Shortlist by what you need
Start here if you know why you are leaving Dust.
Want the closest match?
ChatBotKitMost similar to Dust in what it does, its category and its price.
Visit (opens ChatBotKit in a new tab)Need a free plan?
Novu ConnectHas a free plan, rated 4.3 out of 5.
Visit (opens Novu Connect in a new tab)Want to pay less than Dust?
SocraFrom $20/mo, against from eur 24/mo for Dust.
Visit (opens Socra in a new tab)Want the best rated?
Xpress AIRated 4.0 out of 5 in our review, against 4.5 for Dust.
Visit (opens Xpress AI in a new tab)
At a glance
Green means better than Dust, red means worse. Prices are starting prices per month.
| Tool | Our rating | Starts at | Free plan | Best for | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 DustBaseline | 4.5 | $24/mo | Yes | Platform for building and sharing AI agents that work on company knowledge, with 70+ connectors to tools like Slack, Notion and GitHub, a choice of 20+ models, multi-agent workflows and permission controls. | |
| ChatBotKit | 3.6−0.9 | Free | Yes | Build production AI agents that reason, plan and execute multi-step tasks - resolving tickets, qualifying leads, processing documents - with MCP tool-calling, RAG knowledge bases, and built-in content-moderation guardrails. | vs Dust |
 KlavisAI | 3.9−0.6 | Free | Yes | Open-source infrastructure that hosts MCP servers so AI agents can call external tools without breaking at scale. | vs Dust |
| Xpress AI | 4.0−0.5 | $299/mo$275 more | No | Named AI coworkers you @mention in a shared workspace, holding project context. | vs Dust |
| Socra | 4.2−0.3 | $20/mo$4 less | No | Workspace where teams and AI agents share knowledge and work, with Cortex for giving coding agents context before they act, managed agents with their own cloud computers, channels, tasks, files, a cloud for running software and a CLI. | vs Dust |
 AI Agent | 3.3−1.2 | Free | Yes | Build a team of AI agents that connect to 1,000+ apps, share one "Company Brain" of grounded context, and hand off work between them - 61,392+ active users, 3.5x average ROI reported. | vs Dust |
| Novu Connect | 4.3−0.2 | $30/mo$6 more | Yes | Communication layer that connects AI agents like Claude to Slack, Teams, and email in one thread. | vs Dust |
 Buda | 3.8−0.7 | Free | Yes | Agents with their own sandboxed computers, their own drives and a version-controlled trail. | vs Dust |
 Donely | 3.9−0.6 | $25/mo$1 more | Yes | Managed hosting platform for deploying and scaling isolated OpenClaw AI agent instances from one dashboard. | vs Dust |
The alternatives in detail
In order of how closely each one matches Dust.
ChatBotKit
3.6Free
vs Dust−0.9
Build production AI agents that reason, plan and execute multi-step tasks - resolving tickets, qualifying leads, processing documents - with MCP tool-calling, RAG knowledge bases, and built-in content-moderation guardrails.
- Multi-step autonomous agent reasoning and execution
- MCP-based tool calling connecting agents to APIs and databases
- RAG knowledge bases across multiple document formats
Built-in governance (guardrails, observability) matters for genuine production use
Pay-for-compute billing means costs scale with actual usage, less predictable than flat pricing
KlavisAI
3.9Free
vs Dust−0.6
Open-source infrastructure that hosts MCP servers so AI agents can call external tools without breaking at scale.
- Hosted, managed MCP servers for AI agent tool-calling
- Strata progressive tool discovery for large tool counts
- Open-source core with a public GitHub repository
Open-source foundation lets teams inspect or self-host the underlying code
Founded in 2025, so production track record at scale is still short
Xpress AI
4.0$299/mo
vs Dust$275 more−0.5
Named AI coworkers you @mention in a shared workspace, holding project context.
- Named persistent agents addressed by @mention
- Project-scoped context and memory
- Conversations converted into tracked durable tasks
Outbound actions are approval-gated in the platform, not the prompt
Starts at $299 a month with no small-team entry point
Socra
4.2$20/mo
vs Dust$4 less−0.3
Workspace where teams and AI agents share knowledge and work, with Cortex for giving coding agents context before they act, managed agents with their own cloud computers, channels, tasks, files, a cloud for running software and a CLI.
- Cortex shared knowledge delivered to agents before they act
- Managed agents with their own cloud computers
- Channels for people and agents in one conversation
Works with ChatGPT, Codex, Claude Code, Cursor and others
No free plan or trial on Workspace
AI Agent
3.3Free
vs Dust−1.2
Build a team of AI agents that connect to 1,000+ apps, share one "Company Brain" of grounded context, and hand off work between them - 61,392+ active users, 3.5x average ROI reported.
- Multi-agent teams with task handoff (Connect-Brief-Work-Review)
- 1,000+ named app integrations - GitHub, Gmail, Stripe, Notion, and more
- Company Brain unified context layer with source transparency
Genuinely broad, named integration ecosystem (1,000+ apps)
Full pricing tiers aren't detailed on the page
Novu Connect
4.3$30/mo
vs Dust$6 more−0.2
Communication layer that connects AI agents like Claude to Slack, Teams, and email in one thread.
- Unified conversation threading across Slack, Teams, WhatsApp, Telegram, and email
- Identity resolution that keeps a user's cross-channel replies in one thread
- Built on Novu's open-source notification infrastructure (21,000+ GitHub stars)
Solves cross-channel identity and thread-matching, a problem most single-channel bot integrations skip
Requires an existing AI agent to connect, it is infrastructure, not an agent-builder itself
Buda
3.8Free
vs Dust−0.7
Agents with their own sandboxed computers, their own drives and a version-controlled trail.
- Multiple specialised agents deployed per department
- Agent Computers as isolated execution sandboxes
- Agent Drive and shared Space Drive separation
Output is reviewable - steps, previews and versions, not just a result
No pricing published and no company named
Donely
3.9$25/mo
vs Dust$1 more−0.6
Managed hosting platform for deploying and scaling isolated OpenClaw AI agent instances from one dashboard.
- Multi-instance OpenClaw agent hosting from one dashboard
- Per-instance access control and unified billing
- 850+ tool integrations including CRMs and support desks
Genuine free-forever tier, not only a time-limited trial
Company founded in 2025, so long-term reliability is unproven
FAQ
Questions people ask
Is Dust free?
Dust has a free plan, and paid plans start from eur 24/mo.
What is the best free alternative to Dust?
Novu Connect is the highest-rated alternative here with a free plan (4.3 out of 5). Other free options: KlavisAI, Donely, Buda.
What is the cheapest alternative to Dust?
Among paid plans, Socra has the lowest starting price (from $20/mo). If you need it free, start with Novu Connect.
How did you pick these alternatives?
We match tools on what they do, their category and their price, using the details in our directory. Ratings come from our reviews and reader reviews.