Chatbase and AskVault are both RAG chatbot builders that train on your website and documents. The practical difference is what each one meters. Chatbase includes exactly one agent on every tier — extra agents are $300 per agent per year — and removing its branding is a paid add-on. AskVault starts at $39/mo, meters indexed content in megabytes, includes multiple workspaces from its entry tier, and includes branding removal from Growth at $99/mo. Chatbase is the stronger choice if you want one polished agent and a large, mature integration catalogue. AskVault is the stronger choice if you need several agents, a bigger message allowance per dollar, or native WhatsApp, Telegram and Slack (from Growth, $99/mo) rather than integrations through a third-party layer.
AskVault compared with Chatbase
All prices are month-to-month. Several vendors default their pricing page to annual billing, which shows a lower headline figure; where a vendor offers an annual discount it is noted in the cell.
Prices are listed in US dollars. Payments are handled by Dodo Payments, our merchant of record, which handles global tax and compliance. Prices exclude tax: any sales tax, VAT or GST that applies where you are is shown at checkout.
Feature
Chatbase
AskVault
Entry paid plan
$40/mo — Hobby 20% off on annual billing. Checked 2026-10-21 — source
$39/mo — Starter Verified against the live payment account, not read from config — the configured amount is flag-dependent. Checked 2026-09-01 — source
2,000 messages/mo Premium models spend more credits per answer on both products, so compare on your own model mix. Checked 2026-09-02 — source
Agents / workspaces included
1 on every tier — extra agents $300 per agent per year Checked 2026-10-21 — source
2 on Starter, 5 on Growth, 15 on Business Checked 2026-09-02 — source
Removing vendor branding
Paid add-on Sold separately from the plan. Checked 2026-10-21 — source
Included from Growth ($99/mo) Verified against the live payment account, not read from config — the configured amount is flag-dependent. Checked 2026-09-01 — source
$99/mo — 6,000 messages, 40 MB, 4 seats Verified against the live payment account, not read from config — the configured amount is flag-dependent. Checked 2026-09-01 — source
$249/mo — 15,000 messages, 100 MB, 10 seats Verified against the live payment account, not read from config — the configured amount is flag-dependent. Checked 2026-09-01 — source
2 figure(s) are withheld from this table because they could not be re-verified within the freshness window. We would rather show you less than show you something out of date.
Where AskVault is the better choice
A larger message allowance at the entry tier — 2,000 messages against 700 message credits. On headline price the two are close: $39/mo against $40.
Multiple workspaces from the entry tier. Anyone running more than one brand or client hits the $300-a-year per-agent add-on on Chatbase immediately.
Branding removal is included from Growth rather than sold as a paid add-on.
Native WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord and SMS from Growth, configured in the dashboard rather than assembled through a third-party automation layer.
Answers show the pages or documents they were drawn from, and answers that look unsupported or low-confidence are flagged into a review queue for your team.
Where Chatbase is the better choice
A far larger install base and a longer public track record. AskVault has no reference customers yet, and if vendor maturity is part of your risk assessment that is a legitimate reason to choose Chatbase today.
A broader third-party integration catalogue built over several years — Zendesk, Salesforce, HubSpot, Gorgias, Freshdesk, Zoho Desk, Shopify, Messenger and Instagram among them.
If you genuinely need one agent on one website, their packaging is simpler and every multi-workspace advantage on this page is worth nothing to you.
Auto-recharge at $40 per 1,000 credits means a busy month degrades into a bill rather than a stop. If uninterrupted service matters more than a predictable bill, that is the behaviour you want.
Frequently asked questions
Is AskVault a drop-in replacement for Chatbase?
For the core use case — a RAG agent trained on your site and documents, embedded as a web widget — yes. Re-crawl your site in AskVault and swap the embed snippet. What does not transfer is your Chatbase conversation history and anything you built against their API.
How do Chatbase message credits compare to AskVault messages?
Both meter answers rather than raw requests, and on both products a premium model costs more per answer than a base model. The headline numbers (700 on Chatbase Hobby, 2,000 on AskVault Starter) are comparable at base-model rates, but check both against your own expected model mix before deciding.
Do I need a credit card to try AskVault?
No. The Free plan covers 50 messages a month and 5 MB of content on the web widget with no card, and has no time limit. A Free workspace with no conversations for 21 days is paused (automatic re-crawls stop) and you are notified; once it has had no conversations for at least 30 days it can be removed.
Can I use my own OpenAI or Anthropic key?
No. AskVault manages the model providers, and the price includes model cost.
How current are the Chatbase figures on this page?
Every figure shows the date it was last read from Chatbase’s own pricing page and links to it. Pricing changes; check the source before deciding, and email us if you find a figure out of date.