Is there a free live chat plugin for WooCommerce?

Yes. tawk.to is free to use, and Tidio and Crisp offer free tiers, all with WordPress plugins that work on WooCommerce sites. Free tiers usually limit seats, history or automation. If you want automated answers from your catalogue rather than a human inbox, AutoTill also has a free-forever plan with a monthly allowance of agent replies.

Can live chat see what is in the customer's WooCommerce basket?

Some live chat providers offer WooCommerce integrations that show the shopper's basket, order history or current page to the person replying. Check each provider's documentation, as this is often limited to paid plans. AutoTill goes further by building the basket itself during the conversation, rather than only displaying it to your team.

What happens to live chat when nobody is online?

Most live chat plugins switch to an offline message form, which the shopper fills in and you answer later by email. Many shoppers will not wait. An AI agent answers immediately at any hour. AutoTill replies from your real catalogue and policies, and forwards genuine support questions to your support email.

Should I use live chat and an AI agent together?

Avoid running two separate chat widgets on one page, as it confuses shoppers and splits conversations. A better pattern is one tool with human takeover. In AutoTill you can watch conversations in real time and take over when a shopper is online and needs a person, so automation and human help share one window.

Does WooCommerce have built-in live chat?

No. WooCommerce does not include a live chat feature in its core plugin. You add chat with a separate WordPress plugin from a live chat provider, or with an AI agent plugin such as AutoTill. Each installs from Plugins → Add New and places a launcher on your shop pages.

How quickly should live chat reply to shoppers?

Aim to reply within a minute or two while the shopper is still on the page, since a live chat that answers after ten minutes behaves like email. If you cannot staff that consistently, consider automation for the common buying questions and keep human replies for the conversations that genuinely need you.

Can live chat increase WooCommerce sales?

It can, when fast human answers remove a doubt that would otherwise stop the purchase. The effect depends on reply speed and staff knowledge rather than the plugin itself. Be wary of vendor-quoted uplift figures without a named, dated source. The most reliable test is your own before-and-after comparison over a few weeks.

Is live chat GDPR compliant on a UK WooCommerce shop?

Compliance depends on the provider and your configuration: where chat data is stored, how long it is kept and what your privacy policy says. Review each provider's data processing terms, mention chat in your privacy notice, and avoid collecting more personal data in chat than you need.

Will a live chat plugin affect page speed?

Most hosted chat widgets load asynchronously, so the impact on first paint should be small, but they do add script weight. Measure with your usual speed tool before and after installing, and remove any chat plugin you no longer use so old scripts do not linger.

Can live chat and AutoTill share one window?

Yes, in the sense that AutoTill includes human takeover. The agent handles buying questions automatically, and you can watch conversations live and reply yourself when a shopper is online and needs a person. That gives shoppers one chat window instead of two competing widgets.

Best Live Chat Plugin for WooCommerce

The best live chat plugin for WooCommerce is the one a shop can staff. Hosted services such as Tidio, LiveChat, tawk.to and Crisp publish WordPress plugins that connect a widget to a human inbox and mobile app. They suit shops with someone online, low chat volume or products that genuinely need a personal conversation.

Live chat falls short out of hours and on repetitive buying questions, where it becomes an offline form or a person copying answers the shop already holds. AutoTill fills that gap as an AI agent: it answers from the synced WooCommerce catalogue and real delivery and returns policies, builds the basket, hands off to the shop's own checkout, and lets the owner take over a conversation live.

This guide compares staffing models in a table, explains when live chat alone is the right choice, covers costs and setup honestly, and lists who should stay with live chat.

AutoTill — the AI sales agent that completes purchases and enquiries in one conversation.