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Top 10 Open Source Alternatives to LiveChat AI in 2025: Detailed Insights

Top 10 Open Source Alternatives to LiveChat AI in 2025: Detailed Insights

Top 10 Open Source Alternatives to LiveChat AI in 2025: Detailed Insights

As we step into 2025, the demand for effective customer engagement solutions continues to grow. While LiveChat AI remains popular, numerous open-source alternatives offer flexibility, customization, and a range of features. Below, we explore the top 10 open-source alternatives to LiveChat AI, detailing their key features and what sets them apart.
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1. Chatwoot

  • Description: Chatwoot is an open-source customer engagement platform providing live chat, email, and social media integration for a multi-channel service experience.
  • Key Features:
  • Omnichannel Support: Manages conversations across website chat, email, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, and more.
  • Shared Inboxes: Enables team collaboration with internal notes and real-time updates.
  • Customization: Offers custom widgets and branding options.
  • Analytics & Reporting: Insights into customer service performance with detailed metrics.
  • Self-Hosted: Deploy on your own servers for greater data control.
  • Learn more about Chatwoot

2. Rocket.Chat

  • Description: Rocket.Chat is a versatile open-source team communication platform that includes robust live chat functionality for both internal and external communication.
  • Key Features:
  • Omnichannel Capabilities: Manage conversations from multiple platforms in a single inbox.
  • Team Collaboration: Features channels, direct messaging, and file sharing.
  • Customizable: Wide range of integrations.
  • Chatbots: Integrate with chatbots for automated responses.
  • Scalable: Built for robust and scalable solutions.
  • Discover Rocket.Chat
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3. Papercups

  • Description: Papercups is a developer-friendly live chat software designed to integrate seamlessly with existing tools and workflows.
  • Key Features:
  • Easy to Use: Simple interface with easy installation.
  • Slack Integration: Direct integration with Slack.
  • Developer Friendly: Customization options and developer features.
  • Voice, Video, Screen Share: Advanced communication features.
  • Notifications: Email and SMS notifications.

4. Live Helper Chat

  • Description: Live Helper Chat is a highly customizable and feature-rich open-source live chat solution for real-time customer engagement.
  • Key Features:
  • Customizable: Wide array of customization options.
  • Multi-language Support: Supports multiple languages.
  • XMPP Support: XMPP support for various devices.
  • Real-time Typing: Shows what users are typing before messages are sent.
  • Delayed Canned Messages: Appears as real user typing.
  • Explore Live Helper Chat

5. Tiledesk

  • Description: Tiledesk is an open-source live chat and messaging platform integrating with chatbots to automate customer support.
  • Key Features:
  • Chatbot Integration: Combines automated and human interactions.
  • Messaging Platform: Robust messaging capabilities.
  • Hybrid Approach: Efficient customer support management.
  • Customization: Flexible customization options.
  • Scalable: Designed for scalability and reliability.
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6. Chaskiq

  • Description: Chaskiq is an open-source live chat solution.
  • Key Features:
  • Live Chat: Provides basic live chat functionalities.
  • Customization Options: Customizable widgets.
  • Integration Options: Integration with third-party services.
  • Scalability: Designed for scalability.
  • Community Driven: Open source project driven by community contributions.

7. FreeScout

  • Description: FreeScout is an open-source helpdesk solution aiming to provide superb customer service without financial burden.
  • Key Features:
  • Helpdesk Functionality: Alternative to Help Scout and Zendesk.
  • Mobile-Friendly: Mobile-friendly interface.
  • Integrations: Slack, WhatsApp, Rocket.Chat, Facebook, and Telegram.
  • Notifications: Push notifications and auto replies.
  • Conversation Management: Internal notes and conversation merging.

8. Rasa

  • Description: Rasa is an open-source chatbot platform focusing on natural language understanding and tailored chatbot development.
  • Key Features:
  • Customizable Bots: Tailored to business requirements.
  • Integration: Seamlessly integrates with existing tools.
  • Open-source NLU: Natural language understanding engines.
  • Story Approach: Uses data scenarios to train the bot.
  • On-premises Option: Can be hosted on the user's infrastructure.

9. Kotaemon

  • Description: Kotaemon is an open-source customizable Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) UI for document question answering.
  • Key Features:
  • Multi-user QA interface: Local and API-based language models.
  • Hybrid RAG Pipeline: Full-text and vector retrieval.
  • Multi-modal QA: Supports figures and tables.
  • Advanced Citations: With document previews.
  • Configurable Settings: Retrieval and generation settings.

10. WaliChat

  • Description: WaliChat is a WhatsApp-based communication platform for businesses, offering multi-agent live chat and automation.
  • Key Features:
  • WhatsApp-Based: Specifically designed for WhatsApp.
  • Multi-Agent Chat: Supports multiple agents.
  • Automation: Automation and CRM integration.
  • Campaigns and Analytics: Tools for campaigns and performance analysis.
  • Scalable: Designed for scalable customer engagement.
These open-source alternatives provide extensive features and customization options, making them suitable for various business needs. Explore the provided links for more detailed information on each platform.
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FAQ

1. What is Chatwoot?
Chatwoot is an open-source customer engagement platform that offers omnichannel support, shared inboxes, and customization options for companies to manage conversations across various platforms. Learn more about Chatwoot
2. What makes Rocket.Chat a versatile communication platform?
Rocket.Chat provides omnichannel capabilities, team collaboration features, customizable integrations, chatbot support, and scalability for both internal and external communication. Explore Rocket.Chat
3. What features does Papercups offer for developers?
Papercups is a developer-friendly live chat software that integrates with Slack, supports voice, video, and screen sharing, and provides email and SMS notifications.
4. How does Live Helper Chat enhance real-time customer engagement?
Live Helper Chat offers extensive customization options, multi-language support, XMPP support, real-time typing indicators, and the ability to send delayed canned messages. Discover Live Helper Chat
5. What are the key features of Tiledesk?
Tiledesk is an open-source live chat platform combining automated and human interactions, robust messaging capabilities, flexible customization options, and scalability.
6. What customization options are available in Chaskiq?
Chaskiq provides customizable widgets, integration options, scalability, and live chat functionalities driven by community contributions.
7. How does FreeScout serve as a helpdesk solution?
FreeScout is a mobile-friendly open-source helpdesk solution that integrates with Slack, WhatsApp, Rocket.Chat, Facebook, and Telegram, supporting push notifications and auto replies.
8. What makes Rasa ideal for chatbot development?
Rasa is an open-source chatbot platform focused on customizable bot creation, seamless integration, NLU engines, and an on-premises hosting option.
9. What functionalities does Kotaemon provide?
Kotaemon is an open-source RAG UI that supports document question answering with features like multi-user QA interfaces, hybrid RAG pipelines, and advanced citation capabilities.
10. How does WaliChat utilize WhatsApp for business communication?
WaliChat is designed for WhatsApp communication, providing multi-agent chat, automation features, CRM integration, campaign tools, and scalability for customer engagement.

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond and launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.

About the Publication

Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.

Mission and Purpose

Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.

Key Features

The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
  • Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
  • Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
  • AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
  • SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
  • Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
  • Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials

Impact and Growth

Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
  • 3,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
  • 100+ startup tools built
  • 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written

Partnerships

Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.

Recognition

Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
Top Alternatives