Help desk software pricing varies significantly based on the number of users, included features, and contract length. See our pricing comparison below for a detailed breakdown:
Helpdesk | Pricing | |
---|---|---|
1. | Lowest cost starter plan for monthly subscription | |
2. | Pricing highly varies, extensive feature tiers | |
3. | Enterprise-scale support with flexible tiered pricing | |
4. | Lowest cost starter plans for annual subscription | |
5. | Hybrid: Subscription + per-resolution |
Help desk pricing calculator
In the help desk pricing calculator, I used the tier structure—Starter, Growth, Pro, Enterprise, and Enterprise + AI agents—as part of a normalized pricing scale to make cross-vendor comparisons more effective.
While vendors use different plan names (like “Growth,” “Suite Team,” or “Essential”), I grouped them based on similar feature sets.
Freshdesk

Growth: Provides basic support functionality, including ticketing and email features, suitable for small and medium-sized businesses.
Pro: Offers additional customization options, customer segmentation, and workflow capabilities for more tailored support operations.
Enterprise: Includes Automated response agents (bots), security features, and expanded multi-channel support for large-scale support environments.
Freshdesk plan comparison
In addition to the free-tier, Freshdesk offers 3 different plans and paid add-on tools:
Feature | Growth | Pro | Enterprise |
---|---|---|---|
Base price | $15/agent/mo | $49/agent/mo | $79/agent/mo |
Ticketing system | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Customer portal | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Multilingual support | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Custom reports | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Skill-based routing | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Approval workflows | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Audit logs | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
Freddy AI Copilot | $29/agent/mo | $29/agent/mo | $29/agent/mo |
Freddy AI Agent | 500 sessions free, then $100/1K | 500 sessions free, then $100/1K | 500 sessions free, then $100/1K |
Freshcaller contact center add-on | from $15/mo | from $39/mo | from $69/mo |
Zendesk Support Suite

Suite Team: Basic conversational service with quick setup for SMEs.
Suite Growth: Self-service and automation capabilities at a scale.
Suite Professional: Includes team access management and routing options, skill-based ticket routing, and analytics.
Suite Enterprise: Configurable roles and permissions at scale with content suggestions.3
Zendesk Support Suite plan comparison
Features | Suite Team | Suite Growth | Suite Professional | Suite Enterprise |
---|---|---|---|---|
Multilingual content | 1 default language | 40+ languages | 40+ languages | 40+ languages |
Multiple help centers | 1 | Up to 5 | Up to 5 | Up to 300 |
AI agents resolutions per agent/month | 5 | 10 | 10 | 15 |
Zendesk – Build Your Own Plan

Starting price: $19 per agent/month (billed annually)
Best for: Small businesses handling a low volume of support tickets and not requiring analytics.
Included features:
- Ticketing system
- Email, X, and Facebook messaging
- Customer details and conversation history
- AI agents
- Reporting and analytics
- Eligible for workforce management add-on
- Eligible for quality assurance add-on
Zendesk add-ons
Workforce management
Price: $25 per agent/month (billed annually)
Purpose: Supports scheduling and performance tracking, especially for larger teams.
Includes:
- Forecasting
- Automatic agent scheduling
- Agent activity tracking
- Performance reporting
Quality assurance
Price: $35 per agent/month (billed annually)
Purpose: Supports automated review of support interactions.
Includes:
- Agent feedback tools
- Performance trend tracking
- QA for AI agent interactions
Data privacy and protection
Price: $50 per agent/month (billed annually)
Purpose: Adds enhanced data security and compliance capabilities.
Includes:
Salesforce Service Cloud

Starter Suite: Basic CRM package for marketing, sales, support, and commerce.
Pro Suite: The CRM suite with additional marketing, sales, support, and commerce functions such as real-time chat and sales forecasting.
Enterprise: Plan with AI recommendations, and workflow automation.
Unlimited: For enterprises that need chatbots and 24-hour assistance.
Salesforce Service Cloud plan comparison
Top features | Starter Suite | Pro Suite | Enterprise | Unlimited | Einstein 1 Service |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Omni-channel routing | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Knowledge management | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Einstein for service | ❌ | ❌ | Available for purchase | Available for purchase | ✅ |
Service intelligence | ❌ | ❌ | Available for purchase | Available for purchase | ✅ |
Salesforce Service Cloud add-ons
Einstein for Service – From $75/user/month
Integrates conversational, predictive, and generative AI into customer service workflows to deliver personalized assistance.
Visual Remote Assistant – $50/user/month
Provides real-time visual support through video to assist customers remotely.
Service Intelligence – From $220/user/month
Provides data-driven insights and recommendations to assist with operational decision-making and performance analysis.6
Zoho Desk

Express: Provides basic email and social media support tools, along with simple workflows for small businesses.
Standard: Includes core support features such as ticket management and limited automation for small-scale teams.
Professional: Offers collaboration tools, process automation, custom reporting, and access-level controls for mid-sized organizations.
Enterprise: Supports AI agent functionality and customization capabilities for enterprise-level operations.
Zoho desk plan comparison
Top features | Express | Standard | Professional | Enterprise |
---|---|---|---|---|
Custom reports | ❌ | 50 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
AI agent dashboards | ❌ | ❌ | Limited | ✅ |
Field-level access control | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Email channels | 1 | 5 | 10 | 100 |
Live chat | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Ticket tags | 10 | 20 | 30 | 50 |
Macros | 2 | 5 | 15 | 30 |
Intercom

Essential: Entry-level plan with core support features such as shared inbox, ticketing system, pre-built reports, and a public Help Center. Includes access to the Fin AI Agent at $0.99 per resolution.
Advanced: Adds support for multiple inboxes, workflow automation, round robin assignment, and a private, multilingual Help Center. Includes 20 seats and Fin AI Agent access.
Expert: Expands on Advanced with features for identity management (SSO), HIPAA support, SLAs and Help Center capabilities. Includes 50 seats and Fin AI Agent access.
Intercom plan comparison
Feature | Essential | Advanced | Expert |
---|---|---|---|
Base price | $29/seat/month | $85/seat/month | $132/seat/month |
Fin AI Agent | $0.99 per resolution | $0.99 per resolution | $0.99 per resolution |
Free trial | 14 days | 14 days | 14 days |
Messenger | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Shared inbox and ticketing | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Pre-built reports | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Multiple team inboxes | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Workflow automation builder | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
SSO and identity management | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
HIPAA support | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
Service level agreements (SLAs) | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
Included Lite seats | ❌ | 20 seats | 50 seats |
Key factors that affect help desk pricing
Number of agents
- The pricing model often scales with the number of users or agents who will be using the software. More users generally mean higher costs.
Features
- Additional features: AI agents, skill-based routing, custom reporting, and analytics, can increase the price.
- Basic packages commonly include essential ticketing and outsourced support for emails, while enterprise packages offer more features.
Deployment type
- Cloud-based (SaaS) solutions typically have subscription-based models, which might be monthly or annually.
- On-premises solutions may involve a one-time license fee along with ongoing maintenance costs.
Customization
- Solutions that offer higher levels of customization and can scale according to business growth often come at a premium.
- The ability to tailor workflows, add custom fields, and create personalized user interfaces can affect the price.
Customer support
- The level of customer support (e.g., 24/7 support, dedicated account managers) and training provided (e.g., onboarding, user training, and documentation) can influence the cost.
- Service providers may charge extra for extensive support and training packages.
Integration capabilities
- Software that can offer a large number of integrations with CRM, ERP, and other third-party applications) may be priced higher due to the added value and convenience.
Security and compliance
- Additional security features (e.g., encryption, single sign-on, compliance with standards like GDPR, and HIPAA) can increase costs.
Contract length and payment terms
- Discounts might be available for annual contract terms.
- Additional services, such as add-on tools in the package, can increase costs.
Vendor selection criteria
- Number of B2B reviews: 4,000+ reviews on G2, TrustRadius, and Capterra software review sites.
- Average rating: Above 4.0/5 on G2, TrustRadius, and Capterra software review sites.
- Employee size: 1,000+ employees on Linkedin.
- Sorting: With sponsored vendors at the top, others are sorted by total number of reviews in descending order.
External Links
- 1. Freshdesk Pricing & Plans | Freshworks.
- 2. Zendesk Pricing | Plans starting from just $55/month.
- 3. Zendesk Pricing | Plans starting from just $55/month.
- 4. Zendesk Support Pricing | Plans starting from just $19 an agent.
- 5. Service & Field Service Customer Service Software Pricing | Salesforce US.
- 6. Service & Field Service Customer Service Software Pricing | Salesforce US.
- 7. Zoho Desk – Preise und Editionen | Flexible kostenlose Testversion.
- 8. Get AI-powered customer service from US$29/mo.
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