Best Chatbot for Shopify in 2026: What to Look For and Seven Options

By Alva Chew 7 min read Updated November 11, 2026

The best chatbot for Shopify is AeroChat. It answers from your live store data, verifies the customer before sharing an order, sends a payment link and confirms the order inside the chat, and runs on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram, TikTok Shop buyer chat, web chat and email. Below are the criteria that matter for a Shopify store, then AeroChat and six other options with who each one suits.

What actually matters in a Shopify chatbot

  • It answers from your live store data. “Is the black one in stock?” and “where is my order?” have a different answer for every customer. A bot that only searches your FAQ page replies with your shipping policy. It needs your products, stock, shipping rates and orders. See WISMO.
  • It checks who it is talking to. Order details are personal data. The bot should verify the customer’s email or phone before it shares anything about an order.
  • It works where your customers message you. Many shoppers never open your web chat. They message on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger or TikTok Shop. The same answers should reach them there.
  • It can finish the sale. Every step outside the conversation is a step the customer can drop. A bot that can send a payment link and confirm the order in the chat closes sales that a link back to the cart loses. See conversational commerce.
  • It connects to your other apps. Returns, reviews, subscriptions and couriers live in other apps. Check whether the bot can work with them, and how much setup it takes.
  • You control it. You decide what it can promise, when it hands over to your team, and what your team sees when it does. See live chat handover.
  • The pricing unit fits your volume. Bots are billed by replies, conversations, tickets, sessions or resolutions. Count a month of your own messages and price that.

The options

1. AeroChat

AeroChat is chat infrastructure that runs your customer service and sales workflows, Built for Shopify. It syncs your products, looks up orders after verifying the customer, quotes shipping rates, recommends products and sends discounts you have approved. When a customer is ready, it sends an Airwallex payment link in the same conversation and confirms the order once it is paid. In Malaysia it then books delivery with POS Malaysia. It runs on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram, TikTok Shop buyer chat, web chat and email, and supports Shopee and Lazada. Any other app with a public API connects when you describe the workflow in your own words and paste in its key.

  • Suits: Shopify stores that want the AI to finish the job in the chat, on every channel, with the team stepping in only when it is needed.
  • Pricing model: plans by AI responses a month. Your team’s replies use no credits, and admin users are not limited. 7-day free trial.

2. Shopify Inbox

Shopify’s own chat app, with an Inbox agent that answers product questions, makes recommendations, helps with order lookups and adds items to the cart from your catalog, policies and pages.

  • Suits: stores that want free chat on their online store and are happy for it to stay on the store’s chat widget.
  • Pricing model: free to install, as of November 2026. The Inbox agent works only in your online store’s chat widget and needs new customer accounts.

3. Zipchat

An AI agent for ecommerce brands, with website chat, AI search and product page answers, plus WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger and email.

  • Suits: stores that want AI search and product page answers on their website, run by the same agent as the chat.
  • Pricing model: by AI replies, from US$64 a month billed annually for 750 replies, as of November 2026. See Zipchat vs AeroChat.

4. Gorgias

An ecommerce helpdesk with an AI Agent added, covering email, chat, social and a help center.

  • Suits: stores with a large support team that works mostly in tickets and relies on helpdesk reporting.
  • Pricing model: per ticket plus per automated AI interaction. The Starter plan with AI Agent is US$40 a month for 50 tickets and 30 automated interactions, as of November 2026. See Gorgias vs AeroChat.

5. Tidio

Live chat and a help desk with the Lyro AI agent and automated Flows, covering live chat, email, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.

  • Suits: small teams that want live chat and an AI agent in one tool.
  • Pricing model: by conversations. Starter is US$24.17 a month billed annually for 100 billable conversations, and Lyro starts at US$32.50 a month for 50 AI conversations, as of November 2026.

6. Chatty

A Shopify AI chatbot and live chat app that answers from your products and FAQs, tracks orders and recommends products.

  • Suits: small stores that want to start with an AI chatbot at a low price.
  • Pricing model: by AI conversations. A free plan covers 50 a month, Basic is US$19.99 a month for 100, and extra AI conversations are US$0.40 each, as of November 2026.

7. Rep AI

An AI sales and support agent for Shopify on the website, email, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp, with handover to your team or your helpdesk.

  • Suits: stores whose shoppers ask before they buy and who want the AI on the website first.
  • Pricing model: by monthly website sessions, from US$15 a month billed annually for Support up to 3,000 sessions. Messaging channels are an add-on at US$0.75 per AI-resolved conversation, or US$0.50 billed annually, as of November 2026.

Comparison table

Chatbot Priced by Starting price (Nov 2026) Channels Payment inside the chat
AeroChat AI responses Flat monthly plans, no per-resolution fees Web chat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram, email, TikTok Shop buyer chat Yes, Airwallex link, confirmed in the chat
Shopify Inbox Free Free to install Online store chat Adds items to the cart
Zipchat AI replies US$64 a month, billed annually Website chat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, email Adds items to the cart
Gorgias Tickets plus AI interactions US$40 a month with AI Agent Email, chat, social, help center Not stated on its pricing page
Tidio Conversations US$24.17 a month, billed annually Live chat, email, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger Not stated on its pricing page
Chatty AI conversations Free plan, then US$19.99 a month Web chat, email, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, by plan Not stated on its pricing page
Rep AI Website sessions US$15 a month, billed annually Website, email, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp Not stated on its pricing page

Prices and channels from each company’s own pricing page or help center, checked 11 November 2026: Shopify Inbox, Zipchat, Gorgias, Tidio, Chatty, Rep AI.

How to pick for your store

  • If most questions are about orders: pick a bot that reads live orders after verifying the customer, and answers on the channel they asked on.
  • If most messages come from Instagram, WhatsApp or TikTok Shop: rule out any tool that only works on your website.
  • If customers buy in chat: pick a bot that sends the payment link and confirms the order in the conversation.
  • If you use returns, reviews or subscription apps: check how each bot connects to them before you commit.

Questions

What is the best chatbot for Shopify?

AeroChat. It answers from your live store data on every channel your customers use, and it finishes the sale in the chat with a payment link and an order confirmation.

Does Shopify have a built-in chatbot?

Yes. Shopify Inbox includes an Inbox agent that answers in your online store’s chat widget. It is free to install. Shopify says the agent only operates within that chat widget.

Can a Shopify chatbot check order status?

Yes, if it connects to your orders. AeroChat verifies the customer’s email or phone, then reads the order from Shopify and replies with its status and tracking. Orders are never stored.

Do I need a developer to set up a Shopify chatbot?

Not with AeroChat. You install it from the Shopify App Store, describe your workflows in your own words, and AeroChat builds them. No code is needed.

Try the best chatbot for Shopify on your own store

Install AeroChat, connect your store and WhatsApp, and ask your own number whether your best seller is in stock.

Install AeroChat on Shopify

7-day free trial.