Sendbird vs Tawk.to

Sendbird and Tawk.to address different aspects of customer communication. Sendbird provides in-app messaging SDKs for developers building chat into applications, while Tawk.to offers ready-to-use live chat widgets with optional professional agent services.

The choice depends on whether you're building custom chat experiences or need immediate website chat deployment.

Sendbird offers comprehensive chat SDKs for iOS, Android, and web with features like message threading, file sharing, push notifications, and moderation tools. Their platform supports group chats, channels, and real-time messaging with 99.9% uptime.

Tawk.to provides website live chat widgets, visitor monitoring, automatic message translation, and the unique ability to hire trained agents at $1/hour. Their solution requires no development and deploys in minutes.

Sendbird targets developers building chat-enabled applications, while Tawk.to serves businesses wanting immediate website chat functionality.

Sendbird offers a free tier for up to 100 monthly active users, then scales from $399/month for 1,000 MAU to $999/month for 5,000 MAU. Enterprise plans require custom pricing for higher volumes.

Tawk.to is completely free for up to 15 agents and conversations. The only cost is optional hired agents at $1/hour, making it extremely budget-friendly for website chat needs.

For a growing app with 1,000 active users, Sendbird costs $399/month, while Tawk.to remains free unless hiring agents.

Choose Sendbird if you're developing mobile apps or web applications requiring custom in-app messaging. Choose Tawk.to if you need website live chat with professional agent backup options.

Choose Sendbird if: You're building mobile apps or web applications that need integrated chat functionality with advanced features like message threading and push notifications.

Choose Tawk.to if: You need website live chat with excellent visitor tracking and want the option to hire professional agents without development overhead.

For businesses seeking comprehensive customer communication without development complexity, Converge provides chat, email, and automation features at $49/month flat rate, offering professional functionality without per-user scaling costs.