Clanker Support vs. Chatwoot
Why choose Clanker Support over Chatwoot?
Both self-hostable — but different stacks. Chatwoot runs on Ruby on Rails with PostgreSQL and Redis. Clanker Support runs serverless on workerd via Ploy: no database server to provision, no app server to maintain.
Clanker Support
Serverless edge — flat monthly cloud plans
Chatwoot
Rails + PostgreSQL — $0 self-hosted / ~$19/mo cloud
Side by side
| Feature | Clanker Support | Chatwoot |
|---|---|---|
| / Self-hosting | ||
| Self-hosting stack | Serverless workerd via Ploy (D1-compatible SQLite + KV state) | Ruby on Rails + PostgreSQL + Redis |
| Infrastructure to manage | None — fully serverless | Database + cache + app servers |
| Open source license | Open architecture | MIT licensed — fork and contribute |
| / AI & widget | ||
| AI model flexibility | Curated multi-provider catalog via LLM Gateway | Captain AI on OpenAI GPT — fixed model |
| Shadow DOM widget | Yes — no style bleed | No |
| Embed method | One <script> tag | Platform setup |
| / Channels | ||
| Web chat widget | Yes | Yes |
| WhatsApp / Telegram / Instagram | Not yet | All included |
| Email as standalone channel | Not yet | Yes |
| / Pricing | ||
| Managed cloud free tier | No | Free 'Hacker' cloud plan (live chat only, no AI) + free self-hosted |
| Cloud starting price | From $19/mo (flat) | ~$19/month |
| Pricing model | Flat monthly plans | Per seat / agent |
What it means in practice
Self-hosting: same goal, different stacks
Clanker Support
Self-hosted on serverless infrastructure — a D1-compatible SQLite database, KV-style state for cache and rate limiting, and workerd for compute, deployed via Ploy. No database server to provision or maintain.
Chatwoot
Self-hosted on a Ruby on Rails application with PostgreSQL and Redis. A production-grade traditional web application stack. More operational surface to manage, but also more mature and battle-tested.
Bottom line · Choose Clanker Support if you want self-hosting without managing a database server. Choose Chatwoot if you're comfortable with Rails/PostgreSQL and want the full platform that stack enables.
Scope: widget vs. full platform
Clanker Support
A focused support widget with an inbox, AI, escalation, and email threading. Fast to set up, easy to reason about. No multi-channel inbox, no agent reporting, no knowledge base UI.
Chatwoot
A full customer support platform: multi-channel inbox, knowledge base with AI search, agent management with roles and teams, canned responses, reports, and conversation labels.
Bottom line · Choose Chatwoot if you need WhatsApp, Instagram, or email as channels and want full agent management. Choose Clanker Support if a web widget with an inbox is all you need.
Open source licensing
Clanker Support
MIT open source, same as Chatwoot — the whole stack lives in one public repository (theopenco/llmchat) you can read, fork, and contribute to. The project is younger, with a smaller community than Chatwoot's.
Chatwoot
Fully open-source under the MIT License. 25,000+ GitHub stars, active contributors, and a long history of community-driven development. If a large OSS community matters, Chatwoot is the established choice.
Bottom line · Both are MIT open source. Choose Chatwoot for the larger, older community and ecosystem; choose Clanker Support for a lighter, serverless, AI-first stack.
AI model flexibility
Clanker Support
Built on LLM Gateway — you pick the AI model per project and change it with a configuration update. Run a cost-efficient model for routine questions and a more capable one for complex queries.
Chatwoot
The Captain AI assistant runs on a fixed stack. You configure it with your knowledge base and FAQs, but you don't choose the underlying model.
Bottom line · Choose Clanker Support if model choice or the ability to optimize cost vs. capability per project matters. Choose Chatwoot if you don't need that flexibility and want a larger-scope platform.
Who should choose which
Choose Clanker Support if…
- ✓Teams who want a drop-in AI support widget without deploying a platform
- ✓Teams who want managed cloud without maintaining infrastructure
- ✓Teams who need model flexibility across different projects
- ✓Developers who want a serverless, workerd-based architecture
- ✓Products where a focused widget is enough
Choose Chatwoot if…
- +Teams who want a large, established OSS community and ecosystem
- +Teams requiring multi-channel support: WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram
- +Organizations that want full agent management and reporting
- +Teams comfortable running and maintaining a Rails/PostgreSQL stack
- +Companies who want to contribute to a large OSS codebase
Clanker Support vs. Chatwoot — FAQ
Both Clanker Support and Chatwoot are self-hostable — what's the difference?
It's the stack and the scope. Chatwoot is a full multi-channel platform you run on Ruby on Rails with PostgreSQL and Redis. Clanker Support is a focused support widget that runs serverless on workerd via Ploy — no database server to provision and no app server to maintain.
Does Chatwoot have model-agnostic AI like Clanker Support?
No. Chatwoot's Captain AI assistant runs on a fixed stack. Clanker Support is built on LLM Gateway, so you pick the model per project from a curated multi-provider catalog and swap it with a config change — running a cheaper model for routine questions and a more capable one where it matters.
Which is easier to self-host?
Clanker Support is lighter to operate: it's serverless, so there's no Rails app, PostgreSQL, or Redis to run and patch. Chatwoot gives you a broader open-source platform in return for managing that infrastructure yourself.
Should I choose Clanker Support or Chatwoot?
Choose Clanker Support for a lightweight, serverless widget with model flexibility and minimal setup. Choose Chatwoot if you want a full multi-channel inbox — WhatsApp, Instagram, and more — with a large OSS community, and are comfortable running the infrastructure. Both are MIT open source.
Switching from Chatwoot?
Migrating from Chatwoot to Clanker Support is primarily a widget swap and knowledge base re-import. Replace the Chatwoot widget script with the Clanker Support script tag, copy your knowledge base content into Clanker Support's project settings, and update your escalation email address. Conversation history from Chatwoot can be exported but won't migrate automatically. Note that Clanker Support doesn't currently replace Chatwoot's multi-channel inbox — if you're using WhatsApp or Instagram, you'll need to handle those separately.