Sir vs the others.
An honest side-by-side. Where Sir wins, we say so. Where he doesn't fit, we say that too.
| Sir Chats-a-Lot | Intercom Fin | Drift | Crisp Bot | DIY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| License & hosting | |||||
| Open source (MIT) | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ◐ |
| Self-hosted | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| No vendor lock-in | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Conversation | |||||
| Grounded in your content | ✓ | ✓ | ◐ | ✕ | ◐ |
| BYO LLM provider | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Streaming responses | v0.8 in development | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ | ◐ |
| In-chat surfaces | |||||
| Action buttons | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◐ | ◐ |
| Inline forms | ✓ | ◐ | ✓ | ✕ | ◐ |
| Confirm dialogs | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ◐ |
| Custom surfaces | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Branding & embed | |||||
| Full theme control | ✓ | ◐ | ◐ | ◐ | ✓ |
| React npm embed | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ◐ |
| Script-tag / web-component embed | later | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ◐ |
| No external branding | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | |||||
| Free forever | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ◐ | ✓ |
| You pay LLM tokens | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Hidden per-seat tax | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| What it is NOT | |||||
| A multi-channel inbox | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| A live-agent product | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
| A hosted SaaS | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✕ |
Free core.
Pro when stakes rise.
The OSS package is not a teaser. Pro adds enterprise setup speed, compliance seams, and operator tooling without putting your visitor traffic through our servers.
Free forever on npm. Full widget, all surfaces and blocks, showIf, custom registries, the hybrid flow brain, theming, persistence, transcripts, and the scal init CLI.
Install the core →Private enterprise layer for teams that need faster server setup and operator controls: createScalHandler, Anthropic/OpenAI/xAI adapters, scal.skill.md, debug mode, compliance hooks, and priority support.
Read about Pro →What Sir isn't.
Sir is one widget on one website. He doesn't unify Slack + SMS + email + WhatsApp into a shared inbox. If you need that, you need Intercom or HelpScout.
Sir is the AI half of a support stack. He doesn't route to human agents, manage shifts, or handle escalation queues. Pair him with whatever ticketing system you already have.
Sir doesn't run on our servers because we don't have any. Your visitors' messages go from their browser to YOUR server to YOUR LLM provider. That's the trade-off — and the point.
If your visitors' questions deserve a real answer and the answer occasionally needs a button or form attached — yes.