Live Chat Scripts: 40 Canned Responses for Support Teams

Good live chat scripts save time on the questions you answer twenty times a day, keep the tone consistent across the team and help new operators sound confident from day one. Bad ones make every reply feel copied and pasted. Below are 40 canned responses grouped by conversation stage, each ready to adapt, plus notes on when to use them and how to keep them sounding human. Replace anything in curly braces — {name}, {order}, {date} — with real details.

What makes a good chat script

A script is a starting point, not a speech. The best ones share a few traits:

• Short. Chat is read on phones. Two or three sentences, not a paragraph.
• Specific. "Your order ships tomorrow" beats "We're looking into it."
• Easy to personalize. Leave obvious slots for a name, an order number or a detail from the customer's message.
• In your brand voice. If your site is casual, your scripts should be too.

Operators should edit at least one detail in every canned reply before sending. That small habit is the difference between "efficient" and "robotic."

Greetings and first replies

1. "Hi {name}! Thanks for reaching out. What can I help you with today?"
2. "Hi there — I'm {agent} from {company}. I see you're on the {page} page. Any questions about it?"
3. "Thanks for your message! I'm reading it now and will reply in a moment."
4. "Hello! Happy to help. Could you tell me a bit more about what you're looking for?"
5. "Hi {name}, welcome back! Is this about your recent order {order}, or something new?"

Use number 3 when you need a minute to look something up — a quick acknowledgment does a lot for perceived speed. It's one of the simplest ways to improve your first response time without rushing the real answer.

Clarifying the problem and asking for details

1. "Just to make sure I understand: you {summary of the problem}. Is that right?"
2. "Could you share your order number? It's in the confirmation email and starts with {prefix}."
3. "What device and browser are you using? That will help me reproduce the issue."
4. "Would you mind sending a screenshot of what you see? You can attach it right here in the chat."
5. "When did this start happening — today, or has it been going on for a while?"

Ask for one thing at a time. A list of five questions in one message usually gets two answers.

Putting a customer on hold or transferring

1. "Let me check that with our warehouse. It should take about {minutes} minutes — I'll stay in this chat."
2. "Thanks for waiting! I'm still on it and should have an answer shortly."
3. "This is a question for our {team} specialist. I'm transferring you now, and they'll see our whole conversation, so you won't need to repeat anything."
4. "I'd like to get this exactly right, so I'm checking with a colleague. Back in a few minutes."

Always say how long and what happens next. Silence during a hold is what makes customers close the tab.

Delivering bad news: delays, refunds, out of stock

1. "I'm sorry — your order is delayed. The new estimated delivery date is {date}. I'll keep an eye on it for you."
2. "Unfortunately, {product} is out of stock right now. It's expected back around {date}. Would you like me to suggest a similar option?"
3. "I've checked, and this order falls outside our {days}-day return window. Here's what I can offer instead: {option}."
4. "Your refund has been processed. Depending on your bank, it can take a few business days to appear."
5. "I understand this isn't the answer you hoped for. Here's what we can do: {option A} or {option B}. Which works better for you?"

Lead with the news, then the reason, then an option. Never bury the bad part under three sentences of apology.

Handling an upset customer

1. "I'm really sorry about this, {name}. That's not the experience we want you to have. Let's fix it."
2. "You're right to be frustrated — you shouldn't have had to contact us twice about this."
3. "Thank you for telling me. I'm taking ownership of this and will stay with you until it's sorted."
4. "I can see why that was confusing. Here's exactly what happened and what I'm doing now: {explanation}."
5. "I want to make this right. Would {solution} work for you?"

Don't argue with the emotion, and don't over-apologize either. Acknowledge once, then move to action.

Sales and upsell scripts

1. "Great choice! Many customers pair {product} with {accessory} — want me to send you a link?"
2. "If you're deciding between {A} and {B}, the main difference is {difference}. What will you mainly use it for?"
3. "There's free shipping on orders over {amount}. You're {difference} away — want a few suggestions?"
4. "The annual plan works out cheaper than paying monthly. I can explain the difference if that's helpful."
5. "I see you've had a few items in your cart for a while. Anything I can answer before you check out?"

Upsells only work when they solve the customer's problem. Offer one, and drop it if they say no.

Closing the chat and asking for a rating

1. "Is there anything else I can help you with today?"
2. "Glad we got that sorted! If anything else comes up, just message us here."
3. "I'll close this chat for now. Your conversation history stays here if you need to come back to it."
4. "Before you go — would you rate this conversation? It takes one click and helps us improve."
5. "Thanks for your patience today, {name}. Have a great {day/evening}!"

A rating request lands best right after the problem is solved. If your tool asks automatically when a conversation is resolved, as ChatDeck does with a 1–5 rating, you don't need to type it at all. More on reading those scores in our guide to CSAT.

After-hours and offline replies

1. "Thanks for your message! Our team is offline right now and back at {time} {timezone}. We'll reply here as soon as we're in."
2. "We're closed for the day, but your message is saved. Leave your email and we'll follow up first thing tomorrow."
3. "While you wait, these pages answer the most common questions: {link}."
4. "It's a public holiday here, so replies may be slower than usual. We'll get back to you by {date}."
5. "Good morning, {name}! Picking up your message from last night — here's the answer: {answer}."
6. "Sorry for the wait over the weekend. I've looked into it and here's where things stand: {update}."

If an AI assistant covers your nights, it can send replies like 35 automatically and still answer simple questions. See after-hours customer support for how to set that up.

How to build and maintain your team's script library

A script library decays quickly if nobody owns it. Here's a simple process:

1. Start from real chats. Export or read a month of transcripts and note the questions that repeat.
2. Write the first version together. Have your best operators draft scripts in their own words.
3. Name and tag them by stage and topic, so they're quick to find mid-chat.
4. Review monthly. Delete scripts nobody uses, update ones with outdated prices or policies.
5. Feed the facts to your bot. If an AI assistant answers first, the same facts belong in its instruction, so bot and humans say the same thing.

For broader habits beyond scripts, read our live chat best practices.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a live chat script and a canned response?

The terms overlap. A script usually means a guideline for a whole conversation type, such as handling a refund request. A canned response is a single saved message you insert with a click. Most teams use both.

How many canned responses should a support team have?

Enough to cover your most frequent questions, and few enough that operators can find the right one quickly. Many small teams do well with a few dozen; if you have hundreds, prune.

How do I keep canned responses from sounding robotic?

Personalize at least one detail in every reply — the customer's name, their product, something they said. Write scripts in a natural voice and read them aloud before adding them to the library.

Should I use the customer's name in chat?

Yes, if they've shared it — once in the greeting and occasionally after that. Using it in every message starts to feel scripted.

Put your scripts to work

Scripts help most in a tool that shows operators the context — what page the visitor is on, where they came from, what they asked before. Create a free ChatDeck workspace to give your team that context with unlimited operators, and read first response time to see how quickly your replies are landing. For a tour of assignment, statuses and replies, see the Working in the inbox tutorial.