Merchant AI: Chatbots & Agents vs Retainley: AI Chatbot & Agent
Two Shopify apps, side by side: detected stores, momentum, reviews, plans, listed features and who runs each. Store counts as of Oct 13, 2026 for Merchant AI, Oct 24, 2026 for Retainley.
The short answer
- On the Shopify App Store: Merchant AI 5.0 from 1 reviews and Retainley 5.0 from 1 reviews.
- Both list a free plan. Paid plans start at $25/month for Merchant AI and $29/month for Retainley.
- Retainley lists 4 features Merchant AI’s listing doesn’t mention, including Color and font, Discounts, Multi-language.
Head to head
Free Plan
- · 1 AI agent
- · 1 MB knowledge base
- · 1 team seat
- · 20 messages / month
- · Website & file sources
Starter Plan
- · 1 AI agent
- · 15 MB knowledge base
- · 2 team seats
- · 400 messages / month
- · Advanced analytics
- · All source types
Pro Plan
- · 2,500 messages / month
- · 3 AI agents
- · 30 MB knowledge base
- · 5 team seats
- · Advanced analytics
- · All source types
Business Plan
- · 10 team seats
- · 5 AI agents
- · 60 MB knowledge base
- · 9,000 messages / month
- · Advanced analytics
- · All source types
Free
- · 100 conversation/month
- · 24/7 AI powered support
- · AI chat in all languages
- · AI training on 50 products
- · Full conversation history
- · Full custom bot styling
Starter
- · + Everything in Free
- · 2,000 conversation/month
- · AI training on 500 products
- · Control AI responses
- · Real time order tracking
- · User insights & anal
Pro
- · + Everything in Starter
- · 10,000 conversation/month
- · AI Leading questions
- · AI training on 2,000 products
- · Priority AI responses
- · Product Mini Chat
Max
- · + Everything in Pro
- · 20,000 conversation/month
- · AI training on 4000 products
- · Priority access to new features
- · Priority support
Coverage counts what each App Store listing names. Every feature, checked off app by app, is in Shoplist.
See every featureMerchant AI installs on your Shopify store and indexes your products, collections, policies, and content, refreshing whenever your catalog changes. Shoppers ask questions and get answers grounded in your store data. They can see product recommendations, add to cart, look up an order, or start a return inside the chat. You set the agent's tone, refund posture, and escalation rules in plain English.
ShopBot is a GPT-powered AI chatbot and agent for Shopify, built in India for D2C brands. It answers product, sizing and order questions from your live catalog and policies, recommends and compares products, and adds them to cart inside the chat. An AI pop-up captures WhatsApp numbers, Sales mode promotes your offers, and Insights & Gaps shows questions it couldn’t answer so you train it once.
- Auto-syncs your products, collections, policies, and blog posts on install
- Recommends products and adds to cart inside the conversation
- Looks up orders, tracking, and starts returns without leaving chat
- Set your tone, refund posture, and escalation rules in plain English
- Greets shoppers on product pages with context-aware AI responses
- Answers questions using your live product and policy data
- Train the bot with custom FAQs to match your store's voice
- Tracks all conversations and customer feedback in one place
All the numbers
Every figure, side by side
A green dot marks the app ahead on a measured figure. Estimates, gaps and apps that leave no storefront trace never take the lead.
Adoption
| Measure |  Merchant AI |  Retainley |
|---|---|---|
| Detected stores | Not published | Not published |
| Net store change, 28 days | 0 | 0 |
| Stores added, 28 days | Not enough data | Not enough data |
| Big-brand share | Not enough data | Not enough data |
| Top store categories | Not published | Not published |
| Top store countries | Not published | Not published |
Reviews
| Measure | Merchant AI | Retainley |
|---|---|---|
| App Store rating | 5.0 ★ | 5.0 ★ |
| App Store reviews | 1 | 1 |
| New reviews, 28 days | Not enough data | Not enough data |
| Reviewers a year or more in | Not enough data | Not enough data |
Pricing
| Measure | Merchant AI | Retainley |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Lowest paid monthly plan | $25/month(ahead) | $29/month |
| Longest free trial | 14 days | Not listed |
| Plans listed | 4 | 4 |
Listing
| Measure | Merchant AI | Retainley |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify category rank | #675 | #240(ahead) |
| Shopify App Charts | Not on this week’s charts | Not on this week’s charts |
| Built for Shopify | No | No |
| Launched | May 21, 2026 | May 21, 2026 |
| Languages | 1 | 1 |
| Developer | Cross Digital Ltd | Retainley |
FAQ
Merchant AI and Retainley: common questions
- Is Merchant AI or Retainley cheaper?
- Both list a free plan. Paid plans start at $25/month for Merchant AI and $29/month for Retainley. Shoplist compares base prices only between monthly plans in the same currency; usage charges and annual plans vary, so check each plan’s limits.
- Which has better reviews, Merchant AI or Retainley?
- On the Shopify App Store: Merchant AI 5.0 from 1 reviews and Retainley 5.0 from 1 reviews.
- What features does each app list that the other doesn’t?
- Merchant AI lists 3 the others don’t mention, such as Agent analytics, Cart recovery, File upload. Retainley lists 4 the others don’t mention, such as Color and font, Discounts, Multi-language, Surveys. A feature missing from a listing may still be supported; this compares what each App Store listing says.
- Where does this comparison’s data come from?
- Shoplist crawls Shopify storefronts to detect which apps each store runs, and reads each app’s Shopify App Store listing for reviews, pricing, features and integrations. Store counts are as of Oct 13, 2026 for Merchant AI, Oct 24, 2026 for Retainley; estimated figures are labeled.
How Shoplist compares apps
Store counts come from Shoplist’s crawl of Shopify storefronts, which detects the apps each store runs; they are as of Oct 13, 2026 for Merchant AI, Oct 24, 2026 for Retainley. Reviews, ratings, plans, features and integrations come from each app’s Shopify App Store listing. 28-day figures are labeled when estimated, and a figure that is missing or estimated never decides who leads. Read the methodology.