What is live chat software?

How does live chat work?

1. You add a small piece of code (a snippet) or a plugin to your website. It shows a chat button on every page.
2. A visitor clicks it and types a question. The message appears instantly in your team's shared inbox, with the page they are on.
3. A teammate answers, and the reply appears in the chat box. If the visitor has left, a good tool emails the reply to them.
4. When nobody is online, the chat says so, asks for an email address and the conversation waits in the inbox.

What features does live chat software have?

• A website messenger that matches your brand and works on phones.
• A shared inbox with assignment, internal notes, saved replies and tags, so a team can answer together.
• Chatbots that answer common questions or collect details before a person takes over.
• An AI assistant that answers from your own content.
• A help center with articles visitors can search from the chat.
• Proactive messages that start a conversation on the right page.
• Reports on volume, response times and satisfaction.
• Other channels such as email, WhatsApp and Telegram, and an API and webhooks to connect your own systems.

Live chat, chatbots and help desks: what is the difference?

Live chat is a real-time conversation between a visitor and a person. A chatbot answers automatically — with buttons or with AI — and hands over to a person when needed. A help desk manages support requests (often email) as tickets. Many live chat tools now include chatbots and a help center, and some, like TalkingDot, bring email and messaging apps into the same inbox.

Why do businesses use live chat?

Visitors get an answer while they are still on the page, instead of writing an email and waiting. Teams answer several chats at once, see which page a question comes from and learn what confuses customers. For online stores, a quick answer about shipping or sizing can be the difference between a sale and a closed tab.

How much does live chat software cost?

From free to several hundred dollars a month. Many tools charge per agent, add fees for AI answers or charge to remove their branding. See live chat pricing compared for what 1 and 3 agents cost on each tool, and the best free live chat software for what free plans include.

How do you add live chat to a website?

Create an account, copy your snippet and paste it before the closing </body> tag — or use a plugin. There are step-by-step guides for WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Google Tag Manager, React and any website.