Skip to content
effecthub

Askli vs CustomGPT.ai

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors. Askli starts at $49, CustomGPT.ai at $99. Only Askli has a free tier. Both ship a public API.

AskliNo-code support chatbots trained on your own documentsCustomGPT.aiBuilds retrieval chatbots from company documents, sites and helpdesk content

Side by side

FactAskliCustomGPT.ai
CategoryCustom GPTs & Bot BuildersCustom GPTs & Bot Builders
Pricing modelFreemiumPaid
Starts at$49 month$99 month
Public APIYesYes
PlatformsWeb, API, Slack AppWeb, API
CompanyChaindeskCustomGPT Inc.
Launched20232023
Last verifiedSep 6, 2026Sep 6, 2026

What our research says

Askli

A sensible mid-market pick when you need one bot answering on WhatsApp and your website from the same knowledge base. The free tier is a demo that quietly deletes your work if you step away for two weeks.

Pros

  • Unusually broad channel coverage including WhatsApp, Telegram and Messenger
  • Auto-sync removes manual retraining when source documents change
  • Function calling can hit your own API endpoints during a conversation
  • Shared inbox with human handoff is part of the product, not an add-on

Cons

  • The $49 to $99 step mostly buys credits rather than new capability
  • Free plan is restricted to a small model and 200 messages a month
  • Free agents and datastores are deleted after 14 days of inactivity
  • The Chaindesk-to-Askli rebrand left domain, docs and third-party listings inconsistent

CustomGPT.ai

A packaged retrieval stack for teams that want a grounded chatbot without assembling their own; the connector breadth and compliance paperwork are what the price buys. At $99/month against a four-figure query cap, the cost per answer is high until volume justifies it.

Pros

  • Answers are constrained to ingested content, which materially cuts invented answers versus open chat
  • 100+ ingestion connectors and a very wide file-format list mean less pre-processing work
  • API supports programmatic agent creation, which suits agency resale
  • SOC 2 Type II certification is unusual at this price point

Cons

  • Query allowance is the real ceiling and it is low relative to the price
  • The step from Standard to Premium is five times the cost with nothing in between
  • Answer quality still depends entirely on how clean and current your source content is
  • No free plan; evaluation is limited to a trial

Which one fits

Choose Askli if you need

  • Small support teams deflecting repetitive product questions
  • Businesses whose customers actually live on WhatsApp or Telegram
  • Documentation that changes often and needs automatic re-ingestion

Choose CustomGPT.ai if you need

  • Support teams turning an existing help centre into a self-serve answer bot
  • Agencies spinning up client-branded bots and reselling them through the API
  • Companies that need SOC 2 evidence before any AI touches internal documents

More comparisons

All Askli alternatives →Browse all Custom GPTs & Bot Builders →