Chatbase vs Intercom: Pricing and Fit
Chatbase vs Intercom verdict: Chatbase is the lower self-serve entry for a website AI agent, because Hobby costs $40 per month or $32 per month billed yearly for 700 message credits and 2 seats, while Intercom Essential lists $29 per seat per month (or $19 per seat for new customers, a 35% saving) plus Fin AI Agent from $0.99 per outcome (official pricing pages, checked November 11, 2026, Intercom figures shown on the annual billing view). Intercom is the pick when you want a full shared inbox, ticketing, a help center and an AI agent that can run on your current helpdesk, and you accept per-seat plus per-outcome pricing.
Ideal for Chatbase: a small team that wants one site agent with a credit cap, 2 to 5 included seats, and a published yearly rate 20% below the monthly cards.
Choose Intercom if: several agents need a shared inbox, you want Fin across email, live chat and phone, or you need Expert features such as SSO, HIPAA support, SLAs and a multibrand Messenger — those sit on Intercom’s $132 per seat plan plus Fin outcomes.
- Entry price: Chatbase Hobby $40 / $32 yearly vs Intercom Essential $29 per seat list, or $19 for new customers, plus $0.99 per Fin outcome.
- Seats: Chatbase includes 2, 3 or 5 members on Hobby, Basic and Business; Intercom bills per seat on Essential, Advanced ($85) and Expert ($132).
- Credits vs outcomes: Chatbase sells monthly message credits that do not roll over; Intercom Fin is $0.99 per resolved outcome, with a minimum monthly commitment on the standalone Fin path.
By the Unfair Advantage editorial team · Updated November 11, 2026. Method: side-by-side reading of the official Chatbase pricing page (plan cards, comparison matrix, add-ons), Chatbase Terms of Service at /legal/terms, Chatbase llm-info and llms.txt, the official Intercom pricing page (plan cards, Fin standalone path, add-ons and pricing FAQ) and Intercom’s Terms and Policies, all fetched November 11, 2026 (Europe/Paris). We did not open paid accounts, deploy an agent or start a Fin trial. Every price below is quoted with its date; anything a vendor does not publish is marked “not disclosed”. For a product-only reading of Chatbase, see our live Chatbase review of plans and AI agents.
Who should pick Chatbase, and who should pick Intercom?
Pick Chatbase when a credit-capped site agent and a small included seat count decide the purchase. Pick Intercom when the helpdesk, Fin outcomes and per-seat collaboration matter more than the entry price.
Chatbase fits when…
- You want a self-serve agent at $32 per month billed yearly on Hobby, with 700 message credits and 2 seats.
- You need Helpdesk inbox, voice and API access on Basic at $120 per month billed yearly, with 4,000 credits and 3 seats.
- Five people and 15,000 monthly credits are enough: Business lists those at $400 per month billed yearly.
- You prefer a credit wallet you can auto-recharge at $40 per 1,000 credits rather than per-outcome billing.
Intercom fits when…
- Support already lives in a shared inbox and help center, which Essential includes alongside Fin.
- Several agents need seats: Advanced is $85 per seat per month and adds workflows, round-robin and 20 free Lite seats; Expert is $132 and adds SSO, HIPAA support and SLAs.
- You want Fin on your current helpdesk with no Intercom seats: Intercom lists that path from $0.99 per outcome, with a minimum monthly commitment, and asks you to contact sales.
- You need Copilot, Pro or Proactive Support Plus add-ons, which Intercom prices separately.
How do Chatbase and Intercom prices compare?
Chatbase charges a workspace subscription with a fixed seat cap. Intercom charges per seat, then adds Fin at $0.99 per outcome on every listed plan. Chatbase figures are the official cards (monthly and billed yearly). Intercom seat prices below are the annual-billing view of its pricing page, fetched November 11, 2026 (Europe/Paris).
| Level | Chatbase (monthly / yearly) | Intercom (annual view) | Included people |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Hobby $40 / $32 ($384 per year) | Essential $29 per seat/mo list, $19 per seat/mo for new customers (35% off), plus Fin from $0.99 per outcome | Chatbase 2 members; Intercom billed per seat |
| Team | Basic $150 / $120 ($1,440 per year) | Advanced $85 per seat/mo plus Fin from $0.99 per outcome | Chatbase 3 members; Intercom per seat, plus 20 free Lite seats |
| Higher volume | Business $500 / $400 ($4,800 per year) | Expert $132 per seat/mo plus Fin from $0.99 per outcome | Chatbase 5 members; Intercom per seat, plus 50 free Lite seats |
| Enterprise / custom | Custom, not disclosed | Standalone Fin from $0.99 per outcome, no seats, contact sales | Chatbase unlimited members on Enterprise; Intercom not a seat plan |
Yearly Chatbase totals are the yearly monthly price times twelve ($32 × 12 = $384, $120 × 12 = $1,440, $400 × 12 = $4,800), which matches the “Save $96 / $360 / $1,200 yearly” lines on the cards. Intercom’s page also has a monthly billing toggle; except for Copilot, it does not print a second seat-price set in the text we extracted, so monthly Intercom seat rates other than the $29 / $85 / $132 annual-view figures are not disclosed here.
Which official prices and plan names conflict?
Both vendors publish numbers that need a checkout check. Chatbase’s conflict is about whether a free plan exists; Intercom’s is the Essential list price versus the new-customer price.
- Chatbase Free plan: the live pricing cards on November 11, 2026 show Hobby, Basic, Business and Enterprise only — no Free card. Chatbase Terms of Service §5.1 state: “Chatbase does not offer a free plan.” The llm-info page (heading “How much does Chatbase cost?”) still lists a Free plan at $0, and llms.txt lists “Free $0 · Hobby $40/mo · Standard $150/mo · Pro $500/mo”. We treat the pricing cards and the Terms as the buying documents, and we flag llm-info and llms.txt as conflicting marketing text.
- Chatbase plan names: llms.txt says Standard and Pro where the pricing cards and schema say Basic and Business. This article follows the pricing page.
- Intercom Essential: the card shows $29 and $19 per seat per month, with “New customers save 35%”. $19 is 35% below $29. Confirm which rate your account is offered at checkout.
How do Chatbase credits and Intercom Fin outcomes differ?
Chatbase meters message credits; Intercom meters Fin outcomes, then adds optional usage for some channels and add-ons.
| Meter | Chatbase | Intercom |
|---|---|---|
| Included usage | 700 / 4,000 / 15,000 message credits per month on Hobby, Basic and Business, plus 200 / 500 / 1,000 test credits | Fin from $0.99 per outcome on every listed plan; no included outcome bundle is printed on the main cards |
| Rollover | Not stated as rollover on the pricing cards; treat unused subscription credits as month-bound unless a later FAQ on the same page says otherwise | Outcomes are usage, not a monthly credit bank |
| Overage path | Auto-recharge $40 per 1,000 message credits; those credits “don’t expire” | Standalone Fin lists a minimum monthly commitment (the FAQ gives “e.g. 50 outcomes”) |
| Add-on meters | Remove branding $99/month; extra agents $25 per AI agent per month; extra storage $25 per 10 MB per month | Copilot $29 per agent/month billed annually, or $35 billed monthly; Pro from $100/month; Proactive Support Plus $99/month including 500 messages; extra Pro credits $0.01 each |
We did not restate a Chatbase credit-renewal FAQ that was present on an earlier snapshot unless it still appears as visible text on today’s pricing page; the cards themselves list monthly credit allowances and the auto-recharge add-on. If a single Chatbase Action triggers several model calls, one user turn can consume more than one credit — confirm that behavior in Chatbase’s own docs before you size a plan. For agents that sit inside a wider automation, see our live n8n review for workflow automation.
Which features differ most between Chatbase and Intercom?
Chatbase leads on a low workspace price and a small included seat count. Intercom leads on helpdesk breadth, Lite seats, and Fin as a standalone agent.
| Need | Chatbase | Intercom | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website AI agent | Hobby and above, 1 agent included; extra agents $25/month | Fin included on Essential, Advanced and Expert, billed per outcome | Depends on volume |
| Shared inbox / ticketing | Helpdesk inbox from Basic | Shared inbox and ticketing on Essential | Intercom at entry |
| Voice | From Basic, with 10 or 20 concurrent calls on Basic and Business | Phone is pay-as-you-go; Fin can answer phone on the standalone path | Chatbase on a packaged plan |
| SSO, HIPAA, SLAs | Enterprise (custom) | Expert at $132 per seat/mo, plus Fin | Intercom has a public seat price |
| Help center | Not a headline Hobby feature | Public help center on Essential; private and multilingual on Advanced | Intercom |
| Use with another helpdesk | Integrations from Basic / Business (Zendesk, Salesforce and others listed) | Standalone Fin, no seats, contact sales | Intercom if you keep your helpdesk |
If the agent is only one piece of a CRM and funnel stack, compare the suite rather than the chatbot: our live GoHighLevel review for agencies covers that wider brief.
How do trials, refunds and free plans compare?
Neither vendor is a casual sandbox: Chatbase’s trial needs a payment method, and both sets of terms treat ordinary fees as non-refundable.
- Chatbase Terms (§4.5 and §5.1, /legal/terms): a free trial of a paid plan may run for seven days, requires a valid payment method, is limited to one trial per customer, user and email address, and converts to a paid subscription unless you cancel in time. Section 4.1 says payment obligations are non-cancellable and fees are non-refundable except as explicitly stated. Section 5.1 says Chatbase does not offer a free plan. A refund of unused prepaid fees is described when you terminate for an uncured Chatbase breach.
- Intercom Terms and Policies: “Except as expressly set forth in this Agreement, all fees are non-refundable.” A refund of prepaid fees for the unused portion of a term is described if Intercom is terminated for the causes set out in that agreement. The pricing page advertises a free trial; the exact trial length is not restated in the plan-card text we captured, so it is not disclosed here.
What pitfalls should buyers watch for?
- Chatbase Free $0 claims: llm-info and llms.txt still mention Free $0; the cards and Terms do not. Do not budget for a free plan without a live Free card at checkout.
- Chatbase naming: Standard/Pro in llms.txt versus Basic/Business on the pricing page.
- Chatbase seat caps: 2, 3 and 5 members on the self-serve plans; extra people are not priced as seats, only extra agents at $25/month.
- Intercom Essential $29 vs $19: the $19 rate is labeled for new customers at 35% off.
- Intercom Fin: $0.99 per outcome sits on top of seats, and standalone Fin has a minimum monthly commitment.
- Both: fees are generally non-refundable under the published terms.
Should you choose Chatbase or Intercom?
| Buyer | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| One site agent, two editors, light traffic | Chatbase Hobby | $32 per month yearly, 700 credits, 2 seats |
| Small team needing voice or a helpdesk inbox | Chatbase Basic | $120 per month yearly, 4,000 credits, 3 seats |
| Support team that already wants a shared inbox and help center | Intercom Essential | $29 per seat list or $19 for new customers, plus Fin outcomes |
| Workflows, round-robin, multilingual help center | Intercom Advanced | $85 per seat plus Fin; 20 Lite seats |
| SSO, HIPAA support, SLAs, multibrand | Intercom Expert | $132 per seat plus Fin; 50 Lite seats |
| Keep another helpdesk, add only an AI agent | Intercom standalone Fin, or Chatbase with an integration | Fin lists no seats and a minimum commitment; Chatbase lists Zendesk and others from Basic/Business |
Key takeaways
- Chatbase Hobby, Basic and Business cost $40, $150 and $500 per month, or $32, $120 and $400 billed yearly, with 700, 4,000 and 15,000 message credits and 2, 3 and 5 seats (Chatbase pricing page, November 11, 2026).
- Intercom Essential, Advanced and Expert list $29 (or $19 for new customers), $85 and $132 per seat per month on the annual billing view, and every plan adds Fin from $0.99 per outcome (Intercom pricing page, November 11, 2026).
- Chatbase Terms say Chatbase does not offer a free plan and that a seven-day trial needs a payment method, which conflicts with Free $0 lines still published on llm-info and llms.txt (checked November 11, 2026).
- Chatbase auto-recharge is $40 per 1,000 credits; branding removal is $99 per month; extra agents are $25 per agent per month (pricing page, November 11, 2026).
- Intercom add-ons include Copilot at $29 per agent per month billed annually ($35 monthly), Pro from $100 per month, and Proactive Support Plus at $99 per month (pricing page, November 11, 2026).
- Both vendors’ public terms treat ordinary fees as non-refundable, with narrow refund paths for specified breaches or terminations (Chatbase Terms and Intercom Terms, November 11, 2026).
Our verdict: For a website AI agent with a handful of editors, Chatbase is the simpler and usually cheaper self-serve buy. Choose Intercom when you need a helpdesk, per-seat collaboration and Fin’s outcome-based agent, and you have budgeted both seats and $0.99 outcomes. Confirm Essential’s $19 versus $29 rate, and ignore leftover “Free $0” Chatbase lines unless a Free card is actually on the checkout screen.
FAQ
Is Chatbase cheaper than Intercom?
At the entry tier, yes for a small workspace: Chatbase Hobby is $32 per month billed yearly for 2 seats and 700 credits. Intercom Essential is $29 per seat per month on the annual view, or $19 for new customers, plus Fin at $0.99 per outcome, so a two-agent Intercom bill is already $38–$58 per month before outcomes (pricing pages, November 11, 2026).
Does Chatbase have a free plan?
Not on the live pricing cards, and Chatbase Terms §5.1 say Chatbase does not offer a free plan. The llm-info page and llms.txt still mention Free $0, which conflicts with the cards and the Terms. We follow the pricing page and the Terms (checked November 11, 2026).
How is Intercom Fin priced?
Fin AI Agent is listed from $0.99 per outcome on Essential, Advanced and Expert, on top of per-seat fees. A standalone Fin path lists the same $0.99 rate, no seats, a minimum monthly commitment (the FAQ example is 50 outcomes) and a contact-sales step (Intercom pricing page, November 11, 2026).
How long is the Chatbase trial?
Chatbase Terms §4.5 describe a seven-day free trial of a paid plan. A valid payment method is required, each customer, user and email address may receive only one trial, and the trial converts to a paid subscription unless you cancel in time (Terms fetched November 11, 2026).
Can I get a refund from Chatbase or Intercom?
Generally no. Chatbase Terms §4.1 say fees are non-refundable except as explicitly stated. Intercom’s Terms say that except as expressly set forth, all fees are non-refundable. Both describe a refund path for specified terminations or breaches (checked November 11, 2026).
How many seats are included?
Chatbase includes 2 members on Hobby, 3 on Basic and 5 on Business. Extra AI agents cost $25 per agent per month; extra human seats are not priced on the public cards. Intercom bills Essential, Advanced and Expert per seat and includes 20 or 50 Lite seats on Advanced and Expert (pricing pages, November 11, 2026).
Did Unfair Advantage test Chatbase and Intercom hands-on?
No. We did not open paid accounts, deploy an agent, start a Fin trial or send support conversations. This comparison uses both official pricing pages, Chatbase Terms, llm-info and llms.txt, and Intercom’s Terms and Policies, all fetched November 11, 2026 (Europe/Paris).
Sources
Sources are listed as plain URLs, without links, so this page sends no clicks to vendors other than through the disclosed affiliate button. Dates are Europe/Paris verification dates unless a source stamps its own date.
- Chatbase pricing page, https://www.chatbase.co/pricing (plan cards, comparison matrix, add-ons; checked November 11, 2026)
- Chatbase Terms of Service, https://www.chatbase.co/legal/terms (§4.1 fees, §4.5 seven-day trial, §5.1 no free plan; checked November 11, 2026)
- Chatbase llm-info, https://www.chatbase.co/llm-info (Free $0, Hobby $40, Basic $150, Business $500; checked November 11, 2026)
- Chatbase llms.txt, https://www.chatbase.co/llms.txt (Free $0, Hobby $40, Standard $150, Pro $500; checked November 11, 2026)
- Intercom pricing page, https://www.intercom.com/pricing (Essential, Advanced, Expert, Fin, add-ons and pricing FAQ; checked November 11, 2026)
- Intercom Terms and Policies, https://www.intercom.com/legal/terms-and-policies (fees generally non-refundable; checked November 11, 2026)