Which one is better? BotStar vs ManyChat
By Joren Wouters • Updated on
BotStar and ManyChat are both chatbot builders that you can use to build chatbots on websites and Facebook Messenger.
Also, they both don’t require any coding skills to get started with chatbots.
But which platform should you use? What are the differences? And which one is better?
Let’s find out!
Comparison criteria
1. Interface
BotStar
With BotStar, you can build your chatbots with a visual flow builder:
Moreover, you can preview the flow of your chatbot when you click on the play button (in the top right corner, next to “Publish”), so you can immediately test the changes you made to your chatbot.
Overall, a really good interface which is easy to use, it is easy to set up a chatbot and you can test the chatbot in the interface itself.
- Visual Flow Builder
Create chatbot dialogs with a visual flow builder. - Test chatbotIs it possible to test the chatbot before putting your new flows or changes live?
- Interface easy to use?Is the chatbot platform easy-to-use?
- Easy to setup a chatbot?Is it easy to set up your chatbot with this chatbot platform?
ManyChat
When you log in at Manychat, you will see a dashboard with on the left side a menu with different options and on the right side the content of each section. It is a really straightforward dashboard and easy to understand:
When creating your chatbot, ManyChat has the best visual flow builder I have ever seen in a chatbot platform. The reason for this is that the interface looks really clean and it is really easy to use (even if you never created a chatbot before).
Inside the flow builder, each flow starts with a trigger (an event that activates the flow), and from there you can connect blocks to each other by simply dragging and dropping:
A block can be a message, an action, a condition or any other chatbot element that Manychat provides.
Moreover, you can test your chatbot flows directly inside the Manychat interface or on the channel that you are building the flow for (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc):
Furthermore, your chatbot flows can be divided over folders, which allows you to keep a good overview of all the chatbot flows in your Manychat account.
- Visual Flow BuilderCreate chatbot dialogs with a visual flow builder.
- Test chatbotIs it possible to test the chatbot before putting your new flows or changes live?
- Interface easy to use?Is the chatbot platform easy-to-use?
- Easy to setup a chatbot?Is it easy to set up your chatbot with this chatbot platform?
The winner: ManyChat
We start off with a win for ManyChat.
I think the ManyChat interface is better for two reasons:
- It has a better structure. With BotStar, you have all your chatbot flows in one huge flow builder. In ManyChat this is separate per flow.
- Manychat’s flow builder is easier to use
So, a win for ManyChat!
2. Chatbot Elements
BotStar
BotStar has all the elements you need. They only don’t have Delays, vertical lists and location sharing, but these are no big problems.
Next to these elements, you can also add custom code to your chatbot flow (for the developers among us).
- DelaysUse delays between messages in your chatbot
- ImagesCan you send images via your chatbot?
- VideoCan you send video via your chatbot?
- AudioCan you send audio via your chatbot?
- AttachmentsCan you send attachments via your chatbot?
- Gallery (Horizontal list)Show a gallery of cards inside your chatbot. A card consists of an image, title, subtitle and button.
- Vertical listShow a vertical list of items inside your chatbot
- EmojisCan you use emojis inside your chatbot?
- Persistent MenuCan you add a persistent menu to your chatbot?
- Quick RepliesCan you add quick replies to your chatbot where users can click on?
- ButtonsCan you add buttons to your chatbot where users can click on?
- Free text inputCan chatbot users freely type text to your chatbot whenever they want to?
- Location sharingCan users share their location inside the chatbot?
- Email validationWhen a chatbot user gives their email, can the platform validate it’s a correct email address?
- Phone number validationWhen a chatbot user gives their phone number, can the platform validate it’s a correct phone number?
- Date validationWhen a chatbot user gives a date, can the platform validate it’s a correct date?
ManyChat
Just as BotStar, ManyChat provides a lot of chatbot elements.
The only thing they don’t provide is Vertical Lists, but that’s no deal-breaker.
- DelaysUse delays between messages in your chatbot
- ImagesCan you send images via your chatbot?
- VideoCan you send video via your chatbot?
- AudioCan you send audio via your chatbot?
- AttachmentsCan you send attachments via your chatbot?
- Gallery (Horizontal list)Show a gallery of cards inside your chatbot. A card consists of an image, title, subtitle and button.
- Vertical listShow a vertical list of items inside your chatbot
- EmojisCan you use emojis inside your chatbot?
- Persistent MenuCan you add a persistent menu to your chatbot?
- Quick RepliesCan you add quick replies to your chatbot where users can click on?
- ButtonsCan you add buttons to your chatbot where users can click on?
- Free text inputCan chatbot users freely type text to your chatbot whenever they want to?
- Location sharingCan users share their location inside the chatbot?
- Email validationWhen a chatbot user gives their email, can the platform validate it’s a correct email address?
- Phone number validationWhen a chatbot user gives their phone number, can the platform validate it’s a correct phone number?
- Date validationWhen a chatbot user gives a date, can the platform validate it’s a correct date?
No winner
There is no winner in this category. Both chatbot platforms provide enough chatbot elements to build good chatbots.
Let’s move on to the next category!
3. Users
BotStar
With BotStar you can add custom fields to specific users of your chatbot. It is as simple as asking a question and storing the answer to that question in a custom field.
Also, you can add tags to users based on the actions they have with the chatbot.
With these custom fields and tags, you can filter on almost every element you make in your chatbot, which is really useful if you want to build personalized experiences.
Store information from your chatbot users inside fields. For example, you can ask for someone’s email and store it inside the “email” custom field.Add tags to users in your chatbot flows to organize and categorize contacts.Can you create user segments based on custom fields and tags?
ManyChat
Within Manychat, you can add custom fields and tags to users. You can simply ask questions and save the answer of the user to a custom field or add a specific tag. With those custom fields and tags, you can create specific user segments (that you can use inside your chatbot flows).
In Manychat you can view all the contacts that talked to your chatbot in the “Contacts” tab. Within this tab, you can also filter on specific custom fields or tags or see all users from a specific segment (by clicking on that segment on the left):
When you click on one of the individual contacts, you can see all the information stored for that user and by clicking on “Start chat” you can also see the chat history of that user:
Store information from your chatbot users inside fields. For example, you can ask for someone’s email and store it inside the “email” custom field.Add tags to users in your chatbot flows to organize and categorize contacts.Can you create user segments based on custom fields and tags?
No winner
With both BotStar and ManyChat you can do the same: add custom fields/tags and create user segments based on that.
So again, no winner!
4. Messages
BotStar
In BotStar it is possible to make broadcasts & sequences. What is a drawback is that I was not able to use the broadcast feature (because it is not in the free plan), but they say it is possible in the Pro plan.
As said before, you can use conditions on almost every element in your flow.
Furthermore, it is possible to make a chatbot in any language. And you can also really easily translate it to other languages!
This is really the first chatbot software I encountered in which it is easy to translate to different languages, so this makes me really enthusiastic. You can just click in the top-right corner on the language switcher and all the blocks change to the different language:
Next to this awesome translation feature, they also have another feature to mention: CMS.
CMS in BotStar
Say you are a boutique and you want to show all your products in your chatbot.
Normally, you would have made this by-hand in which you will get a really long chatbot flow. But BotStar made an awesome feature for this: CMS (which is short for Content Management System).
In the CMS, you can add several Entities (e.g. a “Product”) and attach several fields to it, for example:
- Name
- Description
- Price
- Image
- Category
You can easily add products then:
Then, you can use this information in your chatbot flow. So then you can configure that you want to create a Gallery showing all the products from a particular category (e.g. books):
This is just an example of products, but you can do this for much more use cases.
Extremely awesome feature, which will save you a lot of time!
- BroadcastsSend a message to all or a part of your chatbot users at a specific date and time
- SequencesSend messages on a pre-defined schedule with a certain time interval between those messages
- ConditionsMake checks in your chatbot flow based on if-then logic. For example, if the user has not given their email, ask for their email.
- Multiple languagesIs it possible to create a chatbot in multiple languages?
- Easy to translateCan you translate text to other languages without using a third-party platform and without creating duplicate flows?
ManyChat
Manychat provides broadcasts, sequences and also subscribing/unsubscribing from sequences.
What I really like about the sequences in ManyChat is that they are really organized. You can see the complete sequence in one overview and you also see which message is sent at which time, a really good feature.
Moreover, it is possible to make a chatbot in any language, but it is not possible to easily translate your chatbot to different languages (because you need to manually copy all your chatbot flows).
- BroadcastsSend a message to all or a part of your chatbot users at a specific date and time
- SequencesSend messages on a pre-defined schedule with a certain time interval between those messages
- ConditionsMake checks in your chatbot flow based on if-then logic. For example, if the user has not given their email, ask for their email.
- Multiple languagesIs it possible to create a chatbot in multiple languages?
- Easy to translateCan you translate text to other languages without using a third-party platform and without creating duplicate flows?
The winner: BotStar
With their easy translation and built-in CMS feature, BotStar beats ManyChat in the Messages category.
Especially, the easy translation is what I really like about BotStar. With ManyChat, you should manually copy every flow and translate it.
5. AI & NLP
BotStar
In BotStar it is possible to recognize keywords that are sent by the user and then give an appropriate response.
However, it is not possible to do any kind of real NLP, by using Intents or Entities.
Gladly, BotStar provides a Dialogflow integration, so with that, it is possible to make your chatbot compatible with intents and entities.
- KeywordsTrigger chatbot flow based on certain words or phrases a user says to the chatbot.
- IntentsTrigger a chatbot flow by understanding the intent of the user.
- EntitiesCapture specific information from sentences. For example, if a user says “veggie pizza”, the chatbot can understand it’s not a regular pizza, but a veggie pizza.
- Dialogflow integrationDoes the chatbot platform provide a direct integration with Google’s AI Platform?
ManyChat
With ManyChat it is only possible to recognize keywords with your chatbot. Based on a keyword (or a group of keywords) your chatbot gives a certain response.
How it looks in ManyChat:
It is not possible to grab the intent of the user, use synonyms or use entities.
ManyChat also doesn’t have a direct integration with DialogFlow. However, you can connect with Dialogflow using a third-party tool, by using the steps in this tutorial.
- KeywordsTrigger chatbot flow based on certain words or phrases a user says to the chatbot.
- IntentsTrigger a chatbot flow by understanding the intent of the user.
- EntitiesCapture specific information from sentences. For example, if a user says “veggie pizza”, the chatbot can understand it’s not a regular pizza, but a veggie pizza.
- Dialogflow integrationDoes the chatbot platform provide a direct integration with Google’s AI Platform?
The winner: BotStar
With both BotStar and ManyChat you can only recognize keywords.
Fortunately, BotStar has a direct integration with Dialogflow (and ManyChat hasn’t). and that’s why they win on this criterium.
6. Channels
BotStar
With BotStar it is possible to make a chatbot on Facebook Messenger and for your website.
This could be a potential drawback for companies who want to provide an omnichannel experience to their customers because it is only possible for two channels.
- WebsiteCan you publish your chatbot on your website?
- FacebookCan you publish your chatbot on Facebook?
- InstagramCan you publish your chatbot on Instagram?
- WhatsappCan you publish your chatbot on WhatsApp?
- TelegramCan you publish your chatbot on Telegram?
- SMSCan you publish your chatbot on SMS?
- SlackCan you publish your chatbot on Slack?
- SkypeCan you publish your chatbot on Skype?
- EmailCan you publish your chatbot on email?
ManyChat
With Manychat you can publish your chatbot on your website, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram, SMS and Email.
With SMS, you need to connect your ManyChat account to a Twilio account. Then, ManyChat will handle the chatbot part and all the chat logic, and Twilio will take care of receiving and sending the text messages (additional costs for Twilio apply).
Moreover, you can also merge contacts across channels (based on their email or phone number). For example, if someone contacts you via Facebook Messenger and later on via Instagram, Manychat can understand that is the same person and merge that contact into one.
- WebsiteCan you publish your chatbot on your website?
- FacebookCan you publish your chatbot on Facebook?
- InstagramCan you publish your chatbot on Instagram?
- WhatsappCan you publish your chatbot on WhatsApp?
- TelegramCan you publish your chatbot on Telegram?
- SMSCan you publish your chatbot on SMS?
- SlackCan you publish your chatbot on Slack?
- SkypeCan you publish your chatbot on Skype?
- EmailCan you publish your chatbot on email?
The winner: ManyChat
With ManyChat you can put your chatbot on 7 channels, while you can only put your BotStar chatbot on two.
So that’s why ManyChat wins on this subject.
Let’s move on to Integrations.
7. Integrations
BotStar
BotStar performs really well on the subject of integrations.
They have built-in live chat, which is the most important integrations any chatbot software needs.
Next to this, they provide integrations with DialogFlow and Wit.AI (for better AI capabilities), Zapier, Make (formerly Integromat), Google Sheets and Webhooks.
- LivechatDirect integration with live chat, either via a built-in live chat functionality or a third-party live chat platform.
- ZapierDirect integration with Zapier, one of the largest integration platforms in the world.
- Make (formerly Integromat)Direct integration with Make (formerly Integromat), one of the largest integration platforms in the world.
- Google SheetsDirect integration with Google Sheets, to store or retrieve data from sheets.
- WebhooksCan you call an API inside your chatbot flow to send or get data from other applications?
ManyChat
ManyChat has a built-in live chat, which is called the Inbox. By using the Inbox, you can hand over the conversation from your chatbot to one of your customer support agents.
What I really like about Manychat’s Inbox is that they also provide an iOS app and Android app, so you can respond to user inquiries on the go.
Manychat also provides Manychat Inbox Pro, which is a more advanced live chat and comes with agent chat analytics, groups of live chat agents and auto-assignment rules.
Furthermore, Manychat provides direct integrations with:
- Zapier
- Make (formerly Integromat)
- Google Sheets
- ActiveCampaign
- MailChimp
- ConvertKit
- HubSpot
- Walletly
- Botsheets
- Janis
Moreover, ManyChat has its own App store which allows third-party developers to create their own integrations with ManyChat. Currently, the App Store has 38 apps, but I think this will grow over the years:
Direct integration with live chat, either via a built-in live chat functionality or a third-party live chat platform.Direct integration with Zapier, one of the largest integration platforms in the world.Direct integration with Make (formerly Integromat), one of the largest integration platforms in the world.Direct integration with Google Sheets, to store or retrieve data from sheets.Can you call an API inside your chatbot flow to send or get data from other applications?
Small win: ManyChat
This is a small win for ManyChat. And that’s because they offer an iOS and Android app for their live chat, which could be really useful (if you want to respond to customers on the go).
Also, they have their own App Store, which allows third-party developers to easily create integrations with ManyChat.
8. Marketing
BotStar
BotStar performs really well on this topic.
It is possible to put a widget (both Facebook and native) on your website, make a landing page, connect your chatbot to Facebook ads, use the One-Time Notification automatically reply to Facebook comments and create custom URLs to your chatbot.
Unfortunately, it’s not possible to create buttons.
- Facebook website widgetEmbed your chatbot as a Facebook Widget on your website.
- Native website widgetEmbed your chatbot as a native widget (your own branding & colors) on your website.
- Landing pagesCan you create a simple landing page to drive users to your chatbot?
- Facebook AdsStart a conversation with your chatbot when someone clicks on a Facebook Ad
- One-Time NotificationSend one-time notifications via Facebook Messenger for a topic that a chatbot user has opted-in for
- Facebook comments auto-replyAutomatically reply with your chatbot to users who comment on your Facebook Posts
- Button creatorAdd a button to your website to drive users to your chatbot
- Custom URLs for your chatbotGenerate a simple URL that can be shared anywhere to send users to your chatbot
ManyChat
When it comes to Marketing for chatbots, Manychat is one of the best chatbot platforms out there.
You can add a Facebook Messenger widget to your website and send pro-active messages based on the URL that users are on. Moreover, you can also create your own landing pages with your Facebook Messenger chatbot.
Moreover, on Facebook you can:
- Create Ref URLs that go to a specific chatbot flow
- Automatically reply to Facebook Comments
- Send one-time notifications
- Send Recurring Notifications
- Connect a Facebook ad to your Messenger chatbot
- Send Sponsored Messages via Facebook Messenger
On Instagram, you can:
- Automatically reply to Instagram comments
Send replies to Instagram users who mention your Instagram handle in their Instagram Stories
And via WhatsApp, you can send Message Templates.
Basically, ManyChat provides almost all marketing possibilities you need for your chatbot.
The only drawback is that Manychat doesn’t provide a native website widget.
Embed your chatbot as a Facebook Widget on your website.Embed your chatbot as a native widget (your own branding & colors) on your website.Can you create a simple landing page to drive users to your chatbot?Start a conversation with your chatbot when someone clicks on a Facebook AdSend one-time notifications via Facebook Messenger for a topic that a chatbot user has opted-in forAutomatically reply with your chatbot to users who comment on your Facebook PostsAdd a button to your website to drive users to your chatbotGenerate a simple URL that can be shared anywhere to send users to your chatbot
The winner: It depends.
On the one hand, I would say this is a win for BotStar, because they provide both a native website widget and a Facebook website widget.
On the other hand, with ManyChat’s widget, you can send pro-active messages, which is not possible with BotStar.
So I think, it depends on whether you want to use Facebook. If you want to use a Facebook Messenger like widget on your website, use ManyChat. If you don’t want a Facebook Messenger widget, use BotStar.
Moreover, Manychat also provides marketing possibilities for Instagram and WhatsApp, which BotStar does not provide.
9. Pricing
BotStar
BotStar provides a free plan in which you can use most of the features of their platform. So with this free plan, you can test out their platform and find out if it fits your needs. You have 50 user sessions (per month), 3 chatbot projects, one user, built-in CMS, Keywords and Sequences.
In addition to this free plan, they also provide a Pro plan. This Pro plan gives you unlimited chatbot projects, at least 500 user sessions (per month), two users and almost every feature they provide. This plan only costs 15 dollar per month, which is not much:
To my opinion, this a really fair price for a chatbot software with these features. And if you are not happy, you can ask for a refund within 30 days.
- Free trialDoes the chatbot platform provide a free trial?
- Free planDoes the chatbot platform provide a free plan?
- Price per monthWhat is the lowest price per month for creating a chatbot on this platform?15
- Monthly pricing available?Is it possible to pay monthly?
- Money back guaranteeIs there a money-back guarantee in case you are not satisfied with the platform?
ManyChat
Manychat provides a free plan that stays free forever. This plan comes with 1000 contacts and has the basic features of ManyChat (enough to make a good chatbot).
If you want more features or have more than 1000 contacts, you can upgrade to the Pro plan, which costs 15$ per month (a really low price):
The price of the Pro plan goes up with the number of contacts your chatbot has. 1K contacts result in $25 per month and 5K contacts is $45 per month.
This plan also comes with a 7-day free trial that you can use to test out the Pro features of ManyChat. Besides that, there is also a 30-day money-back guarantee, no questions asked.
Moreover, Manychat also provides Manychat Inbox Pro and that costs $99 per month. This comes with 3 live chat seats:
If that’s not enough, you can add one extra live chat seat for $39 per month.
Does the chatbot platform provide a free trial?Does the chatbot platform provide a free plan?What is the lowest price per month for creating a chatbot on this platform?Is it possible to pay monthly?Is there a money-back guarantee in case you are not satisfied with the platform?
No winner
BotStar and ManyChat both offer really cheap prices for their chatbot platform.
So no winner on this one.
10. Analytics
BotStar
To be honest, I never used the Analytics feature of BotStar, because this is also not in the Free plan.
But in their documentation, they provide some information about the Analytics. And the Analytics are really basic.
They only provide analytics of the number of conversations, number of messages, user genders, subscribers and how many users are new or returning.
This is important to take into consideration, because without decent analytics, it is really hard to improve your chatbot.
- DashboardDashboard that provides general analytics of your chatbot.
- User inputGet the input from users that your chatbot didn’t understand.
- Sent messagesThe number of messages that were sent by your chatbot.
- Open rateThe percentage of chatbot users that opened a message inside your chatbot.
- Click rateThe percentage of chatbot users that click on a button inside your chatbot.
- Conversion rateThe percentage of users that converted through your chatbot. For example, the percentage of users that gave their email address
- Fall back rateThe percentage of interactions where the chatbot did not know an answer to a question.
- Custom dashboards/reportsCan you create your own dashboard or reports?
ManyChat
Manychat provides an Insights dashboard where you can see how many contacts you have per channel:
Furthermore, you can see how these contacts have evolved over time:
Likewise, you can determine your own conversion events inside your chatbot flows and then see how many people reached those conversion events:
And these conversion events are not limited to your chatbot funnels. You can also install the Manychat Pixel (similar to a Facebook Pixel) on your website and track conversions on your website of people coming from your chatbot. For example, when someone clicks on a button in Messenger and then converts on your website, this pixel will track that conversion back to your Manychat account.
Moreover, Manychat also provides flow analytics. For each block inside your flows, you can track to how many contacts this message was delivered, how many contacts opened it and how many contacts clicked on it (if the message contains a button / quick reply):
By using these flow analytics, you can easily improve your Manychat flows for better conversion.
There are only two drawbacks about the analytics in Manychat:
- There is no overview of unmatched user input. If a user filled in a phrase that did not get a response, you cannot get this information in your ManyChat dashboard. This is a disadvantage because it does not allow you to improve the automatic answers of your chatbot.
- It’s not possible to see the flow analytics for a specific time period
But in general: by using Manychat’s analytics you can definitely analyze how well your chatbot is doing and how you can improve your chatbot funnels!
Dashboard that provides general analytics of your chatbot.Get the input from users that your chatbot didn’t understand.The number of messages that were sent by your chatbot.The percentage of chatbot users that opened a message inside your chatbot.The percentage of chatbot users that click on a button inside your chatbot.The percentage of users that converted through your chatbot. For example, the percentage of users that gave their email addressThe percentage of interactions where the chatbot did not know an answer to a question.Can you create your own dashboard or reports?
The winner: ManyChat
While BotStar only offers really basic analytics, ManyChat provides better ones.
Also, you can put a ManyChat pixel on your website and track conversions coming from your chatbot.
So, a win for ManyChat!
11. eCommerce
BotStar
BotStar provides a Stripe integration, that you can use to accept payments within your chatbot.
Unfortunately, BotStar doesn’t provide direct integrations with other eCommerce software.
- PaymentsCollect payments inside your chatbot
- ShopifyDirect integration with Shopify to get products, order information and cart data.
- WooCommerceDirect integration with WooCommerce to get products, order information and cart data.
- Buy directly within the chatbotAbility for chatbot users to buy products or services directly from a chatbot
- Cart abandonmentTrigger messages in the chatbot when a user abandons their cart on a website or inside the chatbot
ManyChat
ManyChat has a direct integration with Shopify that allows you to:
- Recover abandoned carts
- Notify customers about orders and shipment updates
- Collect reviews and feedback after purchase
- Generate repeated purchases
It is, however, not possible to buy a product from your Shopify store within the chatbot.
But, you can receive payments through your chatbot by using the Stripe or Paypal integration.
The only drawback is that ManyChat doesn’t have a WooCommerce integration.
Collect payments inside your chatbotDirect integration with Shopify to get products, order information and cart data.Direct integration with WooCommerce to get products, order information and cart data.Ability for chatbot users to buy products or services directly from a chatbotTrigger messages in the chatbot when a user abandons their cart on a website or inside the chatbot
The Winner: ManyChat
ManyChat has direct integrations with Stripe, Paypal and Shopify, while Botstar only provides Stripe.
So they win in this category.
12. Templates & Cloning
BotStar
BotStar delivers 70 pre-built templates, which you can use immediately to build your chatbot.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to create templates yourself and share them with others.
On the other hand, you can duplicate your chatbot flows and chatbot elements.
- TemplatesHow many pre-built templates does the chatbot platform provide?70
- Make templateCan you make templates yourself?
- Share templateCan you share self-created templates with others?
- Duplicate chatbot flowsIs it possible to duplicate chatbot flows, so you can easily reuse them?
- Duplicate chatbot elementsIs it possible to duplicate chatbot elements, so you can easily reuse them?
ManyChat
ManyChat provides 19 templates which you can directly install to make your chatbot. These include free templates and templates only available for Pro users.
With ManyChat it is possible to make a chatbot template and share it with others. This is really useful when you are making multiple chatbots who do the same thing (for example, Lead generation).
Furthermore, it is possible to duplicate your chatbot flows and chatbot elements to make your chatbot faster.
How many pre-built templates does the chatbot platform provide?Can you make templates yourself?Can you share self-created templates with others?Is it possible to duplicate chatbot flows, so you can easily reuse them?Is it possible to duplicate chatbot elements, so you can easily reuse them?
The winner: ManyChat
With ManyChat, you can create your own templates and share these with others, and this is not possible with BotStar.
This is a big plus for ManyChat, because it allows you to easily share your templates with other colleagues or other chatbot builders.
13. Optimization
BotStar
With BotStar it is not possible to do any kind of optimization (such as A/B Testing).
- A/B TestingCan you optimize your chatbot flows by performing A/B tests?
ManyChat
In Manychat, you can do A/B testing by using the Randomizer element. This element allows you to split the traffic inside a chatbot flow up to 6 different variations:
Can you optimize your chatbot flows by performing A/B tests?
The winner: Manychat
Manychat provides A/B testing, while Botstar doesn’t.
Therefore, Manychat wins.
14. Support
BotStar
BotStar provides a guide (when you are first starting), tutorials and really good documentation to get you started with the software. Also, they have a Facebook community in which you can ask questions to other BotStar users.
Furthermore, they provide support via their ticket center and over live chat.
- TutorialsDoes the chatbot platform provide tutorials on how to use its platform?
- DocumentationDoes the chatbot platform provide documentation on how to use its platform?
- Customer supportDoes the chatbot platform provide customer support?
ManyChat
Just like BotStar, ManyChat provides extensive tutorials on how to make a chatbot and all of the features on their platform.
They also have good documentation and customer support.
What I also love about ManyChat is that they have a large Facebook community (100K+ members) in which you can ask all kinds of questions and learn more about the platform.
Does the chatbot platform provide tutorials on how to use its platform?Does the chatbot platform provide documentation on how to use its platform?Does the chatbot platform provide customer support?
No Winner
No winner on this one.
They both have tutorials, documentation and good customer support.
Who is het winner?
Well, let’s look at the winners per criterium:
| Criterium | BotStar | ManyChat |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | ||
| Chatbot elements | - | - |
| Users | - | - |
| Messages | ||
| AI & NLP | ||
| Channels | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Marketing | - | - |
| Pricing | - | - |
| Analytics | ||
| eCommerce | ||
| Templates & Cloning | ||
| Optimization | ||
| Support | - | - |
While BotStar is better in Messages and AI & NLP, ManyChat wins on the interface, their channels, the integrations, analytics, eCommerce, optimization and their templates, which makes ManyChat the winner.
But there is one reason why you should use BotStar instead of ManyChat: If you want to have a native widget on your website, because this is not possible with ManyChat.
By the way, this doesn’t mean BotStar is bad software, ManyChat is just a bit better 🙂
