Beside vs Quin vs Town

Verdict

Notis aside, Town has the highest support score, 69% across 31 checked rows out of 33. Quin scores 52% across all 33 rows and Beside scores 38% across all 33 rows.

Their strengths differ: Town for rolling a shared assistant out to a team, Quin for remembering context between conversations and Beside for scheduled and event-triggered work.

Notis and Town tie for the cheapest way in at $0, and only Town has a free plan that does the product's main job.

None of them documents Bring your own API key, Open source or Run it on your own server.

Only Notis documents Runs on your own Claude plan, Runs on your own ChatGPT plan, Browses the web for you and 1 more row.

Not sure which one fits you?Find your match in two minutes

Capabilities and pricing

Scroll sideways to see every product.

Capability comparison between Notis and the selected assistants
Capability	View pricing	BesideVisit site	QuinVisit site	TownVisit site
Where you can use it
WhatsApp		—Not in integrations or channels	—Not a documented channel	Inbound WhatsApp chat, no proactive push
iMessage		—Messaging is SMS, not iMessage	—Not a documented channel	Partial
Telegram		—Not among the named integrations	—Not a documented channel	Vendor-run bot, 6-digit link code
Slack		—Outbound notifications only	Slack app: DM, @mention, or icon
Email		—Drafts your replies; no inbound address	Email or cc quin@heyquin.io	Own @town.com inbox, two-way
SMS or a phone number	PartialInbound calls only, no SMS	PartialInbound line only, not a command channel	SMS to (662) 439-7846	Verified-number SMS/RCS routing
Voice messages	Voice notes + live calls	Recorded voice notes, mobile only	Recorded voice notes only	Recorded voice notes, transcribed
Web or desktop app	Web, desktop and Home Screen app	Web app; macOS client deprecated	Web app only, no desktop client	macOS app + web app
Its own iPhone or Android app	Home Screen app on iPhone	First-party iOS/Android/iPad app	iOS only, no Android	iOS only, no Android build
Bring your own AI
Runs on your own Claude plan		—No Anthropic account connection	—MCP inbound only, no Claude sign-in	—
Runs on your own ChatGPT plan		—No OpenAI account connection	—MCP inbound only, no ChatGPT sign-in	—
Bring your own API key	—	—No key entry; not programmable	—Only Quin's own API keys	—
Works inside your own coding agent		—No MCP server, API, or SDK published	Remote MCP server for Claude/ChatGPT	—Consumes MCP servers; publishes none
You choose which model runs your work		—One fixed pipeline, no model picker	—Metered in credits, no model picker	PartialDisclosed provider mix, no user picker
What it can do
Ready-made app integrations	1,000+ apps	Partial17 named apps, Zapier for the rest	Partial74 named apps directory	Partial59 published integrations
Creates and edits documents		Auto-creates Notion pages per call	Fills Word/PDF merge-tag templates
Save your own reusable instructions			Named, reusable, triggerable workflows
Browses the web for you		—Fetches your own site; no live browsing	—Retrieval only, no clicking or forms	—
Posts to social media for you		—Reviews Manager replies to reviews only	—No social network in the directory	Publishes LinkedIn posts, not X
Joins and records your meetings	—	Manual in-person recorder, mobile only	Vendor bot joins Zoom/Meet/Teams	Device recorder, not a call-dial-in bot
Memory
Remembers you between conversations		Ask Beside AI searches all history	User-authored Guidelines persist
Reads your existing files and apps	Notion, Gmail, Drive, Granola, web	Gmail/Outlook connected for drafting	Searches connected Drive, CRM, mailbox	Searches Gmail/Drive/Notion/Dropbox etc.
Runs without you
Runs on a schedule or a trigger			Scheduled or Quin-triggered workflows	Multi-trigger saved routines
Reminds and nudges you		Daily Recap plus configurable Pulses	Unprompted Daily Brief email
Computers it can use
Gives it a cloud computer of its own		—Hosted phone/AI backend only	—No provisioned machine documented	Not checked
Controls your own computer	Shell and apps, via the desktop app	—	—Web app and iPhone app only	—
Connects to MCP servers on your computer		—No MCP of any kind	—Only Quin's own remote MCP server	Not checked
Trust & control
Open source	—	—No repository linked anywhere	—	—No repository linked, hosted service
Run it on your own server	—	—	—AWS-only, no install path	—Hosted-only, no install path
Says it will not train on your data	Covers Notis and its LLM providers	Partial	PartialVendor covers itself, not providers	Off by default, opt-in only
Published security certification	PartialSub-processors certified; Notis is not	—	SOC 2 Type II only	SOC 2 Type 2, NDA-gated reports
Plans & support
Free plan does the product's main job	Partial	—Trial only, no free tier	—14-day trial, no $0 plan	Permanent free tier, 30 chats/mo
Shared team workspace
Price	FREEPRO$13/moyr (rate on a yearly commitment)+2 more	Beside plan (per seat, App Store/Google Play)$16.67/user/moyr (rate on a yearly commitment)Baseline$29.99/mo+1 more	1,000 credits$49/user/mo2,500 credits$99/user/mo+4 more	FreeStarter$15/mo+6 more

IncludedPartial— Not documentedNot checked

Ranked by support score

1. Notis

Personal AI assistant

Notis is a personal AI assistant you message from WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram, Slack or email, and reach from your own coding agent through its MCP server.

Best for: running long jobs on a machine of its own

Documented strengths

Where you can use it: WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram, Slack, Email, Voice messages, Web or desktop app and Its own iPhone or Android app
What it can do: Ready-made app integrations, Creates and edits documents, Save your own reusable instructions, Browses the web for you and Posts to social media for you
Bring your own AI: Runs on your own Claude plan, Runs on your own ChatGPT plan, Works inside your own coding agent and You choose which model runs your work

The catch

The gap is published guarantees about your data, with nothing documented for Open source and Run it on your own server.

Pricing

FREEPRO$13/moyrPRO+$39/moyrULTRA$99/moyr

Free–$149/mo · help.notis.ai

See Notis pricingSupport score: 83% across all 33 rows

2. Town

AI work assistant ("Townie") with built-in routine automation

A work assistant that gets its own @town.com address and phone number, learns how you work, and runs recurring routines across your email, calendar, docs and chat apps.

Best for: rolling a shared assistant out to a team

Documented strengths

Where you can use it: WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Email, SMS or a phone number, Voice messages, Web or desktop app and Its own iPhone or Android app
What it can do: Creates and edits documents, Save your own reusable instructions, Posts to social media for you and Joins and records your meetings
Memory: Remembers you between conversations and Reads your existing files and apps

The catch

The gap is support for your own AI plan, with nothing documented for Runs on your own Claude plan, Runs on your own ChatGPT plan, Bring your own API key and Works inside your own coding agent.

Pricing

FreeStarter$15/moPro$49/user/moyrTeam$59/user/moyrPower$99/user/moyrTeam Plus$149/user/moyrPower Plus$199/user/moyrEnterpriseCustom pricing

Free–$239/user/mo (individuals; as low as $199/mo billed annually); Team $71–$179/seat/mo (as low as $59–$149/mo billed annually); Enterprise custom · town.com

How it differs from Notis: Town emphasizes a personal wiki and learned routines; Notis emphasizes cross-channel execution and portable tools for the agents you already use.

Visit Town Town alternativesSupport score: 69% across 31 checked rows out of 33

3. Quin

AI admin assistant for meetings, CRM, and inbox follow-up

Quin joins your meetings, drafts the follow-ups, and updates your CRM and connected tools automatically.

Best for: remembering context between conversations

Documented strengths

Where you can use it: Slack, Email, SMS or a phone number, Voice messages, Web or desktop app and Its own iPhone or Android app
What it can do: Creates and edits documents, Save your own reusable instructions and Joins and records your meetings
Memory: Remembers you between conversations and Reads your existing files and apps

The catch

The gap is messaging channels, with nothing documented for WhatsApp, iMessage and Telegram.

Pricing

1,000 credits$49/user/mo2,500 credits$99/user/mo5,000 credits$149/user/mo10,000 credits$299/user/mo25,000 credits$649/user/moEnterpriseCustom pricing

$49–$649/member/month per team (1,000–25,000 credits, unlimited users), annual billing saves 14%; Enterprise custom; 14-day free trial, no free plan · no free tier · heyquin.io

How it differs from Notis: Quin goes deep on post-meeting notetaking and CRM administration for client-facing teams; Notis reaches WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram, Slack, email and voice, and adds an execution layer across model providers.

Visit Quin Quin alternativesSupport score: 52% across all 33 rows

4. Beside

AI business phone and receptionist for local businesses

A business phone line whose AI receptionist answers the calls and texts you miss, books the job, writes the summary, and pushes it into your CRM.

Best for: scheduled and event-triggered work

Documented strengths

What it can do: Creates and edits documents, Save your own reusable instructions and Joins and records your meetings
Where you can use it: Voice messages, Web or desktop app and Its own iPhone or Android app
Memory: Remembers you between conversations and Reads your existing files and apps

The catch

The gap is messaging channels, with nothing documented for WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram, Slack and Email.

Pricing

Beside plan (per seat, App Store/Google Play)$16.67/user/moyrBaseline$29.99/moUnlimited$99.99/mo

$29.99-$99.99/mo flat per business, up to 20 seats (extra lines $4.99/mo each); no trial on Baseline, 7-day trial on Unlimited; a separate per-seat 'Beside plan' via App Store/Google Play is $29.99/mo or $199.99/yr (~$16.67/mo) · no free tier · help.beside.com

How it differs from Notis: Beside answers and books your customers' inbound calls and texts; Notis is a general assistant for the buyer's own personal work and cross-tool execution, reachable on channels like WhatsApp, iMessage, and Slack that Beside does not offer.

Visit Beside Beside alternativesSupport score: 38% across all 33 rows

Questions about this comparison

Which of Town, Quin or Beside scores highest in the evidence checked so far?

Town, with 69% across 31 checked rows out of 33. Quin scores 52% across all 33 rows and Beside scores 38% across all 33 rows.

How much do they cost?

Town: Free–$239/user/mo (individuals; as low as $199/mo billed annually); Team $71–$179/seat/mo (as low as $59–$149/mo billed annually); Enterprise custom; Quin: $49–$649/member/month per team (1,000–25,000 credits, unlimited users), annual billing saves 14%; Enterprise custom; 14-day free trial, no free plan; Beside: $29.99-$99.99/mo flat per business, up to 20 seats (extra lines $4.99/mo each); no trial on Baseline, 7-day trial on Unlimited; a separate per-seat 'Beside plan' via App Store/Google Play is $29.99/mo or $199.99/yr (~$16.67/mo). Notis and Town all start at $0, and only Town has a free plan that does the product's main job.

Which of them can I try for free?

Town has a free tier and Quin and Beside do not.

Which of them work in Slack?

Town and Quin do. Beside does not.

What can none of them do?

None of them documents Bring your own API key, Open source or Run it on your own server.

Where does Notis fit in?

Notis is number 1 on this page. Against Town: Town emphasizes a personal wiki and learned routines; Notis emphasizes cross-channel execution and portable tools for the agents you already use.

How we checked

We checked each product's official pages against the same 33 capability rows. The support score is the share of checked rows a product documents. Partial support counts half, and rows not checked yet stay out of the score. Notis chose the rows and is scored the same way. The score does not measure reliability, reply speed or writing quality. Last checked 21 August 2026.

Sources

Delegate your work to Notis

Message Notis on WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram, Slack or email, and it does the work in the apps you connect.

Start free