A chatbot answers; an agent acts. A chatbot replies within a conversation, while an AI agent can take steps — look something up, call a tool, complete a task — to reach a goal. Picking the right one keeps you from overpaying or under-building.
The core difference
| Chatbot | AI agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Job | Answer questions | Achieve a goal |
| Behaviour | Responds to input | Plans and takes steps |
| Tools | Usually none | Calls APIs, databases, actions |
When a chatbot is enough
If the job is "answer customer questions accurately", a grounded chatbot is the right, cheaper choice. It is predictable, easy to test and easy to keep on-brand. Most support and FAQ use cases stop here.
When you actually need an agent
You need an agent when the task involves doing things: checking stock and placing an order, looking up an account and changing a setting, gathering data from several systems and producing a result. The agent decides which steps to take, using tools you give it.
Match the tool to the task: questions → chatbot; multi-step actions across systems → agent. Building an agent when a chatbot would do is a common, expensive mistake.