20 best AI chatbots for customer service in 2025
Few tools have impacted business as broadly and deeply as the customer service chatbot. Widely recognized as a transformational tool, artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots have made it possible for organizations to not only efficiently manage an increasing number of digital customer interactions, but also improve the quality of said communication.
These AI-powered software products use natural language processing (NLP) and pre-defined rules (like “if-then” statements) to engage in text-based conversations. Designed specifically to interact with customers, businesses train them to provide answers to frequently asked questions, offer personalized recommendations, resolve complaints, and more — all without the input of human agents.
And the results so far are compelling. Customer service leaders say chatbots have reduced working hours by 2.5 billion working hours and 30 percent in customer service costs — plus, more than two-thirds of customers say they prefer dealing with chatbots over humans.
Thanks to the wide variety of solutions available and the advanced capabilities of AI, it’s the perfect time to introduce chatbots into your customer service department. In this article, you’ll find 20 excellent options to choose from.
But first, we’ll highlight some benefits and identify the most important features to look for when shopping around for an AI customer service chatbot.
Customer service is a major component of the overall customer experience at any business. However, there are numerous challenges associated with this function that complicate the delivery of excellent service.
Chatbots minimize some of those complications, helping to bridge the gap between what customers expect and what an all-human service department is capable of providing:
The best customer service chatbot is the one that does the specific tasks you need it to do. But in order to do the job well, it should have certain characteristics. So, functionality aside, here are the essential features your chosen software should have to ensure you get the best return on your investment:
Now, with these essential features in mind, let’s dive into the best customer service chatbots on the market in 2025.
In recent years, the market for chatbots has exploded — leaving you with a lot of potential options. The 20 AI chatbots for customer service named in this article are great starting points, but how can you tell which one is right for your business?
Many customer service chatbot offerings appear to be similar on the surface. But you can eliminate some options relatively quickly by using the following as guideposts:
Whether you collect data from customers via forms or not, you can use Jotform AI Chatbot Builder to up your game. Without writing any code, you can turn a static form-filling exercise into a dynamic, conversational experience. Jotform AI Chatbot Builder is trained with the data you provide and can ask questions and answer your customers’ queries. All it takes is a few simple steps — selecting a form, training the AI with documents or URLs, and customizing it using the AI Chatbot Builder — to create and personalize your AI chatbot.
Jotform offers templates for a variety of functions that make it easy to get started, including 90-plus AI chatbot templates. For example, Jotform’s Information Request AI Chatbot Template is designed to enhance the way you provide information to client inquiries.
With Jotform’s AI-powered tools, your business can collect information more intuitively, efficiently, and engagingly.
Businesses of all sizes that want to enhance form-based customer interactions
Jotform
Text and voice conversations, multichannel support, enterprise-grade security, industry-leading information capture, easy-to-use interface for training AI agents
Users like the simplicity and broad range of chatbot templates, such as Support Satisfaction agents, Call-Back agents, and Application Processing Specialists
Jotform AI Chatbot Builder is limited with free use
Jotform offers five price plans, ranging from a free starter plan (featuring five AI chatbots and 100 monthly conversations) to a custom-priced Enterprise plan with unlimited AI chatbot use.
N/A
Zendesk For Service is a customer service solution that combines chat, agent support, and help center tools in one. It works across a variety of channels and includes numerous automation options that can help teams be more efficient.
Large customer service teams that will make good use of its vast array of tools and integrations
Zendesk
Automated ticket routing, messaging across all web, mobile, social, and business channels, workforce management tools
Users love that they can view communications across all channels (emails, chats, social media messages, calls, etc.) in one place
Taking advantage of advanced functions requires more expertise on the part of the user
Zendesk offers four standard pricing plans; the lowest package that includes live chat costs $55 per agent per month; it also offers a free trial for 14 days
Intercom is an AI-first customer service platform with three components — an AI Agent that provides answers for customers 24/7; an AI Copilot that assists support agents; and an AI Analyst, that provides AI insights and recommendations for support leaders.
Mid-market companies, e-commerce companies
Intercom
Advanced AI chatbot, AI-enhanced inbox, AI insights and reporting
Its customer support team gets high praise, and the interface is intuitive and user-friendly
It has a lengthy setup process and pricing is less-than-transparent
Intercom offers three pricing plans ranging from $29/seat/month to $132/seat/month; optional add-ons cost more; plus, the live chat agent costs $0.99 per resolution; Intercom offers a 14-day free trial
Tidio provides customer support teams with advanced live chat and chatbot functionality, along with a host of other tools, like automation, to help them deliver excellent customer experiences.
Small and medium-sized businesses
Tidio
Live chat that supports canned responses, pre-chat surveys, attachments, tagging, etc; automated workflows; Lyro conversational AI agent
It gets top marks for being easy to set up and use
Pricing is a bit high, and the free plan is very restrictive
Tidio offers a free-forever plan as well as four pricing tiers ranging from $29/month to $2,999/month; you can also upgrade your chosen plan with extra automation features and Lyro AI conversations; a seven-day free trial is available
Together, Drift and Salesloft support sales, marketing, and customer success teams with a variety of tools to drive sales, including chatbots. The goal is to help companies be more strategic and intentional about engaging customers and acting on buyer signals.
Companies looking for a lead generation tool
Salesloft
Live chat, drift “bionic” chatbots, real-time lead qualifying
Users say it’s a powerful tool that has greatly streamlined customer communication; it also works well with Salesloft
Customizing the platform may require technical assistance
Contact Salesloft for price information
Freshchat supports live chat and offers AI chatbots for messaging with customers and prospects across channels. It also allows businesses to proactively reach out to customers with automated emails and SMS messages.
Small but fast-growing businesses, and larger organizations that need advanced chat features
Freshworks
AI-powered chatbots, unified agent inboxes, support ticket management
It integrates with Freshdesk; customers have said that it’s easy to implement and use
Some users have been disappointed in the AI chatbot’s performance; others say numerous bugs need fixing
Freshchat has four pricing plans, ranging from a free plan for up to 10 agents to an Enterprise plan for $79/agent/month; a free 14-day trial is available
HubSpot Chatbot Builder allows you to build your own website chatbot without any advanced technical knowledge or coding. Its chatbots are designed to work seamlessly with HubSpot’s other marketing and communications tools.
Businesses that use HubSpot products
HubSpot
Includes templates for a variety of bot types (lead qualifier, concierge, tickets, etc.); automation workflows; design customization to match your brand
You can customize the bot to fit your brand identity, and it will work hand-in-hand with your other HubSpot applications
The major benefit comes when you use it alongside other HubSpot products, which can be an expensive proposition
The chatbot builder is free, however, as a standalone purchase its functionality may be limited. To get the most out of it, you may need to purchase the premium edition of one of its other products.
N/A
IBM watsonx Assistant is a virtual AI-powered chatbot that can answer customer questions and assist human agents in solving complex queries.
Large organizations that want to improve their customer service capabilities
IBM
Pre-built templates, drag-and-drop building, analytics dashboard, enterprise-grade security
It’s fast and (mostly) accurate in providing responses
Users say that some technical skills are required to use it effectively; additionally, some users have said its performance in languages other than English is not perfect
IBM has three price tiers — a free Lite plan; a Plus plan starting at $140/month (with various add-ons); and an Enterprise plan that requires a custom quote
The Kustomer platform strives to blend technology and humanity to create exceptional customer experiences. Its Customer Assist feature can be used to greet new customers, deliver or gather information, collect data, and more.
Medium to large companies with a high volume of customer interactions; growing e-commerce companies
Kustomer
Integrated CRM data, reporting dashboards, conversation workflows
Most reviewers say it’s very easy to use and are impressed with its broad functionality
It can take time to learn all the features, which is necessary in order to get the most value from Kustomer
Kustomer offers two types of pricing — seat-based pricing and usage-based pricing; both types have two tiers — Enterprise ($89/user/month or $0.35/conversation) and Ultimate ($139/user/month or $0.50/conversation)
Designed specifically for e-commerce companies, Gorgias bills itself as an “all-in-one help desk” that allows users to manage customer communications across multiple channels.
E-commerce companies
Gorgias
Automated workflows, centralized inbox, social media sentiment monitoring
It has a user-friendly interface and integrates seamlessly with major e-commerce platforms
The analytics functionality has been described as “clunky” and “basic”; it’s also quite pricey
Gorgias offers five ticket-based pricing plans; the lowest-priced tier that offers AI chatbots and automation costs $117/month (300 help desk tickets and 60 automated tickets)
Gladly is a comprehensive customer service platform that prides itself on being customer-focused rather than ticket-focused, enabling “lifelong” conversations with customers. Its AI chatbots work across all channels, consolidating communications, and can hand off to live agents as needed.
Companies focused on sustaining customer loyalty over time
Gladly
Workforce management, real-time customer feedback, dedicated agent (consistent main point of contact)
Users love that it allows them to see the big picture of a customer’s communications, from their point of view
Some users have noted slow performance at peak times, and occasional software glitches
Contact Gladly for price information
Ada offers chatbot messaging and AI voice services for customer support teams. It works best in conjunction with platforms like Salesforce and Zendesk.
Organizations that want to safeguard their brand while scaling in customer service
Ada
50-plus languages, omnichannel support (social, web, mobile, and SMS), smart routing
Its customer service team gets high marks for being helpful and responsive; most people also say Ada is very easy to use
The main downside is the limited number of integrations
Contact Ada to find out about costs for your organization; it has a usage-based pricing structure and offers a 14-day free trial
Want to build your own AI chatbot? You can do it with Voiceflow, a platform designed to help “ambitious product teams” build customized conversational experiences.
Organizations that want to create their own customized chatbots without the complexity of coding
Voiceflow
Drag-and-drop building, multichannel support, agent content manager, certified Voiceflow expert assistance
Most users like the fact that the platform gives them a high level of control over their chatbots; they also feel the platform is intuitive and easy to use
It lacks robust analytics; additionally, some reviewers commented that the platform is continuously improving, which is good but requires frequent adjustments to their chatbots
In addition to a free plan with limited features, Voiceflow has three paid plans: Pro ($576/yr/editor), Team ($1,200/yr/editor), and Enterprise (custom pricing)
Another DIY option, Chatbot Builder AI says its state-of-the-art platform offers the quickest, simplest path to building world-class custom chatbots — no coding involved.
Small agencies to enterprises that want to build customized bots of all types and complexity levels
Chatbot Builder AI
Omnichannel support, marketing and lead-generation tools, “creative” AI capabilities like image generation, videos, quizzes, and more
Users love the community that has sprung up around this platform allowing them to support and share new ideas
The developers are quickly adding new features, which can make it difficult to stay current
Chatbot Builder AI offers a free “sandbox” account for users to explore the platform; its paid package options are $49.99/month for unlimited user seats, $595/mo for the white label plan, and $2,499 for the white label enterprise plan
Crisp is a business messaging platform that supports more personalized customer interactions. Customer service teams use it, as well as sales teams for engaging leads, and marketing teams for targeted messaging.
Small and medium-sized businesses as well as startups
Crisp
Live chat support, built-in analytics and reporting tools, CRM functionality
Users generally feel it offers good value for the money, and praise its customer support team
Limited or missing features are a common complaint among users
Crisp has four price packages, ranging from a free plan to a Plus plan for $295/month (includes 20 seats); you can try any plan for free for 14 days
An AI-powered messaging platform, LivePerson helps large organizations conduct meaningful, personalized interactions with customers, at scale.
Large, highly-regulated, consumer-facing enterprises
LivePerson
Bot builder, voice AI, real-time consumer intent detection
Most customers agree it’s an easy-to-use, straightforward tool with good features
Some users say that areas of the platform need updating, such as the reporting suite and the chat window. Plus, technical expertise is required for setup.
LivePerson has three tiers: Bronze, Silver, and Gold; most of the intelligent automation features begin at the Silver tier; request a quote for individualized pricing
ChatBot is an all-in-one customer service automation tool that allows you to streamline all aspects of customer support. It’s ideal for creating bots to engage customers on your website and any web service, including Facebook Messenger, Slack, and LiveChat.
Businesses looking for support on the specific channels named above
text|
Support tickets, chatbot templates, advanced workflows, analytics tool
Most reviewers felt it was easy to set up and use
Some users feel the price is too high for the value
ChatBot has four price plans: Starter ($52/month for small companies); Team ($142/month for advanced AI features); Business ($424/month for complete AI automation); and Enterprise (call to request a quote for custom AI automation); 14-day free trials are available
Chatfuel is a no-code chatbot-building platform that allows you to build website chat widgets as well as bots specifically for use on the popular messaging channels WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram.
Businesses looking to automate customer communications on Meta channels
Chatfuel
Built-in ChatGPT, built-in CRM, chatbot templates, analytics tools
Reviewers say it’s easy to use and implement
Customers say Chatfuel implemented price increases (due to an increase in the customer’s subscriber numbers) automatically and without their knowledge
Chatfuel offers two types of bundled packages: one for Facebook and Instagram, and another for WhatsApp; Business plans cost $23.99/month and $34.49/month respectively; Enterprise plans for both packages start at $300/month; Free trials are available.
Part-help center and part-marketing automation platform, Customerly supports business growth by efficiently handling customer tickets and automating marketing communications.
SaaS companies and startups that want to increase efficiency
Customerly
AI-enhanced conversation inbox, email marketing templates, in-app surveys
Most users say Customerly has significantly increased their efficiency without sacrificing quality, and they like how easy it is to send notifications to customers
Some reviewers have noted software glitches, as well as occasional lags in performance
Visit Customerly’s pricing page to see prices based on your monthly active users and estimated monthly interactions
Zowie offers a comprehensive set of tools for customer service departments, including a customer-facing AI agent, an AI inbox, and a new voice agent. Its specialized large language model was designed for customer service, enabling it to deliver exceptional experiences.
Companies of all sizes that want to provide a best-in-class customer experience
Zowie
Sentiment analysis, workflow automation, multichannel support (email, chat, phone, social media)
Users like the ease of making changes to the system, and say implementation is quick
Some users feel the customization options are lacking
Contact Zowie for a price quote
Photo by: freepik
