Chatwoot
Focalboard
| Feature | Chatwoot | Focalboard |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $19/mo | Free only |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 4 / 5 |
| Best For | startups, small-businesses, privacy-focused-companies, self-hosters | self-hosters, mattermost-users, small-teams, open-source-advocates |
| Founded | 2017 | 2021 |
| Live Chat | ✓ | ✗ |
| Omnichannel Inbox | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ai Assist | ✓ | ✗ |
| Automations | ✓ | ✗ |
| Canned Responses | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reports | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Hostable | ✓ | ✗ |
| Kanban Boards | ✗ | ✓ |
| Table View | ✗ | ✓ |
| Calendar View | ✗ | ✓ |
| Templates | ✗ | ✓ |
| Filters | ✗ | ✓ |
| Self Hosting | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Chatwoot Pros
- Open-source with full self-hosting option
- Omnichannel (chat, email, WhatsApp, Telegram, etc.)
- AI-powered response suggestions and summaries
- Free for self-hosted with unlimited agents
✗ Chatwoot Cons
- Self-hosting requires DevOps knowledge
- Fewer integrations than established help desks
- Mobile apps less polished than competitors
✓ Focalboard Pros
- Completely free and open-source
- Self-hostable for data control
- Multiple view types (board, table, gallery)
- Integrates with Mattermost
✗ Focalboard Cons
- Limited to basic project tracking
- No built-in time tracking
- Smaller community than alternatives
The Verdict
Chatwoot is built for startups and small businesses, with a focus on live-chat and omnichannel-inbox. Focalboard targets self hosters and mattermost users and leads with kanban-boards and table-view.
Focalboard uses custom enterprise pricing, while Chatwoot starts at $19/mo — a tangible advantage for teams with a fixed budget.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Chatwoot edges out on user ratings (4.4 vs 4). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Feature-wise, Chatwoot offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Focalboard takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Both tools are a solid fit for self hosters — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
Bottom line: Chatwoot has a slight overall edge — but if completely free and open-source matters most to you, Focalboard may still be the right call.