“Chatbot” means two different things on Shopify
When Shopify operators search for “best chatbot,” they mean one of two genuinely different tools: a marketing bot that automates conversations in Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp to drive sales, or a support bot that sits on your storefront and resolves customer questions without a human. Our catalogue has a strong pick for each — ManyChat (8.3/10) for marketing automation, Tidio (8.7/10) for AI support — and the honest answer depends entirely on which job you are hiring for.
We rank ManyChat first here because “chatbot” most often means automated conversation flows, which is ManyChat’s core design (Tidio leads our separate live chat roundup, where real-time on-site chat is the job). Both run affiliate programs. Prices verified 2026-05-30 (Tidio re-checked 2026-06-05).
#1 — ManyChat (the marketing and social-DM bot)
ManyChat is the chatbot to reach for when your conversations and acquisition live on social. It is an official Meta Business Partner with a no-code visual flow builder, built to turn Instagram comments, Messenger threads, and WhatsApp messages into automated, sales-driving conversations — comment-to-DM funnels, abandoned-cart nudges, and broadcast flows. For DTC brands and creators whose customers find them on Instagram, this is the automation layer that scales DM selling without a team manually replying.
Pricing is freemium: Free $0 (25 active contacts, basic automations), Pro at $29/mo (2,500 contacts, AI features, 3 channels), and Business at $69/mo (7,500 contacts, all channels, 5 seats). Two honest caveats: cost scales aggressively as your contact list grows, and WhatsApp conversation fees are billed on top of the base plan — model both before committing. Support quality is also reported as inconsistent. For social-led marketing automation, it is the right pick. See the ManyChat pricing breakdown or ManyChat vs Tidio for the marketing-vs-support split.
#2 — Tidio Lyro (the on-site AI support bot)
Tidio (8.7/10) earns the second slot here for a different kind of bot: Lyro, its on-site AI support agent. Per Tidio’s own press release, Lyro independently handles 64% of customer requests on average (peaking at 90%) — a genuine support-deflection bot that answers “where’s my order” and FAQ-style questions on your storefront without a human. If your “chatbot” need is reducing support load rather than running marketing funnels, Tidio is actually the stronger tool, which is why the ranking here is about job, not raw rating.
Pricing starts free: Free $0 (50 conversations, 50 one-off Lyro chats), Starter $29/mo with 50 Lyro conversations included, and Growth from $59/mo. The honest caveat specific to the bot: you cannot run Lyro AI and custom flows in the same conversation — it is one or the other. For on-site AI support, it is the pick (and the lead of our live chat roundup); for marketing automation, ManyChat is. The Tidio pricing breakdown covers the tiers.
The honest verdict
Pick ManyChat when “chatbot” means marketing and social-DM automation — Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp flows that drive sales — and you want a no-code builder backed by Meta partnership. Pick Tidio’s Lyro when “chatbot” means on-site AI support that resolves tickets autonomously and cuts your support load.
We do not list a third chatbot, because these two cover the two real jobs the term means in mid-2026 — and forcing a single ranking across two different jobs would be padding. For heavier, helpdesk-grade AI support at high ticket volume, Gorgias and its AI Agent are the next step up, covered in our support roundup.