Free Chat APIs and In-App Chat SDKs
Which in-app chat APIs and SDKs a startup can add messaging to its product with for free today, how many users and connections the free plan allows, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, read from each provider's own page.
Free allowances read on each provider's own pages, all checked on or after . Chat APIs change their free plans from time to time: confirm the terms on the provider's page before you rely on it.
Chat APIs a startup can use for free today include Stream (Free for teams of 5 or fewer, under $100K raised), Tinode (Free, unlimited, open source), PubNub (Forever free, 200 MAU or 1M transactions), Matrix (Synapse) (Free: open source (AGPL), self-hosted), and Sendbird (Free Developer plan, log in yearly). Each of the 10 free plans below links to the provider's page that states it, with its main limit, its user and connection caps, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs.
Marketplaces, communities, telehealth and support apps all need people to message each other inside the product. Chat APIs and SDKs provide the messaging backend and UI kits, and most have a free plan for a small user base; open-source chat servers run free on your own servers.
The headline rarely tells you how far it goes. Free plans cap monthly active users or concurrent connections, keep messages for a few days, or are for development only, so going live needs a paid plan. Each API below shows what is free, its main limit, its user and connection caps, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, quoted from the provider's own page with the date we read it.
Which APIs we picked and the order they appear in are our editorial choices; the terms are the providers'. Some of these providers pay us a referral commission when someone signs up through our link: those links are labeled, and they play no part in which APIs are listed or where.
Chat APIs and SDKs with a free plan
Add 1:1 and group chat to your app with a hosted SDK, free to start.
- 1
Stream
Small teams: 5 or fewer people, under $100K raised
Stream's Maker Account is free for teams of five or fewer with under $10k a month in revenue and under $100k raised. Chat is capped at 2,000 monthly active users and 100 concurrent connections, with hard limits and no surprise bills.
- Users and connections
- 2,000 MAU, 100 concurrent connections (source: getstream.io)
- Payment card
- No credit card required (source: getstream.io)
- First paid plan
- Start: $399 a month billed annually (source: getstream.io)
- 2
PubNub
Prototypes and small apps up to 200 MAU
PubNub's Free plan is forever free with no credit card, for up to 200 MAU or 1M transactions. Its Starter plan is $98 a month for 1,000 MAU.
- Users and connections
- Up to 200 MAU (source: pubnub.com)
- Payment card
- No credit card required (source: pubnub.com)
- First paid plan
- Starter: $98 a month for 1,000 MAU (source: pubnub.com)
- 3
Sendbird
Trying chat in a prototype, up to 1,000 monthly users
Sendbird's Developer plan is free with no credit card. It allows up to 1,000 monthly active users with no overages, and stays active while you log in to the dashboard once a year.
- Users and connections
- Up to 1,000 MAU, 20 peak connections (source: sendbird.com)
- Payment card
- No credit card required (source: sendbird.com)
- 4
Tencent Cloud Chat
Small chat apps up to 1,000 monthly users
Tencent Cloud Chat's Free Plan Edition has no credit card requirement and a free MAU tier of 1,000 a month. Its Standard Edition is $399.00 a month.
- Users and connections
- Maximum users: unlimited (source: tencentcloud.com)
- First paid plan
- Standard Edition: $399 a month (source: tencentcloud.com)
Start free at Tencent CloudTerms read on tencentcloud.com on Tencent Cloud Chat: the free allowance and how to start - 5
Ably
Proofs of concept with up to 200 live connections
Ably's Free package gives 200 concurrent connections, 500 messages a second and 6M messages a month. Its Standard package is $29 a month plus usage.
- Users and connections
- 200 concurrent connections (source: ably.com)
- First paid plan
- Standard: $29 a month plus usage (source: ably.com)
- 6
CometChat
Building and testing chat, up to 100 users
CometChat's Build plan is free for up to 100 users, with no credit card required. To go live you must subscribe to a paid plan; Basic is $239 a month billed annually.
- Users and connections
- Up to 100 users (source: cometchat.com)
- Payment card
- No credit card required (source: cometchat.com)
- First paid plan
- Basic: $239 a month, billed annually (source: cometchat.com)
Start free at CometChatReferral linkTerms read on cometchat.com on CometChat: the free allowance and how to start CometChat for Startups: what startups get - 7
TalkJS
Building chat before you go live
TalkJS makes all features free to use in a forever free development mode. Going live means entering credit card information, and the first paid plan, Basic, is $279 a month.
- Payment card
- Card needed to go live (source: talkjs.com)
- First paid plan
- Basic: $279 a month (source: talkjs.com)
Open-source chat servers you can self-host
Run your own chat backend on your own servers, free.
- 1
Tinode
Developers wanting an open source chat server
Tinode describes itself as a free, unlimited and open source messaging platform. You can leverage Tinode's hosting or host it yourself.
- 2
Matrix (Synapse)
Self-hosting a Matrix chat server for a team
Element's Server Suite Community is open source under AGPL and free of charge for self-hosting, for 1-100 users. Its Synapse community edition is not for use in production environments, and the Pro edition is priced per seat per month.
- Users and connections
- 1-100 users (source: element.io)
- First paid plan
- Pro: priced per seat a month (source: element.io)
Start free at MatrixTerms read on element.io on Matrix (Synapse): the free allowance and how to start - 3
ejabberd
Operators running a large XMPP messaging server
The ejabberd Community edition is free self-hosted, forever. You run it yourself, and the community helps when you get stuck.
Developer startup programs
Programs from developer tool companies that give startups credits or discounts on paid plans.
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How this comparison is built
The list covers in-app chat APIs and SDKs a founder can use for free today without applying to a program. The order and the "best for" notes are our editorial reading of each API's terms. Every term comes from the API's own pricing or help page on the date shown, never from a third-party list; follow each link for the full conditions. A cap on monthly active users or concurrent connections, moderation or message history kept for paid plans, a free plan only for development can matter more than the headline, so the comparison quotes them wherever the provider states them. Some of these APIs pay StartupPerks a referral commission, and their links are labeled as referral links; that decides neither whether nor where a API appears, and no API pays for a placement on this page.
Read the full methodologyCommon questions
What is the best free chat API?
By the terms each provider states, Stream's Maker Account is free with 2,000 monthly active users for teams of 5 or fewer that raised under $100K, Sendbird's Developer plan covers up to 1,000 MAU, Tencent Cloud Chat's free edition 1,000 MAU and PubNub's 200 MAU.
Is CometChat free?
CometChat's free Build plan covers up to 100 users, but a paid plan is needed to go live; its Basic plan is $239 a month, billed annually.
Is Sendbird free?
Sendbird's Developer plan is free for up to 1,000 MAU and 20 peak connections, with no overages; its Starter plan is $349 a month, billed annually.
Is there a free open-source chat server?
Yes. Tinode is free and open source, ejabberd is free to self-host, and Matrix's Synapse server is open source under the AGPL.
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