Sendbird
In-app chat, voice and video call APIs, now alongside an AI customer experience platform.
Updated · AppBreakup editorial · Web, iOS, Android
Is Sendbird free?
No, it's a paid product
- Starting price:
- $349/month billed annually
- Free trial:
- Yes, up to 1,000 MAU
Checked on Sendbird's site Nov 8, 2026
3 alternatives with a free option Full Sendbird pricing and plansSwitch from Sendbird to
All 5- Verified facts
- 4 of 4
- Alternatives ranked
- 5
- Approved reviews
- 0
- Visits sent from here
- 0
About Sendbird
Sendbird offers hosted APIs and SDKs for adding one-to-one and group chat, voice and video calls, and business messaging to mobile and web apps. Its chat product covers moderation tools, translation, message search, data export, webhooks and large supergroup channels, with a dashboard for moderators. The company has broadened into AI customer service with an agent product called Delight AI, but the communications API remains available for marketplaces, on-demand delivery, financial and health apps. Pricing is by monthly active users and peak concurrent connections: a free trial for experimenting, Starter and Pro plans with a monthly fee and overage charges, and custom enterprise plans with dedicated servers. There is no permanent free production tier, so small apps pay a meaningful monthly amount from launch.
Best for: Mid-size and enterprise apps that need mature in-app chat with moderation and support tooling.
Sendbird pricing (checked Nov 8, 2026)
Each line is quoted from Sendbird's own site, with the page it came from.
| Plan or term | What it says | Checked | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free trial | Yes, up to 1,000 MAU | Nov 8, 2026 | sendbird.com |
| Starting price | $349/month billed annually | Nov 8, 2026 | sendbird.com |
| Pro plan | $499/month billed annually | Nov 8, 2026 | sendbird.com |
Pros and cons
What works
- 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
Why people leave
- 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
Sendbird vs CometChat, Stream and Agora
From each app's listing and the prices verified on its own site. A dash means we haven't verified it yet.
| Attribute | Sendbird | CometChat | Stream | Agora |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid | Free plan + paid | Free plan + paid |
| Verified price | $349/month billed annually | $239/month billed annually | $399 a month billed annually, or $499 monthly (Chat Start) | $0.59 per 1,000 RTC minutes |
| Free plan | No | Development only, up to 100 users | Yes, Build plan with 10K MAU | Yes |
| Open source | No | No | No | No |
| Self-hostable | No | No | No | No |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android |
Top Sendbird alternatives
See all 5- 1
CometChat79.8Cheaper entry-level paid plans and a no-code widget for websites.
- 2
Stream68.8Comparable chat API with a free tier, plus activity feeds and broad UI kit coverage.
- 3
Agora52.6Usage-priced video, voice and chat with a large monthly free allowance.
- 4
LiveKit51.2Open-source and self-hostable option for real-time voice and video.
- 5
Twilio50.0Conversations API adds chat across in-app, SMS and WhatsApp, handy if you already use Twilio for messaging.
Why people left Sendbird
In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.
No switching stories yet. If you moved away from Sendbird, review the app you switched to and tell us why.
Reviews
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Sendbird: common questions
What is Sendbird?
Sendbird: In-app chat, voice and video call APIs, now alongside an AI customer experience platform. Best for mid-size and enterprise apps that need mature in-app chat with moderation and support tooling. Available for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Sendbird free?
No, Sendbird is a paid product. Starting price: $349/month billed annually (checked on Sendbird's own site).
How much does Sendbird cost?
Sendbird is a paid product. Free trial: Yes, up to 1,000 MAU; Starting price: $349/month billed annually; Pro plan: $499/month billed annually. Checked on Sendbird's own site, November 2026.
Does Sendbird have a free trial or refund?
Free trial: Yes, up to 1,000 MAU. Source: Sendbird's own site.
Is Sendbird open source?
No, Sendbird is not open source. Open-source alternatives include LiveKit.
What platforms does Sendbird run on?
Sendbird is available for Web, iOS and Android.
What are the best alternatives to Sendbird?
The highest-ranked Sendbird alternatives right now are CometChat, Stream and Agora. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.
Sendbird vs CometChat: what's the difference?
Both Sendbird and CometChat are paid products. Verified prices: Sendbird $349/month billed annually, CometChat $239/month billed annually. Both run on Web, iOS and Android.