ManyChat's free plan had 1,000 active contacts from 2018 to early 2026. In March 2026 that number dropped to 25. A creator with 200 followers who comment on a single Reel campaign now hits the cap in the first hour.
That change sent a lot of creators looking for free alternatives. This post covers the actual free plans of the tools that offer them — what they include, what the real limits are, and which one makes the most sense depending on how you use Instagram. Updated June 2026 to include Hypello (2,000 DMs/month free), PostEngage.ai (unlimited free), and PilotDM (fully free), which launched or significantly expanded their free tiers after this post was first published.
What Changed With ManyChat's Free Plan
ManyChat's original free plan was genuinely usable. 1,000 active contacts covered most small creators for basic comment-to-DM campaigns. The March 2026 cut to 25 contacts changed that completely.
Under ManyChat's billing definition, an "active contact" is any person who has sent or received a message through your automation in the last 90 days. On a campaign with even modest reach, 25 contacts is exhausted within the first few comments. Any participant after the 25th receives nothing.
The full mechanics of how ManyChat counts active contacts — including why the count does not reset after a campaign ends — are explained in the ManyChat active contacts breakdown. For most creators, the conclusion is simple: ManyChat's free plan is no longer suitable for running real campaigns.
The Five Tools With Usable Free Plans
InstantDM — 1,500 automation runs/month
InstantDM's free plan was the most generous by volume when first published. Since then, Hypello (2,000 DMs/month) and PostEngage.ai (unlimited) have launched free tiers that exceed it. InstantDM still offers 1,500 automation runs per month — enough to cover three to five full campaigns per month for Reels that get 300-500 comments.
What's included: Comment-to-DM, story reply automation, keyword triggers, basic analytics, and direct link delivery. InstantDM is a Meta Business Partner, which means it connects via the official Instagram Graph API — no third-party workarounds, no terms of service risk.
The cap: Once you hit 1,500 runs, automation pauses until the next month. There is no overage option on the free plan — you either upgrade or wait.
Who it's best for: Creators who post frequently and want to test automation across multiple pieces of content before committing to a monthly subscription. The 1,500 run limit is high enough to cover several campaigns per month on a mid-sized account.
LinkDM — 1,000 DMs/month
LinkDM has been building Instagram DM tools since 2016 and now has 49,000+ creators on the platform. Its free plan covers 1,000 automated DMs per month, which is the second-largest free tier in this comparison.
What's included: Comment-to-DM triggers, welcome messages, link delivery, and basic analytics. The platform is specifically built for Instagram — no multi-channel complexity.
The cap: LinkDM queues excess DMs rather than dropping them. If you send 1,200 DMs in a month, the first 1,000 are delivered immediately and the remaining 200 are sent at the start of the following month. This is a meaningful difference from tools that simply stop — participants eventually get the DM, just delayed.
Who it's best for: Creators with a consistent posting schedule who want a stable free tier and do not need advanced giveaway mechanics like leaderboards or referral tracking.
CreatorFlow — 500 DMs/month, all features
CreatorFlow's free plan has the lowest DM cap in this list at 500 per month, but it is the only free plan that includes all features — not a limited subset. Comment-to-DM, follow gating, keyword split testing, CRM segmentation, and story reply automation are all available on the free tier.
What's included: Everything CreatorFlow offers, limited to 500 DMs per month. For testing whether the full automation flow works for your audience before paying $15/month, this is the most useful free plan in the comparison.
The cap: Hard stop at 500. CreatorFlow notifies you at 400 DMs so you have warning before the cutoff.
Who it's best for: Creators who want to fully evaluate a tool's feature set before upgrading, or those whose campaigns consistently stay under 500 DMs per month (smaller accounts, niche audiences with lower comment volume). The CreatorFlow vs ManyChat comparison covers what changes when you upgrade to the paid plan.
ReplyKaro — Free Forever plan
ReplyKaro's Free Forever plan does not publish a hard DM cap — it positions the plan as permanently free for basic use, with paid plans unlocking higher volume and features like multi-account management. The paid plan starts at ₹99/month (roughly $1.20) with UPI payment, making it the lowest-cost paid option of any tool in this list.
What's included: Comment-to-DM automation, keyword triggers, and basic analytics. ReplyKaro is one of the few tools with Hinglish keyword detection — useful for Indian creators whose audiences type in mixed Hindi-English.
The cap: Not publicly specified. The Free Forever plan is designed as a permanent entry point rather than a trial, which makes it useful for low-volume creators who never plan to upgrade.
Who it's best for: Indian creators who want a permanently free tier with UPI as the payment option when upgrading. It is newer than the other tools in this list (368+ creators as of June 2026) and has fewer integrations, but it is the only tool with native India payment support and Hinglish capabilities.
Inrō — Free plan with 50 AI credits
Inrō's free plan is different from the others — it centres on AI conversation credits rather than a DM volume cap. 50 AI credits per month covers basic automation testing. The free plan includes full feature access including comment-to-DM, keyword triggers, and DM sequences.
What's included: All features, limited to 50 AI credits per month. For simple keyword-to-DM flows without AI, the limit is more generous than it sounds — standard automated replies do not consume AI credits.
The cap: 50 AI credits. Once exhausted, AI-powered conversation features pause but standard automation continues.
Who it's best for: Creators interested in testing AI-assisted DM conversations before committing to a paid plan. For pure comment-to-DM automation without AI, the other tools in this list offer higher volume caps.
Hypello — 2,000 DMs/month free
Hypello launched after this post was first published and now has the second-highest free DM cap of any tool in this list. The free plan includes 2,000 DMs per month, 1,000 contacts, unlimited automations, and a follow gate — which Hypello calls "Ask to Follow." No credit card required.
What's included: Comment-to-DM, story reply automation, keyword triggers, follow gate, and basic analytics. Hypello is a Tech and Business Approved Meta Partner using the official Instagram Graph API.
The cap: 2,000 DMs per month, 1,000 unique contacts. The DM cap is generous for most creators. The 1,000 contact limit is the one to watch — once 1,000 unique people have entered your contact pool, new contacts are not stored for future campaigns, though the DM still sends.
Who it's best for: Creators who want the highest free DM volume with a follow gate included. The paid plan at $4.9/month removes both limits and is the cheapest paid tier in this comparison. The full Hypello review covers the paid plan and feature gaps in detail.
PostEngage.ai — Unlimited free, AI voice training included
PostEngage.ai's free plan does not publish a DM cap. Core automation — comment-to-DM, keyword triggers, link delivery — is available permanently on the free tier. The standout feature is AI voice training: the tool learns how you write from past messages and replies in your style, which PostEngage.ai includes on the free plan where most other tools charge $50+/month for AI features.
What's included: Comment-to-DM, keyword triggers, link delivery, and AI voice training. All on the official Meta Instagram Graph API.
The cap: No published DM limit on the free plan. Paid plans unlock multi-account management, advanced analytics, CRM integrations, and priority support.
Who it's best for: Creators who want unlimited free automation and are interested in AI-personalized DM responses without a monthly cost.
PilotDM — Now fully free
PilotDM launched a fully free plan that covers comment-to-DM, Story reply flows, lead capture, and booking automation — no credit card required, no published monthly cap.
What's included: Comment-to-DM triggers, Story reply automation, lead capture, and booking flows. PilotDM uses the official Meta API.
The cap: Not published. The free plan is positioned as permanent rather than trial-based.
Who it's best for: Creators who want Story reply automation alongside comment-to-DM on a single free plan. Most tools require payment for Story reply flows; PilotDM includes it at no cost.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Tool | Free DM Limit | Comment-to-DM | Follow Gate | Referral Tracking | UPI Payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PostEngage.ai | Unlimited | Yes | No | No | No |
| Hypello | 2,000 DMs/mo | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| PilotDM | Unlimited (free plan) | Yes | No | No | No |
| InstantDM | 1,500 runs/mo | Yes | No | No | No |
| LinkDM | 1,000 DMs/mo | Yes | No | No | No |
| CreatorFlow | 500 DMs/mo | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| ReplyKaro | Not published | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Inrō | 50 AI credits | Yes | No | No | No |
| ManyChat | 25 contacts | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| UnlockDM | 1st campaign free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Note: follow gate, referral tracking, and leaderboard features generally require a paid plan on most tools. For a campaign that needs referral mechanics — where participants earn bonus rewards for bringing friends — free monthly plans are typically not sufficient. UnlockDM is the exception in the table: it is not a free-forever monthly tier, but your first campaign is free and includes the referral loop, which is why it is the only Yes in the referral column.
What Free Plans Cannot Do
Free tiers cover the basics, but three features are consistently behind a paywall across all tools:
Referral tracking and multi-tier rewards. The mechanics that let participants earn bonus rewards for bringing friends — a referral link, automatic credit counting, and unlocking a second reward tier — are not available on any free monthly plan. If running a viral giveaway with a referral component is the goal, you will need a paid tier. The one way to test a full referral loop without paying first is UnlockDM, which prices per campaign instead of per month and gives you your first campaign free with the referral mechanics included, so you can see whether the loop works for your audience before spending anything.
Email and WhatsApp capture. Collecting an email address or a WhatsApp number inside the DM flow requires a paid plan on most tools. The free plans deliver content and links but do not support lead capture gates.
Analytics beyond basic counts. Free plans typically show you how many DMs were sent. Click-through rates on links, email capture rates, and the full funnel metrics that tell you whether your campaigns are actually converting require paid plans on most tools.
For a creator just starting with automation — testing whether comment-to-DM works for their audience, what keywords drive engagement, what their first-message reply rate looks like — a free plan is genuinely sufficient. For a full campaign with conversion tracking, referral mechanics, and lead capture, free plans run out of functionality before the campaign runs out of potential.
Choosing Between Them
For highest free DM volume: PostEngage.ai (unlimited) or Hypello (2,000/month) — both are now ahead of InstantDM's 1,500/month limit. Hypello also includes a follow gate on its free plan; PostEngage.ai includes AI voice training.
For a complete feature set before upgrading: CreatorFlow (500 DMs, all features including follow gate and split testing) remains the best option for evaluating the full tool before paying.
For Indian creators who want to stay free: ReplyKaro's Free Forever plan with UPI upgrade path is designed for that scenario, with the added benefit of Hinglish keyword detection.
For the simplest setup with a generous free tier: PilotDM is now fully free for core comment-to-DM, Story reply, and lead capture flows — no credit card required and no published monthly cap.
If you eventually outgrow the free tier, the upgrade path matters. The Instagram DM automation pricing comparison breaks down per-contact vs flat-rate vs per-campaign billing, which is the decision that determines your long-term cost as your audience scales.
FAQ
Is there a free Instagram DM automation tool in 2026?
Yes. Hypello offers 2,000 free DMs per month. PostEngage.ai offers unlimited free automation. InstantDM offers 1,500 free runs per month. LinkDM offers 1,000 free DMs per month. CreatorFlow gives 500 DMs per month with all features. ReplyKaro has a permanent Free Forever plan. ManyChat's free plan was cut to 25 contacts in March 2026.
Why did ManyChat cut its free plan?
ManyChat reduced its free plan from 1,000 active contacts to 25 in March 2026 as part of a broader pricing restructure. The change made AI features a separate $29/month add-on and tightened active-contact limits across all tiers. The practical effect: any creator with more than 25 campaign participants now needs a paid plan.
Which free Instagram DM automation tool has the highest limit?
PostEngage.ai offers unlimited free automation with no published DM cap. Hypello follows with 2,000 free DMs per month. InstantDM gives 1,500 free runs per month. LinkDM offers 1,000 free DMs. CreatorFlow offers 500 DMs but includes all features at the free level, making it the most feature-complete free option.
Can I do comment-to-DM automation for free on Instagram?
Yes. Hypello, PostEngage.ai, CreatorFlow, LinkDM, InstantDM, and ReplyKaro all support comment-to-DM automation on their free plans. When someone comments a keyword on your post, the tool sends them a DM automatically — no manual work required. The free tiers cap the number of DMs per month, not the features available.
What happens when I hit the DM limit on a free plan?
Most tools stop sending automated DMs once you hit the monthly cap — commenters simply do not receive the automated reply. CreatorFlow and InstantDM notify you when you approach the limit. LinkDM queues excess DMs and sends them at the start of the next month.
Free plans are enough to test whether comment-to-DM works for your audience. The one thing none of them do for free is a referral loop — the mechanic that turns each unlock into new comments. UnlockDM's first campaign is free and includes it, runs on the official Meta API, and prices per campaign after that instead of per month, so your cost never grows just because your audience did.
