here does not establish exact Shopify order context or actions, nor does it establish current official plan limits. If order lookup or changes are part of the reason for adding chat, confirm those exact steps in a real workflow before choosing.

tawk.to: best for a no-monthly-cost starting point

The evidence describes tawk.to as offering free live chat with unlimited agents and chats. That can suit a small store that primarily needs a way for people to talk to the team. Optional paid add-ons are listed for AI assist, video, voice and screen sharing, live-agent help, and branding removal.

The trade-off is that free chat is not the same as unlimited paid AI support. The evidence does not establish Shopify order history, cart context, or order actions for tawk.to. If those are essential, test them rather than inferring them from the presence of a website widget.

Richpanel: best for teams considering a multichannel service inbox

Richpanel is described as a customer-service CRM for handling tickets across email, live chat, social media, and SMS. That breadth may appeal to a store that wants more than a standalone website chat window. The available pricing detail is secondary: an add-on for self-service is listed as starting at $100 per month.

Before choosing, ask for a walkthrough of how the inbox handles your channels and which usage or add-ons affect the bill. Before choosing, confirm that the plan includes the limits and Shopify actions your team needs.

momo: best for answers grounded in your own support content

This option suits a store that wants an AI front line to answer from its own website and documents, with a shared inbox for conversations that need a person. It retrieves relevant passages, drafts an answer, and checks that answer against those sources. When confident, it replies with citations; when it is not confident, it tells the visitor and opens a ticket for the team.

The trade-off is important for Shopify stores: Shopify is in preview. Do not choose momo for Shopify order lookups, order changes, refunds, or live Shopify actions. Its current live channels are the website widget, email, and Slack. It is a better fit when the repeated questions are covered by existing content and the main need is a knowledge-grounded answer followed by human follow-up when necessary.

How to choose by team size, channels, and budget

If you are a small team

First decide whether you need live chat alone or AI answers as well. A free chat offer can be useful when your team wants a basic way for customers to make contact, but check whether AI assistance, branding removal, or other add-ons cost extra. tawk.to is described as free for live chat, with paid add-ons including AI assist and branding removal. That does not establish Shopify order context or actions, so keep those requirements separate.

If you want AI to answer from your own support material and route uncertain questions to a team inbox, compare that workflow and allowance directly. The Free plan includes a one-time allowance of AI conversations, a widget, an inbox, and a limited knowledge collection. It is not a substitute for Shopify order actions. The useful comparison is the task each option covers, not simply whether the word “free” appears in its plan. See free live chat software options for a related comparison.

If your store runs on Shopify

Write down the order cases agents actually handle: checking order history, cancelling an order, issuing a refund, or changing a shipping address. Ask the vendor to show each step in the actual workflow, including the permissions required and what the agent sees beside the conversation. Gorgias and Tidio have documented Shopify order data and actions in the evidence used here. Do not assume a generic Shopify integration provides the same access.

The Shopify integration is in preview, so this option should not be shortlisted for current order lookup or order changes. It can still fit a store whose common questions are answered by its website, PDFs, Word files, plain text, or Q&A content, and that wants uncertain conversations sent to a shared inbox.

If you need more than website chat

List the channels your team already supports and where agents need to reply. Zendesk is described as a ticketing system that unifies email, chat, phone, and social messages. Richpanel is described as handling email, live chat, social media, and SMS. momo currently supports a website widget, email, and Slack. Compare the channels your team can use today, rather than treating a coming-soon channel as available.

If monthly costs are hard to predict

Build the comparison from the billing unit. A per-agent price grows with seats; a ticket allowance and overage depend on ticket volume; AI interaction charges depend on automated use; and an included-conversation plan depends on the plan’s conversation limit. Gorgias lists ticket allowances and per-automated-interaction charges, while momo charges a flat plan fee with included AI conversations and no per-resolution fees or credit packs. Avoid comparing those units as if they measured the same work.

Finally, think about seasonal volume. Estimate the conversations, tickets, and agent seats your team expects, then check how additional usage is billed. A practical comparison should include a routine question, an order issue, and a question that needs a person, so you can assess the customer experience and handoff. This gives you a practical view of both the customer experience and the bill. For broader options, see customer service software for ecommerce.