Build from approved sources
The documentation lists files, websites, text snippets, Q&A, Notion pages, and support tickets. Choose sources that answer your users’ questions. You do not need to upload every document your organisation owns.
A practical guide / Data Chatbots
Chatbase
Make the answer in your documents easy to find.
Help customers, applicants, and staff find answers in your website, handbook, or course guide. Chatbase builds an assistant from selected information. Depending on the plan and setup, it can pass questions to a person or run actions through connected systems.
Explore ChatbaseProduct information checked .
- Limited free plan
- $0
- Hobby / month
- $40
- Advertised paid-plan trial
- 7 days
- Responsible for each source
- 1 owner
01 / What it can help with
Give the tool a clear job to do.
See which features can help with your task. Use current information, put someone in charge, and decide when staff should step in.
Keep information current
Changes to sources are processed automatically. Standard and Pro list weekly automatic syncing for supported sources. For urgent changes to fees, deadlines, or policies, update the information and check it yourself.
Go beyond a static FAQ
Actions can collect leads, send questions to staff, make bookings through a supported connection, or call an API. Distinguish between giving information and changing a customer’s account or booking.
Send difficult questions to a person
Use the documented helpdesk and takeover tools to pass questions that need more help to staff. Decide who receives the conversation and what happens outside their working hours.
Add chat, email, or voice where it fits
Chatbase documents website chat and other channels. Voice, telephone services, API access, and helpdesk are listed from Standard. Confirm the channels and usage charges for your plan.
Test answers and track usage
The documentation includes tests, conversation review, analytics, rate limits, and spam protection. Use those controls with a set of real questions and expected answers.
02 / The work in practice
See how it could help with everyday work.
These examples show ways a business or institution could use the tool. Adapt the steps to your systems, team, and access rules.
01Business / Customer supportAnswer a delivery or returns question with the right policy
Customers find a product quickly, then struggle to find delivery areas, return deadlines, or instructions for a damaged item.
What to prepare
Current delivery rules, returns policies, product FAQs, and a process for passing requests to support staff. Make sure promotional promises match the policy.
When a person takes over
Ask staff to handle refund approvals, disputed transactions, identity checks, and live order details when no authenticated system connection is available.
Steps to follow
- Load only approved pages and policy documents, with clear region and product labels.
- Ask the customer which policy detail or product they need help with.
- Explain the relevant rule and the next step without inventing an exception.
- Send disputes and requests about individual accounts to staff, with the conversation history.
What to measure
Correct answers to a fixed set of policy questions; repeat contacts for the same issue; staff time needed after a question is passed to them.
02Institute / Student servicesHelp students find the right details in the prospectus
Applicants cannot tell whether a fee, timetable, or application deadline applies to their programme and intake.
What to prepare
Current course pages, dated fee tables, intake deadlines, application steps, and published student services contacts.
When a person takes over
Ask staff to handle admission outcomes, grades, personal student records, welfare concerns, and questions the published information does not answer.
Steps to follow
- Organise information by programme and intake. Remove outdated brochures from the sources in use.
- Ask which programme and study period the applicant means.
- Answer using current published material and explain the next application step.
- Pass personal eligibility and funding questions to the appropriate adviser.
What to measure
Correct programme and intake selection; answers not supported by the sources; adviser time spent explaining public information.
03Institution / Operations or HRHelp staff find instructions without interrupting a colleague
The same ‘which form do I use?’ and ‘who approves this?’ questions keep landing on the operations desk.
What to prepare
A carefully selected set of general procedures, form instructions, version dates, and people responsible for each process. Check access controls before using internal material.
When a person takes over
Ask staff to handle individual employee matters, restricted records, conflicting policies, and requests to approve or bypass a process.
Steps to follow
- Start a trial with general procedures that contain no sensitive information and that all intended users are allowed to see.
- Keep one current source for each procedure and choose someone to maintain it.
- Answer the question and name the next step or responsible team.
- Record missing or unclear guidance and ask the person responsible to fix it.
What to measure
Questions answered from the correct procedure; missing guidance identified; repeat interruptions to the operations desk.
03 / Start small
Try one task your team can check.
Compare the same kind of work before and during the trial. Include preparation, checking, and any requests staff need to handle.
- 01
Organise information on one topic
Choose a topic with repeated questions. Remove duplicate and outdated pages, choose someone to maintain the information, and write down the answer to each test question.
- 02
Build and test it
Add selected sources and set reply instructions. Test simple questions, unclear questions, questions with outdated dates, and questions outside the assistant’s intended role. Check separately that questions reach the right staff member.
- 03
Publish to a small audience
Start on one page or with one authorised group. Review wrong answers and unanswered questions daily, then update the sources before expanding.
04 / Budget
Know the full cost before you subscribe.
The prices below use monthly billing. Check current plans, taxes, how usage is counted, and any extra channel charges before subscribing.
Plan
Free
A limited way to try the tool before choosing a plan.
$0/month
- 50 message credits / month
- 1 member
- Limited model access
- Inactivity deletion after 14 days
Plan
Hobby
A small website assistant with information kept up to date.
$40/month
- 700 message credits / month
- 2 members
- Advanced models and integrations
- Basic analytics and attachments
Plan
Standard
More channels and connections to other systems.
$150/month
- 4,000 message credits / month
- 3 members
- Helpdesk, voice, and telephony
- API access and auto-resync
Plan
Pro
Higher usage limits and more detailed monitoring.
$500/month
- 15,000 message credits / month
- 5 members
- Advanced analytics
- Source suggestions and tickets as sources
Published USD prices with monthly billing. Annual plans advertise 20% off. One message credit does not necessarily cover one conversation. Auto-recharge is listed at $40 per 1,000 credits. Extra agents and branding removal cost extra. Free agents can be deleted after 14 days of inactivity.
Custom Enterprise plans list higher limits, SSO, roles, audit logs, and service commitments. Confirm the contract and controls your organisation needs. Ask about the Enterprise plan
05 / Check the results
Measure what your team can finish.
Record how the task works today, then compare the trial results. Include time spent checking answers and making corrections.
- Answer accuracy
- Compare replies with approved answers, including the right region, version, and intake date.
- Questions resolved
- Check whether the visitor completed the next step or returned with the same unanswered question.
- Time spent maintaining information
- Track credit usage and the time spent reviewing replies, updating sources, and handling requests that need more help.
06 / Our recommendation
Choose a tool that fits the way you work.
Consider Chatbase when your team repeatedly searches existing information for answers. Start with a small, organised set of sources and test how questions are passed to staff. This is easier to manage than a large upload of poorly organised documents.
What to check before you choose
- Are the source documents current and readable?
- Who approves changes to fees, dates, and policies?
- Is every intended user allowed to see all the information you have added?
- Who handles an unanswered question, and when will they reply?
When to pause
Fix contradictory policies first. For private records or decisions affecting a person, establish authorised access and staff review before considering an assistant.
Take a closer look at ChatbaseWe may earn a commission if you use our partner link, at no extra cost to you. Disclosure
07 / Questions before you start
Get the details clear before you start.
Can I upload a scanned PDF?
The current guide to data sources requires text you can select for document training. Scanned PDFs without a text layer cannot be used for training. Prepare readable files before uploading.
Will it always give the correct answer?
No AI assistant can guarantee that. Test it with approved questions, keep sources current, and make it easy to reach a person when an answer is unclear.
Is the free plan suitable for a live helpdesk?
It has limited usage, and agents can be deleted after 14 days of inactivity. Use it for an initial test. Before relying on it, check paid-plan limits and how questions are passed to staff.
Can we include private student or employee files?
Begin with approved general information. Private records need a plan that restricts access to authorised users, a suitable vendor agreement, and approval from your organisation. A public chat widget alone does not provide those access controls.
Can it issue refunds or change bookings?
Actions through connected systems can perform these tasks, but permissions, identity checks, and business rules must be set up and tested. Start with information that can be read without changing records, and require staff approval for changes.