Chatra vs Tidio (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Tidio: it is second in our ranking of help desk and live chat tools, and it grades higher too, 3.2 against 2.2.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Tidio grades higher on value for money, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Chatra
Live chat with chatbots, email and social inboxes, now part of Brevo
Tidio
Live chat, ticketing and the Lyro AI agent priced by conversations
Which one is for you
Pick Chatra if
- Fits if you run a Shopify, WooCommerce or BigCommerce store
- Works for a solo owner who needs one agent seat
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free, with 5 chats a month
- Skip it if you want email, Facebook Messenger or Instagram, as those aren't on the free plan
- Pricey if you add agents: it is per agent, and the page shows no volume discounts
- Watch out: the Pro plan's extras are only marked in a comparison table
Pick Tidio if
- Fits if you run a small Shopify or WordPress store and want chat on the site
- Works for up to 10 people sharing support, since seats aren't charged one by one
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you get lots of chats, as Growth climbs to $349 a month at 2,000 conversations
- Not for you if you need a help center or phone support in the same tool
- Tight if you have more than 10 agents, since more seats need Plus from $300 a month plus usage
- Watch out: Lyro's 50 free conversations come once; after that it's $39 a month for 50, up to $700 for 1,000
- Watch out: Flows reach 100 visitors a month free, and more cost from $29 a month for 2,000
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAChatraFair | 3.2GPATidioVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$25 an agent a month billed yearly on Essential ($31 monthly), which is in the middle of the category. | AGrowth, from 250 conversations, is $49.17 a month billed yearly for the whole team, about $9.83 a head for five, just under 60% of what the cheaper quarter of help desks charges. Starter is $24.17 for 100 conversations, under $5 a head. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free plan for one agent, but only 5 chats a month, plus a 10-day trial with no card. | CA free plan with 10 seats, live chat, ticketing and the social channels, plus a 7-day trial with no card. The cap you'll hit is 50 answered conversations a month, and Lyro's 50 free conversations come once, not monthly. |
| Features | CChat widget, visitor list, triggers and bots, email, Messenger and Instagram on paid plans. Chat and email only, with no wider ticketing. | CLive chat with a visitor list, one inbox for five channels, ticketing, the Lyro AI agent, rule-based Flows and AI reply help. But the listing has no help center or phone support, and ongoing Lyro use is an add-on from $39 a month. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. A widget and triggers to set up. | A4.76 from 4,767 App Store ratings, the top band for support apps. Adding the chat box to a Shopify or WordPress store is what it's built around. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus iOS and Android apps, with Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, WordPress, Slack and Zapier. | AWeb, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android apps for agents, with Shopify, WordPress, Zendesk, Salesforce and Zapier, and an API. That's every device type covered. |
| Best for | live chat for an online store | live chat for small 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: Chatra and Tidio. How we grade
Price against what you get
Chatra starts at $25 a month for each person and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Tidio starts at $24.17 a month and scores 3.3.
Tidio scores higher and starts $0.83 a month lower. Of the other help desk and live chat tools on the chart, 14 score higher than Chatra for less, and none scores higher than Tidio for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Chatra also covers shared inbox and chatbots.
- Tidio also covers AI support agent.
At a glance
| Chatra | Tidio | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $25 per agent / month, billed yearly ($31 billed monthly) | $24.17 per month for 100 conversations, billed annually ($29 monthly) |
| Free plan | Free plan for one agent, with the chat widget and basic visitor info, limited to 5 chats a month. | 50 billable conversations a month and 10 seats, with live chat, ticketing, email, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp, 50 one-off Lyro AI conversations and 100 Flows visitors a month. |
| Free trial | 10-day free trial of paid plans, no credit card required | 7-day free trial of all plans and add-ons, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Chatra | Tidio LLC |
| Price read from | chatra.com | tidio.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Chatra
- The free plan allows one agent and 5 chats a month, so it suits testing more than steady use.
- Email, Facebook Messenger and Instagram channels are not on the free plan.
- Pricing is per agent per month; the page does not show volume discounts.
Tidio
- Plans are capped by conversations a human answers: 50 a month free, 100 on Starter and up to 2,000 on Growth; above that is Plus, from $300 a month plus usage.
- Lyro is free for 50 conversations once; ongoing use is an add-on from $39 a month for 50 conversations, up to $700 for 1,000, on monthly billing.
- Free, Starter and Growth are limited to 10 seats; more seats need Plus.
- Flows reach 100 visitors a month free; more cost from $29 a month for 2,000 visitors on monthly billing.
Key features
Chatra
- Live chat widget
- Chat on unlimited websites with customization and SSL encryption, in a live mode or a messenger mode that lets agents reply later.
- Email, Facebook and Instagram
- A multichannel dashboard collects email, Facebook Messenger and Instagram messages next to website chats on paid plans.
- Visitor list
- A real-time list shows who is on the site, with browsing history and origin, so agents can greet them with a relevant message.
- Chatbots and triggers
- A chatbot handles routine questions and a form bot captures lead details; targeted messages fire on visitor behavior.
- Mobile apps and API
- iOS and Android apps plus a JavaScript API, REST API and outgoing webhooks for connecting other software.
Tidio
- Live chat widget
- A chat box for websites and stores, with a list of visitors on the site right now, operating hours and live video calls.
- One inbox for every channel
- Chat, email, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp conversations arrive in a single inbox, with a ticketing system for issues that need follow-up.
- Lyro AI Agent
- Answers questions from your FAQ and website content and hands off to a person. It can also be bought alone and added to Zendesk or Salesforce.
- Flows
- Rule-based chat automations built in a visual editor from sales and FAQ templates, such as quote requests or capturing missed conversations.
- AI reply help
- An AI reply assistant and Copilot help agents write answers; Premium adds Advanced Copilot, AI insights and CSAT.
- Apps on every platform
- Agents can work in a browser or in apps for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android.
Plans
Chatra
Free$0
One agent, free forever, capped at 5 chats a month, with the online and offline widget and basic visitor info.
Essential$25
per agent / month, billed yearly ($31 billed monthly)
Unlimited chats, the email helpdesk, Facebook Messenger and Instagram, a real-time visitor list and agent tools.
Pro$33
per agent / month, billed yearly ($41 billed monthly)
Everything in Essential, with the extra features the comparison table marks for Pro. Unlimited chats.
Tidio
Free$0
50 billable conversations a month and 10 seats, with live chat, ticketing, social channels and 50 Lyro AI conversations for the life of the account.
Starter$24.17
per month for 100 conversations, billed annually ($29 monthly)
100 billable conversations a month and 10 seats, adding a live visitors list, operating hours and basic analytics.
Growth$49.17
per month from 250 conversations, billed annually ($59 monthly)
Adds advanced analytics, permissions, auto-assignment and macros. The price rises with volume, to $349 a month at 2,000 conversations on monthly billing.
Plus$300
per month, plus usage for AI and human conversations
Custom limits and seat counts, departments, several projects, custom branding, ticketing automations, OpenAPI and a success manager. Sold through sales.
PremiumCustom
From 3,000 Lyro conversations with a guaranteed 50% resolution rate, pay-per-resolution billing, a mobile SDK, SSO and Lyro run as a managed service.
Ways to pay less
Chatra
No public discounts listed.
Tidio
- Annual discount
Two months free with annual billing
Tidio's pricing page gives two months free on annual billing: Starter works out to $24.17 a month billed annually against $29 billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Chatra or Tidio?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Chatra starts at $25 per agent / month, billed yearly ($31 billed monthly), and Tidio starts at $24.17 per month for 100 conversations, billed annually ($29 monthly). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Chatra or Tidio?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Chatra and Tidio have a free plan.
Which platforms do Chatra and Tidio run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Tidio lists macOS and Windows apps. Both list a web app and iOS and Android apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.