Comparison
Starlix vs Tidio for Shopify stores
Choose Tidio if your team does most of the chatting and wants a live chat inbox with rule-based Flows. Choose Starlix if you want an AI agent that answers shopper questions from your own products and policies, hands the rest to you, and is billed through Shopify.
We make Starlix. Tidio figures come from Tidio's pricing page and its Shopify App Store listing as of October 2026. We update this page every quarter.
StarlixAI vs Tidio
Side-by-side summary
| Feature | StarlixAI | Tidio |
|---|---|---|
| Answers from your store data | Products, policies and approved answers Trained on your catalog and pages at install | Lyro AI answers from your knowledge base Lyro is limited by plan and add-on |
| Free plan | 50 AI conversations every month | 50 Lyro conversations in total Lifetime, not per month |
| Entry paid plan | $19.99/mo, 100 AI conversations | $24.17/mo 50 Lyro conversations, 100 billable conversations |
| What counts toward limits | AI conversations only Chats your team handles are unlimited | Billable conversations, Flows visitors and Lyro conversations |
| Handoff to a person | To your inbox with the full chat history | Live chat inbox is the core product |
| Billing | Shopify billing only Uninstall the app and charges stop | Tidio billing |
| Uninstalling | Theme app embed Removed from your theme when you uninstall | Check your theme after uninstalling Some reviewers report leftover code |
Which one fits your store
Choose Starlix if
- The AI is the main thing you're buying, and you want a predictable number of AI conversations each month.
- You want answers from your own products and policies, and a handoff to you when the AI isn't sure.
- You want billing through Shopify, so uninstalling the app ends the charges.
Tidio may be the better fit if
- Your team does most of the chatting and wants a live chat inbox first, with AI as a helper.
- You rely on Tidio's visual Flows for rule-based automations.
- You're already on Tidio and your AI volume is small.
What merchants say about Tidio
Tidio is rated 4.7 stars across about 1,260 reviews on the Shopify App Store. We read its 1 and 2 star reviews in October 2026. These are the themes that came up, in reviewers' own words:
“Complicated to understand...dashboard is cluttered”
“I have deleted an app and it STILL LEFT CODE.”
Across 1,004 one and two star reviews of chat apps on the Shopify App Store, the most common complaints were slow or missing support, bugs, being billed after cancelling, and pricing limits. We built Starlix around those four.
Trying Starlix next to Tidio
Step 1
Run both for 14 days
Starlix can run alongside Tidio. Turn it on for a few pages and compare answers on the same questions.
Step 2
Bring your FAQs
Starlix reads your products and policies at install. Add any answers you wrote in Tidio as approved answers.
Step 3
Free setup from the founder
We'll set it up with you in a 30 minute call, then you decide whether to switch.
Frequently asked questions
No. Starlix is an independent product. Tidio and Lyro are trademarks of Tidio LLC.
Tidio's free plan includes 50 Lyro conversations in total (lifetime), as of October 2026. Starlix's free plan includes 50 AI conversations every month.
Yes. You can test Starlix next to your current chat for two weeks before deciding. Show one widget per page so shoppers aren't confused.
No. Only conversations the AI handles count. Conversations your team handles are unlimited on every plan.
Starlix adds its chat as a theme app embed, which Shopify removes from your storefront when you uninstall the app. Billing runs through Shopify, so charges stop too.
Got more questions? Contact us.
See which questions your store leaves unanswered.
Run the free AI Agent Readiness Score, then let Starlix answer them.