AI chatbot comparison
Which chatbot should go on your site? We compare the main types — scenario-based, FAQ search, live chat and more — on price, setup effort and answer quality.
Where chatbot projects get stuck
Scenario design takes weeks
Building "if they ask this, reply that" one branch at a time takes weeks before launch. You can never write every case down, so it ends up answering only the obvious questions.
Off-script questions end the conversation
If the wording does not match a registered question, the bot says it does not know. Visitors leave, and your phone and email volume never actually drops.
Setup fees on top of the monthly price
Tens of thousands of yen per month plus a large one-off build fee. That is a big commitment before you know whether it works.
Every content change means rework
Each price revision or product change means editing Q&A pairs and branches by hand. The burden never ends, so the content goes stale.
Other languages cost extra
Supporting English or Chinese means rebuilding the scenarios per language, so the cost scales with the number of languages you need.
No path to a human
When the bot cannot answer there is nowhere to send the visitor, so a genuine lead simply walks away.
Five reasons teams choose monoshiri AI
01Just upload your materials. No scenario design at all.
Register the documents you already have — FAQs, terms, manuals — and the AI answers from them. There is no need to write out every anticipated question.The only launch task is uploading your files
02From 0 yen per month. No setup fee, no minimum term.
The Free plan covers 150 answers a month with no credit card. Move up to Light (2,980 yen / 1,000 answers) once you have seen the results.No setup fee, cancel any time
03One line of code, or the WordPress plugin.
Paste the generated embed code and it appears. We also provide step-by-step guides for WordPress, Shopify, STUDIO, Wix, Webflow and BASE.Live in about a minute
04If it is not in your materials, it points to your contact form.
Unlike general-purpose AI it does not guess. When there is no supporting passage it says so and directs the visitor to the contact channel you configured.Built so inaccurate guidance is unlikely
0513 languages, answered in the visitor's own language.
Even if your materials are only in one language, replies come back in the language the visitor picks. No per-language rebuild and no extra fee.Multilingual at no additional cost
How the main types compare
The factors that actually matter once a chatbot is live on your site.
| Item | monoshiri AI | Scenario-based | FAQ search | Live chat | General AI embed | No-code builder |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||||||
| Monthly price | From 0 yen (free plan) | 30,000–100,000 yen | 10,000–50,000 yen | From 3,000 yen / seat | API usage + build cost | 0–10,000 yen |
| Setup fee | 0 yen | 50,000–300,000 yen | 0–100,000 yen | 0 yen | From several 100k yen (build) | 0 yen |
| Minimum term | None | 6–12 months | From 6 months | From 1 month | None | None |
| Setup and operation | ||||||
| Time to launch | About 1 minute | Weeks to months | Days to weeks | Same day | Weeks (needs dev) | Hours to days |
| No scenario design | ||||||
| No coding | ||||||
| Features | ||||||
| Answers from your files | ||||||
| Supported formats | PDF/Word/Excel/PPT/images, 9 types | Manual entry (Q&A) | FAQ entry, CSV | — (people answer) | Depends on build | Depends on setup |
| Multilingual | Set up per language | Set up per language | Staff languages only | Depends on setup | ||
| Hand-off to a human | Depends on build | |||||
| Guides for major CMSs | ||||||
| When it cannot answer | Points to your contact form | Fixed fallback message | Lists candidates | A person takes over | Answers by guessing | Depends on setup |
| Security | ||||||
| Data centre in Japan | Depends on setup | |||||
| Never used for AI training | Depends on setup | |||||
| Account isolation | Depends on build | Depends on setup | ||||
* Figures summarise the typical range for each type and do not represent the actual pricing or specification of any particular product. Please check each vendor's official information before deciding.
Try the answer quality for free first.
Upload your own materials and see the real answers. 150 answers a month free, no credit card required.
A closer look at each type
monoshiri AI vs Scenario-based
Strong for fixed procedures, but off-script questions and upkeep remain a problem.
Choose scenario-based when you need to guide a fixed procedure such as an application or booking with certainty. Choose monoshiri AI when you have the documents but not the capacity to script every question, and want to cover a wide range of enquiries.
monoshiri AI vs FAQ search
Effective if your FAQ is already comprehensive — but building that FAQ is the work.
Choose FAQ search when your FAQ is already well maintained and you only want better findability. Choose monoshiri AI when you have the source documents but have never formatted them into an FAQ.
monoshiri AI vs Live chat
Quality is high, but hours and headcount are hard limits. Using both together is realistic.
Choose live chat when enquiries mainly require negotiation or case-by-case judgement. Choose monoshiri AI to automate the repetitive first response so your team can focus on the calls that need a human.
monoshiri AI vs General AI embed
Highly flexible, but development, operations and answer accuracy all become your responsibility.
Choose a general AI embed when you want a bespoke experience and have the engineering capacity. Choose monoshiri AI when you want answers faithful to your documents running immediately, without a build.
Annual cost for one site
An estimate of one year's cost for a site that needs 1,000 answers a month.
* Rough estimates based on the typical range for each type, not the actual pricing of any product. monoshiri AI waives the first month, so year one is lower in practice.
Let AI handle the inquiries on your site.
Try it free — no commitment required.
150 queries/month free / No credit card required