AI tools for small businesses: 38 tools by task

A small team covers support, marketing, sales, money and hiring with very few people. These are the tools in our directory for each of those jobs, side by side, so you can see what each one costs to start and whether it has a free plan.

Listed by task, alphabetical within each task, not ranked and not tested: we have not used these tools. Descriptions and starting prices are the ones on each tool's page, from the vendors' own sites and other public sources, and they change, so confirm on the vendor's site before you pay.

Before you pick a tool

Check what you are charged for. Support and sales tools often bill per user, per conversation or per credit. Estimate your monthly volume before you compare the starting prices.
Look for the price at your size. A starting price can be for one seat or a small plan, and growth tiers can be several times higher. Open the profile to see the plan ladder.
Think about customer and employee data. Support chats, sales lists and applicant records contain personal data. Read the vendor's privacy terms and check what rules apply where you operate.
Test with real work first. Use a free plan or trial on a real task for a week before you commit to an annual plan.

Search tools

Customer support8 tools

Helpdesks, live chat and chatbots.

ChatbasePlatform for building AI support agents trained on your own content and deploying them to web chat, email, WhatsApp, Slack and more. Paid plans with a 7-day trial.$40/mo
CrispShared inbox and live chat platform with Hugo, an AI agent billed through monthly credits. Free plan available; paid plans start at $45 a month per workspace.Free / $45+
FreshdeskHelpdesk with ticketing, shared inbox and knowledge base, plus Freddy AI Agent and Copilot add-ons. Per-agent plans; 14-day trial and a limited free program.$19/mo
Help ScoutShared-inbox helpdesk with live chat, SMS and AI reply drafting; a Free plan exists, and Standard is $25 per user a month (reported as billed annually).Free / $25+
IntercomCustomer service platform with a shared inbox and help center, plus Fin, an AI agent for chat and email billed per outcome. Per-seat plans; 14-day free trial.$29/mo
LiveChatLive chat and messaging tool, sold under the Text brand, with an AI Agent and reply suggestions. Essential is $19 per user a month billed annually ($25 monthly).$19/mo
TidioLive chat and helpdesk with Lyro, an AI agent that answers from your content. Free plan; Starter is $24.17 a month billed annually.Free / $24.17+
ZendeskCustomer service platform with ticketing, multichannel messaging, AI agents billed per automated resolution, and a Copilot add-on for agents. 14-day trial.$19/mo

Marketing and search7 tools

SEO, ads and social media tools.

AdCreative.aiGenerates ad creatives, copy, photos and videos, with creative scoring. Starter is $20 a month billed annually ($39 monthly); 7-day trial, no free plan.$20/mo
AhrefsSEO toolset for keyword research, site audits, rank tracking and backlink analysis. Free account for verified sites; paid plans start at $29 a month (Starter, monthly billing only).Free / $29+
BufferSocial media scheduling tool priced per channel, with a free plan for 3 channels and an AI Assistant for drafting and repurposing post text.Free / $5+
HootsuiteSocial media management suite with AI for scheduling, inbox, listening and analytics. Standard is $99 per user a month billed annually.$99/mo
MetricoolSocial media scheduling, analytics and reporting tool with a Free plan for 1 brand; paid plans start at $20 a month billed annually ($25 monthly).Free / $20+
SemrushSEO and marketing suite with keyword, site audit and competitor tools plus AI Visibility tracking. Free plan and paid tiers from $139/mo.$139/mo
Surfer SEOContent optimization and AI-search visibility tool for SEO writers and teams. Plans start at $49 a month billed annually; 7-day Pro trial, no ongoing free plan.$49/mo

Sales outreach5 tools

Email outreach and lead tools.

Apollo.ioB2B contact database with sequences, dialing and AI research tools. Free plan available; Basic is $49 per user a month billed annually (Reported).Free / $49+
Instantly.aiCold email outreach platform with unlimited email accounts and warmup, plus separate credits plans for lead data and AI agents. Outreach starts at $47 a month, billed monthly.$47/mo
lemlistSales engagement platform for email and multichannel outreach with a lead database; Email plan from $55 a month billed yearly ($69 monthly).$55/mo
Reply.ioSales outreach platform for email, LinkedIn, calls and SMS, plus a Jason AI SDR product. Reported Email Volume price is $49 per user a month billed annually.$49/mo
SmartleadCold email outreach platform with unlimited mailboxes, warmup and a unified inbox; Base is $32.50 a month billed annually ($39 monthly), with a 14-day trial.$32.50/mo

Finance and spend6 tools

Accounting, bill pay, cards and expenses.

BILLFinance platform for payables, receivables, and spend management. Spend & Expense is $0 per user; AP & AR starts at $49 per user a month (billing basis not stated).Free / $49+
BrexCorporate card and spend-management platform with AI custom rules and an expense assistant. Essentials is $0 per user a month; Premium is $12 per user a month (cycle not stated).Free / $12+
ExpensifyExpense management with receipt scanning and approvals. A free Submit workspace exists for individuals; Collect starts at $5 per member a month (pay-per-use, no annual billing).Free / $5+
RampCorporate card and spend platform with AI policy review and invoice coding. Free plan; Plus is $15 per user a month, or about $12 with annual billing, plus a platform fee.Free / $12+
XeroCloud accounting software for small businesses with JAX, an in-product AI assistant that answers questions about your Xero data. Plans start at $27 a month, billed monthly.$27/mo
ZeniAI bookkeeping with a dedicated finance team for U.S. companies, on QuickBooks Online. Starts at $494 a month billed annually ($549 monthly).$494/mo

Hiring6 tools

Applicant tracking and HR tools.

BambooHRHR platform with an AI assistant that answers questions from company HR data. Core starts at $10 per employee a month, month-to-month; $250 flat for 25 or fewer.$10/mo
Breezy HRApplicant tracking system with job board distribution, pipelines and interviews. Free plan covers one active position; Startup is $157 a month billed annually.Free / $157+
HomerunHiring and applicant-tracking platform with a 15-day free trial and no free plan; Core appears to start at €109 a month billed annually (€139 monthly).€109/mo
JazzHRApplicant tracking and recruiting software for hiring teams. Hero is $1,000 a year billed annually (about $83 a month); monthly prices are not listed.$83/mo
ManatalApplicant tracking system and recruitment CRM with AI enrichment, scoring and an AI Copilot. From $15 per user a month billed annually ($19 monthly).$15/mo
WorkableHiring platform with applicant tracking, sourcing and HR tools, plus a credit-based AI agent add-on. Standard is $299 a month, or $3,588 billed yearly.$299/mo

Automation and project work6 tools

Connect your apps and organize work.

ActivepiecesOpen-source workflow automation and AI agent platform, cloud or self-hosted. Free includes 1,000 credits; Plus is $20 a month (annual price not listed).Free / $20+
AirtableNo-code database and app builder with views, interfaces, automations and AI (Omni, field agents). Free plan; paid plans are per seat, from $20 a month billed annually.$20/mo
ClickUpWork management platform for tasks, docs and chat, with a free plan and per-user paid tiers from $7 a month billed yearly. The Brain AI assistant is a separate per-user add-on.Free / $7+
monday.comWork management platform with boards, docs, automations and AI credits on paid plans. Free plan has 2 seats; Basic is $9 per seat a month billed annually.Free / $9+
n8nWorkflow automation and AI-agent platform. Self-host the Community Edition or use n8n Cloud from €20/mo billed annually; billing counts workflow executions.From €20/mo
Zapier AgentsNo-code AI agents that work across 9,000+ apps in Zapier. Free plan of 400 activities a month; Pro is $400 a year (about $33 a month).Free / $33+

Tools on this page with a free plan16 tools

These list a free plan on their tool page. Free plans differ a lot in limits, watermarks and what you may do commercially, so open the profile before you rely on one.

ActivepiecesOpen-source workflow automation and AI agent platform, cloud or self-hosted. Free includes 1,000 credits; Plus is $20 a month (annual price not listed).Free / $20+
AhrefsSEO toolset for keyword research, site audits, rank tracking and backlink analysis. Free account for verified sites; paid plans start at $29 a month (Starter, monthly billing only).Free / $29+
Apollo.ioB2B contact database with sequences, dialing and AI research tools. Free plan available; Basic is $49 per user a month billed annually (Reported).Free / $49+
BILLFinance platform for payables, receivables, and spend management. Spend & Expense is $0 per user; AP & AR starts at $49 per user a month (billing basis not stated).Free / $49+
Breezy HRApplicant tracking system with job board distribution, pipelines and interviews. Free plan covers one active position; Startup is $157 a month billed annually.Free / $157+
BrexCorporate card and spend-management platform with AI custom rules and an expense assistant. Essentials is $0 per user a month; Premium is $12 per user a month (cycle not stated).Free / $12+
BufferSocial media scheduling tool priced per channel, with a free plan for 3 channels and an AI Assistant for drafting and repurposing post text.Free / $5+
ClickUpWork management platform for tasks, docs and chat, with a free plan and per-user paid tiers from $7 a month billed yearly. The Brain AI assistant is a separate per-user add-on.Free / $7+
CrispShared inbox and live chat platform with Hugo, an AI agent billed through monthly credits. Free plan available; paid plans start at $45 a month per workspace.Free / $45+
ExpensifyExpense management with receipt scanning and approvals. A free Submit workspace exists for individuals; Collect starts at $5 per member a month (pay-per-use, no annual billing).Free / $5+
Help ScoutShared-inbox helpdesk with live chat, SMS and AI reply drafting; a Free plan exists, and Standard is $25 per user a month (reported as billed annually).Free / $25+
MetricoolSocial media scheduling, analytics and reporting tool with a Free plan for 1 brand; paid plans start at $20 a month billed annually ($25 monthly).Free / $20+
monday.comWork management platform with boards, docs, automations and AI credits on paid plans. Free plan has 2 seats; Basic is $9 per seat a month billed annually.Free / $9+
RampCorporate card and spend platform with AI policy review and invoice coding. Free plan; Plus is $15 per user a month, or about $12 with annual billing, plus a platform fee.Free / $12+
TidioLive chat and helpdesk with Lyro, an AI agent that answers from your content. Free plan; Starter is $24.17 a month billed annually.Free / $24.17+
Zapier AgentsNo-code AI agents that work across 9,000+ apps in Zapier. Free plan of 400 activities a month; Pro is $400 a year (about $33 a month).Free / $33+

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