ManyChat alternatives for Instagram: cheaper and free options in 2026

What you gain. The bill drops to $22 a month at 1,000 contacts and $74 at 10,000. A CRM with deal stages is included for free, and the chat can take payments through 13 providers, including Stripe, PayPal and Mercado Pago. The free plan includes Instagram for up to 500 subscribers, which is twenty times what ManyChat’s free plan allows.

What you give up. SendPulse’s help center does not describe triggers for replies to your stories or for new followers. It also bills by every subscriber stored in your bots. A big list that rarely writes back can cost more here than on ManyChat, which counts only active contacts.

What you gain. Chatfuel’s comment autoreply is free, and its landing page states no limit on contacts or messages. When you need more, the full platform with a team inbox and AI replies is $20 a month, and paid plans do not charge per contact.

What you give up. You cannot take payments in the chat. Chatfuel’s help center says Stripe and PayPal cannot be connected. AI replies draw from a monthly credit wallet, so heavy use costs extra.

What you gain. The Legend Pro plan is $12 a month whatever your contact count. InstantDM documents every Instagram feature we track except broadcasts, including triggers for live comments and new followers. Its AI agent runs on your own AI provider key, such as OpenAI or Claude, so there is no per-message AI fee.

What you give up. It covers Instagram and Facebook only. The AI agent needs the Trendsetter plan at $30. The company was founded in 2025, so it has a short track record.

What you gain. The free plan sends 1,000 DMs a month. The Pro plan at $19 raises that to 25,000 DMs across three Instagram accounts, which is enough for most creators.

What you give up. There is no AI agent, and no shared inbox where a person can take over the chat. The free plan only works on your last ten posts. LinkDM’s site has no about page and names no company beyond a footer credit.

What you gain. The free plan allows 1,500 DMs a month, the most on this page. The Boost plan is $25 for 40,000 DMs. ReplyRush also documents a follow-gated DM, which asks people to follow you before the link arrives.

What you give up. Public replies under the comment are not on the free plan. There is no AI agent or shared inbox. Its Trustpilot score is high but rests on only 24 reviews.

What you gain. CreatorFlow does one job with little to configure. Pro costs $15 a month for 5,000 DMs, and Growth costs $30 for 10,000 DMs and five team seats.

What you give up. It works on Instagram only. Its pages describe neither story mentions nor public comment replies, and they do not mention a multi-step flow builder. Like InstantDM, it launched in 2025.

What you gain. Kommo is a full sales CRM, with Instagram and WhatsApp chats inside it. Comment automation runs through its Salesbot from the Advanced plan at $35 per user a month, and every lead lands in a pipeline.

What you give up. There is no free plan, and billing is per user with six months paid up front. Its Trustpilot score was 2.3 from 60 reviews in October 2026.

What you gain. Meta’s own tools cost nothing and need no third-party access to your account. They handle instant replies and FAQ buttons. You can also set up to five keyword replies.

What you give up. The comment-to-message option is basic, and Meta’s help pages disagree on whether it matches hashtags or plain words. Keyword replies must match exactly and wait 15 minutes. Both are set up on desktop, and there are no follow-up flows.