Crisp vs Forethought — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Crisp starts at $48.6/mo. Forethought uses custom pricing — request a quote to compare.
See price history: Crisp · Forethought
How pricing works
These two tools don't price the same way, so the headline numbers below aren't directly comparable until you plug in your own volume.
- Crisp (Flat Rate) — Crisp bills on a fixed plan from $48.6/mo, so the listed price is what you pay regardless of volume.
- Forethought (Per Usage) — Forethought bills purely on usage. There is no fixed per-seat fee, so the monthly cost depends entirely on how much you consume.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
French all-in-one customer messaging platform (live chat + shared inbox + knowledge base). Positioned as the alternative to Intercom at roughly 1/10th the price. Distinctive for its "lifetime deal" mentality — flat pricing per workspace, not per contact or per seat, which lets fast-growing SMBs avoid the Intercom scaling trap. Priced $0-$95/mo per workspace. Popular with SMBs and European e-commerce.
AI customer support automation platform — Forethought SupportGPT combines automated ticket triage, sentiment analysis, and autonomous resolution. Enterprise-only, all pricing custom-quoted. Reported deals $50K-300K+/year depending on ticket volume. Customers include Upwork, Instacart, Grammarly.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Crisp monthly | Crisp annual | Forethought monthly | Forethought annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / starter | Free / — | Free | Free | — | — |
| Entry paid | Mini / — | $48.6 | $48.6 | — | — |
| Mid tier | Essentials / — | $102.6 | $102.6 | — | — |
| Pro / power | Plus / — | $318.6 | $318.6 | — | — |
| Enterprise | — / Enterprise | — | — | Custom | Custom |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
Crisp is worth it if… small businesses and startups (1-30 people) that want live chat + shared inbox + chatbot in one tool — particularly if you're EU-based and value the French-native UX polish. Free tier is usable; Mini covers solo/small; Essentials adds shared inbox and automations; Plus adds AI and MagicReply.
Forethought is worth it if… mid-market and enterprise support ops that want AI-driven ticket triage + autonomous resolution without going all-in on Ada or Decagon. Reported deals $50K-300K+/year.
Bottom line: Choose based on how you want to pay — Crisp is flat rate, Forethought is per usage.
Choose Crisp over Forethought if…
Choose Crisp if…
- You want fixed-price predictability (flat rate, from $48.6/mo).
- You match the profile Crisp is built for: small businesses and startups (1-30 people) that want live chat + shared inbox + chatbot in one tool — particularly if you're EU-based and value the French-native UX polish.
- You need a general-purpose customer support option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Forethought if…
- You want to pay only for actual usage (per usage, custom pricing).
- You match the profile Forethought is built for: mid-market and enterprise support ops that want AI-driven ticket triage + autonomous resolution without going all-in on Ada or Decagon.
- You need a general-purpose customer support option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Crisp | Forethought | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Entry price | $48.6/mo | Custom |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Flat Rate | Per Usage |
| Last verified | September 18, 2026 | — |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 18, 2026. Tracked daily.