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Chatwoot vs FreeScout
Chatwoot adds live-chat and social-media channels, while FreeScout focuses on email tickets.
Which to pick
Pick Chatwoot if you want…
- Omnichannel support with AI agent
- Live-chat support
- Integrations with Outlook, Gmail or IMAP/SMTP (on Chatwoot's list, not FreeScout's)
Pick FreeScout if you want…
- Self-hosted email-based help desk
- A free, open-source tool
- Integrations with PHP or Laravel (on FreeScout's list, not Chatwoot's)
Side by side
- What it is
- Chatwoot:Open-source platform for omnichannel customer support with live chat, email, WhatsApp, voice and AI assistance.
- FreeScout:FreeScout is a lightweight, open-source, self-hosted help desk and shared inbox built with PHP/Laravel.
- Best for
- Chatwoot:Omnichannel support with AI agent
- FreeScout:Self-hosted email-based help desk
- Who it’s for
- Chatwoot:Support teams and businesses that need unified, multi-channel customer service.
- FreeScout:Teams that need a privacy-focused, cost-free ticketing system.
- Pricing
- Chatwoot:Freemium
- FreeScout:Open source
- Plans
- Chatwoot:Hacker $0 per agent per month · Startups $19 per agent per month · Business $39 per agent per month · Enterprise $99 per agent per month
- FreeScout:—
- Open source
- Chatwoot:Yes, 37,610 GitHub stars
- FreeScout:Yes, 4,590 GitHub stars
- Works with
- Chatwoot:Outlook, Gmail, IMAP/SMTP, Twilio, WhatsApp Business, Instagram, Messenger, API
- FreeScout:PHP, Laravel
Chatwoot features
- Unified Inbox. All conversations from web chat, email, social and messaging channels appear in a single threaded view.
- AI Agent Captain. Automates routine replies, suggests FAQs, translates messages and drafts responses.
- Voice Calls. Inbound/outbound calls via Twilio or WhatsApp are logged in the same inbox with transcription.
- Help Center. Self-service knowledge base with multi-language articles and AI-powered search.
- Automation & Macros. Rule-based actions, playbooks and macros run automatically or with one click.
- Open API & Webhooks. Send messages, create channels and listen to events to integrate with any stack.
FreeScout features
- Open-source. FreeScout’s code is publicly available and can be modified to fit any need.
- Self-hosted. Runs on your own servers, keeping all data on-premises.
- Shared inbox. Allows multiple agents to collaborate on the same mailbox.
- One-click install. Provides simple deployment with minimal configuration.
- Unlimited agents & inboxes. Create as many users and inboxes as required without extra cost.
Chatwoot vs FreeScout FAQ
Is Chatwoot or FreeScout free?+
Chatwoot has a free plan (Hacker) and paid plans. FreeScout is free and open source.
Is Chatwoot or FreeScout open source?+
Yes, both are open source: Chatwoot (chatwoot/chatwoot on GitHub) and FreeScout (freescout-help-desk/freescout on GitHub, AGPL-3.0 license).
Do Chatwoot and FreeScout integrate with the same tools?+
Their integration lists don't overlap: Chatwoot lists Outlook, Gmail, IMAP/SMTP, Twilio and 5 more; FreeScout lists PHP and Laravel.
On DevHunt
Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.