Why HVAC sites need chat that answers, not just collects
- Homeowners with no heat or no AC want an answer now. A contact form that says “we’ll get back to you” loses them to the next result on Google.
- Most HVAC chat questions repeat: do you service my area, what does a tune-up cost, are you open today, can someone come out this week. An AI bot trained on your site and services can answer these 24/7.
- The goal is a booked call or a captured phone number. Judge any chatbot by how fast it gets a name, number, and address in front of your dispatcher.
What to look for
- Learns from your website and service list, not a long manual setup
- Collects name, phone, address, and the problem before it hands off
- Sends you or the office an instant alert (text or app) for every lead
- Books on your calendar, or at least sends a booking link
- Hands off to a human when the question is outside its script
- Works on mobile, since most homeowners search from their phone
- Billing that doesn’t charge you for spam chats
Option 1: Rosie (official pricing, checked Oct 17 2026)
Source: https://heyrosie.com/pricing
| Plan | Price | Phone minutes | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional | $49/mo | 250 | Message taking (2 scenarios), text appointment links, spam detection, website chat widget |
| Scale | $149/mo | 1,000 | Adds direct calendar booking, warm and live transfers, texts during the call |
| Growth | $299/mo | 2,000 | Adds waterfall transfers, custom training docs, white-glove onboarding |
- Website Chat add-on: free with all plans. Rosie says it answers visitor questions 24/7.
- Website Texting add-on: $50/mo for 25 conversations, then $1 each.
- All plans: trained from your Google profile and website, custom FAQs, English and Spanish, call summaries and recordings, Zapier, iOS and Android apps. 7-day free trial. Annual billing gives 2 months free.
- Best fit: an HVAC shop that also misses phone calls. One tool covers both. See our AI answering service for HVAC guide.
Option 2: Tidio (official pricing, checked Oct 17 2026)
Source: https://www.tidio.com/pricing/
- Customer Service Starter: $24.17/mo for 100 billable conversations, basic analytics, live chat channels. A billable conversation is one where a human on your team replies. Replies from the Lyro AI agent and automated Flows don’t count toward that limit, and unanswered spam isn’t billed.
- Lyro AI Agent: starts at $32.50/mo. Tidio says customers average a 75% resolution rate. It answers from your support content and hands off to a human. Every account starts with 50 Lyro conversations; a paid Lyro plan refreshes the limit monthly.
- Flows (no-code chat paths, for example a “Book a tune-up” button): starts at $24.17/mo. The free plan limits Flows to 100 unique visitors a month.
- 7-day free trial on all features, no credit card. Up to 10 agents on self-serve plans.
- Best fit: a shop that just wants a solid chat bubble and already handles phones. Tidio is a general customer service tool, not built for trades, so you set up the HVAC questions yourself.
Option 3: HighLevel Conversation AI (official pricing, checked Oct 17 2026)
Source: https://www.gohighlevel.com/pricing
| Plan | Price | Notes for one HVAC shop |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $97/mo or $970/yr | 3 sub-accounts, unlimited contacts and users. Enough for one shop. |
| Unlimited | $297/mo or $2,970/yr | Built for agencies. |
- Conversation AI, Voice AI, and Reviews AI are listed as core features, with usage-based charges.
- Optional AI Employee add-on: $50/mo (Growth) or $97/mo (Unlimited) per sub-account.
- Also includes website builder, booking calendars, SMS and email marketing, and missed call text back. See our missed call text back guide.
- 14-day free trial. Billing starts automatically when the trial ends unless canceled.
- Downside: built for marketing agencies. Expect setup time, or pay someone to set it up.
Rough math (example, not measured data)
If a typical HVAC repair call is worth $250 to $500, one extra booked job a month from website chat covers any of these plans.
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