How much an AI chat for an online store costs: what the price is made of and how to work out payback
The price of an AI chat for a store is made of several parts, and vendors name them differently. Let’s look at what the cost consists of, how to estimate the bundle you need and how to check whether a bot pays off in your case.
What the price is made of
A subscription with a conversation bundle. You pay a fixed amount a month that includes a certain number of conversations. This is the clearest option for a small store: the budget is known in advance.
Pay as you go. You pay for the actual use of the neural network (tokens). Convenient at large and uneven volumes, but the amount at the end of the month isn’t known beforehand.
A turnkey project. A developer sets the bot up for your catalog and processes. More expensive and slower, but suitable for a complex catalog and integrations with your systems.
Installation on your own server. The bot runs at your place and data doesn’t leave. You pay for implementation, not for every month of use.
BotNow plans
| Plan | Price | What is included |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0, 7 days | Studying the site and catalog, installation with one line of code, a limited number of conversations during the trial, no credit card |
| Base | $24 a month | 200 conversations, 1 operator (the owner), answers from the site and catalog, product cards, leads with contacts and the last messages |
| Pro | $59 a month | 500 conversations, up to 10 operators, an admin dashboard with all leads and conversations |
| Business | from $249, implementation | Installation on your server; scope and timeline discussed for your task |
The current terms are always on the Pricing page.
How to estimate the number of conversations
The formula is simple:
conversations per month = visitors per month × the share of those who write to the chat
Take visitors from your analytics. Estimate the share from your own data: how many people write you questions now through a form, a messenger and the phone. The most precise number comes from the free week on your site: take the conversations over seven days and multiply by four.
A made-up example for illustration: 6,000 visitors a month and 3% writing gives 180 conversations, which Base covers. Your numbers may differ, so use your own.
What one conversation costs
With the bundle fully used it comes to roughly $0.12 per conversation on both Base ($24 for 200 conversations) and Pro ($59 for 500 conversations). Pro costs more not because of the price per conversation but because of the bigger bundle and the admin dashboard with all leads.
How to work out payback
Compare the cost of a conversation with what a human answer costs you:
cost of a manager’s answer = minutes per routine question × cost of a minute of work
savings = conversations closed by the bot × cost of a manager’s answer − plan price
Calculate the cost of a minute from salary with taxes and working time. The share of conversations the bot closes is shown by a trial: look at how many times the shopper got an answer and didn’t leave a lead for a human. A made-up example: if a manager spends 5 minutes on a routine question and a minute costs $0.12, an answer costs $0.60 against $0.12 for the bot. Put in your own values.
Money isn’t everything: the bot answers in the evening, at night and on weekends, when the manager isn’t there. Those conversations aren’t in the salary savings, yet they are exactly where shoppers most often leave for competitors.
What the price doesn’t include
- Catalog preparation. If your store has no XML (YML) feed, it is worth making one; see custom sites.
- Checking answers before launch. Ask the bot 10-20 typical questions: how to organise the check.
- A person who handles leads. The bot closes the routine; complaints, refunds and order questions are for a manager.
How to start with a minimal budget
- Run the free 7 days on your site.
- Over the week, look at the number of conversations, the share the bot closed and the content of leads.
- Multiply the weekly number of conversations by four and choose a plan. If the bundle isn’t enough, move to Pro.
- After a month compare savings with spending using the formula above.
Business is for when the store’s data can’t leave your infrastructure or you need an integration with your systems. How BotNow handles data: Data and privacy.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an AI chat cost for a small online store?
In BotNow the first 7 days are free; after that the Base plan costs $24 a month and includes 200 conversations. For a store with more inquiries, or one that needs a dashboard with all leads and conversations, there is Pro at $59 a month with 500 conversations.
How do I know which plan I need?
Count how many visitors a month write you questions now (form, messenger, phone) and compare with the conversation bundle. The free week shows it most precisely: multiply the number of conversations in seven days by four.
What is more expensive: an AI assistant or a manager?
It depends on your numbers: a manager's salary, time per routine question and the share of questions the bot closes itself. The formula is in the article; put in your own values.
See also
- AI assistant, live chat or a contact form: what an online store should choose
- An AI chatbot for an online store: what it can do, where it goes wrong and how to judge its value
- How to test an AI chat before launch: 36 questions to three stores and what we learned
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