Early access
Same idea, different bill.
Most AI chat tools charge per resolution, per conversation, or per message. FrontCite charges one flat price and was built for home service websites. There are no testimonials on this page.
Competitor prices below are copied from each vendor's pricing page on October 15, 2026. Their prices change. Follow the link before you buy.
| Tool | Published price | What is metered | Trial |
|---|---|---|---|
| FrontCite | Starter $19 then $29, Pro $39 then $59, Agency $99 then $149. The first price is a 3 month coupon for subscriptions started by November 13, 2026. | Nothing per chat inside the plan limit (300, 1,500, or 5,000 conversations a month). | Early access. Checkout is closed, so the waitlist does not collect a card. When checkout is open, the subscription trial is 14 days and the card is collected first. |
| Intercom Fin | $0.99 per Fin outcome, plus $29 to $132 per seat a month | Outcomes and seats | 14 days, no card |
| Tidio Lyro | Lyro from $32.50 a month, plus $0.50 per Lyro conversation | Lyro conversations | 7 days, no card |
| Chatbase | $40, $150, or $500 a month, 20% off yearly, and $40 per 1,000 extra message credits | Message credits | See their site |
| SiteGPT | $59, $129, or $429 a month, less on a yearly plan, and branding removal is an extra $39 a month | Messages | 7 days, card required |
| Smith.ai Chat | $10 per chat, or 50 chats for $300 a month | Chats | See their site |
A worked example, math only
A shop with 150 website chats in a month, using the prices published on October 15, 2026. This is arithmetic, not a FrontCite result, and not every competitor counts every chat the same way.
- Intercom Fin: up to 150 x $0.99 = $148.50 in outcomes, plus at least one seat at $29. Fewer if not every chat counts as an outcome.
- Tidio Lyro: 150 x $0.50 = $75 in conversation charges, on top of a plan.
- Smith.ai: 150 chats at $10 each would be $1,500 a la carte. Smith.ai includes live human agents. FrontCite does not.
- FrontCite Pro: $39 a month for the first 3 months, then $59. Pro includes 1,500 conversations a month, so 150 chats are inside that limit and are not metered one by one.
Where they are stronger
Intercom and Tidio are full help desks, with inboxes, email, and many integrations. Smith.ai puts live humans on chat. Chatbase and SiteGPT support more channels and languages. If you need those, they are good choices.
Where FrontCite is different
- Citations on every accepted answer, so you and the visitor can see the page it came from.
- A refusal rule. If your content does not say it, FrontCite says it does not know and takes contact details.
- Home service defaults: an emergency handoff, and no made up price.
- One flat price inside the conversation limit.