Lead routing for DM teams: the right person, or a queue.
Handed-off chats go to an online teammate with capacity, balanced by share. When nobody is free they wait in a queue, and long waits escalate to owners and admins.
- Set up in minutes
- Review before anything sends
Seats: Growth 5 ($129/mo), Pro unlimited ($349/mo). Intelligent lead routing is listed under Pro.
The short answer
How does lead routing work for DM teams?
When a chat is handed to a human, Instant Reply assigns it to an online teammate who has capacity, balancing by each person's share percent and max leads. If nobody is free the chat waits in a queue, and a long wait escalates to owners and admins. Routing has no if-then rules by region, language or product.
Last verified
Key facts
- Per person: in routing, max leads, share percent and availability.
- A queue called Leads waiting holds chats when nobody has capacity.
- Long waits escalate and notify owners and admins.
- No region, language or product rules.
- Listed under Pro ($349/mo) on the pricing page.
Verified capabilities
What routing does today
Checked against the dashboard and backend source and plan data on October 2, 2026. The last two rows list what it does not do.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Capability | How it works today | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| Turn routing on | Routing settings has an Enable routing switch. When on, handed-off conversations are assigned to your team automatically. Owners and admins change settings; members can view them. | Team workspaces |
| Who gets the next lead | The Your team table sets, per person, whether they are in routing, their max leads, a share percent and availability (Auto, Online, Away or Offline). Assignment follows online people with capacity and balances by share. | Team workspaces |
| Waiting queue | If nobody has capacity, the conversation waits in a queue shown as Leads waiting. A conversation that waits too long is marked escalated and owners and admins are notified. | Team workspaces |
| Advanced settings | Include cold leads, show disqualified leads, default max leads per person, balance tolerance percent, and what the AI does after hours (keep talking, acknowledge only, or off). | Team workspaces |
| Plan | Seats: Growth 5, Pro unlimited. The pricing page lists intelligent lead routing with SLA tracking and capacity caps under Pro ($349/mo). | Listed under Pro |
| Rules by topic or region | You cannot write if-then routing rules such as by region, language or product line. Routing is by availability, capacity and share. | Not available |
| Private inboxes | Assigned people do not get private inboxes. Every teammate can still open every conversation. | Not available |
Best fit
Use routing when more than one person answers handoffs.
It spreads handed-off chats; it does not score or filter them for you.
Best fit
Teams of two or more where handed-off chats should reach an available person fairly.
Not a fit
You need rules by region, language or product, or private per-person inboxes.
Solo?
With one seat, routing has nobody to choose between; use handoff notifications instead.
How it works
How It Works
Set up your team
Mark who is in routing, set max leads and a share percent for each person.
A chat is handed off
When a customer asks for a person or the AI hands off, routing looks for an online teammate with capacity.
Assign or queue
The chat is assigned, or waits in Leads waiting and escalates to owners and admins if it waits too long.
Why teams choose it
What routing takes off your plate
Fewer chats waiting for someone to notice them.
Fair distribution
Share percent and max leads keep any one person from getting every chat.
A waiting queue
Chats with no taker wait in a visible queue instead of getting lost.
Escalation
A chat that waits too long is escalated and owners and admins are notified.
After-hours control
Choose whether the AI keeps talking, only acknowledges, or stays off after hours.
Best fit
Perfect for teams that move fast in DMs.
A hot lead at lunchtime
Scenario
A lead asks for a person. Routing assigns the chat to the online teammate with the most room.
Outcome
Everyone is busy
Scenario
All teammates are at max leads. The chat waits in Leads waiting and escalates to an admin if it sits too long.
Outcome
A shift change
Scenario
Set availability to Away or Offline and routing skips that person.
Outcome
The difference
Why Switch?
Without Instant Reply
With Instant Reply
Common questions
What is lead routing software?
It decides which teammate gets a new lead. In Instant Reply, when a chat is handed to a human, routing picks an online teammate who has capacity, balances by each person's share, and queues the chat when nobody is free.
Can I route by region, product or language?
No. Routing uses availability, max leads and share percent per person. There are no if-then rules by region, language or product line.
What happens when nobody is available?
The conversation waits in the Leads waiting queue. If it waits too long it is marked escalated and your owners and admins are notified, so a chat is not left unseen.
Which plan includes lead routing?
It needs teammates, so it fits Growth (5 seats, $129/mo) and Pro (unlimited seats, $349/mo). The pricing page lists intelligent lead routing with SLA tracking under Pro.
Does routing stop other teammates from seeing a chat?
No. Every teammate can open every conversation. Routing decides who is expected to answer, not who is allowed to see it.
Related features
Features that work with this one
Each page below covers the next step in the same workflow, with its own plan limits and a list of what it does not do.
Stop leaving handoffs to chance.
Start the 7-day trial, invite a teammate, and set their share in routing settings.
An interactive read-only demo, and plan limits in plain English.