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Customer Support · head to head

Amazon Connect vs Olark

Amazon Connect logo

Amazon Connect

Customer Support

Cloud contact center from AWS

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Olark logo

Olark

Live Chat

Make your business human

From
$29/month
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Amazon Connect has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Connect telephony is charged separately from the platform, so the $0.038 per minute voice rate is not the whole cost of a call; Olark the AI website agent is a $400 a month flat plan billed annually at $4,800, which is a large step from the $29 per agent human only plan
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon Connect covers Voice, Olark covers Live chat.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon Connect and Olark actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon Connect and Olark differ
AttributeAmazon ConnectOlark
Starting priceFree$29/month
Pricing modelusage-basedsubscription
Free tierYesNo
CategoryCustomer SupportLive Chat
Founded20062009

Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amazon Connect

  • Voice
  • Chat
  • Tasks
  • ML-powered analytics
  • Contact Lens
  • Outbound campaigns
  • Forecasting
  • ServiceNow

Only in Olark

  • Live chat
  • Chat transcripts
  • Visitor insights
  • Customization
  • Offline messaging
  • Shortcuts
  • HubSpot
  • Slack

Both cover

  • Salesforce
  • Zendesk
  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amazon Connect

  • Cloud contact centre with no per-seat licencenot Olark
  • Voice, chat, email and SMS in one queuenot Olark
  • Conversational analytics and agent assistnot Olark
  • Outbound campaigns and automated contactnot Olark
  • Workforce scheduling for contact centre agentsnot Olark

Olark

  • Live chat on a website with a small support teamnot Amazon Connect
  • Running an AI agent on website conversations with human handoffnot Amazon Connect

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amazon Connect

  • Telephony is charged separately from the platform, so the $0.038 per minute voice rate is not the whole cost of a call
  • Every channel is metered individually: $0.010 per chat message, $0.080 per email and $0.014 per SMS
  • Rates vary by region and by third-party provider, so a published figure is indicative rather than final
  • Cost tracks contact volume, which makes forecasting hard for a queue with seasonal peaks

Olark

  • The AI website agent is a $400 a month flat plan billed annually at $4,800, which is a large step from the $29 per agent human only plan
  • That flat price covers only one human seat, with each additional seat at $29 a month
  • Regional routing, SSO and custom SLAs require a custom enterprise plan with no published price

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon Connect

Free
  • Pay-as-you-go$undefined/mo
    • Chat: $0.010 per message sent or received
    • Voice: $0.038 per minute
    • Email: $0.080 per message sent or received

Olark

$29/month
  • Standard AI Website Agent$400/month
    • One human agent seat included
    • Unlimited AI conversations
    • Automatic FAQ and knowledge updates
  • Live Chat Only$29/month
    • Human operators only
    • No AI component
    • Upgradeable to AI later
  • Custom Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Regional routing
    • Advanced integrations
    • Custom workflows

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon Connect if

  • You need voice.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want chat.
Amazon Connect review

Choose Olark if

  • You need live chat.
  • You also want chat transcripts.
Olark review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Connect or Olark better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Connect starts at Free and Olark at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Connect or Olark?
Amazon Connect has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Amazon Connect and $29/month for Olark.
Does Amazon Connect or Olark run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Amazon Connect for free?
Yes. Amazon Connect has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Olark starts at $29/month.
What is Amazon Connect best used for?
Amazon Connect is most often used for cloud contact centre with no per-seat licence, voice, chat, email and sms in one queue, conversational analytics and agent assist, outbound campaigns and automated contact. Of those, cloud contact centre with no per-seat licence and voice, chat, email and sms in one queue are not what Olark is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Connect do that Olark cannot?
Amazon Connect covers Voice, Chat, Tasks, ML-powered analytics. Olark covers Live chat, Chat transcripts, Visitor insights, Customization. Both handle Salesforce, Zendesk, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon Connect: How much does Amazon Connect cost?

Amazon Connect uses pay-as-you-go pricing with no minimums or long-term contracts. Costs are $0.010 per chat message, $0.038 per voice minute, $0.080 per email message, and $0.014 per SMS or third-party messaging message.

Source
Olark: How much does Olark's Standard AI plan cost?

Olark's Standard AI Website Agent plan costs $400 per month when billed annually ($4,800/year). This includes one human agent seat, unlimited AI conversations, automatic FAQ updates, lead capture, and white glove support with no token limits or overages.

Source
Amazon Connect: Is Amazon Connect free to try?

Amazon Connect offers a free trial option for new customers to get started at no cost. Ongoing usage is charged based on consumption with no minimum commitment required.

Source
Olark: What is the cost for additional agent seats on Olark?

Additional human agent seats on Olark cost $29 per agent per month. This rate applies when upgrading from the Standard AI plan.

Source
Amazon Connect: What are Amazon Connect's per-channel pricing differences?

Communication channel costs vary: voice at $0.038 per minute is the most expensive, email at $0.080 per message, SMS at $0.014 per message, and chat at the lowest rate of $0.010 per message. All pricing is per message or per minute consumed with no unused portions charged.

Source
Olark: Does Olark charge based on token usage?

No, Olark explicitly states 'No token costs, ever.' The Standard AI plan charges per agent seat with no usage-based overages or token limits, avoiding unexpected cost spikes during peak traffic periods.

Source
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