Competitor CRM
Competitor CRM
Close More WhatsApp Leads in 2026: respond.io vs Wati for Southeast Asian Teams
Both sit on the WhatsApp Business API. They charge for very different things.
respond.io vs Wati: Side-by-Side
| Feature | respond.io | Wati | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Starter US$79/mo billed annually, US$99 monthly | Growth US$49/mo monthly, about US$37 billed annually | |
| Seats on the entry plan | 5 users on Starter | 3 users on Growth, with no extras allowed | |
| Billing model | Plan fee plus Monthly Active Contact overages | Flat plan fee plus per-message charges | |
| Broadcasts on the entry plan | Not included on Starter | Included on Growth | |
| Automation builder | Workflows, visual and genuinely capable | Chatbot builder, simpler and faster to learn | |
| Channels beyond WhatsApp | Messenger, Instagram, Telegram, LINE, Viber, SMS, email, web chat | WhatsApp first, with limited coverage elsewhere | |
| Meta message pricing | Passed through at cost with no markup | Roughly 20 percent markup on Meta rates per public reports | |
| AI agents | AI Agent from the Growth plan | AI co-pilot with credit limits | |
| Ease of setup for a non-technical owner | Steeper, with more concepts to learn | Quicker to a first working chatbot | |
| Reporting | Advanced reports from the Advanced plan | Adequate analytics, thinner drill-down | |
| Pipeline and deal stages | Contact-centric, light pipeline only | Contact-centric, light pipeline only | |
| Salesforce and HubSpot | Salesforce on Advanced, HubSpot supported | HubSpot from Pro, no native Salesforce | |
| Regional support | Kuala Lumpur headquarters, ASEAN business hours | Hong Kong and India based, covers ASEAN hours | |
| E-commerce integrations | Shopify, WooCommerce and open API | Shopify, WooCommerce, plus India-leaning integrations | |
| Cancellation | Self-serve in the dashboard | Requires contacting support, a common complaint | |
| Extra seat cost | US$12 to US$24 per user per month by plan | US$24 on Pro, US$69 on Business |
✅ = Available natively | ⚠️ = Available with add-on or limitations | ❌ = Not available | Winner column: green highlight = stronger for that feature
respond.io vs Wati: Pricing
| Plan | respond.io | Wati |
|---|---|---|
| Trial | 7-day free trial | Free trial, plus a low-cost single-user pay-as-you-go option |
| Entry | Starter US$79/mo annually (US$99 monthly), 5 seats | Growth about US$37/mo annually (US$49 monthly), 3 seats |
| Working plan | Growth US$159/mo annually (US$199 monthly), 10 seats, 1,000 MACs | Pro about US$74/mo annually (US$99 monthly), 5 seats |
| Top tier | Advanced US$279/mo annually (US$349 monthly) | Business about US$187/mo annually (US$249 monthly) |
| Message costs | Meta rates passed through at cost | Meta rates plus roughly 20 percent, per public reports |
Prices as of 2026. Verify on vendor websites — pricing changes frequently.
Strengths & Weaknesses
respond.io
Strengths
- Real multichannel coverage. LINE, Viber, Telegram and Instagram all matter across Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia.
- Meta conversation charges are passed through at cost, with no platform markup added.
- The workflow builder handles routing, escalation and lead qualification without extra tools.
- Kuala Lumpur base means onboarding and support run in ASEAN business hours.
Weaknesses
- Starter has no broadcasts and no workflows, so most buyers land on Growth at US$159 instead.
- Monthly Active Contact overages make a busy month hard to forecast.
- There is more product to learn than a three-person team usually wants.
Wati
Strengths
- Cheapest credible entry point, and broadcasts are included on the very first paid plan.
- A non-technical owner can build a working chatbot in an afternoon.
- Flat plan pricing avoids the surprise of contact-based overage bills after a good month.
- Solid Shopify and WooCommerce flows for small e-commerce sellers running abandoned-cart messages.
Weaknesses
- A reported markup of around 20 percent on Meta message rates adds up quickly at volume.
- The Growth plan allows no extra users at all, forcing an early jump to Pro.
- Cancelling requires contacting support rather than clicking a button in the dashboard.
Which Is Better for Indian Businesses?
For a small Singapore or Malaysia team selling almost entirely on WhatsApp that wants broadcasts working this week, Wati is the sensible start. Growth at about US$49 a month covers three users and includes broadcasting, which respond.io Starter does not. Watch the message markup, though. Wati is widely reported to add around twenty percent on top of Meta's conversation rates, and once you send tens of thousands of template messages a month in Indonesia or the Philippines, that markup can cost more than the whole subscription. Choose respond.io if customers reach you on more than WhatsApp. LINE in Thailand, Messenger and Instagram in Indonesia and the Philippines, Telegram in Vietnam. Its workflow builder is stronger, Meta charges pass through at cost, and Starter's five seats beat Wati's three. Budget for the Growth plan at US$159 a month, because Starter carries no automation at all. A rough rule works well here. Under about five agents, one channel and modest volume, take Wati. More than five agents, several channels, or heavy outbound volume, take respond.io. Both are conversation platforms first. Neither gives you a real sales pipeline, call logging or forecasting, so a separate CRM usually joins the stack later.
Overall Verdict
Wati is cheaper to start and easier to learn. respond.io is the stronger platform, with more channels, better automation and no markup on Meta message fees. Small single-channel sellers across Southeast Asia will be happy on Wati. Teams past about five agents, or anyone sending heavy template volume, usually save money and trouble on respond.io despite the higher subscription. Neither one replaces a proper sales CRM.
A Third Option Worth Considering
If neither respond.io nor Wati fully fits
Both tools do inbox work well. Neither runs a sales pipeline, and that is where deals leak. HelloGrowthCRM combines two-way WhatsApp with a built-in auto-dialler and call recording, AI lead scoring, email sequences, pipeline stages and invoicing in one record, at $12 per user per month or $10 billed annually, with a free forever plan. For teams in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur or Jakarta who chase leads on WhatsApp and then phone them, keeping both on the same record removes the copy-paste step. Managed RevOps help is available if you want the setup done for you.
Frequently Asked Questions: respond.io vs Wati
Not sure which CRM to choose?
Skip the comparison and try HelloGrowthCRM free — built for India sales teams with WhatsApp, dialer, and AI included at ₹899/user/month.
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