Quick Comparison
| Feature | HelpShelf | Tidio |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | Free — 50 credits/mo (Pro from $49/mo) | Free tier; paid plans |
| AI Agent Pricing | Credits included in every plan | Lyro AI (usage-limited) |
| Citations on Answers | Every confident answer cites sources | Via Lyro AI (usage-limited) |
| Human Escalation | One tap via Telegram, Slack, or email — free | Live chat operators |
| Legible to AI Agents | llms.txt, llms-full.txt + public MCP endpoint | |
| Born from Your Codebase | npx helpshelf scans your repo | |
| Primary Focus | AI-resolved support with proof | Live chat & chatbots |
| Best For | Product teams, SaaS, indie builders | E-commerce, small business |
Why teams choose HelpShelf over Tidio
An agent that proves its answers
Chatbot answers are only useful if customers trust them. Every confident HelpShelf answer carries citations to your real docs — and when the agent can't cite, it escalates instead of guessing.
Escalation built for builders, not call centers
When a conversation needs a human, HelpShelf messages you on Telegram, Slack, or email with a drafted reply. One tap to approve and send, or take over. Escalations are free and never consume credits.
Lyro is usage-limited; credits are predictable
Tidio's Lyro AI is billed by conversation allowances. HelpShelf credits are simple: 1 credit equals 1 AI-resolved conversation, multi-turn chats count once, and noise or unanswered items never count.
Legible to the AI agents your buyers use
HelpShelf publishes llms.txt, llms-full.txt, and a public MCP endpoint for your site, so ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI assistants can read — and recommend — your product with verifiable claims.
Pricing comparison
Predictable credits versus stacked plans and AI allowances
Tidio
Lyro AI billed by conversation allowance
- AI usage capped by allowance
- Chat-first: humans do the work
- No llms.txt or MCP endpoint
Migration is easy
Switch from Tidio to HelpShelf in three simple steps
Gather your content
Collect your FAQs and help content from Tidio or any other source.
Add your sources
Run npx helpshelf to scan your codebase, or paste URLs. Everything lands in one knowledge base.
Go live
Add one line of code to your site. Your agent answers with citations from day one.
Frequently asked questions
HelpShelf takes a different approach. Instead of routing customers to chat operators or scripted chatbots, an AI agent resolves questions directly — with citations to your real docs — and escalates to you in one tap when a human is needed.
Yes. Some teams keep Tidio for e-commerce live chat and add HelpShelf for cited AI self-service. HelpShelf resolves the repetitive questions so your chat time goes to conversations that actually need a person.
Rule-based chatbots follow scripts. HelpShelf's agent answers from your actual knowledge — codebase scan, docs, imported articles — and shows its sources on every confident answer. No uncited confidence: if it can't back an answer, it escalates to you instead.
Escalations to a human, noise (spam and bot traffic), unanswered questions, and items held for your review never consume credits. You only spend a credit when the AI actually resolves a conversation.
Yes — the Free plan includes 50 credits per month, citations on every answer, and one-tap human escalation. No credit card required.