Zipchat Alternatives for Shopify Stores in 2026

The top Zipchat alternative is AeroChat. It answers from your Shopify store, 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. Other options are Shopify Inbox, Gorgias, Tidio, Chatty and Rep AI. Each suits a different kind of store, and each is priced in a different way.

Why merchants look for a Zipchat alternative

Zipchat’s reviews on the Shopify App Store are mostly positive. The few critical ones, mostly from 2024, describe paying for a plan while the chat started very few conversations with visitors. Beyond reviews, these are the reasons a store usually starts comparing:

• The channels. Zipchat says TikTok Shop is not one of its channels, and it does not list Telegram. A store that sells on TikTok Shop, Shopee or Lazada wants those buyers answered too.
• Finishing the sale in the chat. Some stores want the customer to pay inside the conversation, not be sent back to the cart.
• The price per reply as volume grows. Zipchat prices by AI replies. A store that expects heavy chat volume compares what the same volume costs elsewhere.
• More than a store. A brand that also takes bookings or deposits wants one setup for both.

The alternatives

1. AeroChat

AeroChat is chat infrastructure that runs your customer service and sales workflows. It answers product, stock, shipping and order questions from your Shopify store, recommends products, sends an Airwallex payment link and confirms the order in the same conversation, and in Malaysia books the 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 system with a public API connects when you describe the workflow in your own words and paste in its key.

• Suits: Shopify stores that want customers to ask, pay and get delivery updates in one chat, on every channel they use.
• Pricing model: plans by AI responses a month. Your team’s replies use no credits, and admin users are not limited.
• Keep in mind: payment links start on the Growth plan.

2. Shopify Inbox

Shopify’s own chat app. Its Inbox agent answers product questions, makes recommendations, helps with order lookups and adds items to the cart, using your catalog, policies and pages. Your staff can take conversations in the Shopify Inbox app.

• Suits: stores that want free chat on their online store with an AI agent built by Shopify.
• Pricing model: free to install, as of November 2026. Shopify’s help center says Inbox is available on the Basic, Grow, Advanced and Shopify Plus plans.
• Limitation: the Inbox agent only works in your online store’s chat widget, and it needs new customer accounts.

3. Gorgias

A helpdesk for ecommerce with an AI Agent added. Your team works tickets from email, chat and social channels in one place.

• Suits: stores with a large support team that works mostly in tickets.
• Pricing model: per ticket for the helpdesk, plus per automated interaction for the AI Agent. As of November 2026, the helpdesk starts at US$10 a month for 50 tickets, and the Starter plan with AI Agent is US$40 a month for 50 tickets and 30 automated interactions.
• Limitation: two meters run at once, so the bill rises with both your ticket volume and your AI volume. See Gorgias vs AeroChat.

4. Tidio

A live chat and help desk with an AI agent called Lyro, and automated Flows for the website. It covers live chat, email, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger in one inbox.

• Suits: small teams that want live chat and an AI agent in one tool.
• Pricing model: by conversations. As of November 2026, Starter is US$24.17 a month billed annually for 100 billable conversations, and the Lyro AI Agent starts at US$32.50 a month for 50 AI conversations.
• Limitation: team conversations, AI conversations and Flows visitors are counted separately, so you size three numbers instead of one.

5. Chatty

A Shopify AI chatbot and live chat app. It answers from your products and FAQs, tracks orders and recommends products, with a team inbox.

• Suits: small Shopify stores that want an AI chatbot at a low starting price.
• Pricing model: by AI conversations. As of November 2026, there is a free plan with 50 AI conversations a month, then Basic at US$19.99 a month for 100, Pro at US$68.99 for 500 and Plus at US$199 for 1,000, billed monthly. Extra AI conversations are US$0.40 each.
• Limitation: the included conversations are low on the entry plans, so a busy month moves you up a plan or onto per-conversation charges.

6. Rep AI

An AI sales and support agent for Shopify that works on the website, email, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp, and hands conversations to your team or your helpdesk.

• Suits: Shopify stores whose shoppers ask questions before they buy and who want the AI on the website first.
• Pricing model: by monthly website sessions. As of November 2026, for up to 3,000 sessions, Support starts at US$15 a month billed annually, Sales at US$29 and Concierge at US$37. AI on email, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp is an add-on at US$0.75 per AI-resolved conversation, or US$0.50 billed annually.
• Limitation: messaging channels are billed per resolution on top of the plan, so the cost of WhatsApp and Instagram grows with use.

Comparison table

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

How to choose

• List the channels your customers use. If buyers message you on WhatsApp, Instagram and TikTok Shop, the tool has to answer there, not only on your website.
• Check where the sale ends. Decide whether the chat should hand the customer back to the cart, or take the payment and confirm the order in the conversation.
• Price your own volume. Count a month of customer messages, then work out the bill on each tool’s unit: replies, conversations, tickets, sessions or resolutions.
• Test it on your hardest question. Ask about a real order and an out-of-stock variant on the trial and see whether the answer comes from your store data.
• Check what happens when the AI cannot help. Look at how a conversation reaches your team and what your team sees when it does.

Questions

What is the top alternative to Zipchat?

AeroChat. It covers the same store questions, adds payment and delivery inside the chat, and runs on more channels, including Telegram and TikTok Shop buyer chat.

Is there a free alternative to Zipchat?

Shopify Inbox is free to install, and Chatty has a free plan with 50 AI conversations a month, as of November 2026. AeroChat has a 7-day free trial.

Can I move from Zipchat to AeroChat without losing my WhatsApp number?

Yes. You connect the same number to AeroChat, and it can stay on the WhatsApp Business app on your phone at the same time.

Which alternative works on TikTok Shop?

AeroChat answers buyers in TikTok Shop buyer chat. It also supports Shopee and Lazada.

Try the top Zipchat alternative on your store

Install AeroChat, connect your store and a channel, and ask your own number about an order you shipped this week.

Install AeroChat on Shopify

7-day free trial.