ManyChat vs Chatfuel for Telegram
Short answer: ManyChat can run a Telegram bot. Chatfuel, as of 14 October 2026, does not list Telegram at all. Neither one signs into the regular Telegram accounts your customers already message by username. If that is your setup, you need a different kind of tool: a desktop inbox that keeps several logins side by side. TGDesk is built for that. It is coming soon, paid, and has no public download.
Sources and the date
Every competitor fact here comes from a page fetched on 14 October 2026:
- ManyChat: pricing and the help article How to connect your Telegram account to Manychat.
- Chatfuel: pricing and the home page.
- Telegram: Telegram Bot Features and the Bots FAQ.
If a number is not printed on those pages, it is not in this article.
Telegram, specifically
ManyChat's help article is titled "connect your Telegram account", but the steps connect a bot. Go to Settings, then Telegram, then Connect, and choose Create New Bot or Connect Existing Bot. In both cases you open @BotFather, use /newbot or /mybots, copy the bot's API token and paste it into ManyChat. If messages stop sending, the article says to revoke the token in BotFather and use Refresh Token. ManyChat's pricing page lists Telegram as a channel alongside Instagram, Facebook Messenger, TikTok, WhatsApp, SMS and Email.
Chatfuel's pricing page calls Chatfuel "an AI chatbot platform for WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook". Its channel menu lists Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Website. The word Telegram does not appear on the pricing page or the home page we fetched. A guessed URL, chatfuel.com/telegram, returned 404.
Any Telegram bot, whichever platform runs it, follows Telegram's bot rules. The Bot Features page says bots can't start conversations with users. A user has to add the bot to a group or send it a message first. Bot chats also carry a "bot" label. So a bot is good for inbound flows: a t.me/your_bot link in your bio, a lead magnet, a support menu. It is not a way to answer people who wrote to your personal or team accounts.
Prices that are on the page
| ManyChat | Chatfuel | |
|---|---|---|
| Plans named | Free, Essential, Pro, Business, Advanced | Business, Agency S |
| Price shown | $0, then $14, $29, $69 and $139 per month, with $168, $348, $828 and $1,668 billed annually (18%, 25%, 30% and 30% off) | Business US$18/month, billed yearly (US$216/year). Agency S US$90/month, billed yearly (US$1,080/year). The page has a Yearly −10% / Monthly switch |
| Usage meter | Active Contacts per month. Extra contacts, month-to-month: $0.10, $0.05, $0.025 and $0.004 on the paid plans in order. N/A on Free | US$20 AI credits/month on Business, US$100 on Agency S. "Usage limits apply" |
| Channels per plan | Up to 2 eligible channels on Free and Essential, 3 on Pro, all eligible channels on Business and Advanced | No per-plan channel count. Telegram is not listed |
| Trial | Free plan needs no card. Essential or Pro can be tried free for 14 days | "Every plan starts with a free trial", no credit card required |
| Fine print | Prices exclude tax and depend on the billing country | Agency S includes 3 companies and an agency dashboard |
ManyChat counts a person as one Active Contact for the month however many messages you exchange. That meter is about automation volume, not about how many Telegram accounts you run.
Which one, for what
Choose ManyChat when you want an automated Telegram bot next to Instagram or WhatsApp flows, and your audience is happy to press Start on a bot. Check how many channels your plan allows: Telegram uses one of the two slots on Free and Essential.
Choose Chatfuel when the business runs on WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook. On 14 October 2026 it is not a Telegram tool.
Choose neither when the work is replying from several regular Telegram accounts: a sales account, a support account, a few regional accounts. A bot platform cannot sign into those. Telegram's own apps allow three accounts per app, with more for Premium users (see the account limit). Past that, people run separate desktop copies or a multi-account client.
TGDesk, in one paragraph
TGDesk is an independent desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux. It puts several regular Telegram accounts in one inbox, keeps each session encrypted on your computer, and has unread, needs-reply and human-takeover filters. It is paid, coming soon, and not downloadable. It is not a bot builder: there are no broadcast flows, no comment auto-replies and no Instagram or WhatsApp. CRM-style tags and notes are planned. In-chat translation, speech-to-text and OCR are planned. None of those are in a public build. It does not send bulk messages, and it is not affiliated with Telegram, ManyChat or Chatfuel.
Related reading: respond.io vs WATI for Telegram, Telegram CRM for a small team, multiple Telegram accounts on PC.
FAQ
Does Chatfuel support Telegram?
On 14 October 2026, Chatfuel's pricing page and home page do not mention Telegram. The channels in their menu are Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Website, and the pricing page describes Chatfuel as an AI chatbot platform for WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook.
How does ManyChat connect Telegram?
ManyChat's help center says you open Settings, then Telegram, then Connect, and paste a bot token from @BotFather. It connects a bot, not a personal Telegram account.
What does ManyChat cost?
The pricing page, checked 14 October 2026, shows Free at $0, Essential at $14/mo ($168 billed annually), Pro at $29/mo ($348 billed annually), Business at $69/mo ($828 billed annually) and Advanced at $139/mo ($1,668 billed annually). It says prices exclude tax and depend on the billing country.
Can a Telegram bot message my customers first?
No. Telegram's bot documentation says bots can't start conversations with users. A user must add the bot to a group or send it a message first.
Coming soon — paid launch, no public download yet