Kayako
WhatsApp Business
| Feature | Kayako | WhatsApp Business |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $30/mo | Free / from $0/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 3.9 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 |
| Best For | ecommerce, saas-companies, support-teams, mid-size-companies | small-businesses, ecommerce, customer-service-teams, international-businesses |
| Founded | 2001 | 2018 |
| Live Chat | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ticketing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Customer Journey | ✓ | ✗ |
| Self Service | ✓ | ✗ |
| Collaboration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sla Management | ✓ | ✗ |
| Business Profiles | ✗ | ✓ |
| Product Catalogs | ✗ | ✓ |
| Automated Messages | ✗ | ✓ |
| Quick Replies | ✗ | ✓ |
| Labels | ✗ | ✓ |
| Api Integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Broadcast Lists | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Kayako Pros
- Unified customer view
- Good live chat
- Journey tracking
- Multichannel
✗ Kayako Cons
- Dated interface
- Limited integrations
- Slow development pace
✓ WhatsApp Business Pros
- Access to 2B+ WhatsApp users globally
- Free app for small businesses with basic features
- API platform for enterprise-scale messaging
- High open rates (98%) compared to email
✗ WhatsApp Business Cons
- API pricing per-conversation can be expensive
- 24-hour response window for customer-initiated chats
- Strict template approval process for outbound messages
The Verdict
Kayako is built for ecommerce and saas companies, with a focus on live-chat and ticketing. WhatsApp Business targets small businesses and ecommerce and leads with business-profiles and product-catalogs.
On pricing, WhatsApp Business is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $0/mo compared to $30/mo for Kayako. That $30/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
WhatsApp Business 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.
WhatsApp Business edges out on user ratings (4.3 vs 3.9). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Feature-wise, WhatsApp Business offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Kayako takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
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: WhatsApp Business has a slight overall edge — but if unified customer view matters most to you, Kayako may still be the right call.