Consio is considered as the best-known AI phone platforms for Shopify, and ThatWasAI is another. Both does the same thing at a time, connects to your store, answer customer calls with an AI voice agent, and can call customers back. So how do you choose between Consio and That Was AI?
let’s compare them side by side on pricing, features, setup and support, so you can pick the right one for your store. A note on transparency: this article is published by ThatWasAI. We used only public information from both websites, and we point out where Consio does better.
Key Takeaways
- Consio charges as you go with credits: about $0.40 per AI-handled minute, plus $0.016 per SMS. That Was AI uses monthly plans from $62/month (launch offer for the first 3 months), based on call minutes.
- Both offer an AI voice agent for inbound calls and outbound abandoned cart calls. Consio also has a power dialer for your own team, unlimited seats and a shared inbox for calls and SMS.
- That Was AI offers an 80% resolution guarantee, 10 free minutes with no credit card, and verifies callers by email and phone. We did not find a resolution guarantee on Consio's website.
- At low call volumes Consio's pay-as-you-go pricing can cost less. At higher volumes, That Was AI's monthly plans can cost less.
- Both says you can be live in about 5 minutes.
What Is an AI Phone Platform for Shopify?
An AI phone platform allows,a store handle customer calls with software instead of staff alone. An AI voice agent answers inbound calls in a natural voice, looks up the order, and takes action. Some platforms also help with outbound calls, such as reaching customers who left items in their cart. You may also see these tools described as ai call center software or contact center AI, because they do the work of a small call center for ecommerce support.
Consio and That Was AI both fit this description. Consio AI says it is the AI phone platform for ecommerce, built around Shopify. That Was AI is an AI phone agent that goes from setup to live in 5 minutes. The differences are in how you pay, what your team can do inside the tool, and how each one handles problems.
Consio vs That Was AI at a Glance
Consio (consio.ai) combines an AI voice agent for inbound calls, a power dialer for outbound campaigns, SMS, and a shared inbox. It is natively integrated with Shopify and adds revenue attribution to calls. Your human team and the AI voice agents work side by side.
That Was AI is an AI phone agent (or an AI employee) that connects to your Shopify store and imports your products, policies and orders. It answers order questions, takes orders over the phone, and makes abandoned cart calls. You pay a monthly plan based on call minutes.
| FEATURES | Consio | That Was AI |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | AI phone platform: AI voice agent for inbound calls, power dialer for outbound, SMS, and a shared inbox for your team | AI phone agent that answers inbound calls, takes phone orders, and makes abandoned cart calls |
| Pricing model | Pay as you go with credits: calls, SMS and AI minutes | Monthly plan based on call minutes |
| AI voice agent cost | $0.30 per AI minute on top of $0.10 per call minute, about $0.40 per AI minute | Included in the monthly plan (extra minutes $0.26 to $0.46) |
| Starting point | Free account to set up; month-to-month, no cancellation fee | $62/month (200 minutes), launch offer for the first 3 months, then $89/month |
| Free trial | Explore the platform for free; a credit card is needed to get a number and make live calls | 10 free minutes, no credit card |
| Resolution | Consio says the AI resolves 70 to 80% of inbound calls (we did not find a guarantee) | 80% resolution guarantee |
| Setup time | About 5 minutes to connect Shopify and get a number; most brands launch within days | From setup to live in 5 minutes |
| Phone numbers | Port your existing number or create a new one | Twilio, a new number, or your own through SIP trunk |
| Outbound calls | Power dialer and campaigns for abandoned checkouts, VIPs and repeat buyers | Abandoned cart calls |
| Team features | Unlimited seats, shared inbox for calls and SMS, revenue attribution | Dashboard for call analytics; tickets with transcript and recording |
| If the AI can't solve it | Escalates to your team inside Consio with a full summary | Auto-creates a ticket with the call transcript and recording, or transfers the live call to your human support team |
Pricing: Pay-As-You-Go Credits vs Monthly Plans
Consio runs on credits that cover calls, SMS and AI voice agent time. A call costs 1 credit per 10 seconds ($0.10 per minute), each SMS costs $0.016, and AI voice agent time costs $0.30 per minute. When the AI handles a call, both the call time and the AI time are counted, so one minute of AI conversation costs about $0.40. You are only charged when you are connected to a customer, so unanswered calls are free. A call under 30 seconds or a voicemail uses 3 credits.
Every Consio plan includes unlimited seats, the AI voice agents, the power dialer and outbound campaigns, SMS, and attribution. Extra phone numbers cost $9 a month. Plans are month-to-month with no cancellation fee, and if you go past your monthly credit allowance you are moved up to the next tier automatically.
That Was AI uses four monthly plans based on call minutes. With the current launch offer (30% off for the first three months), they cost $62 for Basic (200 minutes), $139 for Growth (500 minutes), $209 for Pro (1,000 minutes) and $454 for Scale (2,500 minutes). After the launch period, the regular prices are $89, $199, $299 and $649 per month. Extra minutes cost between $0.26 and $0.46 depending on the plan.
What it could cost you
To compare the two models, here is an estimate for AI-handled minutes. It uses Consio's published rate of about $0.40 per AI minute and does not include SMS or extra phone numbers. The That Was AI column shows the launch price first, then the regular price.
| AI minutes per month | Consio (estimate) | That Was AI plan | That Was AI price (launch / regular) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 (about 100 calls) | About $80 | Basic (200 min) | $62 / $89 |
| 500 (about 250 calls) | About $200 | Growth (500 min) | $139 / $199 |
| 1,000 (about 500 calls) | About $400 | Pro (1,000 min) | $209 / $299 |
| 2,500 (about 1,250 calls) | About $1,000 | Scale (2,500 min) | $454 / $649 |
These are estimates, not quotes. Consio's plans are tiered with monthly credit allowances, so real bill may differ. Phone number costs are not included for either tool.
The pattern is clear. At around 200 minutes a month, Consio's pay-as-you-go rate costs about the same as That Was AI's regular Basic price, and more than the launch price. Around 500 minutes the two are close at regular prices. Above that, That Was AI's monthly plans cost less per minute. If your team also makes its own calls, Consio's lower $0.10 per minute rate for human calls and unlimited seats may matter more than the AI rate.
Inbound AI Voice Agent: What Can Each One Handle?
- Consio: looks up orders and tracking, searches your catalog, processes returns, sends checkout links by SMS, and drafts orders. It answers 24/7 with full Shopify context. Consio says its AI resolves 70 to 80% of inbound calls without a human.
- That Was AI: looks up orders and tracking, searches your catalog, processes returns, sends checkout links by email, and drafts orders. It answers 24/7 with full Shopify context. It also handles order status, cancellations (if the order has not shipped), address changes, product questions, and placing orders over the phone, which creates a draft order and sends the customer a payment link.
Together, these both features work like a small AI call center for your store. Both can take an order or send a way to pay during the call. On inbound calls the two are close in what they handle. The bigger differences are in pricing, outbound tools and guarantees.
Outbound Calls and Abandoned Cart Recovery
This is where Consio is strongest. Its power dialer runs campaigns that ring abandoned checkouts, VIPs and repeat buyers, and it texts the checkout link during the call. It also syncs customer segments from Klaviyo. If you searched for an AI power dialer, this is the kind of outbound tool Consio offers, and it lets both AI and your human team make calls.
That Was AI makes abandoned cart calls, so an AI outbound call goes to customers who left items behind. We did not find a power dialer for human agents on That Was AI's website. If your team wants to run large outbound campaigns itself, Consio is the stronger fit. Before you start with either, check how outbound calls are charged and what consent rules apply in your market.
Setup and Phone Numbers
Consio connects to Shopify and syncs your products, customer segments and orders automatically. You can port your existing number or create a new one. Consio says it takes about 5 minutes to connect Shopify and get a number, and that most brands launch within days.
That Was AI says you can go from setup to live in 5 minutes, and connecting your store takes about two minutes. It imports your products, policies and orders. For the phone number, you can use Twilio, buy a new number, or connect your own through SIP trunk.
Team Features and Reporting
Consio is built for teams that want to run the whole phone channel in one place. It includes unlimited seats, a shared inbox for inbound calls, outbound calls and SMS, a mobile app, AI call summaries and transcripts, helpdesk integrations, and revenue attribution that links each order to the call, agent or campaign behind it.
That Was AI focuses on the AI agent. It has a dashboard for call analytics, and each escalated call creates a ticket with the call transcript and recording. If you need a full phone system for human agents too, Consio offers more.
When the AI Can't Solve It (Escalation and Security)
No AI solves every call. Consio says its agents escalate to your team inside Consio with a full summary, and that every conversation is monitored. For that same situation, That Was AI also transfers the call to your team, or creates a ticket depending on the caller's query. Each ticket is created automatically with the call transcript and recording.
On security, That Was AI verifies the caller by email and phone before sharing order details. We did not find caller verification details on Consio's website, so ask them about it before you decide.
Free Trial, Guarantee and Contracts
Consio lets you create an account, set up campaigns and explore the platform for free. A credit card is only needed when you are ready to get a phone number and make live calls. Plans are month-to-month with no cancellation fee, and Consio also offers to buy out your existing phone contract if you are switching. That is a clear advantage for Consio if you are stuck in a contract today.
That Was AI offers 10 free minutes with no credit card, so you can test with real calls first. It also offers an 80% resolution guarantee. Consio reports that its AI resolves 70 to 80% of inbound calls, but we did not find a resolution guarantee on its website. Each company defines "resolved" in its own way, so read the terms before you compare the numbers.
Which One Should You Choose?
Both are strong options for Shopify stores. The right choice depends on how you plan to use the phone.
- Choose Consio if you want one platform for inbound AI calls, outbound campaigns and your own team's calls and texts, you want unlimited seats and revenue attribution, or you prefer pay-as-you-go pricing at low volumes.
- Choose That Was AI if your main goal is an AI phone agent for inbound calls and abandoned cart recovery, you want a predictable monthly plan that gets cheaper per minute as you grow, an 80% resolution guarantee, or caller verification and a free trial with no credit card.
For ecommerce support, the best test is simple: try both with real calls from your own store, and compare how many get resolved, what you pay, and how customers react.
FAQs
What is Consio?
Consio is an AI phone platform for ecommerce. It combines an AI voice agent for inbound calls, a power dialer for outbound campaigns, SMS and a shared inbox, and it integrates natively with Shopify.
How much does Consio cost?
Consio charges by usage. Calls cost $0.10 per minute, SMS costs $0.016 per message, and AI voice agent time costs $0.30 per minute on top of the call. Extra phone numbers are $9 a month. You can start with a free account.
Does That Was AI make outbound calls?
Yes. That Was AI makes abandoned cart calls. Consio goes further with a power dialer and campaigns for abandoned checkouts, VIPs and repeat buyers.
Is there an AI phone answering service that can take orders?
Yes. That Was AI can take orders over the phone and creates a draft order with a payment link for the customer. Consio's AI can draft orders and send checkout links by SMS.
Do I need a new phone number?
Not necessarily. Consio lets you port your existing number or create a new one. That Was AI works with Twilio, a new number, or your own number through SIP trunk.
Does That Was AI offer a free trial?
Yes. That Was AI offers 10 free minutes without requiring a credit card, so you can test the AI phone agent before committing to a paid plan.
Conclusion
Consio and That Was AI are both AI phone platforms for Shopify, and they overlap on inbound calls and cart recovery. Consio stands out for its power dialer, unlimited seats, shared inbox and pay-as-you-go pricing. That Was AI stands out for its 80% resolution guarantee, lower cost per minute at higher volumes, caller verification and a free trial with no credit card.
Want to hear it for yourself? Try That Was AI with 10 free minutes, no credit card needed, or listen to a live demo call at thatwasai.com.