Channels overview
Channels has three sections: Messaging with the public Direct link, the Web widget, and Plugins. The Direct link works on every plan.
Browse topics
What it is
Channels are the doors visitors use to reach one chatbot. The tab has three sections, and they are not alternatives so much as layers you add over time.
- Messaging — the public Direct link card, plus a grid of ten messaging apps: Telegram, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, Slack, Discord, LINE, Viber, WeChat, and SMS.
- Web widget — the chat bubble you embed on your own site, the iframe snippet, and the allowed-domains list that controls where the widget may load.
- Plugins — ready-made install snippets for content platforms and storefronts, so you can paste rather than edit code.
The Direct link at the top of Messaging is the important one to notice first. It is a public page hosted by Agentency, it is available on every plan including Free, and it needs no setup beyond activating the chatbot. If you need something to share today, that is it — see Share a hosted link.
When you would use it
Use this page when you are deciding between a link, a widget, and a messaging app — or when something works in the dashboard's test chat but not where your customers are.
A useful order for most people: share the Direct link first to prove the chatbot answers well, then embed the Web widget on your site, then connect a messaging app once you know which one your customers actually use.
Where to find it
Open Dashboard → Chatbots → your chatbot → Integrations. The three sections are ?tab=messaging, ?tab=web, and ?tab=plugins, so a bookmarked link reopens the section you were on.
Steps
- Open the chatbot and go to Integrations.
- Start on Messaging. Copy the URL from the Direct link card.
- If the page warns that the chatbot is draft or paused, activate it first — a link to an inactive chatbot returns a not-found page. See Activate or pause a chatbot.
- Open the link in a private browser window and ask a real question. Fix the answers before you widen the audience.
- Move to Web widget when you are ready to embed. Paid plans with integrations get the snippet; before going live, add your site to the allowed domains — see Embed the website widget and Widget allowed domains.
- Open Plugins only if you use one of the listed platforms; WordPress and Shopify and storefronts have their own guides.
- Connect a messaging app last, using Other messaging apps to choose one and find its guide.
What you will see
Three sub-tabs that stay in step with the URL. Messaging shows the Direct link card followed by the app grid, with unavailable cards visibly disabled and labelled so you can see the whole catalogue either way. Above the grid sit three figures: Connected channels as a connected-out-of-maximum count, Total messages, and Total users. Web widget holds the snippet, the iframe markup, and the domain list. A notice appears at the top while the chatbot is not active.
Is the test chat a channel?
No. Test chatbot in the dashboard is a private drawer for you, and it does not need any channel to be set up. It can still show up in Conversations as a dashboard-originated thread, which is why your own experiments appear in the list alongside real visitors.
Limits and plan notes
On Free you get the Direct link only. The website widget, the plugin snippets, and the messaging apps all need a paid plan with integrations — see Integrations and plans.
Messaging apps have a second condition on top of your plan: Agentency has to have enabled them for this deployment. That means they can stay unavailable on a paid plan, and there is no switch on your account to change it. Messaging channels availability explains how to tell which situation you are in.
Every answer costs the same regardless of the door it came through: credits at your chatbot's live model rate (1X = one credit per reply), on the widget, the public link, and every messaging app (Message credits).
What a paused chatbot does per channel
This difference matters when you are debugging, because the same paused chatbot fails three different ways:
- Web widget — refuses to load.
- Direct link — returns a not-found page.
- Messaging apps — accept the message and never reply, with no error to the customer.
Activate the chatbot first, then chase the channel. Chasing a channel while the chatbot is paused wastes an afternoon.
Common problems
The public link shows a not-found page.
Activate the chatbot and copy the link from this tab again. Draft and paused chatbots are hidden deliberately — see Hosted page 404.
Every messaging app says Coming soon.
Messaging is switched off for this deployment, or your plan locks integrations. Use the Direct link, or upgrade. See Coming soon channels.
The widget does not appear on my site.
Almost always the allowed-domains list or a caching layer — start at Widget not showing.
A messaging app says Connected but customers get nothing.
Four of the ten platforms need a callback URL pasted into the provider's dashboard, and four more need a verification handshake finished. Other messaging apps explains which is which.
Which channel should I put on my website?
The widget for a chat bubble in the corner, the iframe or public link for a dedicated support page. Hosted vs widget compares them properly.
Common questions
Do I need WhatsApp to go live?
No. The Direct link is enough and it works on Free. The website widget and the messaging apps need a paid plan.
Which channel should I set up first?
The Direct link. Share it, check the answers on real questions, then add the widget and a messaging app.
Is Test chatbot a channel?
No, it is a dashboard drawer for you. Your test threads can still appear in Conversations as dashboard-originated conversations.
Does a paused chatbot fail the same way everywhere?
No. The widget refuses to load, the public link returns a not-found page, and messaging apps accept the message and never reply.
Was this article helpful?
Related articles
Messaging channels availability
Three conditions decide whether a messaging app can connect: your plan, the deployment rollout, and the platform itself.
Other messaging apps
Ten apps share one grid, one connected-app cap, and three post-save patterns. Pick a platform here, then follow its own guide.
Share a hosted chatbot link
The fastest way to put a chatbot in front of people, and the one public surface available on every plan including Free.
Embed the website widget
Copy one script tag from Integrations → Web widget, paste it on your published pages, then allow your domain and verify.
Ready to try it on your own content?
Create a free workspace, add a document, and ask the questions your team is tired of answering.