The best Manus alternatives

For the work that runs through a team's conversations: every employee gets a teammate they text on WhatsApp or iMessage, add to group chats, mention in Slack or email. A coordinator hands jobs to specialists across 1,400+ apps, they keep working on schedules and app events, and on Business it joins your meetings.

What it is

AI agents you text on iMessage and WhatsApp, mention in Slack or email, and add to your group chats, where they keep every message and file and follow up on what people promised.

Where it works

iMessage and WhatsApp (one-to-one and group chats), Slack, email and a web app

What it costs

A 3-day free trial, then Starter at $29 a month (300 credits, 3 agents, one person), Growth at $99 (up to 10 people) or Business at $249 (no limit on people). Credits are shared across the workspace, with no charge per person.

Worth knowing

Built for work rather than personal shopping and errands, and phone calls are switched off for now.

OpenAI's always-on agents, each with a cloud computer of its own, in ChatGPT, Slack and Teams, on ChatGPT Pro from $100 a month.

What it is

OpenAI's always-on agents inside ChatGPT, each with a cloud computer of its own, launched in September 2026.

Where it works

ChatGPT on desktop, web and mobile, Slack and Microsoft Teams; texting (iMessage or RCS, one-to-one) in a US beta for some Pro users since 28 October

What it costs

Included with ChatGPT Pro (from $100 a month) and Business Premium seats; Enterprise in beta

Worth knowing

One primary dot per person today, texting only in a one-to-one US beta for some Pro users (no group messages), and it needs a $100-a-month plan to start.

Anthropic's proactive agent with its own cloud computer and browser, a morning brief and checks of your apps, in Claude Pro in the US.

What it is

Anthropic's proactive agent in its own app: a morning brief, then a check of your apps every few hours.

Where it works

Its own app on iOS and Android, and claude.ai on the web

What it costs

Included in Claude Pro ($20 a month), Max ($100) and Ultra ($200), sharing their usage limits; US only, by waitlist

Worth knowing

US-only waitlist, you message it in its own app rather than your texts, and it isn't on Team or Enterprise plans yet.

If research is the job: answers with citations, plus Computer, an agent that builds documents and apps, with a free plan.

What it is

An answer engine that searches the web and answers with citations, plus Computer, an agent that builds documents and apps and can run on your Mac.

Where it works

perplexity.ai, its Mac and iPhone apps, and its Comet browser

What it costs

Free; Pro from $17 a month and Max from $167 a month, billed yearly; Enterprise plans for teams

Worth knowing

Built for answers and research rather than your chats, and its Pro and Max plans are for personal use.

Always-on bots on a shared cloud computer, reached through their apps, by email and on X.

What it is

Always-on bots on a shared cloud computer, reached through their own apps, by email and on X.

Where it works

Its own apps (desktop and mobile), @bot on X and email; Slack on Team plans

What it costs

Included in X Premium ($30), Super ($100) and Ultra ($200) a month, and in Cursor's paid plans; not in X Plus or Free

Worth knowing

Launched in beta on 11 August 2026, not in your texts, and meetings aren't in its docs yet.

If you want to build and govern agents for a team: shared agents with subagents, triggers and approval rules in Slack and Teams.

What it is

A multiplayer AI agent builder: teams build shared agents with subagents, triggers and approval rules, and each person also gets a personal agent, Gumball.

Where it works

Web app, Slack, Microsoft Teams, email (each agent can have its own inbox), a Chrome extension, an API and CLI; texting over iMessage, RCS and SMS one-to-one on Enterprise

What it costs

Pro from $37 a month for 20,000 credits, plus an 8% orchestration fee and compute per minute; 14-day trial with a card; Enterprise custom; unlimited seats, credits shared

Worth knowing

Texting is Enterprise-only and one-to-one (group chats are ignored), WhatsApp is a connector rather than a channel, and its privacy policy lets it train on self-serve customers' content.

Free and open source on your own machine, reached from WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack and more, if you'll run it yourself.

What it is

A free, open-source AI assistant you install on your own computer or server and reach from the chat apps you already use.

Where it works

29 chat apps by its own count, including WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal, Microsoft Teams and iMessage (through a Mac), in DMs and group chats

What it costs

Free and open source (MIT), with no official hosted or paid edition; you pay for your model and your machine, and several third parties sell hosted OpenClaw

Worth knowing

You install, secure and update it yourself (or pay an unofficial host), sandboxing is off by default, and its docs say people who don't trust each other need separate gateways.