Kayako
Tidio
| Feature | Kayako | Tidio |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $30/mo | Free / from $29/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 3.9 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | ecommerce, saas-companies, support-teams, mid-size-companies | small-businesses, ecommerce, shopify-stores, solopreneurs |
| Founded | 2001 | 2013 |
| Live Chat | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ticketing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Customer Journey | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Service | ✓ | ✗ |
| Collaboration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sla Management | ✓ | ✗ |
| Chatbots | ✗ | ✓ |
| Email Marketing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Visitor Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Shopify Integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ai Responses | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Kayako Pros
- Unified customer view
- Good live chat
- Journey tracking
- Multichannel
✗ Kayako Cons
- Dated interface
- Limited integrations
- Slow development pace
✓ Tidio Pros
- Easy to install
- Good chatbot builder
- Affordable
- Shopify integration
✗ Tidio Cons
- Limited on free plan
- Chatbot flow can be rigid
- Support response time
The Verdict
Kayako is built for ecommerce and saas companies, with a focus on live-chat and ticketing. Tidio targets small businesses and ecommerce and leads with live-chat and chatbots.
Pricing is close: Tidio starts at $29/mo versus $30/mo for Kayako — not a deciding factor on its own.
Tidio has a free plan, which gives it a meaningful edge for individuals and small teams exploring their options. Kayako requires a paid subscription from day one.
Tidio edges out on user ratings (4.4 vs 3.9). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Both tools are a solid fit for ecommerce — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
Bottom line: Tidio has a slight overall edge — but if unified customer view matters most to you, Kayako may still be the right call.