Frustrated by endless features and confusing pricing as you try to pick between Freshworks and Crisp chat? You’re not alone. It can feel overwhelming when you just want an easy tool to help your team connect with customers, but every review and demo seems to add to the confusion. Take a deep breath, because we’re untangling the details for you so you can finally pick the right platform with confidence. We’ll break things down by:
Key features of both Freshworks and Crisp chat
Differences in pricing and value for money
What real users are saying—good and bad
Tips to help you decide which chat tool fits your needs best
Why Ringly.io is the better choice ; )
Built for e-commerce
With experience in both AI and e-commerce, we set out become the best AI phone agent platform for online stores.
Stupid-simple user interface
Super easy to work with, and you can set it up without being tech savvy. If you create a free account you can see it for yourself though!
Quick and easy setup
Our pre-trained AI phone support agent and will have your online store automated in minutes.
Founded in Chennai, India in 2010 by Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy, Freshworks delivers a unified suite of cloud-based software for customer support, sales, marketing, and IT service management. Now headquartered in San Mateo, California, Freshworks serves thousands of businesses worldwide with tools that streamline customer engagement and internal operations.
Freshworks is trusted by over 35,000 companies across industries and sizes. Its platform features AI-powered lead scoring, multi-channel communication (email, phone, chat), advanced analytics dashboards, workflow automation through integrations and APIs—all designed to help sales teams, marketers, support agents, and IT professionals work smarter.
The next section will compare Freshworks’ features, pros/cons, pricing details and user reviews with Crisp chat and Ringly.io to highlight how each solution stacks up for modern businesses.
Freshworks Key Features
Sales CRM Intelligent Deal Insights with Freddy AI prioritizes sales opportunities through predictive lead scoring and deal forecasting for improved conversions.
Sales Automation AI-Powered Chatbots and Automation automates customer engagement and query resolution across channels to streamline support and nurture leads.
CRM Omnichannel Engagement Omnichannel Sales Engagement consolidates email, phone, chat, SMS, and social interactions in a single dashboard for unified communication.
Sales Telephony Built-In Cloud Telephony enables direct outbound calls, call logging, and recording from within the CRM for simplified sales workflows.
Email Automation AI-Driven Email & Sales Sequences personalizes and schedules campaigns with analytics, syncing with Gmail, Outlook, and Zoho.
Freshworks CRM is best suited for sales-driven businesses and organizations that need comprehensive multichannel communication, process automation, and end-to-end pipeline management in one platform.
Freshworks Pros and Cons
Pros
Easy onboarding and daily use, thanks to the intuitive interface, making it accessible for teams without extra training; some alternatives have steeper learning curves.
Increases efficiency through robust automation features like workflow automator, reducing manual work; a strength over tools with less built-in automation.
Improves team coordination by offering centralized support and data management, consolidating customer interactions; some competitors lack this cross-functional visibility.
Boosts adaptability with a strong integration ecosystem, connecting seamlessly to platforms like Jira, Slack, and Google Workspace, unlike some tools with limited integrations.
Supports small businesses with affordable entry-level pricing, making it cost-effective for basic needs; some alternatives start at higher price points.
Cons
Total costs can rise rapidly since many advanced features require higher-tier plans; some competitors offer more transparent or predictable pricing.
Limits customization in lower tiers, especially for forms and workflows; other platforms may offer greater flexibility from the start.
Larger teams may see performance slowdowns at scale, affecting productivity, while some alternatives maintain faster speeds as accounts grow.
Users report customer support challenges, such as slow or unhelpful responses, making complex issues harder to resolve compared to providers with more consistent support.
Licensing structure is confusing, making it tough to plan costs or manage access, whereas other tools tend to offer clearer licensing terms.
Freshworks is best for small to mid-sized teams valuing usability and automation. Consider alternatives if you need transparent pricing, high scalability, or more responsive support for complex implementations.
Founded in 2015 in Nantes, France, Crisp is a leading AI-powered customer support platform designed to enhance real-time communication between businesses and their customers. With over 600,000 users worldwide, Crisp serves small and medium-sized businesses by uniting live chat, email, social messaging channels, and a knowledge base into one seamless interface.
Crisp offers key features such as an ultra-light chat widget, AI helpdesk automation that can handle up to 50% of inquiries, shared inboxes for team collaboration, CRM integrations, advanced analytics, and customizable workflows. The company operates fully bootstrapped with a remote-first culture focused on continuous innovation and user feedback.
In the following section, we’ll explore Crisp’s features alongside pros and cons, pricing details, and user reviews compared to Freshworks and Ringly.io to provide a clear understanding of how these platforms stack up against each other.
Crisp Chat Key Features
Multi-channel messaging with a Unified Inbox centralizes live chat, email, Messenger, WhatsApp, and more for streamlined customer support management.
Chatbot & Automation with Automated FAQ and Lead Capture allows businesses to handle basic customer inquiries and collect leads efficiently.
Shared Inbox enhances Team Collaboration through internal notes and ticket assignments for organized multi-agent responses.
Knowledge Base Integration provides a Connected Help Center so customers can find instant answers while chatting via the widget.
Co-browsing & Live Assistance features Screen Sharing Support to guide users in real time during complex product or onboarding scenarios.
Crisp is best suited for small to mid-sized businesses seeking to centralize multi-channel customer communication with user-friendly chat, basic automation, and real-time team support tools.
Crisp Chat: Key Pros and Cons
Pros
Simple, intuitive setup and onboarding Ease of Use—ideal for fast deployment, especially compared to more complex tools.
Consolidates messages from multiple sources Multi-Channel Inbox, improving team response times beyond single-channel systems.
Competitive pricing makes it budget-friendly Affordable for SMBs, a key distinction from pricier enterprise options.
Consistently quick, helpful assistance Responsive Customer Support, though some competitors may offer more advanced live support channels.
Automates workflows and integrates with major apps Automation & Integrations, streamlining tasks without the need for extra platforms.
Cons
Advanced features require more technical setup Learning Curve, whereas alternatives like Ringly.io may be easier for non-developers.
Core plan is budget-friendly but premium features can add up Pricing Structure, sometimes causing cost surprises not seen with all rivals.
Mobile app may delay or miss notifications Notification Reliability, which can hinder urgent responses more than some competitors.
Cannot send marketing broadcasts or sequenced campaigns Limited Outreach Tools, unlike products specializing in proactive messaging.
Basic dashboards and manual chatbot training Analytics & AI Limitations, while some alternatives offer deeper insights and self-learning bots.
Summary: Crisp Chat suits small teams and startups seeking affordable, all-in-one messaging. Consider other tools if you need advanced analytics, proactive marketing, or code-free automation for complex workflows.
Pricing - Freshworks vs Crisp chat
Note: The pricing information below is accurate at the time of writing and may be subject to change. For the most up-to-date pricing, please visit each company's pricing page.
Freshworks pricing
Product
Plan Name
Price (USD/user/mo)
Key Features
Contract Length / Discounts
Freshdesk
Free
$0
Basic ticketing, shared inbox
Monthly or annual; discount for annual
Growth
$15 (annual) $18 (monthly)
Ticketing, customer portal, reports
Pro
$49 (annual) $59 (monthly)
All Growth features + custom objects/portals/reports/routing
Pro + AI Copilot Bundle
$78 (annual only)
All Pro features + Freddy AI Copilot add-on
Enterprise
$79 (annual) $95?
Everything in Pro plus audit logs, approval workflows, advanced security
Growth features plus: Freddy AI contact scoring & sales email automation, custom sales activities/workflows/sequences, account hierarchy
Enterprise
$59 (annual only)
Pro features plus: user permissions/audit logs/sandbox environment, sales forecasting insights, custom modules
Crisp chat pricing
Plan Name
Price (Monthly)
Key Features
Contract Length
Free
$0
2 live chat agents, basic widget, team inbox, mobile app & notifications
Monthly or annual
Pro / Essentials
$25–$28
4–5 agents, up to 5,000 contacts, multi-channel (Messenger/Twitter/Email/Telegram), triggers & widget customization
Monthly or annual
Unlimited
$95–$106
Unlimited agents, up to 50k contacts, all features including chatbot builder
Monthly or annual
Plus / Enterprise
$295+
AI-powered omnichannel, all features for medium/large teams
Monthly or annual
Ringly.io pricing
Ringly.io has simple, usage-based pricing with no hidden fees or long-term commitments. Test drive it risk-free for 14 days, then scale up or down on month-to-month terms—or book a demo for fully tailored enterprise support.
Freshchat is best for teams seeking simple setup and WordPress integration, while Crisp Chat offers richer features and higher satisfaction, ideal for startups and growing businesses. Both excel in ease of use but differ in chatbot quality, automation, and customization flexibility.
What users are saying about Freshworks (Freshchat):
"Easy to use dashboard" – Anonymous Reviewer (Support Lead) I love how easy the dashboard was and how easy it was to set up on my WordPress website... the chat was also very clean, very easy to use for multiple members of our team...
"Highly disappointed in chatbot support" – Anonymous Reviewer (Operations Manager) I am highly disappointed in the Freddy chatbot... after going live we found out the live mode doesn't work exactly as previewed... their tech support admitted almost all errors but never got back to us... I can’t say I recommend it...
What users are saying about Crisp Chat:
"Easy setup & great features" – Anonymous Reviewer (Startup Founder) Crisp is easy to setup and get started with... chat is great and surrounding features like chatbot and integrations make it even greater...
"Hard automation setup & limited free customization" – Anonymous Reviewer (Small Business Owner) Hard to set up automation—when trying to figure out, support team answers just in screenshots... you have to maintain quality even on a low budget...
What users are saying about Ringly.io:
Ringly.io is known for its simplicity, and a focus on e-commerce, with features like abandoned cart recovery and order status lookups. It has a 4.8 star rating from 12 reviews on Product Hunt and other platforms.
"it stands out significantly ahead" - Bertrand, Director. We are at the initial stage of testing and have made only a few calls so far. Consequently, I have rated the product with four stars for now. However, I must express that the product has shown significant promise. When compared to competitors, it stands out significantly ahead.
"This is such a great product" - Jim Miranda, Founder. This is such a great product. I have been with you for less than a week and already closed 3 deals with it."
"It really sounds like a human" - Laix, Founder. Tried Ringly.io today and the quality of the phone calls surprises me! It really sounds like a human, and it reacts really fast. Will need to deploy it in action to see the full capabilities.
Sales-focused teams who need a unified platform for managing leads, deals, and customer communication in one place.
Small or mid-sized businesses that value easy onboarding, workflow automation, and multiple integrations without a steep learning curve.
Companies wanting detailed analytics and advanced pipeline management tools to boost sales efficiency.
Teams with basic to moderate support needs or those who are comfortable upgrading to higher plans for extra features and AI tools.
Who Crisp chat is best for…
Startups and small businesses looking for an affordable, all-in-one chat and messaging tool for real-time support.
Teams needing to unify live chat, email, and social messaging in a single easy-to-use dashboard.
Businesses wanting basic automation for handling routine customer questions and lead collection.
Companies seeking fast setup and responsive support but not requiring advanced analytics, campaign tools, or deep no-code automation.
Who Ringly.io is best for…
Businesses of all sizes who want to automate customer support with human-sounding AI voice agents, whether handling high call volumes or starting small.
E-commerce stores and online brands needing features like abandoned cart recovery, real-time order status, and personalized phone support 24/7.
Teams looking for simple, transparent pricing with the flexibility to scale up or down, skip setup hassles, and avoid surprise fees.
Companies aiming to save time and close more sales by letting AI handle support questions and lead follow-ups automatically.
If you want an easy-to-use solution that grows with you, Ringly.io is the top choice. With AI that truly sounds human, powerful automation, and clear pricing, it’s built to help any business—from startups to large teams—get more done without extra effort.
Why Ringly.io is a Better Choice
Highly Rated: 4.8/5
Founded in 2024 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, by Maurizio Isendoorn and Ruben Boonzaaijer, Ringly.io is revolutionizing e-commerce customer service with AI phone agents. Designed for online businesses, Ringly handles customer calls on autopilot—solving support issues, recovering abandoned carts, and even boosting sales—at just 20% of the cost of human agents.
With 2,300+ customers, Ringly.io is the go-to solution for e-commerce stores looking to scale without scaling their support team. With award-winning technology (BubbleCon 2024's "Most Innovative App"), Ringly.io transforms your phone system into a revenue-driving powerhouse—without the headaches of traditional call centers.
Features that make Ringly.io the #1 alternative to Freshworks and Crisp chat:
No-code setup, instant results – Ringly.io is ready to go in minutes. Just add your website, docs, or text—no engineering required—and your AI phone agent instantly understands your business. It even updates automatically as your website changes.
AI-powered sales & support – Ringly.io does both inbound and outbound calls. Recover 35%+ of abandoned carts with automated follow-up calls, provide real-time order tracking from Shopify, and convert more customers with personalized AI-driven conversations—not just reactive support.
Advanced analytics for smarter decisions – Ringly.io gives you real-time call data, customer intent tracking, and performance reports—helping you optimize support and sales strategies.
Scalable pricing without enterprise contracts – Ringly.io offers transparent, scalable pricing—pay for what you use, no locked-in contracts.
Conclusion: Freshworks vs Crisp Chat vs Ringly.io
Choosing the right customer support platform depends on your business type, needs, and growth plans. Here’s a quick summary to help you decide with confidence:
Freshworks: Ideal for small to mid-sized sales-driven teams who need a comprehensive CRM and automation in one place.
Unified platform for sales, support, and multichannel engagement.
Strong analytics and workflow automations for scaling teams.
Pricing and customizations can get complex or costly as you grow.
Crisp Chat: Designed for startups and small businesses wanting real-time chat and unified messaging at an affordable price.
Easy, fast setup with a multi-channel inbox for team collaboration.
User-friendly automation for basic support and lead capture.
Limited proactive outreach and advanced analytics for larger needs.
Ringly.io: The best choice for e-commerce stores—and any brand ready to scale with human-like AI phone agents.
Automates sales and support calls, recovers abandoned carts, and provides 24/7 order updates—all without human agents.
No-code setup, instant integration with your website or knowledge base, and deep analytics for continuous improvement.
Transparent, usage-based pricing with flexibility to scale up or down—no hidden fees or long-term contracts.
If you run an e-commerce business or want a support platform that just works—right away and at any size—Ringly.io is your go-to solution. With award-winning AI, seamless automation, and clear pricing, it lets you deliver five-star service and boost sales—without extra complexity or costs.
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