AppBreakup
Submit an app

Stream alternatives: 8 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Nov 8, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rankAll in-app chat and video APIs

Top picks

  • CometChat logo

    Best overall

    CometChat

    Starting price: $239/month billed annually

  • Firebase logo

    Best free option

    Firebase

    Free plan + paid

  • LiveKit logo

    Best open source

    LiveKit

    Free plan: $0/month Build plan

Common reasons people leave Stream: paid chat plans start in the hundreds of dollars per month, and separate overage meters for users, connections, API calls and storage. We ranked 8 alternatives by how directly each one replaces Stream, then by reviews, real visits and how recently each app's facts were checked against its own website. CometChat currently ranks first.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingVerified priceOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1CometChat logoCometChatPaid$239/month billed annuallyNoWeb, iOS, Android5 of 579.8
2Sendbird logoSendbirdPaid$349/month billed annuallyNoWeb, iOS, Android4 of 468.8
3Firebase logoFirebaseFree plan + paid—NoWeb, iOS, Android8 of 858.5
4Twilio logoTwilioPaidFrom $0.0083 per messageNoWeb7 of 752.6
5Agora logoAgoraFree plan + paid$0.59 per 1,000 RTC minutesNoWeb, Windows, macOS +26 of 652.6
6Ably logoAblyFree plan + paid$29 a month for 1K MAUs, billed annually (Pro)NoWeb5 of 551.2
7LiveKit logoLiveKitOpen sourceFrom $50/monthYesWeb, iOS, Android +14 of 451.2
8100ms logo100msFree plan + paid$0.004 per participant minuteNoWeb, iOS, Android4 of 450.0
  1. CometChat logo

    1. CometChatTop pick

    Best for: Teams that want in-app chat and calling with prebuilt UI or a no-code website widget

    PaidWeb, iOS, Android

    79.8

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Lower starting price for paid chat plans, plus a no-code widget option.

    Pros

    • No-code widget option alongside full SDKs and UI kits
    • Lower entry price than several chat API rivals
    • Compliance coverage including HIPAA, SOC 2 and ISO 27001

    Cons

    • Free Build plan is for development only, capped at 100 users
    • MAU and concurrent connection overages on Basic and Advanced plans
    • Email and SMS notification fallbacks need the Advanced plan
    Visit CometChat Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.387
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.15100
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is CometChat a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    Free plan
    Development only, up to 100 users
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cometchat.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Starting price
    $239/month billed annually
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cometchat.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Platforms
    React, iOS, Android, Flutter and more
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cometchat.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Compliance
    GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2, ISO 27001
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cometchat.com(opens source in a new tab)
    MAU overage
    $0.10 per MAU
    Checked Nov 8, 2026cometchat.com(opens source in a new tab)
  2. Sendbird logo

    2. Sendbird

    Best for: Mid-size and enterprise apps that need mature in-app chat with moderation and support tooling

    PaidWeb, iOS, Android

    68.8

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Long-established chat API with business messaging and support-desk add-ons.

    Pros

    • Mature chat feature set including moderation dashboard and translation
    • Voice and video calling and business messaging from the same vendor
    • Dedicated server option on enterprise plans

    Cons

    • No free production tier; paid plans start in the hundreds per month
    • Translation and image moderation require the Pro plan
    • Company focus has shifted toward AI customer service products
    Visit Sendbird Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.3100
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Sendbird a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Free trial
    Yes, up to 1,000 MAU
    Checked Nov 8, 2026sendbird.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Starting price
    $349/month billed annually
    Checked Nov 8, 2026sendbird.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Pro plan
    $499/month billed annually
    Checked Nov 8, 2026sendbird.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Voice and video
    Yes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026sendbird.com(opens source in a new tab)
  3. Firebase logo

    3. Firebase

    Best for: Mobile and web teams who want realtime sync, auth and push messaging from one vendor

    Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android

    58.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Many teams build their own chat on Firestore's realtime listeners instead of paying per monthly active user for a chat API.

    Pros

    • Mature SDKs for Android, iOS, Flutter and web
    • Realtime sync and offline support built into the client libraries
    • Wide set of mobile services such as crash reporting and push messaging

    Cons

    • Ties your app closely to Google Cloud
    • NoSQL query limits often force data duplication
    • Pay-as-you-go bills can spike with heavy reads
    Visit Firebase Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.334
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.1563
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Firebase a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    8 of 8 verified
    Free plan
    Yes, Spark plan
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Paid plan
    Blaze, pay as you go
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Database
    Firestore, a NoSQL document database
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    SQL option
    PostgreSQL via Firebase SQL Connect
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Blaze plan
    Pay as you go, with Spark free usage included
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Cloud Functions
    Free up to 2M invocations/month, then $0.40 per million
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Cloud Storage
    Free up to 5 GB, then $0.026 per GB
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free credit
    $300 for eligible Blaze users
    Checked Nov 8, 2026firebase.google.com(opens source in a new tab)
  4. Twilio logo

    4. Twilio

    Best for: Developers adding SMS, calls, WhatsApp or 2FA codes to an app who want the widest set of features

    PaidWeb

    52.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Its Conversations API covers in-app chat plus SMS and WhatsApp in one thread, handy if you already send texts through Twilio.

    Pros

    • Covers SMS, voice, WhatsApp, RCS, verification and email in one account
    • Pay as you go with no contract
    • Free trial with no credit card
    • Mature docs and SDKs for most languages

    Cons

    • Per-message rates are higher than some carrier-owned rivals
    • Carrier fees and US 10DLC registration add cost and setup work
    • The product range is large and can be hard to navigate
    Visit Twilio Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.346
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Twilio a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    7 of 7 verified
    Pricing
    Pay as you go
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free trial
    Yes, no credit card required
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
    SMS price
    From $0.0083 per message
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
    WhatsApp
    From $0.005 per message
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
    WhatsApp price
    From $0.005 per message
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Voice price
    From $0.014/min to make a call, $0.0085/min to receive
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Email price
    From $0.0013 per email
    Checked Nov 8, 2026twilio.com(opens source in a new tab)
  5. Agora logo

    5. Agora

    Best for: Consumer apps that need voice, video or live streaming at very large scale across regions

    Free plan + paidWeb, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android

    52.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Stronger choice if real-time video, voice and live streaming are the main need.

    Pros

    • Large free monthly allowance of RTC minutes
    • Proven at very high concurrency
    • Separate products for signaling, chat and voice AI

    Cons

    • Proprietary network with no self-hosted option
    • Many products and SKUs make costs hard to estimate
    • Larger deals require talking to sales
    Visit Agora Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.346
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Agora a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    6 of 6 verified
    Free allowance
    10,000 RTC minutes a month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026agora.io(opens source in a new tab)
    RTC price
    From $0.59 per 1,000 minutes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026agora.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Conversational AI
    From $0.10 per minute, first 300 minutes free
    Checked Nov 8, 2026agora.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Latency
    Under 200 ms globally
    Checked Nov 8, 2026agora.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Starting price
    $0.59 per 1,000 RTC minutes
    Checked Nov 8, 2026agora.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Chat
    From $0.05 per monthly active user
    Checked Nov 8, 2026agora.io(opens source in a new tab)
  6. Ably logo

    6. Ably

    Best for: Teams building chat, live collaboration or streaming features where delivery guarantees matter

    Free plan + paidWeb

    51.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Realtime messaging infrastructure with a dedicated chat SDK, for teams that want more control than prebuilt UI kits give.

    Pros

    • Guaranteed ordering and message history
    • Generous free package with 6M messages a month
    • Dedicated chat and database-sync products

    Cons

    • Usage-based billing is harder to predict than flat tiers
    • Uptime SLAs are limited to higher plans
    • Cloud only
    Visit Ably Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.341
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is Ably a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    Free plan
    Yes, up to 500 MAUs
    Checked Nov 8, 2026ably.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Starting price
    $29 a month for 1K MAUs, billed annually (Pro)
    Checked Nov 8, 2026ably.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Enterprise SLA
    99.999% uptime
    Checked Nov 1, 2026ably.com(opens source in a new tab)
    JavaScript SDK license
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Nov 1, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Business plan
    From $349 a month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026ably.com(opens source in a new tab)
  7. LiveKit logo

    7. LiveKit

    Best for: Teams building voice AI agents or video apps who want an open-source stack with an optional managed cloud

    Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, iOS, Android, Self-hosted

    51.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    Open-source WebRTC stack you can self-host for video and voice features.

    Pros

    • Apache-2.0 server you can self-host
    • Agents framework with turn detection and telephony
    • SDKs for most web, mobile and game platforms
    • Free cloud tier with no credit card

    Cons

    • Product focus has moved strongly towards voice AI agents
    • Self-hosting at scale means running your own WebRTC infrastructure
    • Cloud costs stack several per-minute charges per session
    Visit LiveKit Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.341
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is LiveKit a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Nov 8, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Free plan
    $0/month Build plan
    Checked Nov 8, 2026livekit.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Paid plans
    From $50/month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026livekit.io(opens source in a new tab)
    Cloud regions
    19+
    Checked Nov 8, 2026livekit.io(opens source in a new tab)
  8. 100ms logo

    8. 100ms

    Best for: Product teams adding branded video calls or live classes to an app without running media servers

    Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android

    50.0

    score / 100

    Why switch from Stream

    A fit if live video and audio rooms are the main need rather than chat, with prebuilt UI and recording.

    Pros

    • Generous free monthly minutes for conferencing and streaming
    • Prebuilt UI speeds up a first integration
    • Recording, RTMP out and transcription in the same platform
    • Cheaper rates for audio-only sessions

    Cons

    • HIPAA compliance costs extra on the self-serve tier
    • Paid SLA support packages start at a high monthly minimum
    • Cloud-only: no self-hosted media server option
    Visit 100ms Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.338
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.15100
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is 100ms a good Stream alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    Free plan
    10,000 conferencing minutes/month
    Checked Nov 8, 2026100ms.live(opens source in a new tab)
    Conferencing price
    $0.004 per participant minute
    Checked Nov 8, 2026100ms.live(opens source in a new tab)
    Audio-only discount
    75% off
    Checked Nov 8, 2026100ms.live(opens source in a new tab)
    HIPAA BAA
    $500/month add-on on self-serve
    Checked Nov 8, 2026100ms.live(opens source in a new tab)

The best Stream alternative for…

The highest-ranked app in this list for each need.

CometChat logo

Best Stream alternative for most people

CometChat

Lower starting price for paid chat plans, plus a no-code widget option.

LiveKit logo

Best Stream alternative for a free option

LiveKit

Open-source WebRTC stack you can self-host for video and voice features.

Firebase logo

Best Stream alternative for a free plan you can upgrade

Firebase

Many teams build their own chat on Firestore's realtime listeners instead of paying per monthly active user for a chat API.

LiveKit logo

Best Stream alternative for open source

LiveKit

Open-source WebRTC stack you can self-host for video and voice features.

LiveKit logo

Best Stream alternative for self-hosting

LiveKit

Open-source WebRTC stack you can self-host for video and voice features.

Agora logo

Best Stream alternative for Mac

Agora

Stronger choice if real-time video, voice and live streaming are the main need.

Agora logo

Best Stream alternative for Windows

Agora

Stronger choice if real-time video, voice and live streaming are the main need.

Sendbird logo

Best Stream alternative for iPhone and Android

Sendbird

Long-established chat API with business messaging and support-desk add-ons.

Twilio logo

Best Stream alternative for working in the browser

Twilio

Its Conversations API covers in-app chat plus SMS and WhatsApp in one thread, handy if you already send texts through Twilio.

Stream alternatives: common questions

What is the best alternative to Stream?

CometChat ranks first right now. Lower starting price for paid chat plans, plus a no-code widget option. Sendbird and Firebase follow it in our ranking.

Stream vs CometChat: what's the difference?

Stream is free with paid plans; CometChat is a paid product. Verified prices: Stream $399 a month billed annually, or $499 monthly (Chat Start), CometChat $239/month billed annually. Both run on Web, iOS and Android.

Is Stream free?

Stream is free with paid plans. Free plan: Yes, Build plan with 10K MAU; Starting price: $399 a month billed annually, or $499 monthly (Chat Start); MAU overage: $0.09 per user; Elevate plan: $599 a month billed annually, or $675 monthly. Checked on Stream's own site, November 2026.

How much do Stream alternatives cost?

Verified prices for the top-ranked Stream alternatives: CometChat, $239/month billed annually; Sendbird, $349/month billed annually; Twilio, From $0.0083 per message; Agora, $0.59 per 1,000 RTC minutes; Ably, $29 a month for 1K MAUs, billed annually (Pro). Each price was checked on the app's own site; see each card below for the date and source.

Is there a free alternative to Stream?

Yes. Firebase (free plan + paid), Agora (free plan + paid), Ably (free plan + paid) and LiveKit (open source) have a free option. Check each app's verified facts for current plan limits.

Is there an open-source alternative to Stream?

Yes: LiveKit. LiveKit can also be self-hosted.

Why do people switch from Stream?

The complaints we hear most: paid chat plans start in the hundreds of dollars per month; separate overage meters for users, connections, API calls and storage; not self-hostable.

How is this list ranked?

Every app is scored with the same published formula: how directly it replaces Stream, reviews (weighted by verification), visits from AppBreakup, how recently its facts were checked against its own website, and reader votes.