Head to head · checked October 2026

Aivastark vs Crisp

Both give you a chat widget, a shared inbox and an AI agent. The difference is which comes first: Crisp is an inbox for your team with Hugo, its AI agent, added on monthly credits; Aivastark is an AI agent that hands conversations to your team. That decides what the AI costs and what happens when a busy month uses it up.

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Free plan, no card · 7-day trial on paid plans

Choose Crisp if

You want a cheap shared inbox for a human team
You want phone calls, SMS and a status page in the same tool
You want EU hosting and a choice of AI models

Choose Aivastark if

You want the AI on the front line, not added to an inbox
You want 5,000 AI replies included for $39
You want WhatsApp and Instagram from $39, not $95

Crisp figures checked October 2026 on Crisp's own pages

Aivastark or Crisp: which should you choose?

Choose Crisp if you want a low-cost shared inbox for a human team, with a free plan for 2 seats, phone calls through Aircall, and a help center, status page and co-browsing in the same tool. Choose Aivastark if you want the AI agent on the front line: Crisp's Hugo AI spends monthly credits ($5 on the $45 Mini plan, about 90 automated conversations) and stops answering when they run out unless you turn on pay-as-you-go, while Aivastark's $39 plan includes 5,000 AI replies and paid plans bill overage instead of switching off. WhatsApp and Instagram start on Crisp Essentials ($95) and on Aivastark Starter ($39).

the cheapest plan with WhatsApp and Instagram: Aivastark Starter against Crisp Essentials: $39 vs $95the cheapest plan with WhatsApp and Instagram: Aivastark Starter against Crisp Essentials
of Hugo AI credits on Crisp Mini ($45), about 90 automated conversations: $5of Hugo AI credits on Crisp Mini ($45), about 90 automated conversations
a month for Crisp Plus, the only plan without the Crisp watermark: $295a month for Crisp Plus, the only plan without the Crisp watermark
seats on Crisp's free plan, with no AI credits: 2seats on Crisp's free plan, with no AI credits

Side by side

Aivastark and Crisp, row by row

Aivastark and Crisp compared on pricing, channels, branding and features
Feature	Aivastark	Crisp
Pricing model	Flat monthly price with a credit allowance; on paid plans overage is billed, never a shut-off	A flat price per workspace with seats included; Hugo, the AI agent, spends monthly AI credits and stops answering when they run out unless pay-as-you-go is switched on
Entry price	$0 permanent free plan (300 replies), then $12/month (Solo)	A free plan (2 seats, no AI credits), then Mini at $45/month per workspace (4 seats, $5 of AI credits)
Typical small-business spend	$39–$129/month depending on volume, sites and seats	$95/month for Essentials (10 seats, WhatsApp and Instagram, $25 of AI credits), plus pay-as-you-go AI past the credits and Meta's WhatsApp message fees
AI price	Included: 1,000–75,000 credits a month by plan (1 per standard reply)	Monthly credits: $5 on Mini, $25 on Essentials, $75 on Plus (about 90, 450 and 1,350 automated conversations); Crisp estimates $0.05–$0.10 per AI-handled conversation; the pay-as-you-go rate isn't published
Removing vendor branding	Badge can be hidden on Scale ($319); custom white-label arrangements on Enterprise, on request	The "We run on Crisp" watermark comes off on Plus ($295/month) only
Channels	Widget on every plan; Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram and email from Starter ($39)	Widget and contact form on Free; email, Telegram, Messenger and X from Mini; Instagram, WhatsApp, SMS, Viber, Line and phone from Essentials ($95)
Agentic tools	From Starter: calendar booking (Google Calendar, Cal.com; Calendly by link), Shopify lookups and confirmed actions, MCP servers and custom API lookups	Hugo can check accounts, track orders or issue refunds through your integrations (Shopify, Stripe, HubSpot and your own MCP servers); API automation and webhook actions from Essentials
AI model	Aivastark picks the standard model; gpt-4o from Starter	Choose OpenAI, Anthropic, Google or Mistral models for Hugo, or Crisp's hosted model
Languages	80+	Hugo detects the customer's language; LiveTranslate covers 50+ languages (Essentials and up)
Seats	1–10 by plan	2 on Free, 4 on Mini, 10 on Essentials, 20 on Plus; more on Plus at $10 a month each

Crisp figures checked October 2026 on Crisp's own pages (sources below). Pricing moves, so check the vendor before you decide. Aivastark allowances are counted in credits: a standard reply is 1 credit and a gpt-4o reply 10; images, voice and tool steps add more.

In fairness

Where Crisp is the better choice

Stated plainly, because a comparison that wins every row is an advert.

A free-forever shared inbox for 2 seats, with mobile and desktop apps.
Cheap seats for a human team: Mini is $45 a month per workspace for 4 seats.
A wide inbox on Essentials: WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram, SMS, Viber, Line, X, email and phone calls through Aircall. Aivastark doesn't answer phone calls or send SMS.
More than chat in one tool: a help center, a customer ticket portal, a CRM, a status page and co-browsing.
EU-hosted on every plan, with a choice of AI models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and Mistral.
A long, bootstrapped track record: created in 2015 and used by 600,000+ people, per its about page. Every plan can also be tried free for 14 days with no card; Aivastark's paid-plan trial asks for one.

An inbox with AI, or an AI agent with an inbox

Crisp is a shared inbox first: your team answers chat, email and messaging in one place, and Hugo, its AI agent, answers on Mini and up using monthly AI credits that don't roll over. When the credits run out, Hugo stops answering until the next month unless you switch on pay-as-you-go, whose rate Crisp doesn't publish.

Aivastark is an AI agent first: it answers from your website, files and FAQs, and with handoff switched on (Solo and up) it passes the conversation to your unified inbox when the customer asks for a person, sounds upset or still isn't helped. Past the allowance on a paid plan, overage is billed at the plan's published rate rather than the agent going quiet.

What WhatsApp and Instagram cost

On Crisp, Instagram and WhatsApp start on Essentials at $95 a month per workspace, with $25 of Hugo credits (about 450 automated conversations), and Meta's WhatsApp message fees are charged through Crisp's pay-as-you-go. On Aivastark they start on Starter at $39 a month with 5,000 AI replies, and Meta bills its message fees to your own WhatsApp Business account.

FAQ

Aivastark vs Crisp: questions

Is Aivastark cheaper than Crisp?

For AI answers, usually. Crisp's Hugo spends monthly credits: $5 on Mini ($45 a month), $25 on Essentials ($95) and $75 on Plus ($295), which Crisp puts at about 90, 450 and 1,350 automated conversations. Aivastark's $39 plan includes 5,000 AI replies, roughly 1,000 conversations at five replies each. For a team that answers most chats itself, Crisp's free and Mini plans cost less.

Does Crisp answer phone calls?

Crisp connects phone calls through Aircall on Essentials and Plus, so your team can take and make calls inside Crisp; we found no claim that Hugo answers calls itself. Aivastark doesn't answer phone calls: it answers messages on your website, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, Telegram and email.

Which one removes the branding more cheaply?

Crisp removes its watermark on Plus ($295 a month) only. Aivastark lets you hide its badge on Scale ($319/month) and offers custom white-label arrangements on Enterprise, on request; your agent's name, colours, logo and persona are yours on every plan.

Which is better for a small team that wants to start free?

If you mainly want a shared inbox for people, Crisp's free plan gives 2 seats but no AI credits. If you want AI answers from the first day, Aivastark's free plan includes 300 AI replies a month on one website, permanently, with no card.

Sources