What Is Hello Bar? Bars, Popups and a Self-Picking A/B Test
By Joris van Huët · Hello Bar's own site
The short answer: if your popups will be seen up to 50,000 times a month and you are happy for the A/B test to choose its own winner, Hello Bar's Growth plan covers it at $29 a month billed annually, or $39 month to month (pricing page, checked on 26 October 2026). It is a bar and popup builder for content sites, small shops and lean teams that already pay for an email tool.
Disclosure: I may earn a commission through some links on this site. It does not change what this page says.
Before you choose a tier:
- Count popup views, not visitors. For example, a bar on every page of a blog with 80,000 pageviews a month uses 80,000 views. Growth includes 50,000 and the overage breakdown charges $5 per 5,000 over, so 6 x $5 = $30: the gap between Growth and Premium on monthly billing.
- Read the free plan as a trial. Starter's 5,000 views are a lifetime total, and used up, the popups switch off (support article).
- Keep your email tool. Hello Bar captures addresses and sends nothing; they leave through an integration, a webhook, Zapier or a CSV (export guide).
- Decide where you will judge it. Views and conversions can go to GA4 as events (GA4 guide).
What Hello Bar does
Bars, modals, alerts, sliders and page takeovers, plus inline, gamified and video popups, from 100+ templates (pricing page). The homepage lists 12 trigger types and 30+ targeting rules, from exit intent to city and ad campaign. A Widgets tab adds a chat bubble for WhatsApp, Messenger or SMS, and buttons that send your page to ChatGPT, Claude or Perplexity for a summary (widgets page).
The A/B test is the unusual part. Once each version has 1,000 views, Hello Bar shows the better converter on 90% of views and a random one on the rest, so an edited loser can win traffic back (A/B article). It decides as it goes. Nobody signs off a verdict.
Who it suits, and who it does not
A blog, media site or small store that wants a top bar and an exit popup live without a developer, with three seats on Growth. Less so a team that needs a confidence level before rolling out a change, or wants the popup tool to send the welcome email too.
What it costs
USD, checked on 26 October 2026 on the Hello Bar pricing page.
| Plan | Monthly billing | Billed annually, per month | Popup views | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $0 | $0 | 5,000 in total | 1 |
| Growth | $39 | $29 | 50,000 a month | 3 |
| Premium | $69 | $49 | 150,000 a month | Unlimited |
| Elite | $129 | $99 | 500,000 a month | Unlimited |
Two of Hello Bar's own pages disagree with that table: the A/B testing page shows Elite at $69 a month, and an older overage article bills $5 per 25,000 extra views. Get the figure in writing before you sign.
The lifetime cap is the free plan working for Hello Bar: switched-off popups wait in a Deactivated section, ready to go live the day you pay.
How it compares
OptinMonster. OptinMonster meters campaign impressions and keeps exit intent for Pro, $37 a month in the first year (pricing). It wins on layered rules such as onsite retargeting.
Poptin. Poptin sends email campaigns as well, so one login catches the address and the follow-up (Poptin pricing).
OptiMonk. OptiMonk has an AI agent draft the popup and bills on every page load (OptiMonk pricing).
Getting started
Install the plugin or snippet and build one bar for your busiest posts. How to use Hello Bar builds an email list from blog traffic.
FAQ
Does Hello Bar email the people it collects?
No. Its export guide says it provides popups only; the welcome email comes from your provider.
What happens when a paid plan runs over?
Popups keep showing and the overage is billed next month: $5 per 5,000 extra views on Growth, per 10,000 on Premium, per 25,000 on Elite (overage breakdown).
Can I ask EU visitors for consent?
Yes. A GDPR toggle, set popup by popup, adds a consent step after submit (GDPR article), and a country rule can limit where a popup shows.