Installation steps
Work through the Fin example
Fin charges per resolved conversation, while MivoChat counts each AI reply. At three replies per conversation, 300 resolutions mean about 900 replies: Fin costs about $297 plus seats, while MivoChat fits Starter at $29/month (1,000 replies). At 1,000 resolutions, Fin costs about $990 plus seats; roughly 3,000 replies fit Pro at $99/month (10,000 replies). MivoChat billing is still coming soon.
Use your own volume
Estimate low, expected, and busy months from actual support records. Check whether a vendor bills for resolved conversations, AI replies, or eligible outcomes; those units are not automatically equivalent. In a spreadsheet, add columns for month, resolved conversations, sampled replies per conversation, reply total, seat count, base fee, and overage. Calculate reply total as resolutions multiplied by your observed average, then apply each vendor’s current unit price and required seat minimums. Use the last full month for the expected case and your busiest recent month for a stress case; do not assume the average remains constant when customers report incidents.
Include the workflow cost
Add the time to maintain a help center, manage routing, and train agents. A lower invoice is not useful if the team loses ticket history or a required support channel. Keep one row for implementation and ongoing administration so a cheap usage meter does not hide the cost of a second inbox, migration work, or a manual export needed by your team.
Before you change the setup
monthly resolved conversation count, average AI replies per conversation, required seat count, and a busy-month estimate
a spreadsheet built from the last full month of conversation records and each vendor's current pricing page
a resolution and a reply are different billing units; example math is a planning estimate, not a quote
Test the support boundary
- How many AI replies did our last 100 resolved conversations contain?
- Which charges apply when a human closes an AI-started conversation?
- Does our estimate include required seats and overage fees?
Frequently asked questions
The estimate compares unlike units
Translate resolutions into replies using your own sampled conversations instead of assuming one answer equals one resolved case.
A flat plan looks cheaper only in a quiet month
Run the calculation at typical and peak volume, then include overage behavior and required workspace charges.
The worked MivoChat example is treated as a live checkout quote
Starter and Pro are reference plan limits; paid billing is still coming soon, so do not represent the example as an available invoice.
A vendor's public price has changed
Recheck the vendor's live pricing and unit definition before sending the comparison to a buyer or finance owner.