Freshdesk
Support
Zendesk's job at roughly a third of Zendesk's price.
Category
Support software
Help desks, ticketing, service management and customer messaging.
We currently cover 5 products classified primarily as support software, plus 3 more that cover it as a secondary capability. Prices below are the vendors' own published figures, checked in August 2026.
Compare support tools
| Product | Best for | Starting price | Free plan | Trial | API |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freshdesk | Mid-market support teams wanting Zendesk capability for less | Growth from $19 per agent/month billed annually | No | 14 days | Yes |
| Help Scout | Small and mid-sized teams wanting support to feel personal | Standard from $25 per user/month | No | 15 days | Yes |
| Intercom | SaaS companies supporting users inside the product | Essential $29 per seat/month plus from $0.99 per Fin resolution | No | 14 days | Yes |
| ServiceNow | Large enterprises consolidating internal service desks | Not publicly disclosed. Quoted per organisation | No | Developer instance available free for building and testing | Yes |
| Zendesk | Support teams handling volume across several channels | Support Team from $19 per agent/month billed annually | No | 14 days | Yes |
Profiles
Help Scout
Support
A shared inbox that never makes your customer feel like a ticket.
Intercom
Support
Customer messaging that reinvented itself around an AI agent.
ServiceNow
Support
The enterprise workflow platform that IT service management grew into.
Zendesk
Support
Customer support ticketing that grew into a full service platform.
Also covers support
These products are classified elsewhere but include meaningful support capability.
Support comparison guides
Best customer support software in 2026
Independent comparison of Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, Help Scout and ServiceNow on real per-agent cost, what each entry tier actually excludes, and which is right for your support volume.
Updated 9 August 2026