The 11 best live chat apps to support your customers in 2024

The live chat app is a staple in digital customer service. By offering an easy and reliable way for your customers to connect with your team instantly, live chat apps can improve customer satisfaction while reducing operational costs. 

However, there are numerous options available today, each with different caliber and capabilities. Among these, only the best option can suit your business needs the most.

In this article, we bring you an overview of the best live chat software in 2024 to help you make the best choice for your company.

What is live chat software — and what is it not?

Essentially, a live chat app is a tool that enables real-time engagement via chat with customers and prospects. Your team can quickly respond to queries via websites or their mobile devices. A good live chat app also provides robust security, rapid deployment options, team collaboration features, and omnichannel support. These features allow you to deliver swift responses with the help of in-app features like voice chats, video calls, and co-browsing. 

The live chat app is an excellent tool to guide customers through your website and collect feedback from customers as well. Many consider live chat apps to be the way forward; as a result, there has been a 25% increase in the number of people who prefer chat-based messaging to contact customer support for complicated issues. 

Here are some common features of live chat apps:

• Instant messaging
• Prompt user interaction
• Notifications
• Reporting

People often mistake live chat apps for in-app chat support; although they may seem similar, there is a world of difference between the two.

Users enter a session-based browser window on your website in live chat apps. Live chat usually works better on a larger screen, as it was originally designed for such devices only. But with time, live chat has evolved to provide effortless services to users on their mobile phones as well. Whereas in-app chat support (or in-app messaging) allows users to chat with the team within a mobile app, this provides an intuitive and convenient experience to the customers.

The live chat app market at a glance

Did you know that live chat has the second-highest customer satisfaction score out of all support channels — 85%? The big players in the live chat app market — Tidio, Zendesk, LiveChat — have dominated the market for a long time. 

But many new-age solutions are offering interesting features such as conversational AI and increased personalization. These can make your business stand apart and be in line with the latest trends; this may also influence your customer ratings positively.

Best live chat apps in 2024

Choosing the right live chat software can have a huge impact on your business. Here is a list of some of the best live chat apps available in the market today:

Rocket.Chat

Rocket.Chat is a versatile chat platform that can be embedded on your website or in-app. With chatbots and machine learning apps, you can scale your customer service easily. What sets Rocket.Chat apart from other tools are its superb security features, making it one of the most secure live chat apps on the market.

Here are some of Rocket.Chat's key features:

• omnichannel communication via Instagram, Messenger, email, WhatsApp and other channels
• complete chat history and role-based permissions
• ‍embeddable chat for highly-customizable use cases
• advanced security features for organizations in industries such as Healthcare, Government, and Financial Services

Who is Rocket.Chat best for?

Due to its flexibility, Rocket.Chat is a great solution for organizations that need highly customized solutions. Its advanced security features also make it ideal for companies in higly-regulated industries.

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LiveChat

An easy-to-use live chat app — LiveChat — offers great customer service. You can also customize its UI and change the appearance of the widget. LiveChat is trusted by big brands such as McDonald’s, Ikea, and Nikon. 

Here is a list of the most prominent features of LiveChat:

• Omnichannel messaging
• Chatbots
• AI chat routing
• Visitor segmentation on the basis of the sales funnel
• Easy integration with more than 200 tools

Who is LiveChat best for?

Ideal for large businesses that have a classic approach to their customer base, LiveChat offers in-depth customization to help you scale your operations and overall functionality.

Tidio

It is a popular live chat app that offers features centered around engaging customers and offering real-time support. It integrates seamlessly with selective tools and platforms to help maximize productivity. Here is a list of the most prominent features of Tidio:

• Chat history
• Real-time chat monitoring
• Easy integration with customer relationship management (CRM) and other tools
• Ticketing system
• Open JavaScript API (application programming interface)
• Canned responses and chatbot templates
• Customisable live chat interface with different templates and design options
• E-commerce integrations with Shopify and other platforms

Who is Tidio best for?

Tidio is ideal for companies who want unlimited customization and enhanced productivity.

Zendesk

This multichannel communication platform is a powerful live chat app that you can rely on for your business operations. With Zendesk, you can connect with your customers through Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and text messages easily. Zendesk’s AI chatbot smoothens communication and provides useful insight about the customer. Here is a list of the most prominent features of Zendesk: 

• Support tickets
• Answer bot
• Pre-chat form
• Transferable chats between agents and departments
• Multiple APIs
• Single sign-on

Who is Zendesk best for?

Enterprise organizations that need a standard live chat app and don’t wish to invest much time in research should go for Zendesk; it offers a full-feature service suite.

➡️ Read this blog if you want to learn all about best open source alternatives to Zendesk!

Re:amaze

Easy setup, modern interface, and customer-centric features make Re:amaze one of the best live chat apps in 2024. You can tag conversations based on priority, segregate them based on the respective departments, etc., and these are all customizable. As a result. Re:amaze offers a clutter-free digital space for your team to work. 

Here is a list of the most prominent features of Re:amaze:

• Department integrations
• Automations
• Push notifications
• Easy to use
• Customizable office hours to manage customer’s expectations

Who is Re:amaze best for?

Organizations who are looking for a customizable live chat app that offers great user experience should opt for Re:amaze.

HubSpot

As Hubspot offers live chat software as a part of the Hubspot CRM suite for free, you can have your customer data conveniently synchronized across different modules and access the information as and when needed. It is a decent live chat app that can be integrated with a few other channels, such as Slack. 

Here is a list of the most prominent features of Hubspot:

• Customer satisfaction ratings and other insights
• Support tickets
• Chatbots for automation
• Integration with Hubspot CRM
• Chat history

Who is Hubspot best for?

If you are a small business on a tight budget looking for a good live chat app, Hubspot is a good choice for you as it offers a CRM suite and live chat software for free (forever).

Tawk.to

Tawk.to helps you analyze customer interaction and identify their needs. Also, you can create shortcuts and articles for frequently asked questions and capture help center searches easily with this live chat app. Your team can also view which pages are currently being keyed by your customers and how often that customer has visited your website. This can enhance your productivity and increase your chances of making a sale. 

Here is a list of the most prominent features of Tawk.to:

• Ticketing system
• Team chat
• Dashboard of customer’s details
• Complete conversation history
• Voice and video add-ons
• Conversation tags
• Customizable knowledge base

Who is Tawk.to best for?

Tawk.to is the best choice if you are looking for a free live chat for your website.

Genesys

Being one of the leading live chat apps, Genesys helps you connect with your customers conveniently with a suite of digital channels. It offers multichannel communication and lets you connect with your customers through chat, text, email, and social media. Here is a list of the most prominent features of Genesys:

• Connected insights across teams and tools
• Automation
• Chatbots and predictive AI
• Integrations with numerous third-party tools and applications

Who is Genesys best for?

The flexibility and scalability of Genesys make it an ideal choice for a business of any size.

SnapEngage

With a user-friendly interface, SnapEngage can be deployed as is to kickstart your operations or customized as per your preference. SnapEngage also synchronizes leads and contacts automatically with your CRM. The swift responses by chatbots, when a live agent is unavailable to the customers is one of the key reasons for increased customer satisfaction with SnapEngage. 

Here is a list of the most prominent features of SnapEngage:

• Chatbots
• Customizable workflows
• Omnichannel communication
• HIPAA compliant
• Reporting

Who is SnapEngage best for?

SnapEngage is ideal for businesses that want to customize their live chat software and increase customer satisfaction without worrying too much about data security.

3CX

3CX is a convenient live chat app that is not limited to solving customer queries; your team can collaborate, conduct presentations, and assist remotely with this app’s features. It is easily scalable, and one can add as many users as they’d like. Here is a list of the most prominent features of 3CX:

• App-free video conferencing
• Document sharing
• Polling
• Team sharing and collaboration
• On-premise deployment
• Integrations with other applications

Who is 3CX best for?

Offering free services for up to 10 users for forever, 3CX is a good choice for businesses who want integrated software for live chat and digital office space.

Acquire

Acquire is a live chat app that offers a powerful workflow engine and allows users to add digital channels for improving customer service.

Here is a list of the most prominent features of Acquire:

• Customizable integrations
• Task prioritization
• Queue management
• Service level agreements (SLAs)
• Chat routing
• Unified chat history view
• Seamless switch between chat, text messages, and emails
• Live video support

Who is Acquire best for?

Acquire is best suited for companies that want a customizable live chat app that offers all the basic features and more.

How to choose the best live chat software?

If you still haven’t decided on one, here are the three must-haves that you should look for in an ideal live chat app for your company:

1. User experience

Ease of use is the first feature you must look for while choosing any chat platform, as it is extremely important. A live chat app that is complicated to use and confusing can exhaust your resources quickly and leave your customers frustrated. 

Also, if the live chat app does not come with a low learning curve, your team can end up spending double (or more) the amount of time on a simple task. As majority of the people who will end up using the live chat app don't have a tech background, the live chat app you use for your business must be user-friendly at the front end (for customers) as well as the back end (for the agents).

A live chat app that is complicated to use and confusing can exhaust your resources quickly and leave your customers and agents frustrated. 

2. Scalability and integration with your existing infrastructure 

It is important that the live chat app you select can be seamlessly incorporated into your organization as is without the need to make rapid changes. Large businesses with complex systems in place don’t have the option to alter their operations and existing tech stack drastically.

Additionally, small businesses that are just starting out have the flexibility to change their workflows in order to optimize operations, but they require the live chat app to be scalable. A suitable live chat app must also allow you to integrate different tools and e-commerce platforms. 

3. Data security

Complying with data protection laws, such as GDPR and HIPAA, is a must-have for every organization, but having strong systems in place that prevent data breaches is especially crucial for you if you deal in critical sectors. This makes choosing the right live chat app for your company important. 

Apart from the obvious legal implications of poor data security practices in an organization, a secure live chat app will help you earn your customer’s trust and build a long-term relationship with them. Having loyal customers can take your business to new heights due to the repeat business you get from them and additional clients because of word-of-mouth publicity.

Rocket.Chat: a secure live chat experience

As a leader in the secure instant messaging space, Rocket.Chat allows you to connect with your customers without worrying about data security.

With advanced features like self hosting, end-to-end encryption, and granular user roles, Rocket.Chat is an ideal choice for organizations in highly-regulated industries such as Financial Services, Healthcare, and Government.

Manage all client communication from a single inbox, automate messages, and gain insights into customer experience with analytics and monitoring tools. Learn more about Rocket.Chat for customer service and Rocket.Chat's Chat Engine, or get in touch with out team.