AI Included Free
Crisp’s free plan has no AI. Its AI agent starts on Mini ($45/mo) with $5 of AI credits a month, about 90 conversations by Crisp’s estimate. PressBot’s free chatbot has no cap: you pay your AI provider directly.
PressBot vs Crisp
The Crisp alternative for WordPress.
A free AI chatbot on your own key vs no AI on Crisp Free. No per-message fees from PressBot, ever.
$540+saved per year
<1¢per chat on budget models (BYOK)
115admin tools in Pro
0per-message fees
At a glance
Why choose PressBot over Crisp.
Three things that set PressBot apart — the rest is detail.
Your Keys, Your Cost
PressBot uses a BYOK model — bring your own API key and pay AI providers directly: about 2 cents per conversation on Claude Haiku 4.5, under a cent on budget models like GPT-6 Luna. Crisp charges per-workspace monthly fees with no BYOK option.
Agent + Automations
PressBot Pro includes a 115-tool AI admin agent plus scheduled automations and Trusted Plans for recurring WordPress work. Crisp has no WordPress admin management.
Side-by-side
PressBot vs Crisp, line by line.
| Feature | PressBot | Crisp |
|---|---|---|
| AI Chatbot | Yes (free) | $95/mo (50 uses) |
| Unlimited AI Conversations | ||
| Claude + Gemini + GPT + DeepSeek Support | ||
| Bring Your Own API Key | ||
| Knowledge Base Auto-Generation | ||
| Custom Widget Appearance | ||
| Starter Chips / Quick Replies | ||
| Auto Language Matching | ||
| Lead Capture | Pro | |
| Admin Agent (115 Tools) | Pro | |
| WooCommerce Management | Pro | |
| Telegram Integration | Pro | |
| AI Login Protection (Shield) | Pro | |
| Proactive Messaging | Pro | |
| Scheduled Automations & Trusted Plans | Pro | |
| Analytics Dashboard | Pro | |
| White-Label | Pro | Paid |
| MCP Server (IDE Integration) | Pro |
Save hundreds per year
$540+/yr back in your pocket.
Crisp Mini, the first plan with AI, costs $540/yr — and its $5 monthly AI credit covers about 90 AI conversations by Crisp’s estimate.
P
PressBot
Recommended
Free
Unlimited conversations, forever — you only pay your AI provider directly (about 2 cents per conversation on Claude Haiku 4.5, under a cent on budget models like GPT-6 Luna).
- Unlimited AI conversations
- Claude, Gemini, GPT, DeepSeek, or Ollama Cloud on your keys
- Knowledge base auto-generation
- Custom appearance + starter chips
Need the admin agent? Pro from $29/yr — all 115 tools.
C
Crisp
$45/mo
Mini plan, billed monthly. Free tier: no AI.
- No BYOK option
- No admin agent
- No model choice
- No WordPress admin agent
Higher tiers: Essentials $95/mo · Plus $295/mo.
The BYOK advantage
Why Crisp's AI Pricing Doesn't Add Up
AI only on paid plans
Crisp markets itself as an all-in-one customer messaging platform. The free plan gives you a chat widget but no AI. AI comes with paid plans as monthly credits: $5 on Mini ($45/mo), $25 on Essentials ($95/mo), and $75 on Plus ($295/mo). Crisp estimates 5 to 10 cents per AI conversation, so Essentials covers roughly 450 conversations a month.
BYOK math, in plain numbers
No Crisp plan is unlimited: past the included credits, AI usage is pay-as-you-go, or the AI agent stops answering if that is switched off. PressBot has no cap on the free plan because you connect your own API key from Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, DeepSeek, or Ollama Cloud. A conversation costs about 2 cents on Claude Haiku 4.5 and under a cent on budget models, so 1,000 conversations a month is about $20 on Haiku or under $10 on a budget model. By Crisp’s own estimate, the same 1,000 AI conversations would use $50 to $100 of credits.
Ten models vs one black box
There's also the question of which AI you're actually using. Crisp doesn't let you pick the model behind its AI. PressBot lets you choose between Claude Haiku (fast and cheap), Sonnet (balanced), Opus (most capable), the Gemini 3 lineup, GPT-6 Luna or Sol, or DeepSeek V4.1 Flash for the cheapest route. The visitor chatbot and admin agent can even use different models — fast responses for the visitor chatbot, deeper reasoning for the admin agent.
WordPress as first-class citizen
Where PressBot really pulls ahead is WordPress integration depth. Crisp treats WordPress as just another chat widget embed. PressBot Pro ($29/yr) adds a 115-tool admin agent that manages content, plugins, WooCommerce, security, and more through natural language. It also adds scheduled automations and Trusted Plans so recurring WordPress work can run on a cadence while you still review risky changes locally. You can run your entire site from a Telegram chat, get AI-powered brute force protection, and auto-generate knowledge bases from your existing content. None of that exists in Crisp at any price.
No conversation caps
Free tier, unlimited
10 AI models
Claude + Gemini + GPT + DeepSeek
<1¢ / chat on budget models
Direct API pricing
Honest fit check
Is PressBot right for you?
A short, no-BS read on whether to switch.
Recommended for
- WordPress sites that want AI from day one without a monthly plan to unlock it.
- Anyone fine providing their own Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, or DeepSeek API key for usage-based pricing.
- Owners who want the AI to also drive WordPress admin work, not just front-end chat.
Skip if
- You need Crisp’s wider toolkit (CRM, MagicReply across email/SMS, knowledge-base hosting).
- You don’t want to manage an API key (PressBot is BYOK-only today).
Migration
Switch from Crisp in three steps.
Run both side by side during the transition — nothing forces you to cut over in a single move.
Install PressBot
Download the free plugin and connect an Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, or DeepSeek API key. PressBot is free; you pay your AI provider directly for usage.
Auto-build the knowledge base
Point PressBot at your existing pages, posts, and docs — it generates a knowledge base in one click. Add or edit any time.
Flip the widget & turn off Crisp
Style the widget to match your brand, run both for a few days to compare answers, then deactivate Crisp.
Crisp can’t do this
MCP: manage WordPress from your IDE.
PressBot exposes all 115 admin tools via the Model Context Protocol. Connect Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or any MCP agent and manage your site without opening a browser, then hand recurring work to Scheduled Automations and Trusted Plans inside WordPress. Crisp has no equivalent.
IDE integration
Run security audits, update plugins, create posts — all from your editor. No browser tab needed.
115 tools via API
Every admin tool accessible programmatically with full JSON Schema definitions. Build custom AI workflows.
Knowledge as context
Your knowledge base entries are exposed as MCP resources. AI clients read your site context before acting.
Frequently asked
A few before you switch.
Can I migrate from Crisp to PressBot?
Yes. Install PressBot, add your API key, upload or auto-generate a knowledge base, and you are live. PressBot works alongside other plugins, so you can run both during the transition.
Is PressBot really free?
The visitor chatbot is free with no cap on AI conversations. You only pay your AI provider (Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, DeepSeek, or Ollama Cloud) directly for API usage: about 2 cents per conversation on Claude Haiku 4.5, under a cent on budget models like GPT-6 Luna. PressBot Pro ($29/yr) adds the admin agent, scheduled automations, analytics, and integrations.
How does BYOK pricing compare to Crisp?
With PressBot BYOK, 500 conversations a month costs about $10 in API fees on Claude Haiku 4.5, or under $5 on budget models. Crisp's free plan has no AI. Its AI agent comes with monthly credits on paid plans: $5 on Mini ($45/month) and $25 on Essentials ($95/month, about 450 conversations by Crisp's estimate). Usage past the credits is billed pay-as-you-go.
Does PressBot have live chat like Crisp?
PressBot focuses on AI-powered conversations rather than human live chat. The chatbot handles visitor questions automatically using your knowledge base. For complex queries, PressBot Pro can capture leads and notify you via Telegram.
What AI models does PressBot support vs Crisp?
PressBot supports Anthropic Claude (Haiku 4.5, Sonnet 5.5, Opus 5.5), Google Gemini (3.8 Flash, 3.5 Flash Lite, 3.1 Pro), OpenAI GPT-6 Luna, Sol, and Astra, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, and Ollama Cloud (early access). You choose which model to use per surface and can switch anytime. Crisp doesn't let you choose the model behind its AI.
Ready to switch from Crisp
Free to install. Live in minutes.
Bring your own API key, keep your data on your server, and stop paying per-conversation fees.