Wonderful plugin
Wonderful and accessible plugin with rich features, highly extensible with powerful hooks and great support.
Priced per site, never per member
Start free on WordPress.org. Upgrade to WebSocket for instant delivery, voice and video calls, Cloud AI and your own mobile apps, on 1 to 100 sites. Each site costs less as you add more.
AJAX
Messaging for any WordPress site, on any hosting
No license needed, use it on any number of sites.
Free
Free forever on WordPress.org
Download free- 35+ plugin integrationsBuddyPress, BuddyBoss, PeepSo, Ultimate Member, FluentCommunity, WooCommerce, Dokan, LearnDash and many more.
- Private, group and chat room conversationsOne-to-one and group conversations, chat rooms open to everyone or to chosen roles, and group chats for BuddyPress, PeepSo, Ultimate Member and FluentCommunity groups.
- Guest chat without an accountVisitors can join chat rooms as guests, without registering on the site.
- New messages every 3–10 secondsThe free version checks for new messages over AJAX, every 3 seconds in an open conversation and every 10 seconds elsewhere, on any hosting. Messages written offline are sent once the connection returns.
- Modern design you can restyleA clean, mobile-friendly messenger with appearance presets, colors, dark mode and right-to-left layouts, translated into many languages.
- Files, emoji, stickers and GIFsFiles of any type with photo editing, video and link previews, location messages, text formatting, emoji, sticker packs and GIPHY or KLIPY GIFs.
- Replies, reactions, edits and favoritesReply to a message, react with emoji, edit, delete or forward what you sent, and keep favorite messages in one list.
- Search, pins and mentionsSearch every message, pin messages and conversations, mention people with @, filter unread conversations and keep unsent drafts.
- Email, sound and on-site notificationsEmail about unread messages, a sound for new ones and a notice on any page of the site. Each conversation can be muted.
- Moderation and safety toolsReport and block users, a bad-words filter, message pre-moderation, site moderators, role-based messaging rules, transcript export and AI moderation with your own OpenAI key.
- Mass messagingSend one message to all members or to chosen groups of members from WP Admin, with scheduling and attachments.
- Charge points for messagesCharge myCRED or GamiPress points for new conversations and messages, with a price per role.
- AI chat bots with your own API keyOpenAI, Anthropic Claude or Google Gemini bots in private and group conversations, with web search, image generation and scheduled summaries, using your own provider key.
- Mini widgetsFriends, groups, users, AI bots and chat rooms tabs in a bottom bar or a floating bubble, on every page.
- Privacy and GDPR toolsPersonal data export and erasure, suggested privacy policy text, auto-delete of old messages, no cookies or tracking, and click-to-load video embeds.
- Shortcodes, blocks and developer APIAdd messaging anywhere with shortcodes and blocks, extend it through the REST API and hooks, and connect AI assistants over MCP.
- No Better Messages brandingMembers never see a Better Messages logo or link. The messenger looks like part of your site.
Most popular
WebSocket
Instant messages, calls and your own mobile app
Normally $14.99 / mo
$11.99/ mo
$143.88 billed yearly, one site
- Up to 200x faster message deliveryMessages arrive the moment they are sent, instead of waiting for the next 3–10 second AJAX check.
- 32 people in one group video callHD group video calls in any group conversation or chat room.
- 50 people in one group audio callHD group audio calls in any group conversation or chat room.
- Unlimited members, messages and connectionsNo per-member, per-message or connection fees. The price is the same at 100 members or 100,000.
Everything in AJAX, plus
- One-to-one voice and video callsHD calls from any conversation. The call servers are included in the price.
- Screen sharingShare the screen during voice and video calls.
- Your own iOS and Android appBuild a branded messenger app from WP Admin and publish it to the App Store and Google Play, with push notifications and calls that ring like a phone call.
- Less load on your serverRealtime traffic goes through the WebSocket servers instead of your hosting, so the site stays fast even on shared hosting.
- Online, typing and read indicatorsSee who is online, who is typing or recording, and who has read each message, per person in group chats. Member lists can put online people first, and chat rooms show how many are online.
- Push notificationsWeb push notifications reach members on desktop and mobile when they are away from the site, including group chats in BuddyPress, PeepSo, Ultimate Member, FluentCommunity and course chats.
- Cloud AI with no API keyAutomatic translation into 69 languages, AI moderation with 23 categories and voice message transcription, all included. Transcription needs the Voice and Video Messages add-on.
- End-to-end encryptionOptional encryption in the browser, so not even the site administrator can read the messages.
- Mini chats and conversations widgetChat windows, chat heads and a recent conversations list at the bottom of every page, so members keep chatting while they browse.
- User statusesMembers set Online, Away or Do not disturb, and others see it.
- Realtime site notificationsFriend requests, group invitations and other site events appear instantly.
- Call pricing with pointsCharge myCRED or GamiPress points per minute of a private call.
- Call permissionsAllow calls between friends only, or stop chosen roles from starting calls and group calls.
- Call buttons on profilesAudio and video call buttons on BuddyPress, BuddyBoss, PeepSo, FluentCommunity and SureDash profiles and member directories.
- Encrypted browser storageMessages kept in the browser for fast loading are stored encrypted.
- Servers cannot read your messagesMessages are AES-256 encrypted on your WordPress server before they reach the WebSocket servers in Frankfurt, which only pass them along and cannot read them.
- Messages stay in your databaseMessages and files are stored only in your WordPress database. The WebSocket servers do not store them.
- Cancel any time, keep everythingIf you cancel, conversations, files and settings stay, and the site goes back to AJAX.
WebSocket Self-Hosted
For sites that must keep all traffic on their own servers
$25.00/ mo
$299.99 billed yearly, one site
Everything in WebSocket, plus
- Realtime server on your own VPSThe WebSocket server runs on a VPS you provide, billed separately by your hosting provider. Most sites do not need this plan.
- Installation includedI set up the WebSocket server on your VPS once, as part of the plan.
- Traffic stays on your serversFor GDPR special-category data, HIPAA-adjacent workloads or company rules that forbid third-party relays.
Add-on
Voice and Video Messages
Record voice messages and short video messages in any conversation, with duration limits, auto-delete, role restrictions and optional AI transcription. Works with the free and the WebSocket version. Learn more
$11.99 / year
For one site
Secure checkout by Freemius, with cards and PayPal. Cancel any time, and your conversations stay.
7-day Money Back Guarantee
You are fully protected by our 100% Money Back Guarantee. If during the next 7 days you experience an issue that makes the plugin unusable and we are unable to resolve it, we'll happily consider offering a full refund of your money.
Learn MoreReviews
What site owners say
4.9 / 5 — 212 ratings
Great tool – even better support
I am using the tool as a chatroom and messenger plugin on my site and it works very well. A lot of modifcations are possible and it can be easly adapted to the website.
What really stands out is the support. You get very quick responses and help whenever you need it. That is truly not something you can take for granted.
Better Messages
Better Messages is an outstanding plugin. It works flawlessly, is fast, stable, and integrates perfectly with Ultimate Member. Even more important: whenever you have a question, the support team responds quickly, kindly, and with exceptionally clear explanations. Their help is truly excellent.
I highly recommend this plugin — it delivers great functionality and top‑level support.
fwtrader – the Netherlands
PHENOMENAL
Plugins that are this well developed and supported are few and far between. The developer went above and beyond to help me with a strange (to me) site migration issue that I’m not even sure is within the scope of support. And the features are staggeringly extensive. This is THE messaging plugin for WordPress.
Get It Now!
If you are looking for a Messaging plugin for your site, look no further. Better Messages is all you need! Works perfectly and backed up by outstanding support!
Outstanding communication platform with excellent support
Better Messages has become an essential part of our WordPress-based training platform. We use it every day for communication between instructors, students and our management team. Real-time messaging, group chats, audio/video calls and screen sharing work reliably and provide a professional user experience. One of the biggest advantages is that everything stays within our own website, without relying on external messaging platforms. The Premium version has been well worth the upgrade. The plugin is well designed, regularly improved, and exactly what we were looking for. Highly recommended!
Questions
Questions about pricing
Are Better Messages prices per-site?
Each license covers the number of sites you pick, from 1 to 100, and every extra site costs less. WebSocket goes from $11.99 a site a month for one site down to $9 a site at 100 sites, billed yearly. Self-hosted starts at $299.99 a year and adds $21 a year per extra site. For more than 100 sites, contact support.
Does Better Messages pricing scale with user count?
No. WebSocket version pricing is flat per site, regardless of how many users, messages, or concurrent connections you have. A site with 100,000 active users pays the same as one with 100.
Can I switch between monthly and annual billing?
Yes. Freemius lets you switch billing cycles from your account dashboard at any time.
What happens if I cancel the WebSocket subscription?
The license keeps working until the end of the period you have paid for. After that the plugin goes back to AJAX behavior. Messages, threads, history, files, integration data, and AI chat bots stay intact, but WebSocket push, voice and video calls, Better Messages Cloud AI, the mobile apps, and the other WebSocket-only features stop working. You can reactivate at any time. How to cancel
Is there a refund policy?
Yes — a 7-day money back guarantee. If during the first 7 days you experience an issue that makes the plugin unusable and support is unable to resolve it, you get a full refund. Renewal payments are not refunded. To ask for a refund, email support@better-messages.com. Read the refund policy
Is there a lifetime license for Better Messages?
No. The WebSocket version isn't just code — it includes the cloud WebSocket relay, TURN servers for voice and video calls, push-notification gateways, and Better Messages Cloud AI services. Every active license keeps those servers running. Better Messages has also been actively developed since 2017, and WordPress, browsers, and the 38 integrated plugins change constantly. A one-time payment cannot fund ongoing hosting infrastructure, development, and support indefinitely. The free AJAX version on WordPress.org has no expiration if recurring billing is a friction point. The Voice and Video Messages add-on is the exception and is also sold with a lifetime license.
Do I need the WebSocket Self-Hosted plan?
Only if you have strict data-sovereignty requirements: GDPR Article 9 (special-category personal data), HIPAA-adjacent workloads, internal corporate policy forbidding third-party relays, or jurisdictional requirements about which servers user data may pass through. The standard cloud WebSocket relay cannot read message content, stores none of it and is GDPR-compatible by default. Self-hosted also requires you to provide your own dedicated VPS or cloud instance, billed separately by your hosting provider.
What payment methods does Better Messages accept?
Credit and debit cards plus PayPal through the Freemius checkout. Wire transfer and invoicing are available for annual and self-hosted plans on request.
Is there a free version of Better Messages?
Yes. The free version is published on WordPress.org under the slug bp-better-messages. It uses AJAX polling for real-time delivery and includes core messaging, chat rooms, file sharing, group conversations, AI chat bots (with your own provider API key), and 38 integrations. No license required, unlimited sites.
Why is the WebSocket version paid?
The WebSocket version includes hosted relay infrastructure (servers in multiple regions, TURN relays for voice and video calls, monitoring, scaling) plus access to Better Messages Cloud AI services (moderation, translation, transcription). The subscription pays for that infrastructure and ongoing development.