Before you start
- On WordPress.com, any paid plan (Personal or above). Free WordPress.com sites can't run added scripts.
- On self-hosted WordPress, permission to install plugins.
- Your code from your assistant's Widget page.
Get the free WordPress plugin
Download ai-chat-bot.zip from the plugin's page, which also has the full setup guide and troubleshooting.
Steps
- Download our plugin, ai-chat-bot.zip, from the WordPress plugin page on this site. Leave it zipped.
- In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins, then Add Plugin, and click Upload Plugin. Choose ai-chat-bot.zip, click Install Now, then Activate Plugin.
- Go to Settings, then AI Chat Bot.
- Open your assistant's Widget page in another tab and copy the agent ID from the WordPress box. You can paste the whole snippet if that is easier; the plugin takes the ID out of it.
- Paste it in, make sure "Show the assistant" is ticked, and save.
- Open your website in a new tab and look for the chat bubble in the bottom-right corner. Your Widget page shows "Widget live" once it has been seen on your site.
Without our plugin
- Sign in, open your assistant's Widget page and copy the one line of code shown there. It starts with <script and ends with </script>.
- In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins and add a free header and footer plugin such as "WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers", then activate it.
- Go to Code Snippets, then Header & Footer.
- Paste your code into the Footer box.
- Click Save Changes.
- Open your website in a new tab and look for the chat bubble in the bottom-right corner. Your Widget page shows "Widget live" once it has been seen on your site.
Platform steps checked on September 16, 2026 against WordPress.com Support: Add code to the WordPress site header
Good to know
- Our plugin stores one setting, sends nothing anywhere of its own, and adds no dashboard widgets or notices. Deactivating it keeps your ID; deleting it removes the setting.
- If you use a caching or optimisation plugin set to combine every script, exclude widget.js. Combining a third-party script with your own is a common way to break both.
- WordPress.com opened plugins to every paid plan in April 2026, so older guides saying you need the Business plan are out of date.
- Developers can instead load the script from a child theme with wp_enqueue_script(), set to load in the footer. Don't edit a parent theme directly: updates overwrite it.
Can't edit your website?
Every assistant has its own chat page. Link to it from your website's menu, your Google Business Profile, social media or email signature. Or use "Email this to my web person" on your Widget page to send the code to whoever runs your site.
Questions
Do I need a plugin at all?
No. Ours exists so you do not have to touch theme files or paste code, but a header and footer plugin works just as well, and so does adding the line to your theme's footer if you are comfortable doing that.
Does it work on free WordPress.com sites?
No. Free WordPress.com sites can't run added scripts. Use your assistant's chat page link instead, or move to a paid plan.