The 5 Best AI Chatbot Builders

Struggling to keep up with customer demands? AI chatbots can help. But how do you create an AI chatbot that can truly be helpful for your business?

A customer visits your website with a burning question, but your live chat support team is swamped. They wait for a response, their frustration grows, and eventually, they abandon the ship.

In a time when immediacy and speed are vital for customer satisfaction, that scenario is not good for your brand. This is where AI chatbots can be your saving grace. AI-powered chatbots can handle customer inquiries 24/7, answer frequently asked questions, and even schedule appointments—all while freeing up your human support team for more complex issues.

But with an endless number of AI chatbot builder platforms available, choosing the right one can feel overwhelming. But don’t panic, we’ve done the hard part and got you covered.

We’ve tested several AI chatbot builder platforms, picked out their key features, and put together some of the five best AI chatbot builder platforms to help you create your own AI chatbot:

• Chatbase
• Hubspot
• Botsonic
• Chatfuel
• Tidio

What are AI Chatbot Builders?

AI chatbot builders come in various forms, but at their core, they are tools designed to create and deploy AI-powered conversational interfaces. Much like an engineer's workshop, these platforms serve as a developer's workbench for crafting intelligent virtual assistants.

You'll find two distinct types of chatbot builders: no-code and code-based. The no-code variety typically offers a user-friendly, drag-and-drop interface, enabling users to construct and deploy chatbots without the need for extensive coding knowledge. On the other hand, code-based builders cater to more traditional software development approaches, allowing developers to build chatbots using APIs and programming functionalities.

While both options are viable, no-code builders are particularly well-suited for those with limited technical expertise or those who simply want to put a chatbot as fast as possible while letting the chatbot builder platform do the heavy lifting.

Regardless of the type, the underlying principle remains the same – these platforms serve as gateways, facilitating seamless integration with the AI model of your choice. They provide a comprehensive suite of tools and features to help you design, train, and fine-tune your chatbots. That said, let’s get into what makes an AI chatbot builder an option worth considering.

What to Look for in an AI Chatbot Builder

So, how do you find an AI chatbot builder that checks all the right boxes? And what are the boxes your AI chatbot builder needs to check? Here are some key features to consider:

1. Ease of Use: A no-brainer. Look for a platform with a drag-and-drop interface or a platform you only need to click a few buttons to set up.
2. Integration Power: Ensure the builder can be integrated with other relevant platforms and tools. Think integration with tools like your CRM, CMS, communication tools, and more.
3. Multi-Channel Support: Go for platforms that let you deploy your bot across different platforms like websites, messaging apps, or social media.
4. Customization Options: Go beyond basic templates. The builder should allow you to personalize your chatbot's look, feel, and conversational style to match your brand.
5. Top-Line AI Models: The builder should leverage advanced AI models to ensure your chatbot delivers natural, engaging conversations with human-like understanding. Go for platforms that offer AI models like GPT-4o, GPT-4, GPT-3.5, Claude and other models in their class.
6. Free Trials: Free trials might seem like a trivial consideration but they can save you from paying for the wrong platform. Go for platforms that offer free trials to enable you to test their capabilities, or better yet, a free plan.

5 Best AI Chatbot Builders

These are the best ways to build an AI chatbot.

1. Chatbase

Chatbase is our top pick and for good reasons. It's a robust builder that helps you create a chatbot for your website in minutes. Its easy-to-use builder lets you do everything from setting up bot interactions to customizing its appearance to suit your brand. Getting started with Chatbase is as easy as it gets. Sign up, upload your training data, customize your chatbot and you're off to a flying start.

Pricing:

Chatbase offers a flexible range of plans to suit diverse business needs. There is a free plan that lets you try the platform and gain access to all the basic features. Paid plans start at $19 per month and you can add additional privileges to your plan at a cheap rate without necessarily upgrading.

Pros:

• User-friendly interface
• Easy navigation and functionality-focused design.
• Seamless conversations in dozens of languages.
• Insights into how your customers interact with the chatbots.
• Mechanisms to capture leads and drive conversions.
• Robust security and privacy mechanisms.
• Lots of customization options.
• Simple and intuitive user interface.
• Integration with tools like Slack, WhatsApp, and more.
• Integration with automation tools like Zapier and Make allows users connect Chatbase to other CRM tools.

With Chatbase, businesses can harness the power of cutting-edge AI technology while maintaining a user-friendly approach, helping them deliver exceptional customer experiences through intelligent virtual assistants.

2. HubSpot

Hubspot is a lot of things—it is a customer relationship management tool (CRM), a content management system (CMS), an automation platform for growing business sales or support and somewhere in between is a powerful chatbot builder you can use to create and deploy your AI-powered chatbot.

Known for its many tools, it stands at the forefront for businesses that need an all-in-one platform for managing their business.

This chatbot builder can create bots able to carry out a wide range of activities like arranging meetings, addressing FAQs, and collecting feedback.

Pricing

It has a free chatbot builder option but the paid plan is the only way to truly enjoy the benefits the chatbot builder has to offer. They include the Starter pack going at $20 per month, Professional at $500 per month, and Enterprise at $1200 per month.

Pros

• Bundled features for versatility across businesses
• Multiple customization options for personalization
• Multilingual support for global businesses
• Multiple site support for diverse web properties

Cons

• It supports only a limited number of channels, allowing only websites and Facebook Messenger.
• It doesn’t allow video or audio calls, which is a major setback for companies looking for comprehensive CRM solution.
• Its more premium features come with quite a steep price tag.

3. Botsonic

If you're looking to build chatbots without needing to code, then Botsonic, from the creators of Writesonic, is worth checking out. This innovative platform makes it easy to design and deploy conversational AI chatbots for your website.

Botsonic's user-friendly features allow businesses to train and deploy ChatGPT instances on their website. This means you can create a chatbot that's tailored to your specific needs and provides personalized interactions with your customers.

By leveraging the power of Natural Language Understanding (NLU), Botsonic can understand the finer points of what your customers are asking. This allows the chatbot to provide relevant solutions and improve the customer experience.

Pricing:

Botsonic has a free plan with very limited functionalities. Its pro plan starts at $19 per month.

Pros

• Extensive branding customization options allow you to tailor the chatbot's appearance and personality to align seamlessly with your business's brand identity.
• Easy data training process enables you to quickly teach the chatbot about your business, products, and services.

Cons

• Despite its advanced natural language processing capabilities, there are still some issues with hallucination.
• Limited integration options
• While suitable for businesses, larger businesses may encounter limitations in terms of data handling and integration capabilities, potentially hindering scalability.

4. Chatfuel

Chatfuel is a visual chatbot builder designed to help you ramp up sales, improve your customer support, and supercharge your business.

Chatfuel can leverage your data to build smart chatbots that talk about your business and recommend products and services, all while sounding like a real human.

Pricing

Unlike the others that offer a free chatbot builder, Chatfuel only offers a free seven-day trial, which will allow you to test out the platform. If you choose to use it, you may opt for the l Business plan at $15 per month, or the Enterprise plan at $300.

Pros

• Advanced feature-rich platform for creating sophisticated chatbots.
• Solid template library to kickstart chatbot development quickly.
• Multi-platform compatibility across WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, etc.
• Extensive integration options with websites, e-commerce platforms, and other business systems.

Cons

• Issues of inaccurate responses and AI hallucinations.
• Lots of complex features and a steep learning
• The initial setup process can be time-consuming, especially for those new to chatbot development.

5. Tidio

Tidio offers a comprehensive approach to building AI chatbots that handle customer customer service automation. The platform offers a comprehensive suite of tools, including live chat, chatbots, support desk ticketing, and even email marketing. With its expansive functionalities, it can handle most helpdesk needs while seamlessly integrating with other crucial tools you rely on.

The idea is to build AI chatbots you can use for both live chat and automated responses to customer queries. In theory, this automated assistance could improve sales and customer service efficiency.

Pricing: Tidio offers a free plan with very basic features, and paid plans starting at $29/month. Paid plans progressively add features like analytics and advanced capabilities, with the most comprehensive option being the enterprise-level Tidio+ plan at $499/month

Pros:

• Can be integrated with common communication channels like Messenger, Instagram, and email.
• Allows real-time text chat between visitors and chatbot
• Simple queries to AI could save customer service time

Cons:

• Managing multiple chat streams across sites gets quite complex
• Issues with delayed notifications that mean conversations may not get immediate attention
• Limited language options
• Paid plans are relatively higher-priced compared to some alternatives
• The AI features are not the best it could be for a chatbot builder that markets itself as a complete CRM solution

Why We Recommend Chatbase

Tired of CRM bloatware slowing down your chatbot dreams? Chatbase is a refreshing alternative. Unlike complex CRM-based builders, Chatbase focuses on one thing – making the best AI chatbots possible.

Here's why we highly recommend Chatbase:

• Simple & Focused: Chatbase cuts through the clutter, offering a user-friendly platform specifically designed for building chatbots. No unnecessary features bogging you down, just powerful chatbot creation tools.
• Top-Performer: Don't be fooled by simplicity. Chatbase is a leader in AI chatbot technology, delivering exceptional results.
• Privacy First: Chatbase prioritizes data security. Built-in GDPR compliance gives you peace of mind, knowing your customer information is always protected.

Focus on building exceptional AI chatbots to solve problems for your customers. Sign up for a free Chatbase account right now.