Chatwoot

Unify multiple channels in one support inbox while preserving customer context

Website chat, email, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp, Telegram, LINE, SMS, and related channels can be handled in one workspace. Contact profiles and interaction history keep support context attached to the customer across channels.

Private notes, mentions, labels, canned responses, auto-assignment, business hours, teams, automation, and agent-capacity management support shared-inbox operations.

Sources: [2]

Extend the inbox with a help center, segmentation, campaigns, reporting, and business integrations

The Help Center Portal supports self-service content, while contact segments, custom attributes, pre-chat forms, and campaigns extend customer engagement. Chatwoot also provides conversation, agent, inbox, label, team, and CSAT reporting.

The README highlights integrations including Slack, Dialogflow, Shopify, Google Translate, Linear, and embedded Dashboard Apps.

Sources: [2]

Combine Captain AI with a Rails/Sidekiq self-host stack

Captain automates routine support and reduces agent workload; v4.17.1 improves its analytics, reasoning, and conversation context. Self-hosted installations configure the OpenAI API key and endpoint through Super Admin settings.

The production Compose runs Rails and Sidekiq with PostgreSQL 16 plus pgvector, Redis, and persistent storage. The source toolchain uses Ruby 3.4.4, Node.js 24.x, pnpm 10.x, and Vue 3.

Sources: [2][3][8][4][9][10]

For teams that want to self-host an Intercom/Zendesk-style support operation

Chatwoot fits organizations that need website chat plus email and messaging channels in a shared desk, with help-center, automation, and reporting capabilities on infrastructure they control. Its value is in self-hosting the support operation rather than merely running a generic chat server.

Self-hosting does not remove third-party channel or AI-provider dependencies

WhatsApp, Meta channels, email, SMS, translation, commerce, and related integrations still depend on provider APIs, credentials, rate limits, and policies. Enabling Captain sends relevant support context to the configured AI endpoint.

Operators should map data and credential boundaries per channel, AI provider, and integration instead of assuming all communication remains local.

Sources: [2][8]

Community is MIT, while enterprise/ uses a commercial license

The root LICENSE places code outside enterprise/ under MIT Expat and delegates enterprise/ to the Enterprise License. Production use of Enterprise code requires a valid subscription for the applicable seat count.

This catalog therefore records NOASSERTION. Forks, commercial deployments, and redistributions need to identify whether the code they use belongs to the Community or Enterprise side.

Sources: [6][7]

Only the latest version receives security support

The Security Policy marks latest as supported and older releases as unsupported. The v4.17.1 release explicitly recommends upgrading for security updates and hardening.

Because Chatwoot handles authentication, customer PII, attachments, and channel credentials on an internet-facing surface, operators should plan database-migration and integration-regression testing around regular stable upgrades.

Sources: [5][3]

The production Compose file is a reference, not a complete hardened deployment

The v4.17.1 Compose expects an operator-supplied PostgreSQL password and binds Rails, PostgreSQL, and Redis to loopback. Public deployments still need reverse-proxy/TLS, mail, file or object storage, backups, and secret management.

The README warns that missing relevant environment variables can break features, and the configuration surface grows as more channels and integrations are enabled.

Sources: [4][2]