Attentive vs Hellotext (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Hellotext grades higher than Attentive: 2.2 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Attentive grades higher on features. Hellotext grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Attentive
SMS, email, RCS and push marketing for retail brands, sold by quote
Hellotext
Online-store messaging on WhatsApp, SMS and Instagram, with AI agents
Which one is for you
Pick Attentive if
- Fits if you're a large retail brand with big text and email lists
- Works for brands that want SMS and email run by one vendor, texting customers in the US and abroad
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to see a price before talking to sales, as none is published
- Not for you if you're a small shop that wants to sign up and start today
- Skip it if your customers would rather chat on WhatsApp or Instagram, which aren't among its channels
- Pricey if you want the AI tools: AI Pro and AI Grow are monthly fees and AI Journeys is per click, amounts not shown
- Watch out: it runs on the web only, with no phone or desktop app on record
Pick Hellotext if
- Fits if you run an online store and want cart recovery by WhatsApp
- Works for stores that would rather pay a share of sales than a fee
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you have a team: collaborators start on the Small plan
- Pricey if you grow: $269 and $629 a month on yearly billing
- Watch out: Meta's WhatsApp fees are billed to you, and SMS is $0.01 each after the allowance
- Watch out: prices and SMS rates vary by country
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAAttentiveFair | 2.2GPAHellotextFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo prices are published at all: every plan is quoted after a demo, based on messages sent, list size, channels and AI tools. So there's no figure for 1,000 customers, and with nothing to compare it sits at C. AI Pro, AI Grow and AI Journeys cost extra on top. | C$67 a month on yearly billing is above the middle of the category's $36; the free plan takes 5% of sales. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free: no free plan and no self-serve trial. Sign-up goes through the sales team. | CA free Starter plan with no monthly fee, but it has one user, one WhatsApp line and 2 months of history. |
| Features | BSMS, MMS, RCS, email and push, two-tap sign-up on mobile, journeys for welcome, cart and back in stock, A/B tests, campaign reports and AI tools that write copy and pick segments and send times. That covers the whole text-marketing job. | CPlaybooks, an inbox and AI agents over several channels, with email and push only on Pro. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record. You can't just sign up: it starts with a demo and a quote, and then there are sign-up units, journeys and channels to set up. | CNo store rating on record, and a store connection and playbooks need setting up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with more than 100 integrations including Shopify, Salesforce, BigCommerce, Zendesk and Snowflake, plus APIs, and texts to customers in 20 or more countries. No desktop or phone app, which an A needs. | BWeb service connecting to store platforms and WhatsApp, SMS and Instagram. |
| Best for | text and email marketing for big retail brands | WhatsApp and SMS playbooks for online stores |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Attentive and Hellotext. How we grade
Where they differ
- Attentive also covers email campaigns.
- Hellotext also covers shared inbox, whatsApp messaging and chatbots.
At a glance
| Attentive | Hellotext | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | $67 per month, billed yearly ($74 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | Starter: no monthly fee, 5% of attributed sales, 1 WhatsApp line, 1 Instagram account, single-user workspace and 2 months of history. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Attentive Mobile Inc. | Hellotext |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | hellotext.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Attentive
- No prices are published: every plan is quoted after a demo, based on messages sent, list size, channels and AI tools.
- AI Pro and AI Grow cost a flat monthly fee and AI Journeys is charged per click, on top of the messaging plan; the amounts are not shown.
- There is no free plan or self-serve trial; sign-up goes through the sales team.
- Messages can reach customers in 20 or more countries, as the site states.
Hellotext
- Starter is limited to a single-user workspace; collaborators start on the Small plan.
- WhatsApp conversation fees are Meta's and are billed to you; SMS is billed at $0.01 each in the US once the included amount is used.
- Messages beyond the plan allowance on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger and webchat are billed at $2 per 1,000.
- Prices and SMS rates vary by country; the US page was read. Email and push are only on Pro.
Key features
Attentive
- Two-tap sign-up
- Sign-up units on the website that collect phone numbers and emails, with Attentive's patented two-tap flow on mobile.
- SMS, MMS and RCS
- Text campaigns with images, and RCS messages that show a branded, media-rich profile on supported phones.
- Email and push
- Email campaigns and triggered emails sent from the same platform, plus push notifications, sold as channel packages.
- Cross-channel journeys
- Pre-built journeys for welcome, cart abandonment, back in stock and price drops, with A/B testing and campaign and segment reports.
- AI tools
- AI Essentials writes copy on every plan; AI Pro, AI Grow and AI Journeys handle segments, send times, sign-up pages and one-to-one journeys.
- Integrations and API
- More than 100 pre-built integrations, including Shopify, Salesforce, BigCommerce and Snowflake, and APIs for custom work.
Hellotext
- Playbooks
- Prebuilt automations for cart saving, price-drop alerts, back-in-stock notices, order tracking and win-back; 38 in total, with the count rising by plan.
- Multiple channels
- Reach shoppers on WhatsApp, Instagram DM, Messenger, webchat and SMS, with email and push on the Pro plan.
- AI agents
- Custom AI agents answer customer questions and recommend products; Grow allows 2, and Pro unlimited with external API access.
- Subscriber capture
- Webchat and WhatsApp widgets, popups, forms and QR codes collect SMS and WhatsApp subscribers.
- Shared inbox
- A team inbox for selling and support, with AI assignment and reporting on Grow and above.
- Attributed-revenue reporting
- Reports show orders credited to Hellotext using stated attribution windows of 7 days from a click and 24 hours from a delivery.
Plans
Attentive
Pricing could not be confirmed. See attentive.com.
Hellotext
Starter$0
No monthly fee; pays 5% of sales Hellotext is credited with. Single-user workspace, 1 WhatsApp line, basic reporting.
Small$67
per month, billed yearly ($74 billed monthly)
Or 4% of attributed sales above $2K. Unlimited collaborators, 8 playbooks, 37K messages, up to 7K US SMS.
Grow$269
per month, billed yearly ($299 billed monthly)
Or 3% of attributed sales above $10K. 25 playbooks, 150K AI messages, 2 custom AI agents, 2 WhatsApp lines.
Pro$629
per month, billed yearly ($699 billed monthly)
Or 2.5% of attributed sales above $30K. All 38 playbooks, 350K AI messages, email and push, unlimited AI agents.
Ways to pay less
Attentive
No public discounts listed.
Hellotext
- Annual discount
Save 10% when paid yearly
Hellotext's pricing page has a Paid yearly option marked 'Save 10%'.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Attentive or Hellotext?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Attentive has no price we could confirm, and Hellotext starts at $67 per month, billed yearly ($74 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Attentive or Hellotext?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Hellotext has a free plan. Attentive does not.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.