Typebot is an open-source program for designing conversations in blocks, connecting boxes on a screen (a question, a choice, a decision) without writing code. The same flow can run in a website chat or, according to the project’s documentation, on WhatsApp through Meta’s Cloud API. It is not a Interweb product: you install it on a VPS with root, and the upkeep is yours.
How Typebot thinks
| Block type |
What for |
Example |
| Messages |
What the bot says: text, images, links. |
“Hello! I am the shop assistant.” |
| Inputs |
What the person answers: text, e-mail, phone, buttons. |
“What is your e-mail?” |
| Logic |
Decisions and variables: if the choice is X, go this way. |
If they chose “Prices”, show the table. |
| Integrations |
Talking to the world: webhooks, spreadsheets, AI models. |
Send the order to n8n or to a sheet. |
Each flow is a drawing you test on the screen before publishing. That is what makes it appealing to people who do not program: you see the conversation all at once.
What you need to install it
| 2 |
A PostgreSQL database. The documentation points to PostgreSQL as Typebot’s database.
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| 3 |
The project’s environment variables: the two addresses, the database connection, and an encryption key you generate once and keep. Without it, saved credentials (API keys, for example) can no longer be read after a restore: environment variables and secrets.
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| 4 |
A way to sign in. The documentation provides for sending links by e-mail (so you need an SMTP) or signing in with accounts from outside services.
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Rules for flows people finish
One question at a time, preferably with buttons. Validate what you ask for: an e-mail should look like an e-mail. Always have a way out to a person. And test on the phone, because the screen is small and text grows fast.
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On an unmanaged VPS, Typebot is yours. The installation, updates, copies and security are down to you, and Interweb support does not install or repair third-party programs (how far our support goes). Back up the database and keep the encryption key off the server.
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Mind what the flow stores. Each answer is personal data (name, e-mail, phone). Say in the first message what it is for and how long it is kept, and do not ask for more than you need: consent for WhatsApp messages.
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Need a VPS with root for Typebot? Have a look at the plans.
See VPS servers
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