Softwr

Customer Support · head to head

Chatwoot vs Lark

Chatwoot logo

Chatwoot

Customer Support

Open-source customer engagement platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lark logo

Lark

Communication & Collaboration

The super app for team collaboration

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Chatwoot free plan limited to 2 agents and 500 conversations per month; Lark lark's own pricing page description states it offers a free starter pack, a Pro plan, and an Enterprise plan, and directs buyers to Contact us rather than publishing Pro/Enterprise figures on the rendered page.
  • They diverge on capability: Chatwoot covers Live chat, Lark covers Team messaging.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chatwoot and Lark actually diverge.

Attributes where Chatwoot and Lark differ
AttributeChatwootLark
Pricing modelUnknownsubscription
PlatformsWeb, Cloud, Self-hostedWeb, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android
CategoryCustomer SupportCommunication & Collaboration
Founded20172019

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Chatwoot

  • Live chat
  • Email inbox
  • Social channels
  • Knowledge base
  • Chatbots
  • Reports
  • Slack
  • WhatsApp

Only in Lark

  • Team messaging
  • Video conferencing
  • Collaborative docs
  • Cloud storage
  • Calendar
  • Jira
  • GitHub
  • Salesforce

Both cover

  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Chatwoot

  • Self-hosted supportnot Lark
  • Privacy-first chatnot Lark
  • Multi-channel supportnot Lark

Lark

  • Team communicationnot Chatwoot
  • Document collaborationnot Chatwoot
  • Project managementnot Chatwoot
  • Company intranetnot Chatwoot

Where each one falls short

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

Chatwoot

  • Free plan limited to 2 agents and 500 conversations per month
  • Self-hosted option requires managing infrastructure, updates, and external messaging costs
  • Smaller ecosystem and community compared to Zendesk or Intercom
  • AI features require credit consumption and additional configuration

Lark

  • Lark's own pricing page description states it offers a free starter pack, a Pro plan, and an Enterprise plan, and directs buyers to Contact us rather than publishing Pro/Enterprise figures on the rendered page.

Pricing, plan by plan

Chatwoot

Free
  • HackerFree
    • 2 agents
    • 500 conversations per month
    • 1 live chat channel
  • Startups$19/month
    • Unlimited agents
    • Unlimited conversations

Lark

Free
  • StarterFree
    • Up to 50 users
    • 100GB storage
    • Unlimited messaging
  • Pro$12/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 1TB storage per user
    • 24-hour meetings
  • Enterprise$20/month
    • SSO/SAML
    • eDiscovery
    • Custom retention

Which should you pick?

Choose Chatwoot if

  • You need live chat.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted.
  • You also want email inbox.
Chatwoot review

Choose Lark if

  • You need team messaging.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
  • You also want video conferencing.
Lark review

Questions people ask

Is Chatwoot or Lark better?
Neither clearly leads. Chatwoot starts at Free and Lark at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chatwoot or Lark?
Chatwoot starts at Free and Lark at Free.
Does Chatwoot or Lark run on more platforms?
Chatwoot runs on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted. Lark runs on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
Can I use Chatwoot for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Chatwoot best used for?
Chatwoot is most often used for self-hosted support, privacy-first chat, multi-channel support. Of those, self-hosted support and privacy-first chat are not what Lark is typically brought in for.
What can Chatwoot do that Lark cannot?
Chatwoot covers Live chat, Email inbox, Social channels, Knowledge base. Lark covers Team messaging, Video conferencing, Collaborative docs, Cloud storage. Both handle Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Chatwoot: Does Chatwoot offer a self-hosted option?

Yes. Chatwoot provides both cloud-hosted and self-hosted versions. Self-hosting is free with the open-source version, though you handle infrastructure, maintenance, and external messaging costs.

Source
Chatwoot: What communication channels does Chatwoot support?

Chatwoot supports email, live chat, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media channels consolidated into a single inbox.

Source
Chatwoot: Is there a free plan for Chatwoot?

Yes. Chatwoot offers a free Hacker plan supporting up to 2 agents, 500 conversations per month, and one live chat channel.

Source
Chatwoot: What AI features does Chatwoot include?

Chatwoot includes Captain AI agent for automated responses, Copilot for smart reply suggestions, and live translation features.

Source
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Related pages

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