Chatbot software: what matters when you choose
A guide for anyone comparing chatbot vendors: the kinds of software out there, ten questions to ask every vendor, and where Kyros fits and where it doesn’t.
There is no best chatbot software in general, only the best fit for a specific job. So before you compare vendors, decide what the chatbot should do: answer questions from content you already have, guide requests through fixed flows, or pass conversations to your team. That tells you which kind of software to look at, and which features you don’t need.
Three questions that decide the comparison
Where do the answers come from? A rule-based bot only says what you built into a flow beforehand. An AI assistant writes its own answers, ideally from your own content and with source links so visitors can check what an answer is based on. Without that grounding, language models fill gaps with plausible-sounding inventions, known as hallucinations.
What happens when there is no answer? A good chatbot says so plainly and points to another route, such as phone, email or a form. Whether a person should also take over the conversation live depends on how your support works. If it should, you need software with live chat.
Where are messages processed? An AI chatbot usually involves more than one party: the platform itself and the provider of the language model. A hosting statement often covers only part of that. Ask which service providers process messages and where, and ask for a data processing agreement (DPA).
Your own chatbot test beats any feature list
Feature lists look alike across many vendors. A short test tells you more: collect twenty to thirty real questions from emails and phone calls, including a few your website can’t answer. Ask every candidate the same questions with the same content. Check whether the answers are correct, whether sources are shown, how the bot handles gaps, and how much work it takes to correct a wrong answer.
Take the same sober look at pricing. What matters isn’t the entry price but what drives the bill at your volume: messages, conversations, seats or the AI model you pick. More on that on the chatbot cost page. For side-by-side comparisons of Kyros with individual vendors, see comparisons.
Five kinds of chatbot software
The lines blur, and many products mix approaches. The split still helps you build the right shortlist.
Rule and flow builders
You build dialogs as a decision tree of buttons and fixed text. Good for well-defined processes such as booking a slot or checking a status: every answer is predictable. Free-form questions outside the paths are handled only to a limited extent, and every new path is manual work.
AI assistants that answer from your content
A language model answers free-form questions based on your content, such as web pages or documents (RAG). Good for knowledge questions that come in many phrasings. Look at source citations, how questions without an answer are handled, and which kinds of content you can connect.
Live chat suites with an AI add-on
A live chat or help desk system where your team holds conversations, plus a bot that answers first and hands over to staff. Good when someone is in the chat anyway and handoffs are part of daily work.
Enterprise conversational AI platforms
Broad platforms for many channels, often including phone and voice bots and deep connections to back-end systems. Good for large organizations with a dedicated project team; rollout and operation take effort to match.
Build it yourself on an LLM API
Your developers connect a language model directly to your data and build the interface, search, moderation and reporting themselves. Maximum freedom, but development, operation and quality assurance stay with you for good.
Kyros belongs to the second group: an AI assistant that answers from your web pages and Golden answers, as a chat widget on your site or through a REST API.
Checklist: ten questions to ask any chatbot vendor
Put these questions to every vendor on your list, including us. The answers quickly show whether a product fits your job.
Where do the answers come from?
Fixed flows, your own content, or a language model’s general knowledge? Ask which sources you can connect, such as web pages, files or databases, and how they stay up to date.
Are sources shown?
Source links under an answer show what it is based on. Visitors can check it, and you get the fastest way to trace a wrong answer back to an outdated page.
What happens when there is no answer?
Test questions your content doesn’t cover. A good bot says so and offers another route instead of making something up. Ask whether this is enforced technically or only by instruction.
Where is it hosted, who processes messages, and is there a DPA?
The platform and the AI model can run in different places. Ask for the list of subprocessors, a data processing agreement under Art. 28 GDPR, and whether your data is used for training.
Which languages are supported?
That means two things: the language of the answers and the language of the interface, including buttons, notices and the privacy text. If relevant, also check right-to-left scripts and Easy language (Leichte Sprache).
How is it priced, and what drives the bill?
Per message, per conversation, per seat or flat? Run the numbers with your expected volume, and ask how the choice of AI model affects cost and what happens when you exceed your allowance.
Can changes be tested before they go live?
A single new instruction can change many answers. Look for a draft mode with preview, a version history, and a way to go back to an earlier version.
Is there live chat and handoff to staff?
If your team should take over conversations, the software needs live chat with handoff. If not, a clear pointer to phone, email or a contact form is often enough.
How do you correct wrong answers?
Ask whether you can review chat logs with visitor ratings and how a correction becomes a fixed answer. Without that loop, the same mistake keeps coming back.
How is it installed in your CMS?
Usually with a code snippet, sometimes with a plugin or app. Check whether there’s a guide for your CMS, whether the bot runs as a floating button or inside the page, and whether you can restrict which domains may load it.
Where Kyros fits, and where it doesn’t
Kyros is an AI assistant that answers from your web pages and Golden answers, as a chat widget or through a REST API. For some jobs, a different kind of software is the better choice.
| Kyros fits if … | Kyros doesn’t fit if … |
|---|---|
| your knowledge lives on web pages. You add pages by URL, one per line, and add Golden answers you write yourself. | your knowledge sits mainly in PDF, Word or Excel files, or you want the whole site read in automatically. There is no file import and no site crawl. |
| the chatbot should answer standard questions with source links and, when needed, take a callback or contact request with a form Card (Beta). | your team should take over conversations live in the chat. Kyros has no live chat and no handoff to staff. |
| you need a text chat on your website or a REST API for your own applications. | you’re looking for a voice or phone bot. Kyros has no voice input and no speech output. |
| “Hosted in Germany”, a DPA and a privacy notice in every widget matter to you. | all processing, including by the AI model, must happen in Germany. The provider of the model you choose also processes the messages, not always in Germany. |
| you want to reach visitors in several languages: 9 widget languages, including Arabic and Farsi right to left, plus Easy language (Leichte Sprache). | you expect ready-made plugins that sync data, for example with a store or CRM system. Kyros is installed with a snippet, with guides for HTML, React/Next.js, WordPress, TYPO3 and GSB. |
| you want to test changes in a draft, compare models side by side, and go live only when you click Publish, with version history to roll back. | you want to buy a paid plan online right away. Starter is free forever; Pro and Business are available on request. |
A chatbot vendor from Germany
Example: a callback request instead of a handoff (Beta)
Frequently asked questions
What is the best chatbot software?
There is no best chatbot software in general. Rule and flow builders suit fixed processes such as booking a slot; AI assistants that answer from your content suit knowledge questions. If your team should take over conversations live, a live chat suite with an AI add-on fits. Three things decide it: where answers come from, how the bot handles gaps, and where messages are processed. A test with real questions tells you more than any feature list.
How do I run a chatbot test before deciding?
Collect twenty to thirty real questions from emails and phone calls, including a few your website can’t answer. Ask every candidate the same questions with the same content. Check whether answers are correct, whether sources are shown, how the bot handles gaps, and how much effort a correction takes. You can use Kyros for this on the Starter plan, which is free forever and needs no credit card.
Are there chatbot vendors based in Germany?
Yes, Kyros is one: made by omniratio in Germany, hosted in Germany with the API and database in Frankfurt, and with a data processing agreement under Art. 28 GDPR available. But ask every vendor not only about hosting but also about who processes the messages. With AI chatbots, that includes the language model provider; with Kyros, it’s the provider of the model you choose, which is not always in Germany.
How much does chatbot software cost?
It depends on the billing model: per message, per conversation, per seat or flat. Run the numbers with your expected volume and ask what drives the bill. With Kyros, the Starter plan is free forever, with no credit card, and includes one assistant with a chat widget plus monthly credits. Every message uses credits; each model shows how many before you choose it. Pro and Business are available on request.
Can an AI chatbot hand off to staff?
That depends on the software; live chat suites with an AI add-on are built for it. Kyros can’t: there is no live chat and no handoff to staff. Instead, a form Card (Beta) can take a callback or contact request in the chat, and the assistant is instructed to say so when your content has no answer. If live handoff is central for you, live chat software is the better choice.
Can the chatbot use PDFs or my whole website as its knowledge base?
That varies by vendor, so ask specifically about file formats and how content stays current. With Kyros, you add web pages by URL, one per line, and add Golden answers. There is no import of PDF, Word or Excel files and no automatic reading of a whole site. Added pages can re-sync every 6, 12 or 24 hours or weekly, and duplicate pages are detected.
Test Kyros with your own questions.
Starter plan free forever, no credit card. Hosted in Germany.