Search the official WordPress plugin directory for "chatbot" and you get over 1,200 results. Install a few of the top ones and you quickly notice they are fundamentally different products. Some will not say a word until you supply your own OpenAI API key. Some are not bots at all — they are link buttons that send visitors to WhatsApp or LINE. Some are human live chat tools where AI is a secondary feature. They share a category label, but they solve different problems.
This article compares 10 representative plugins using public WordPress.org data. We also develop and publish a chatbot plugin in the official WordPress.org directory ourselves, so we have included the differences that do not show up in feature lists.
What you will learn
- The four types of WordPress chatbot plugin, and how to tell them apart
- A side-by-side table of install counts, ratings, update status, and specs for 10 plugins
- Which plugins are "free" but still bill you separately for AI usage
- The state of localization (how many of the 10 ship official translations)
- A decision flowchart for picking one
About the numbers: install counts, ratings, review counts, and last-updated dates were retrieved from the WordPress.org plugin information API on August 22, 2026. Feature descriptions are based on what each product states on its official WordPress.org page. This is not a ranking of quality — it is a map of what each product is built for.
1. The short answer, by goal
| What you want | Type that fits | Products |
|---|---|---|
| Answer questions from your own docs and FAQs | AI knowledge type | monoshiri AI Widget / AI Engine / AI Puffer |
| Build AI features yourself, with a developer on hand | AI framework type | AI Engine / AI Puffer |
| Have humans answer chats | Human live chat type | tawk.to / 3CX / Crisp / Tidio |
| Return fixed answers to fixed questions | Scripted type | WPBot |
| Just route visitors to WhatsApp or LINE | Channel button type | Chaty |
Even when the request is "we want an AI chatbot," the real requirement — deflect support tickets, or capture leads — changes which type you should pick.
2. Five criteria that decide the choice
1. Do you need to bring your own AI API key?
This is the first fork in the road. AI Engine and AI Puffer use a "bring your own API key" model: you create a developer account with OpenAI or Google, add a credit card, and manage metered billing yourself. The plugin is free, but AI usage is billed separately by the AI provider.
That gives you maximum control. It is also where many site owners stop — being comfortable in WordPress does not mean being comfortable in the OpenAI console.
2. Can it answer from your own documents?
A general-purpose model gives general-purpose answers. To answer "what is your return policy" or "which OS does this product support," the AI needs your documents. Products differ in what they can ingest: some only read posts and pages on the site, others accept uploaded files such as PDFs.
3. Does it work end to end in your language?
An English admin screen is workable. It starts to matter when you hand the setup to a colleague, or when an agency delivers a site to a client. As shown below, this is largely an empty space in this market.
4. What exactly is "free"?
There are three kinds of free. (1) The plugin is free but you pay for AI usage (AI Engine, AI Puffer). (2) The service has a free tier (Tidio, Crisp, monoshiri AI). (3) Genuinely free end to end (tawk.to, Chaty) — which is possible because human chat and link buttons carry no inference cost.
5. Is it still maintained?
WordPress ships major releases several times a year. A plugin last updated over a year ago carries real risk on current WordPress and PHP versions. Always check the "last updated" column.
3. The comparison table
Public WordPress.org data, retrieved August 22, 2026. Install counts follow WordPress.org's own rounded notation.
| Plugin | Active installs | Rating | Reviews | Last updated | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Agent by SiteGround | 1,000,000+ | 1.5 | 88 | 2026-08-20 | AI knowledge (host-bundled) |
| Chaty | 300,000+ | 5.0 | 1,240 | 2026-08-13 | Channel button |
| tawk.to Live Chat | 100,000+ | 4.6 | 142 | 2026-01-14 | Human live chat |
| 3CX Free Live Chat | 100,000+ | 4.6 | 821 | 2026-06-29 | Human live chat |
| AI Engine | 100,000+ | 4.9 | 860 | 2026-08-20 | AI framework |
| Tidio | 70,000+ | 4.7 | 396 | 2026-06-16 | Human chat + AI |
| Crisp | 20,000+ | 4.6 | 73 | 2025-04-14 | Human chat + AI |
| AI Puffer (formerly AI Power) | 10,000+ | 4.6 | 165 | 2026-08-21 | AI framework |
| WPBot | 5,000+ | 4.7 | 122 | 2026-08-19 | Scripted + AI |
| monoshiri AI Widget | Under 10 | No rating | 0 | 2026-08-16 | AI knowledge |
And the specification side:
| Plugin | Answers from your docs | AI API key | AI usage cost | Official language packs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Engine | Yes | You supply it | Metered, on you | None |
| AI Puffer | Yes (posts, pages, PDFs, files) | You supply it | Metered, on you | None |
| WPBot | Partly (mostly in the paid tier) | Optional (works without) | On you, if used | None |
| Tidio | Yes (Lyro AI) | Not needed | Included in plan | None |
| Crisp | Yes | Not needed | Included in plan | None |
| tawk.to | Knowledge base (human-first) | Not needed | Free | None |
| 3CX Free Live Chat | Human-first | Not needed | Free | None |
| Chaty | N/A (not a bot) | Not needed | Free | None |
| AI Agent by SiteGround | Yes | Not needed (host-provided) | Depends on hosting plan | None |
| monoshiri AI Widget | Yes (uploaded files + posts and pages) | Not needed | Free tier available | UI translations bundled |
On localization: none of the 10 plugins above ship official WordPress.org translation packs in any language (verified via the API's
language_packsfield on August 22, 2026). monoshiri AI Widget provides localized UI by bundling translation files inside the plugin rather than through official language packs.
4. Product notes
AI Engine — the default choice when you want to build
100,000+ active installs and a 4.9 rating across 860 reviews make this the most widely endorsed AI plugin in the category. It connects to OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Mistral, and covers far more than chat: content generation, AI forms, and MCP support. With REST endpoints and function calling, it is designed to be extended by developers.
Good fit: you have a developer, you want to control model behavior, you want to choose the model. Poor fit: you do not want to open an OpenAI account and manage metered billing.
AI Puffer (formerly AI Power) — all-in-one, explicit about training on your data
Publicly built around a "Bring Your Own API Key" model, supporting OpenAI, Gemini, Azure, OpenRouter, DeepSeek, xAI, and Ollama. It states that you can build a knowledge base from posts, pages, products, PDFs, and files. Beyond chat it includes an AI writer, image generation, and WooCommerce tooling.
Good fit: you want one plugin to cover everything AI, and you want to pick your model. Poor fit: you want to avoid API key management, or you would rather not navigate a large feature surface.
WPBot — one of the few that works without an LLM
Explicitly documented as working with or without an LLM service. Its built-in automated support, lead capture, and data collection can run at no additional cost, and you can connect OpenAI, Gemini, OpenRouter, or DialogFlow later.
Good fit: fixed responses are enough for now, and you want zero AI spend. Poor fit: you need open-ended answers grounded in your own documents.
Tidio — human chat with AI on top
Human live chat is the main event, with the Lyro AI agent automating a share of inquiries. The WordPress plugin is the entry point; the product itself is a SaaS.
Good fit: humans will handle chat, and you want AI to reduce that load. Poor fit: you want fully unattended operation.
tawk.to — genuinely free human chat
Advertises unlimited messaging, ticketing, and a knowledge base as 100% free, with over 5 million companies using it. Note that its last update was January 2026, the longest gap among the actively maintained products here.
Good fit: zero budget, humans answering. Poor fit: you want AI to answer automatically.
3CX Free Live Chat — chat that escalates to calls
821 reviews at 4.6. Its distinguishing feature is escalating a chat into a voice or video call. Human-led by design.
Crisp — live chat with a free tier
The free plan includes live chat, real-time notifications, a chatbot, and desktop/mobile apps. Its last update was April 2025, the largest gap in this comparison — worth verifying against your current WordPress version before rollout.
Chaty — not a chatbot
300,000+ installs and a 5.0 rating across 1,240 reviews stand out, but this plugin places buttons that route visitors to WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, LINE, Telegram, and 20+ other channels. No AI is involved. It ranks highly in searches for "chatbot," so it is easy to shortlist by mistake.
Good fit: you want to drive traffic to a messaging channel you already run.
AI Agent by SiteGround — largest install base, host-distributed
At 1,000,000+ active installs it leads this comparison, reflecting distribution through a hosting provider. Its rating is 1.5 across 88 reviews, a notable gap between install count and rating. It is a natural option on SiteGround hosting; elsewhere the premise differs.
monoshiri AI Widget — document-grounded answers without an API key
This is our own product, so here are the honest numbers: published May 19, 2026, fewer than 10 active installs, zero reviews. On adoption and track record it is nowhere near the products above.
The design difference is that you can deploy a chatbot that answers from your own material without obtaining any AI API key. You upload FAQs and manuals to monoshiri AI, then connect from the WordPress admin with a single button. You can also select WordPress posts and pages as knowledge sources.
Good fit: you do not want an OpenAI account, you want answers grounded in your own documents. Poor fit: adoption numbers and reviews are decisive for you, or you want fine-grained control of AI behavior.
5. API key billing and account billing behave differently
Two "free plugins" can produce very different invoices.
API key model (AI Engine, AI Puffer)
- Plugin: free
- AI usage: metered, paid directly to the AI provider
- Character: extremely cheap when idle, but a traffic spike scales the bill with it, so spending limits need managing
Account model (Tidio, Crisp, monoshiri AI, and others)
- Plugin: free
- AI usage: included in the plan, with a usage cap
- Character: predictable monthly cost; exceeding the cap either stops service or prompts an upgrade
For a small site where an unexpected invoice is the main fear, the account model fits. Where traffic is well understood and unit cost matters, the API key model wins.
For reference, monoshiri AI offers a free tier of 150 answers per month, with paid plans from 2,980 JPY per month for 1,000 answers, and unlimited users on every plan.
6. Localization is still an open space
The most surprising finding: none of the 10 plugins ship official WordPress.org language packs at all.
In a market where products carry 100,000 to 1,000,000 installs, localized UI and documentation are still not standard. An English admin screen is usable, but the gap shows up when you:
- hand the configuration to another team member
- deliver a site to a client who will operate it
- need to troubleshoot in your own language
If local-language operation matters to you, make UI and documentation language an explicit selection criterion.
7. Decision flowchart
- Should AI answer?
- No, humans will → tawk.to (budget) / 3CX / Tidio / Crisp
- No, I just want to route to LINE or WhatsApp → Chaty
- Yes → go to 2
- Should it answer from your own documents and FAQs?
- No, fixed responses are fine → WPBot
- Yes → go to 3
- Can you supply and manage an OpenAI-style API key?
- Yes → AI Engine (control) / AI Puffer (all-in-one)
- No → go to 4
- Do you need localized UI?
- Yes → monoshiri AI Widget
- Either way → Tidio and Crisp are also candidates
Summary
- WordPress chatbot plugins split into AI knowledge, AI framework, human live chat, scripted, and channel button types. Decide which one your requirement actually is
- The biggest fork is whether you bring your own AI API key. It halves the candidate list
- "Free" comes in three flavors, and some free plugins still bill you for AI usage
- Always check last updated. Anything over a year old needs verification
- No official language packs exist for any of the 10. If local-language operation matters, make it a criterion
Our own monoshiri AI Widget is built around one idea: deploy a chatbot that answers from your own documents without an API key. It installs free from WordPress.org, and monoshiri AI has a free tier. Setup steps are documented on how to add an AI chatbot to WordPress.
If you want to understand what "free" covers before comparing products, see How to add a chatbot to WordPress for free: three approaches compared.
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