Elfsight

What is elfsight

Elfsight is a web widget platform best known for a library of embeddable components; the specific product on this page is the Elfsight Group Chat Widget, a configurable chat module that you install on a website by pasting a small script or using a CMS plugin. The widget provides a group-room experience rather than a one-to-one live chat, so it’s suitable for public Q&A, community discussions, live event chats, and multi-agent support where multiple visitors and agents can see the same conversation.

The widget runs in the visitor’s browser and can be customized to match site styles, show participant lists, and expose moderation controls for hosts. It also supports persistent chat history (optional), user nicknames, and message moderation settings so site owners can translate the real-time feed into a controlled community channel.

Because it’s distributed as an embeddable JavaScript widget, Elfsight Group Chat integrates with virtually any HTML site and many CMS platforms through plugins or manual code insertion, making it accessible for small sites and enterprise deployments alike.

Elfsight features

Elfsight’s Group Chat Widget provides the core features expected from a group chat component plus configuration and integration options aimed at website implementers and moderators. The widget focuses on low-friction deployment and flexible display options that work on desktop and mobile browsers.

Key feature areas include UI customization, conversation management, integrations, and analytics. You can change colors, fonts, and position; define room behavior (public vs. invite-only); integrate with external messengers; and collect basic engagement metrics to understand chat usage.

The widget is also designed for lighter technical overhead: it includes a control panel for non-developers to configure behavior and appearance, and a script-based embed for developers that want more control over loading and initialization.

What does elfsight do?

Elfsight collects messages from visitors and displays them in a single, embeddable chat window on your site. It supports multiple simultaneous participants, message threading in some configurations, and visible participant presence so users know who else is online. The interface is optimized for short, immediate exchanges typical of support queues, live events, or community rooms.

Administrators can moderate conversations, delete messages, ban or mute users, and set up automated welcome messages or rules. The widget can optionally retain chat history between sessions so returning visitors can read prior discussion, or it can start fresh on every page load for ephemeral conversations.

On the integration side, the widget can forward messages to connected apps and services so teams can monitor or respond using tools they already use. That makes the widget useful not only for visitor-to-visitor community chat but also for hybrid support models where visitors interact with staff who prefer a separate messaging environment.

Elfsight pricing

Elfsight offers these pricing plans:

• Free Plan: $0/month with Elfsight branding, limited features, and basic customization
• Starter: $5/month billed monthly or $50/year billed annually with expanded customization and removal of some limits
• Professional: $15/month billed monthly or $150/year billed annually with priority support, advanced moderation tools, and integration options
• Enterprise: Custom pricing with advanced security controls, SLA, dedicated support, multi-site licensing, and SSO

The Free option is useful to test the widget on low-traffic sites or personal projects, while the paid tiers remove branding, raise usage limits, and unlock integrations and support levels needed by commercial sites. Annual billing typically provides a discount compared with month-to-month rates; consult the vendor’s site for current promotions and multi-site discounts. Check Elfsight's current pricing on the Group Chat Widget page (https://elfsight.com/group-chat-widget/) for the latest rates and enterprise options.

How much is elfsight per month

Elfsight starts at $5/month for the Starter plan when billed monthly. The Starter tier removes some Free Plan limitations, adds moderate customization, and is intended for single-site use by small businesses or community sites. The Professional tier is commonly listed at $15/month when billed monthly and is intended for higher-traffic sites or teams that need integrations and faster support.

Monthly billing is convenient for short-term projects or testing in production because you can cancel or change plans without an annual commitment. For predictable long-term use and cost savings, most sites migrate to annual billing.

Additionally, Enterprise pricing is quoted per contract and varies based on required features, security, and number of sites.

How much is elfsight per year

Elfsight costs $50/year for the Starter plan when billed annually. The annual Starter price reflects a discount compared with monthly payments and is positioned for organizations that plan ongoing use.

The Professional annual option is typically $150/year, which reduces monthly equivalent cost and adds higher usage caps and integration options. Enterprise is priced by negotiation and can include per-year licensing with volume discounts, priority SLAs, and white-glove onboarding.

If you need an accurate quote for large deployments, request a custom Enterprise proposal through Elfsight’s sales channels.

How much is elfsight in general

Elfsight pricing ranges from $0 (free) to $15+/month for single-widget paid tiers and up to custom Enterprise rates for large or heavily regulated deployments. Small blogs and personal sites can operate on the Free Plan indefinitely, while business sites typically select Starter or Professional depending on traffic and feature needs.

Per-site licensing is the usual model: each domain or installation is tracked and billed separately unless you negotiate a multi-site Enterprise agreement. Volume discounts and extended feature sets are available when billed annually or when moving to Enterprise.

For the most current price ranges and any promotional discounts, consult Elfsight's group chat widget listing for exact figures and available coupons.

What is elfsight used for

Elfsight Group Chat Widget is used to provide an on-site, browser-based group chat experience for visitors, customers, and community members. Common use cases include live event chats (webinars, streams), product launch discussions, community forums embedded on marketing sites, and public support channels where multiple staff members and visitors can participate.

In customer service scenarios, teams use the widget to let multiple agents monitor a live room and provide quick answers in parallel; messages can be escalated or forwarded to other systems via integrations. For marketing and engagement, the widget increases dwell time by offering a space for visitors to ask questions, share impressions, and engage with brand representatives.

Educational and training sites use the widget to facilitate classroom-style group interaction, while media and publishing sites use it to host reader discussions tied to articles or live commentary sections. Its embeddable nature makes it easy to place in any page area where conversation is desired.

Pros and cons of elfsight

Pros:

• Easy installation and configuration via embed script or CMS plugins, which lowers the technical barrier for teams without in-house developers.
• A compact feature set focused on group chat scenarios, including moderation tools, appearance customization, and optional history retention.
• Integrations and forwarding capabilities that let teams receive messages in external apps or automate workflows via third-party connectors.

Cons:

• Per-site pricing means costs can add up for organizations that need the chat on many domains unless an Enterprise license is negotiated.
• As a hosted widget, it relies on a third-party service for uptime and data retention; organizations with strict data residency or compliance needs may require additional assurances or an Enterprise contract.
• Advanced use cases (custom message routing, deep analytics) may require custom integration or additional tooling beyond the widget’s out-of-the-box controls.

Choosing this widget is a trade-off between speed of deployment and the need for deep customization or on-premises control.

Elfsight free trial

Elfsight offers a Free Plan that functions as a de facto trial for the Group Chat Widget; the Free Plan is fully functional for basic chat use but includes Elfsight branding and feature limits. This allows teams to test appearance, messaging flow, and basic moderation before purchasing a paid plan for production use.

Paid tiers often include a short money-back guarantee or a monthly billing option so you can trial upgraded features without a long commitment. For teams that require full Enterprise functionality, Elfsight’s sales team can typically arrange a demo and a temporary trial or proof-of-concept under a short-term contract.

To evaluate the widget, install the Free Plan on a staging page and test integrations, moderation workflows, and load behavior under expected traffic. Measure user experience on mobile and desktop and validate that data retention and export meet your compliance needs before upgrading.

Is elfsight free

Yes, Elfsight offers a Free Plan that is suitable for testing and small non-commercial sites; it includes basic customization and the core chat experience but displays Elfsight branding and has usage limits. The Free Plan is useful for proof-of-concept and trialing the chat on a live page without financial commitment.

For production use by businesses, the Starter or Professional plans remove branding, raise limits, and unlock additional moderation, integration, and support options. Enterprise contracts are available for organizations that need custom SLAs or compliance assurances.

If you require a trial of paid features, sign up for monthly billing on the chosen paid tier or contact Elfsight sales for a time-limited evaluation tailored to enterprise needs.

Elfsight API

Elfsight provides several integration paths that allow the Group Chat Widget to interact with external systems. At a minimum, the widget supports webhooks for message events and a JavaScript API for client-side customization and event handling. These interfaces let developers capture messages, react to user actions, and forward content into other channels.

Common integration scenarios include forwarding chat messages to team inboxes, piping visitor messages into CRM records, syncing user presence with authentication systems, and triggering server-side workflows via webhooks. Elfsight also offers pre-built connectors or recommendations for using middleware platforms such as Zapier to bridge to hundreds of third-party apps.

For Enterprise customers, Elfsight can provide enhanced API access, logging, and integration assistance—this may include custom webhooks, data export endpoints, and support for single sign-on (SSO) or SCIM provisioning. Developers should consult Elfsight’s developer documentation for exact API endpoints, rate limits, authentication methods, and example code snippets. See Elfsight's group chat widget page for links to documentation and integration guides (https://elfsight.com/group-chat-widget/).

10 Elfsight alternatives

When evaluating Elfsight Group Chat Widget, consider how it compares to chat and community solutions that offer embedded chats, live support, and integrations. Alternatives vary from consumer messaging services adapted for websites to full customer messaging platforms and open-source chat servers.

Paid alternatives to Elfsight

• Intercom — Full customer messaging platform with inbox, bots, and product tours; strong for support and sales workflows but more expensive for heavy chat volumes.
• Zendesk Chat — Part of the Zendesk suite, tight integration with ticketing and customer records; good for teams already in the Zendesk ecosystem.
• LiveChat — Focused live chat product with agent routing, canned responses, and integrations; suitable for real-time support across multiple channels.
• Drift — Conversational marketing and sales chat with advanced routing and automation for lead qualification and meetings.
• Crisp — All-in-one messaging with multi-channel inbox, knowledge base, and shared team inbox; offers competitive pricing for SMEs.

Open source alternatives to Elfsight

• Rocket.Chat — Self-hosted team chat platform with web widgets, federation, and full control over data and deployment.
• Chatwoot — Open-source customer messaging platform with shared inbox, web widget, and multi-channel integrations; good fit for teams wanting control without vendor lock-in.
• Matrix / Element — Decentralized messaging stack (Matrix) with Element as a client; supports embedding and federated rooms for community chat.
• Mautic + open widgets — While Mautic is a marketing automation platform, combining it with community widgets and integrations can build embedded chat-like flows.
• Mibew (Open Web Messenger) — Lightweight open-source web chat for embedding on websites; simpler but fully self-hostable for privacy-focused deployments.

Each alternative trades off between hosting control, cost, integrations, and available moderation tooling. Choose based on whether you prefer a hosted widget with low setup (Elfsight-style) or a self-hosted solution that gives full data control.

Frequently asked questions about Elfsight

What is Elfsight used for?

Elfsight is used to add embeddable widgets to websites, including a group chat widget for real-time visitor conversations. Site owners use it to host live discussions, support rooms, and event chats directly on web pages without building a custom chat system. It’s useful for marketing engagement, community-building, and lightweight customer support.

Does Elfsight offer a free plan?

Yes, Elfsight offers a Free Plan that allows you to install the Group Chat Widget with basic features and Elfsight branding. The Free Plan is suitable for testing and small personal sites but has usage limits compared with paid plans.

How much does Elfsight cost per month?

Elfsight starts at $5/month for the Starter plan when billed monthly; the Professional plan is typically priced around $15/month. Enterprise pricing is custom based on scale and feature needs.

Can Elfsight integrate with Slack or other messaging tools?

Yes, Elfsight supports integrations and forwarding to external tools through webhooks, built-in connectors, and middleware like Zapier; this allows messages to be pushed into Slack, email, or CRM systems for team responses.

Is the Elfsight Group Chat Widget customizable?

Yes, the widget provides visual customization and behavioral options such as color, position, message retention, and moderation settings so the chat can match site design and operational needs.

Does Elfsight provide moderation features?

Yes, Elfsight includes moderation controls that let administrators delete messages, mute or ban participants, and configure room access to public or invite-only modes. Higher tiers add more advanced moderation tools.

Can I host the Elfsight widget data on-premises?

No, Elfsight is a hosted widget by default, with Enterprise options for custom arrangements. Most customers use Elfsight’s cloud hosting, but Enterprise discussions can include data handling, residency, and contractual controls if stricter requirements exist.

Does Elfsight offer an API or webhooks?

Yes, Elfsight exposes integration points such as a JavaScript API and webhooks for message events. These allow developers to capture chat events, forward messages to other services, and trigger server-side workflows.

How do I install the Elfsight Group Chat Widget on my site?

You install the widget by copying a small JavaScript embed code or using a CMS plugin. Paste the snippet into your site’s HTML (or add via a plugin for WordPress, Shopify, or other platforms), then configure appearance and behavior from the Elfsight dashboard.

Where can I find documentation for Elfsight integrations?

Elfsight publishes integration and setup guides on its product pages and developer docs. For specific integration steps and API details, consult Elfsight's group chat widget documentation at Elfsight's group chat widget page (https://elfsight.com/group-chat-widget/).

elfsight careers

Elfsight maintains a company careers page for open positions across engineering, product, design, and customer success. Roles vary from front-end widget engineers who focus on embeddable components to backend engineers working on scaling real-time messaging infrastructure. Hiring often targets developers with experience in JavaScript, WebSockets, or real-time systems.

Career applicants should expect a technical interview that covers web performance, script loading strategies, and privacy/security practices for widgets that run on third-party domains. For up-to-date openings and application details, check Elfsight’s corporate site and careers listings.

elfsight affiliate

Elfsight offers an affiliate or partner program that rewards referrals and reseller arrangements in many cases. Affiliates typically receive a referral commission for paid plan sign-ups that originate from their tracking links, and partners may get discounted multi-site pricing or co-marketing support.

If you’re interested in promoting the Elfsight Group Chat Widget as an affiliate or integrating it into a service offering, contact Elfsight’s partnerships team through the official website to get program terms and creative assets.

Where to find elfsight reviews

Independent reviews of Elfsight widgets appear on SaaS review sites, developer forums, and marketplace listings. Look for user feedback on implementation ease, widget performance on mobile, and the responsiveness of customer support. Reviews on third-party directories also highlight pricing perception and feature gaps compared with specialized chat platforms.

For vendor-published case studies and customer references, consult testimonial pages and the Group Chat Widget page for customer stories and implementation examples (https://elfsight.com/group-chat-widget/).