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ManyChat is a chat automation platform for Instagram, TikTok, Messenger, WhatsApp and more, priced by how many people you message each month.
Free plan · No card needed
WaveloopvsManyChatMASide by side
| Feature | Waveloop | ManyChat |
|---|---|---|
| Comment, story and DM keyword automations | Yes, on every plan | Yes, on every plan |
| Channels | Instagram only | Instagram, TikTok, Messenger and Telegram. WhatsApp, SMS and email from Pro |
| What the price counts | New contacts from comment automations. Unlimited on Creator | Active contacts: each person you message in a month |
| Free plan | 3 automations, 50 new contacts a month, unlimited DMs, no card | 25 active contacts a month, 4 live automations, no card |
| Starting paid price | $15/month or $150/year (Creator), unlimited contacts | $17/month or $168/year (Essential), 250 active contacts, then $0.10 each on monthly billing |
| Follow to unlock and email collection | Creator plan and up | Essential plan and up |
| AI and your DMs | AI agent drafts replies for you to review (Business plan) | Manychat AI replies to DMs and comments on its own (Pro and up) |
| Works with Claude and ChatGPT | Yes. Create automations by chatting, on every plan | Not listed as a connector. Claude and ChatGPT can run as AI steps inside flows, with your own API key |
| Meta status | Official Meta Business Partner and Official Meta Tech Provider | Official Meta Business Partner |
Choose Waveloop if
Choose ManyChat if
Pricing
ManyChat
Free covers 25 active contacts a month. Essential is $17 a month, or $14 a month billed yearly ($168), for 250 active contacts, then $0.10 for each extra contact on monthly billing. Pro is $39 a month, or $29 a month billed yearly, for 2,500 active contacts, and Business and Advanced sit above it. Prices exclude tax and depend on your billing country.
Waveloop
Flat prices. No charge per contact. Hobby is free with no card. Creator is $15 a month, or ₹1,499 plus GST in India, with unlimited contacts.
ManyChat and Waveloop both send a DM when someone comments your keyword on a post or reel. Both answer story replies and DM keywords. Both can ask people to follow you first and collect an email inside the DM. Both run on Instagram's official API, and both are Official Meta Business Partners. Waveloop is also an Official Meta Tech Provider.
The difference is scope. ManyChat is a chat platform for many channels. Free and Essential connect two of Instagram, TikTok, Messenger and Telegram. Pro connects three and adds WhatsApp, SMS and email to the list. Waveloop is built only for Instagram. You pick a post, a story or a keyword, write the DM and switch it on.
ManyChat is the better pick if you also sell on WhatsApp or TikTok. Its flow builder handles branching conversations, tags, Google Sheets sync and a shared inbox for a team. It can send a welcome DM when someone follows you. From Pro, Manychat AI can answer DMs and comments on its own.
Waveloop's AI works differently. On the Business plan, an AI agent drafts replies from your own knowledge for you to review in the dashboard. It does not answer DMs on its own yet.
ManyChat charges by active contacts. Each person you message in a month counts once, on every channel. Free covers 25 of them. Essential costs $17 a month, or $14 a month billed yearly, for 250. Past that, each extra contact costs $0.10 on monthly billing. At 1,000 people a month, Essential comes to $92 before tax, so Pro, at $39 a month for 2,500, fits better at that size.
Waveloop counts differently. A contact is someone who triggers a comment automation. Hobby is free with no card: 3 automations, 50 new contacts a month and unlimited DMs. Creator costs $15 a month or $150 a year, with unlimited contacts and unlimited automations. In India it is ₹1,499 a month plus GST. Creator adds follow to unlock, email collection, card replies and automations on any post or your next post. Each Instagram account you connect has its own plan. See every plan on the pricing page.
Pick ManyChat if you need several channels, AI that answers on its own, or detailed flows. Pick Waveloop if Instagram is where your audience talks to you and you want a flat price as it grows. You can also connect Waveloop to Claude or ChatGPT and build automations by chatting. Start with comment to DM and add more when you need it.
Switching
You need a Business or Creator account, and switching is free.
To add several at once, import them from a CSV file.
FAQ
Yes, if Instagram is your only channel. Waveloop answers comments, story replies and DM keywords on every plan, and Creator adds follow to unlock, email collection and card replies for $15 a month with no contact limit.
For a growing Instagram account, usually yes. Waveloop Creator is $15 a month with unlimited contacts, while ManyChat Essential is $17 a month for 250 active contacts plus $0.10 for each extra one on monthly billing. At 1,000 people a month, that comes to $92 before tax.
There is no direct import from ManyChat. You recreate each comment to DM automation in a few steps, or import several at once from a CSV file, within your plan's automation limit. Waveloop has no flow builder, so branching flows do not carry over.
Yes, on different posts. If both tools run on the same post, one comment can trigger two DMs, so turn ManyChat off on any post you move to Waveloop.
Not in the same way. On the Business plan, Waveloop's AI agent drafts replies from your own knowledge for you to review in the dashboard. It does not answer DMs on its own yet.
No. Hobby is free with no card. Paid plans start with a 7-day free trial, which takes a card and charges nothing until day 7.
Last updated , the day we checked ManyChat’s public website. Plans and features change, so check their site for the latest.
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