Help Scout alternatives
Top Customer Support & Live Chat like Help Scout
All Help Scout alternatives
Front is a customer operations platform that turns email, SMS, chat, WhatsApp and social messages into a shared inbox teams can work in together. Messages can be assigned, commented on internally and routed with rules, while analytics track response times and workload. Front AI drafts replies and summarizes threads, and the tool serves support, sales and account teams who prefer an email-like workflow.
8 Front alternativesPros
- Email-like shared inbox that feels familiar to new users
- Internal comments and assignment replace forwarding and CCs
- Rules and analytics help balance workload and response times
Cons
- Per-seat pricing adds up quickly for larger teams
- Advanced analytics and automation are reserved for higher plans
- No free plan beyond the trial
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryZendesk is a customer service platform that brings email, chat, phone, social and messaging requests into a single ticketing system. It includes a help center for self-service articles, workflow automation, reporting and AI agents that can resolve common questions. A large marketplace of apps connects it to CRMs and e-commerce tools, and it serves support teams from startups to large enterprises.
12 Zendesk alternativesPros
- Mature ticketing that handles email, chat, phone and social at scale
- Large marketplace of apps for CRMs and e-commerce tools
- Help center and AI agents deflect common questions
Cons
- Expensive per agent, especially with AI and add-ons
- Setup and administration take time for complex workflows
- No free plan beyond the trial
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesFreshdesk is a help desk tool from Freshworks that turns emails, web forms, chats, calls and social messages into tickets for support teams. It includes a knowledge base, SLA management, automations, collision detection and reporting, plus Freddy AI for suggested replies and self-service bots. A free plan covers small teams, and it connects with Freshworks' CRM and other business apps.
12 Freshdesk alternativesPros
- Free plan for small teams with core ticketing
- Turns email, forms, chat, calls and social messages into tickets
- SLA rules, collision detection and automations for busy teams
Cons
- AI features and advanced automation cost extra or need top tiers
- Admin settings get complex as workflows grow
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesIntercom is a customer service platform that combines a chat messenger for websites and apps with a shared inbox, ticketing and a help center. Its AI agent, Fin, answers customer questions using your support content and can hand conversations over to human agents; it can also be added to other help desks. Product tours and proactive messages help onboard and engage users.
12 Intercom alternativesPros
- Fin AI agent answers questions from your support content
- Polished messenger for websites and mobile apps
- Product tours and proactive messages help onboard users
Cons
- Expensive, with AI resolutions billed on top of seats
- Pricing structure is complex and hard to predict
- More than a small team needs for basic live chat
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesCrisp is a French customer messaging platform that gathers website chat, email, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger and other channels into one shared inbox. It includes a chatbot builder, AI answers based on your own content, a knowledge base, email campaigns and a status page. A free plan covers basic live chat, and paid plans add automation, AI features and more channels.
8 Crisp alternativesPros
- Shared inbox for chat, email, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger
- Bundles a knowledge base, email campaigns and a status page
- French company with a GDPR-minded approach to customer data
Cons
- Free plan is limited to basic chat, while AI and automation need paid plans
- Reporting is lighter than in help desks built for large enterprises
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesZoho Desk is a help desk application from Zoho that manages customer requests from email, phone, chat, social media and web forms as tickets. It offers a self-service knowledge base, SLA rules, workflow automation, analytics and Zia, an AI assistant that suggests answers and detects customer sentiment. It integrates tightly with Zoho CRM and has a free plan for small teams.
10 Zoho Desk alternativesPros
- Tight integration with Zoho CRM shows customer context on tickets
- Zia suggests answers and detects customer sentiment
- Free plan for small teams, with paid tiers for SLAs and automation
Cons
- Interface feels busy, with many settings to learn
- Works best when you already use other Zoho apps
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesGorgias is a customer support platform designed for online stores, with deep integrations for Shopify and other e-commerce platforms. Agents see order details next to each ticket and can edit, refund or cancel orders without leaving the help desk. It centralizes email, chat, social media and SMS, and its AI Agent can handle common requests such as order tracking and returns.
8 Gorgias alternativesPros
- Order details appear next to each ticket for Shopify stores
- Agents can refund, edit or cancel orders without leaving the help desk
- AI agent handles routine requests like order tracking and returns
Cons
- Built for e-commerce, so less suited to other types of businesses
- Pricing tied to ticket volume can be hard to predict in busy seasons
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsChatwoot is an open-source customer engagement platform positioned as an alternative to Intercom and Zendesk. It unifies website live chat, email, WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, Telegram and SMS in one shared inbox, with a help center, canned responses, automation rules and an AI assistant called Captain. Teams can self-host it for free or use the paid cloud version.
11 Chatwoot alternativesPros
- Open source and free to self-host, keeping conversations on your servers
- One inbox for chat, email, WhatsApp, social channels and SMS
- Includes a help center, canned responses and automation rules
Cons
- Self-hosting requires maintaining the server, updates and integrations
- Reporting and workflows are less deep than in Zendesk or Intercom
Cost / LicenseFreemiumOpen sourceCategoriesPlatforms
Help Scout vs its alternatives at a glance
Pricing, platforms and the key features of Help Scout, compared with its most popular alternatives.
| App | Pricing | Platforms | AI assistant | Analytics | Integrations | Knowledge base | Live chat widget |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Help Scout | Freemium | Web, iPhone, Android | |||||
 Front | Free trial | Web, Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android | |||||
 Zendesk | Free trial | Web, iPhone, Android | |||||
 Freshdesk | Freemium | Web, iPhone, Android | |||||
 Intercom | Free trial | Web, iPhone, Android | |||||
 Crisp | Freemium | Web, Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android |
Help Scout alternatives: frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Help Scout?
The most popular alternative to Help Scout is Front: Collaborative inbox for customer-facing teams. Other great alternatives are Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, and Crisp.
Is there a free alternative to Help Scout?
Yes, 4 alternatives are free or have a free plan, including Freshdesk, Crisp, Zoho Desk, and Chatwoot.
Is there an open source alternative to Help Scout?
Yes, one open source alternative is listed: Chatwoot.
Is Help Scout free?
Help Scout has a free plan, with paid plans that unlock more features.
Compare Help Scout with its alternatives
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