Why every e-commerce store needs more than just a chatbot
If you're running an online store, you know it's a constant race. You're juggling inventory, marketing, and a million other tasks, all while trying to give every customer a personal, helpful experience. The problem? You can't be everywhere at once, and let's face it, old-school chatbots are often more frustrating than helpful.
We've all been there, stuck in a loop with a bot that just keeps saying, "I don't understand." Thankfully, things are changing. We're moving past those basic, scripted bots and into an era of smart AI assistants that actually understand what customers want. These aren't just for answering questions; they guide shoppers, recommend products, and genuinely help you make sales.
That’s why I decided to roll up my sleeves and do a hands-on comparison of the top AI shopping assistants. I wanted to cut through the marketing hype and see which ones really deliver, from the moment a customer looks for a product to tracking their order after it's shipped.
What exactly is an AI shopping assistant?
So, what is an AI shopping assistant, really? Think of it as your store's smartest, most tireless digital sales associate. It's a huge step up from a simple FAQ chatbot. These newer assistants use natural language processing (NLP), which is just a technical way of saying they understand what a customer means, not just the words they type. They can hold a real conversation.
Some of the top-tier tools are even diving into what's called "agentic commerce." This is where the AI can take multi-step actions for a customer, like processing a return or applying a discount code, all by itself.
The main difference from a classic chatbot is that an AI assistant is proactive. It doesn't just sit there waiting for a question. It can jump in to engage shoppers, offer help, and guide them toward a purchase. A good AI strategy covers the whole journey, from pre-purchase questions ("Do you have this in blue?") to post-purchase support ("Where's my order?").
How we selected the tools for this comparison
To make sure this comparison was actually useful, I focused on a few key things that matter to any e-commerce store owner. Here’s what I looked for:
- E-commerce integration: How well does it connect with platforms like Shopify? Can it see your real-time product catalog, inventory, and order data? A bot that can’t is just guessing.
- Automation power: Can it do more than just answer simple questions? I wanted to see tools that could handle complex tasks and resolve issues without needing a human to step in.
- Ease of setup: How quickly can you get it running? You shouldn't need a developer on standby just to launch a chatbot.
- Channel coverage: Does it only work on your website's chat, or does it cover other important channels like social media or even the phone?
- Impact on revenue and support costs: Does it help you sell more or save you time and money? I looked for tools that could prove their worth.
A quick look at the top AI shopping assistants for 2026
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, here’s a quick look at the top contenders. This table should give you a good starting point for our review.
The top 6 AI shopping assistants for 2026
Alright, let's dive into what makes each of these tools stand out.
1. Ringly.io
Description:
Ringly.io is a unique player because it tackles a channel most others ignore: the phone. Its AI agent, Seth, acts as a 24/7 phone support rep for Shopify stores. When a customer calls, Seth answers and can instantly look up order statuses, handle returns, and answer common questions about your store's policies.
It's built to free up your team from repetitive calls so they can focus on bigger problems. Since it integrates directly with Shopify, Seth has real-time access to order information, which is why it's already trusted by over 2,100 Shopify brands.
Pros and Cons:
The biggest advantage here is that Ringly automates a support channel that's usually expensive and time-consuming. It can independently resolve up to 73% of calls, which is a massive efficiency boost, and it offers support in over 40 languages. The setup is also incredibly fast; you can get it live in about three minutes without writing any code.
The main thing to remember is that Seth is a specialist. It's designed for voice-based phone support, not on-site chat. This makes it a useful addition to the other tools on this list, filling a specific support gap.
Pricing:
Ringly.io has a few simple plans:
- Grow Plan: Starts at $349/month and includes 1,000 call minutes, a self-learning AI, and deep analytics.
- Scale Plan: This is their enterprise plan, starting at $1,099/month for 3,000+ minutes, a private Slack channel, and custom integrations.
They also offer a 14-day free trial and have a guarantee where billing only starts after Seth successfully resolves at least 60% of your first 100 calls.
Editor’s note: Want to hear some sample calls made for your Shopify store?
- Just paste your store URL
- Get sample calls in under 20 seconds (no email required)
- Listen to demo calls for my store
2. Alhena AI
Description:
Alhena AI calls itself a complete "agentic commerce" platform. In plain English, it doesn't just answer questions, it takes action. It acts like an AI concierge for both shopping and support that can handle multi-step tasks across the entire customer journey. Alhena says it can automate over 80% of incoming queries and works across web chat, social media, and even voice.
Pros and Cons:
Its main strength is bringing everything into one system, so you don't have to stitch together different tools for sales and support. They have a case study showing how they helped Victoria Beckham increase AOV by 20%. On the other hand, because it's an all-in-one platform, it might be more than you need if you're just trying to solve a single-channel problem. It’s a powerful tool, but maybe overkill for smaller shops.
Pricing:
Alhena AI’s pricing is clear on their site:
- Free Plan: Lets you test things out with 25 conversations per month.
- Pro Plan: Starts at $199/month (if you pay annually) and gives you 200 conversations.
- Enterprise Plan: Custom pricing for larger businesses with higher volumes.
3. Shop.app
Description:
Shop.app is Shopify's own AI-powered assistant, built right into their popular shopping app. Its main job is to make it easier for customers to discover new products. It uses ChatGPT to understand what a shopper is looking for in plain language and then serves up personalized recommendations.
Customers can just type what they want, and the AI helps them find it.
Pros and Cons:
The best thing about Shop.app is its seamless integration into the Shopify ecosystem. Millions of people already use the app to track their orders, so the experience is familiar and quick. It’s also pretty good at asking follow-up questions to narrow down a search.
The big limitation, though, is that it only works within the Shop app and its website. It can't engage with customers on your actual storefront, so its reach is limited.
Pricing:
This one's easy: the AI assistant is a feature built into the free Shop app. For any merchant whose products are eligible to display in Shop, it's a no-brainer to have it enabled.
4. eesel AI
Description:
eesel AI is a slick platform that lets you create multiple AI bots that learn from all your different knowledge sources. While many assistants can only pull from your public help center, eesel can also train on past support tickets, internal Google Docs, and your website content.
This gives it a much deeper understanding of your business, so it can give more accurate answers for both sales and support questions.
Pros and Cons:
What's great about eesel is how easy it is to get started. You can set it up yourself without talking to a salesperson, and it has deep integrations with platforms like Shopify and Zendesk.
They claim to autonomously resolve an impressive 81% of support conversations. The pricing is also transparent and based on usage. A potential downside is that it's a focused communication tool, so it doesn't try to be an all-in-one CRM or marketing platform.
Pricing:
eesel AI offers a 7-day free trial, and its plans scale with your volume:
- Team Plan: $239/month (billed annually) for 1,000 interactions.
- Business Plan: $639/month (billed annually) for 3,000 interactions, which also includes their AI Agent for helpdesks.
- Custom Plan: For businesses with unlimited interaction needs.
5. Gorgias AI
Description:
Gorgias is a well-known name in e-commerce helpdesks, and now they've built a powerful AI layer on top of it. Their AI Agent is designed to do two things at once: handle common support tickets and drive more revenue.
It can automatically resolve up to 60% of support inquiries while also spotting opportunities to recommend products or upsell customers during the conversation.
Pros and Cons:
If you're already using Gorgias (or thinking about it), this is a huge plus. It helps turn your support department, which is usually a cost center, into a channel that generates revenue. It also has over 100 e-commerce integrations, so it works well with other tools.
The only potential catch is the pricing model. You pay for the base helpdesk plan and then an extra fee for every interaction the AI handles, which might make your monthly bill a little unpredictable.
Pricing:
The AI features are an add-on to the main Gorgias platform:
- Helpdesk Plans: Start at $50/month for 300 billable tickets.
- AI Agent Interactions: These cost an extra $0.90 for each conversation the AI resolves on most annual plans.
6. Rep AI
Description:
Rep AI is all about one thing: turning conversations into sales. It uses AI to predict what a visitor might do next and then proactively starts a conversation with personalized recommendations.
It’s particularly good at engaging shoppers who are about to leave your site or abandon their cart. Some of their customers have seen a 22% increase in conversion rates by using it.
Pros and Cons:
Rep AI's biggest strength is its intense focus on revenue. It treats every customer interaction as a sales opportunity, which is great for boosting your conversion rate. It also provides deep analytics on why shoppers might not be converting.
The trade-off is that it seems more geared toward pre-sale engagement and cart recovery, with less emphasis on post-sale support compared to some of the other helpdesk-focused tools.
Pricing:
Rep AI doesn't list its pricing publicly. You have to contact their sales team for a custom quote. This usually means they're focused on larger stores with a lot of traffic, so it might not be the best fit for brands just starting out.
Key features in an AI shopping assistant
Feeling a little overwhelmed? Don't worry. When you're trying to decide, just focus on these key things:
- Deep product catalog integration: Your AI has to be able to search your entire catalog in real-time, including sizes, colors, and stock levels. An assistant that only knows your FAQ page is pretty useless for shopping.
- Proactive engagement: The best assistants don't just sit there and wait. They should be smart enough to start a conversation based on what a visitor is doing, like if they've been staring at the same product page for two minutes.
- In-chat actions: A great assistant makes it easy for customers to buy. Look for features that let shoppers add items to their cart, apply a coupon, or check an order's status without ever leaving the chat window.
- Omnichannel vs. specialized support: Think about where your customers need help. Do you need one tool that does a decent job on chat, email, and social? Or would you be better off combining a few specialists, like one for on-site chat and another for the phone?
- Seamless human handoff: AI is great, but it can't solve everything. Make sure whatever tool you choose can smoothly pass a conversation to a human agent with the full context of what's already been discussed.
Reading about these tools is one thing, but seeing them in action can provide a different perspective. For a visual rundown of how different AI shopping assistants can impact your store's conversion rates, the video below offers a helpful overview of some of the top options available.
This video provides an overview of the five best AI shopping assistants to help increase conversion rates on your Shopify store.
Supporting the entire customer journey
After diving into all these tools, my biggest takeaway is that the "best" one really depends on what you're trying to do. If your main goal is to boost sales before someone clicks "buy," tools like Rep AI are fantastic. If you want to automate your helpdesk, Gorgias or eesel are strong contenders.
But a complete AI strategy has to look at the entire customer experience. It’s important to support customers after they've paid to provide a positive experience.
That’s where the post-purchase part of the journey is so important. While many of these tools are great for on-site chat, they may not cover the channel customers still use for urgent issues: the phone.
Tools like Ringly.io's AI phone agent, Seth, are built specifically to fill that gap. It can provide customers with instant, 24/7 help with their orders and returns, making a support system more complete. For businesses aiming to round out their AI toolkit, automating phone support is a logical consideration.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the main goal of this best AI shopping assistants comparison?
The main goal was to go beyond the marketing hype and test these tools in a real-world context. I wanted to see which assistants genuinely help e-commerce stores increase sales, reduce support tickets, and improve the overall customer experience, from initial product discovery to post-purchase support.
How can I use this best AI shopping assistants comparison to choose the right tool for my Shopify store?
Start by identifying your biggest pain point. Are you losing sales to cart abandonment? Then look at a tool like Rep AI. Are you swamped with phone calls about order status? Ringly would be a great fit. This guide is designed to help you match a tool's strengths to your specific business needs.
Are the tools in this best AI shopping assistants comparison suitable for small businesses?
Absolutely. Many of the tools listed, like Alhena AI and eesel AI, have free or lower-priced tiers designed for smaller businesses. Others, like Ringly.io, offer a guarantee that ensures you see results before you start paying, which is great for businesses on a tight budget. Always check the pricing section for the most current plans.
Why does this best AI shopping assistants comparison include a tool for phone support like Ringly.io?
Because a complete customer journey doesn't end at checkout. While web chat is great for sales, many customers still pick up the phone for urgent post-purchase issues like returns or order tracking. Including Ringly highlights the importance of an omnichannel strategy that supports customers everywhere, not just on your website.
Based on your best AI shopping assistants comparison, what's the biggest mistake e-commerce stores make with AI?
The biggest mistake is focusing only on the pre-sale experience. It's great to have an AI that helps customers find products, but if they have a terrible support experience after they've paid, you'll lose them forever. A truly effective AI strategy supports the *entire* customer lifecycle, both before and after the sale.
