Question
Intercom
Stand Chat
Product scope
IntercomCustomer-service platform with Messenger, shared Inbox, tickets, public Help Center, reports, automation, and Fin for Service or Sales.
Stand ChatHuman-first website chat. An eligible Available rep receives a new chat first; a named AI Stand-in with a visible AI badge can cover when no eligible rep can answer and Stand-in coverage is active.
Recurring autonomous AI entry
IntercomEssential is $39 per full seat monthly or $29 annual equivalent, plus Fin usage. There is a 14-day trial but no permanent public free plan.
Stand ChatBase is $0 with no card and includes 15 new visitor conversations per week. AI Stand-ins and human takeover are included on every plan.
AI billing unit
IntercomFin charges $0.99 for a support resolution, configured Procedure handoff, or sales disqualification, and $9.99 for a sales qualification. At most one outcome is charged per conversation.
Stand ChatOne newly created visitor session counts as one chat. Page views, widget loads, visitors who do not start a chat, message count, message length, language changes, and human takeover do not multiply usage.
Human live-chat baseline
IntercomCore plans include unlimited live chat, support email, and in-app chat. Full seats are billed; Advanced includes 20 Lite seats and Expert 50.
Stand ChatUnlimited reps and unlimited sites on every plan, with no per-seat or per-site charge. Each rep chooses a concurrent human-chat limit from 1 to 20.
AI-to-human path
IntercomFin can escalate into the same Inbox. A normal explicit request for a human is not billed, while a configured Procedure handoff can be a billable outcome.
Stand ChatReps can watch the same transcript and use Take over now, Offer to join, or type a reply. Offer to join waits for visitor consent; signals do not route or hand off automatically.
Proactive engagement
IntercomCore plans include outbound chats, banners, and tooltips. Proactive Support Plus is $99/month, includes 500 Messages Sent, and adds Product Tours, Surveys, Posts, Checklists, and Series.
Stand ChatSite and path rules can reveal chat on load, after a delay, at a scroll point, or manually from page-native buttons and cards. Rules also control greeting, desktop auto-open, and display mode.
Contact capture and booking
IntercomIntercom creates leads and stores attributes. Fin for Sales can qualify and offer availability through connected calendar apps.
Stand ChatStand-ins can store visitor-authored name, email, and phone. A follow-up request is submitted only after the visitor agrees and supplies a name plus an email address or phone number. There is no native meeting scheduler.
Knowledge sources
IntercomEssential includes a public Help Center; Advanced adds private and multilingual Help Centers.
Stand ChatBase includes one website knowledge base with up to 10 indexed pages. Pro adds document and sitemap sources, up to five knowledge bases, 50 MB, and 200 indexed web pages.
Workspace and support scope
IntercomShared Inbox, ticketing, public Help Center, and prebuilt reports on Essential. Multiple team inboxes, workflows, round robin, and ticket portal begin on Advanced.
Stand ChatLive chat dashboard, Stand-in monitoring, contact details, conversation labels, and site controls. Stand is not a full ticketing system or a visitor-channel omnichannel inbox.
History and reporting
IntercomPrebuilt reports begin on Essential, custom reports on Advanced, and a real-time dashboard and workload management on Expert.
Stand ChatEvery plan includes 90-day searchable History, JSON export, email digests, usage views, and evidence-linked Product Discovery findings. Pro adds selectable longer retention, custom signals, and AI digest analysis.
Next material feature gate
IntercomAdvanced is $99 monthly or $85 annual equivalent per full seat and adds Workflows, multiple inboxes, round robin, private/multilingual Help Center, ticket portal, custom reports, and branding removal.
Stand ChatPro is $10/month for 150 chats and adds owner-prepaid reserve chats at $0.10 each, document and sitemap knowledge, three custom signals per Stand-in, longer retention, AI digests, and branding removal.