Chatbase Free Plan: What You Actually Get Before Paying
The Chatbase free plan costs $0 and gives 50 message credits a month, one AI agent and one seat. The catch is a 14-day rule that deletes idle agents.
By Galactic News Editorial · Published 2026-11-12T10:26:04+00:00 · Updated 2026-11-12T10:26:04+00:00
Chatbase Free Plan: What You Actually Get Before Paying
The Chatbase free plan costs $0. It gives you 50 message credits per month, one AI agent, 1 MB of training content, and one seat. That is enough to test the product. It is not enough to run live customer support. The biggest catch is the inactivity rule. Chatbase deletes a free-plan agent after 14 days without activity. This guide explains every limit, what the free plan leaves out, and when to upgrade.
What the Chatbase Free Plan Includes
The free plan is a working version of Chatbase, not a timed trial. You can build a real chatbot, train it on your own content, and put it on a test page. The limits are tight, but they are clear. Here is what you get.
| Feature | Free plan |
|---|---|
| Price | $0 per month |
| Message credits | 50 per month |
| AI agents | 1 |
| Training content | 1 MB |
| Team seats | 1 |
| AI models | Basic models only |
| AI Actions | None |
| Integrations | None |
| Analytics | None |
| API access | No |
A message credit is spent each time the agent answers. Basic models cost one credit per reply. More advanced models cost up to five credits per reply. That means 50 credits buy about 50 answers on the cheapest model. They buy far fewer on a premium model. Watch which model your agent uses. It decides how fast the credits run out.
The 14-Day Inactivity Rule
This is the rule most people miss. If your free-plan agent goes 14 days without activity, Chatbase deletes it. The deletion is permanent. Your training data and settings go with it. The rule exists to clear out abandoned test bots. It still catches real users who build a bot, pause for two weeks, and come back to nothing. If you use the free plan, keep the agent active. Send it a test message every week or so. Better still, treat the free plan as a short test. Decide within two weeks whether Chatbase fits your needs.
What the Free Plan Leaves Out
The free plan answers questions from your documents. That is its core job, and it does it. Everything around that job costs extra. Here is what you do not get.
- No AI Actions. The agent can answer, but it cannot do tasks. It cannot check an order status or update a record.
- No integrations. There is no connection to Slack, WhatsApp, or your helpdesk on the free plan.
- No analytics. You cannot see which questions visitors ask or how often the agent fails.
- No API access. You cannot plug the agent into your own app or workflow.
- No advanced models. The stronger models start on paid plans.
- No helpdesk handoff. There is no built-in ticket system for questions the agent cannot answer.
For a solo test, none of this matters much. For a business website, the missing handoff matters most. A chatbot that cannot pass a hard question to a human will frustrate visitors.
Chatbase Free Plan vs Paid Plans
Chatbase has four paid tiers above the free plan. Each one raises the credit limit and adds features. Prices below are the monthly rates. Annual billing is cheaper on every tier.
| Plan | Monthly price | Annual price | Credits per month | Training content | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 50 | 1 MB | 1 |
| Hobby | $40 | $32 | 700 | 10 MB | 2 |
| Standard | $150 | $120 | 4,000 | 20 MB | 3 |
| Pro | $500 | $400 | 15,000 | 40 MB | 5 |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom | Custom | Custom |
Hobby is the first usable tier for a real website. It adds 700 credits, advanced models, integrations, basic analytics, and five AI Actions per agent. Standard adds the helpdesk, voice, telephony, outbound campaigns, and API access. Pro adds advanced analytics and higher limits. Enterprise adds single sign-on, audit logs, white labelling, and HIPAA-eligible handling. Add-ons cost extra on any plan. Extra credits cost $40 per 1,000. An extra agent costs $25 per month. Removing Chatbase branding costs $99 per month.
Who Should Use the Free Plan
The free plan fits three kinds of user. First, anyone testing whether a chatbot suits their site. Build one agent, train it on a help page, and see how it answers. Second, a student or hobbyist building a demo. Third, a small business owner checking answer quality before spending $40 a month. The free plan does not fit a live support widget. Fifty credits can vanish in a single busy afternoon. A site with real traffic needs Hobby at minimum. Use this checklist before you decide.
- Do you expect more than 50 visitor questions a month? If yes, skip the free plan.
- Do you need the bot to take actions, not just answer? If yes, you need Hobby or higher.
- Will the bot sit idle for two weeks at a time? If yes, the deletion rule will hurt you.
- Do you need to see what visitors ask? If yes, you need paid analytics.
- Is your training content larger than 1 MB? If yes, the free plan cannot hold it.
If you answer no to all five, the free plan will serve you well. If you answer yes to even one, budget for Hobby.
Bottom Line
The Chatbase free plan is a genuine test drive. You get 50 message credits a month, one agent, and 1 MB of training data for $0. The limits are strict, and the 14-day deletion rule is the one to respect. Use it to test answer quality for a week or two. Then move to Hobby at $40 a month if the bot earns its place on your site. Check the live pricing page before you pay, since Chatbase updates its plans from time to time.