RaabtaHQ vs Respond.io
Respond.io is a broad business messaging inbox with a workflow builder, and it covers more channels than we do.
| Capability | RaabtaHQ | Respond.io |
|---|---|---|
| Your own WhatsApp number (unofficial) | Yes | No |
| Telegram | No | Yes |
| SMS | No | Yes |
| Visual flow builder | No | Yes |
| Use your own AI provider key | Yes | No |
The full table · Respond.io checked 29 August 2026
Where Respond.io is stronger
- Many more channels, including Telegram and SMS, which we don't support
- A mature visual workflow builder
- Self-serve signup, a trial and a larger integration catalogue
- A longer track record across more markets
Where RaabtaHQ is different
- Bookings and records in the same product. Calendar, pipelines and industry editions, so the chat and the work stay together.
- An assistant that acts. It books, labels leads and updates deals from your written instructions, with approval where you want it.
- Your own WhatsApp number as a channel (unofficial). Link it by QR code and message customers first, one at a time.
Which one fits
- Best for Respond.io:
- businesses that need Telegram, SMS or many regional apps.
- Best for RaabtaHQ:
- service businesses on WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger that want bookings and follow-up in the same place.
Side by side
| Capability | RaabtaHQ | Respond.io |
|---|---|---|
| Channels | ||
| WhatsApp (official API) | Yes | Yes |
| Instagram DMs | Yes | Yes |
| Facebook Messenger | Yes | Yes |
| Website chat widget | Yes | Yes |
| Yes | Yes | |
| Your own WhatsApp number (unofficial) | Yes | No |
| Telegram | No | Yes |
| SMS | No | Yes |
| Inbox and AI | ||
| Shared team inbox | Yes | Yes |
| Broadcast campaigns | Yes | Yes |
| Visual flow builder | No | Yes |
| AI assistant that takes actions | Yes | Partly |
| Use your own AI provider key | Yes | No |
| Use it from Claude (MCP) | Yes | No |
| Data and setup | ||
| Industry editions with their own screens | Yes | No |
| Can run on your own servers | Yes | No |
| Self-serve signup or free trial | No | Yes |
Respond.io is a trademark of its owner, named here only to identify the product. No affiliation or endorsement is implied. Their column was last checked on 29 August 2026.
Switching
Moving from Respond.io to RaabtaHQ
Respond.io users often run several channels and a workflow builder. WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, website chat and email all have a home in RaabtaHQ. Workflows become assistant instructions, plus triggers that run on a schedule or when a contact is added, a deal moves stage or a booking is completed.
What comes with you
Your contacts.
Export them from Respond.io as a CSV and import it. A phone column is required; name, email, company and tags come too, and new tags are created as they arrive. Duplicates in the file are dropped, numbers already in your account are caught, and the result lists what was added, skipped or failed, row by row.
Your WhatsApp templates.
Templates already approved by Meta come in with Sync from Meta, once your WhatsApp account is connected.
A number on the WhatsApp Business app, with its recent chats.
If the number is on the WhatsApp Business app (version 2.24.17 or later), you keep using the app while RaabtaHQ uses the same number. When you connect, we ask Meta to bring in your contacts and up to six months of chats. Meta only allows this in the first 24 hours.
What you set up again
Your assistant's rules.
RaabtaHQ has no flow builder. You write the assistant's instructions in plain words, with your prices and policies, and switch on the tools it may use.
Saved replies and custom fields.
Quick replies are rebuilt in RaabtaHQ, with their photos, documents and voice notes. Custom fields are created by an admin; the CSV import carries phone, name, email, company and tags only.
Your team and channels.
Teammates join by invite link with their role. Instagram, Messenger, website chat and email are connected from your account's settings.
Pipelines, bookings and ad tracking.
Your own deal stages, booking types and hours, and the Meta and Google connections for ad reporting, which stay off until you switch them on.
Workflows, as triggers.
Give the assistant a job in plain words and a trigger: every Monday, when a new contact is added, when a deal changes stage, or when a booking is completed. Preview who it would reach before switching it on.
What stays behind
Chat history kept inside Respond.io.
RaabtaHQ has no importer for another tool's conversations. The only chats brought in are the ones Meta sends from the WhatsApp Business app, as above.
Reports from Respond.io.
Campaign results and analytics stay there. RaabtaHQ's dashboard and campaign reports start from the day you connect.
Contacts with no phone number.
The CSV import needs a phone number, so people who only ever wrote on Instagram or Messenger become contacts again when they next message you.
Telegram, SMS and other channels we don't have.
Conversations on those channels have no place in RaabtaHQ.
Moving a number that is already on the WhatsApp API through another provider is something we go through with you on the demo call.
Book a demo
See your move to RaabtaHQ on a call
A 30-minute call. Bring a contacts export and your template list, and we'll show you what comes across.
We reply in under an hour.