The best Intercom alternative depends on what you want to change: Help Scout and Front bill their AI agents by result for less, Zendesk offers a broader channel and hosting set, Freshdesk costs less per agent with self-serve EU hosting, and HubSpot Service Hub fits teams on HubSpot's CRM.
Intercom publishes every price and defines its billable AI outcome in writing, which few rivals match. Teams look elsewhere because that outcome now includes configured handoffs, because EU hosting needs a sales contract and a new workspace, and because the company behind it has renamed itself and agreed to be acquired. The alternatives below are costed with AI on in the tables further down.
Why teams look beyond Intercom
- Fin costs US$0.99 per outcome with no included allowance, and an outcome now includes a configured handoff to a person and an "assumed" resolution where the customer stops replying.
- The company renamed itself from Intercom to Fin on 12 May 2026, and Salesforce signed an agreement to acquire it on 15 June 2026 for about US$3,600,000,000, with no public commitment on pricing afterwards.
- EU hosting requires Advanced or Expert, a sales contract and a brand-new workspace; existing workspaces cannot be moved.
- SSO, HIPAA support and SLA features are limited to Expert at US$132 per seat.
- There is no free plan and no documented import tool for moving in from another help desk.
The alternatives, ranked
Tidio
Online stores and other small teams of up to ten agents that also want support to generate sales, through in-chat product recommendations8.9- Price from
- US$24.17 per month
- Pricing model
- Per ticket volume
- Free plan
- Yes
- EU data hosting
- Yes
Tidio is a customer service suite for small ecommerce teams: ticketing and an email inbox, live chat, the rule-based Flows chatbot and the Lyro AI agent. It does not charge per agent. Every self-serve plan is a flat price for the whole project that includes 10 seats, and the plan is chosen by how many conversations a human answers: Starter is US$24.17 a month for 100 of them, and Growth runs from US$49.17 for 250 up to US$290.83 for 2,000, on annual billing. Lyro is bought separately, in prepaid monthly packs from US$32.50.
The catch: Three meters run at once and none of them covers the others: billable human conversations, Lyro conversations and Flows visitors are bought separately. Worse, the conversation cap is a wall, not a bill - once the month's allowance is used, agents cannot see or answer new messages until the quota resets or you upgrade. And every self-serve plan stops at 10 seats.
Help Scout
Small teams that work mainly in email8.3- Price from
- US$25 per agent per month
- Pricing model
- Per seat, plus AI usage
- Free plan
- Yes
- EU data hosting
- No
Help Scout is a shared inbox, live chat widget and knowledge base for small and mid-size support teams. Paid plans start at US$25 per user per month on annual billing, there is a free plan for up to 5 users, and its customer-facing AI agent costs US$0.75 per resolution with no charge when the customer still needs a person.
The catch: Data is hosted in the United States only, and the prices on the pricing page are annual-billing prices: paying monthly costs US$30 instead of US$25 on Standard.
Freshdesk
Budget-conscious teams that want EU hosting and a cheap per-agent entry price8.0- Price from
- US$19 per agent per month
- Pricing model
- Per seat, plus AI usage
- Free plan
- No
- EU data hosting
- Yes
Freshdesk is Freshworks' help desk, sold in two versions: standalone Freshdesk for email ticketing, and Freshdesk Omni, which adds chat, phone and messaging. Freshdesk starts at US$19 per agent per month on annual billing and Omni at US$29. The Freddy AI Agent is sold in packs of 100 sessions for US$49, and a session is charged whether or not the AI solves the customer's problem.
The catch: Freddy AI Agent sessions are used up whether or not the issue gets resolved, and the price per session is now several times what Freshworks' own June 2025 price list showed: US$49 per 100 sessions, against US$100 per 1,000 then.
HubSpot Service Hub
Teams already on HubSpot's CRM that want support tickets on the same customer records as sales and marketing7.5- Price from
- US$7 per agent per month
- Pricing model
- Per seat, plus AI usage
- Free plan
- Yes
- EU data hosting
- Yes
HubSpot Service Hub is the customer service part of HubSpot's CRM: ticketing, shared inboxes, live chat, calling, a knowledge base and a customer portal, all on the same contact records as HubSpot's marketing and sales tools. Seats cost US$7 (Starter), US$90 (Professional) and US$150 (Enterprise) per seat per month on an annual commitment. Professional and Enterprise also require one-time onboarding at US$1,500 and US$3,500. The Breeze Customer Agent costs US$0.50 per resolved conversation, paid in HubSpot Credits.
The catch: The advertised prices leave things out. Professional and Enterprise need one-time onboarding (US$1,500 and US$3,500), the Starter price of US$7 assumes an annual commitment against US$20 month to month, and the included credits cover only about 60 AI resolutions a month on Professional. If you hold other HubSpot hubs at a higher tier, every Core Seat is priced at that tier.
Front
Small and mid-size operations and account teams that work mainly in email6.8- Price from
- US$25 per agent per month
- Pricing model
- Per seat, plus AI usage
- Free plan
- No
- EU data hosting
- Yes
Front is a shared inbox and ticketing tool built for teams that live in email, such as logistics, travel and B2B services. Plans cost US$25, US$65 and US$105 per seat per month on annual billing. Copilot adds US$20 per seat below Enterprise, and the Autopilot AI agent is charged per conversation by what it achieved: US$0.05 to triage, US$0.39 to hand off and US$0.89 to resolve.
The catch: Seat caps push growing teams up a tier: Starter stops at 10 seats and Professional at 50, beyond which Enterprise is the only option at US$105 per seat, annual only. Payments are non-refundable and removed seats keep being billed until the next term.
Zendesk
Mid-size and enterprise teams that need phone, messaging and email in one tool5.2- Price from
- US$19 per agent per month
- Pricing model
- Per seat, plus AI usage
- Free plan
- No
- EU data hosting
- Yes
Zendesk is a help desk for mid-size and large support teams that covers email, messaging, live chat, phone, WhatsApp, social channels and a help centre in one suite. Omnichannel plans start at US$55 per agent per month on annual billing, the Copilot agent-assist add-on costs US$50 per agent and must be bought for every seat, and AI agents are billed per automated resolution under rules that Zendesk's own pricing page and help centre currently describe differently.
The catch: Copilot cannot be licensed for a subset of agents: once it is on, every Suite Professional seat costs US$115 plus US$50. And the per-resolution price of AI agents under the billing model in force since May 2026 is not published.
Comparison table
| Product | Score | Pricing model | Price from | Free plan | EU data hosting | German | Spanish | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intercom | 6.9 | Per seat, plus AI usage | US$29 per agent per month | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Software and online businesses that want a customer-facing AI agent at the centre of support |
| Tidio | 8.9 | Per ticket volume | US$24.17 per month | Yes | Yes | Not documented | Yes | Online stores and other small teams of up to ten agents that also want support to generate sales, through in-chat product recommendations |
| Help Scout | 8.3 | Per seat, plus AI usage | US$25 per agent per month | Yes | No | Not documented | Not documented | Small teams that work mainly in email |
| Freshdesk | 8.0 | Per seat, plus AI usage | US$19 per agent per month | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Budget-conscious teams that want EU hosting and a cheap per-agent entry price |
| HubSpot Service Hub | 7.5 | Per seat, plus AI usage | US$7 per agent per month | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Teams already on HubSpot's CRM that want support tickets on the same customer records as sales and marketing |
| Front | 6.8 | Per seat, plus AI usage | US$25 per agent per month | No | Yes | No | No | Small and mid-size operations and account teams that work mainly in email |
| Zendesk | 5.2 | Per seat, plus AI usage | US$19 per agent per month | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Mid-size and enterprise teams that need phone, messaging and email in one tool |
True cost at 3, 10 and 50 agents
| Product | 3 agents · Entry tier · seats only | 3 agents · Entry tier · with AI on | 10 agents · Mid tier · seats only | 10 agents · Mid tier · with AI on | 50 agents · Mid tier · seats only | 50 agents · Mid tier · with AI on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intercom | US$87 | US$323 | US$850 | US$1,635 | US$4,250 | US$8,175 |
| Tidio | US$133 | US$199 | No public price | US$583 | Growth is capped at 10 seats | Growth is capped at 10 seats |
| Help Scout | US$75 | US$188 | US$450 | US$825 | US$2,250 | US$4,125 |
| Freshdesk | US$57 | US$155 | US$550 | US$1,085 | US$2,750 | US$5,425 |
| HubSpot Service Hub | US$21 | US$21 | US$900 | US$1,120 | US$4,500 | US$5,720 |
| Front | US$75 | US$269 | US$650 | US$1,295 | US$3,250 | US$6,475 |
| Zendesk | US$165 | US$368 | US$1,150 | US$2,250 | US$5,750 | US$11,250 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest alternative to Intercom?
For small teams, Help Scout: it has a free plan for up to 5 users, and Standard costs US$25 per user per month on annual billing, with AI Answers at US$0.75 per resolution. Freshdesk Growth costs US$19 per agent but charges its AI agent per session. Use the true cost calculator for your own volumes.
Should I leave Intercom because of the Salesforce deal?
Not necessarily, but plan for it. The deal was signed on 15 June 2026 and had not closed when we last checked, and neither company has said what will happen to pricing. If you renew, ask for price protection and exit rights on a change of control, and keep this page and Zendesk vs Intercom in mind as fallbacks.
Which Intercom alternative bills AI only on resolutions?
Help Scout charges US$0.75 per resolution and nothing for escalations, HubSpot Service Hub US$0.50 per resolution, and Zendesk only for verified resolutions. Front charges US$0.89 per resolution but also bills handoffs and triage at lower rates. See per-seat vs per-resolution pricing.
Can I keep Intercom's Fin and switch help desks?
Yes. Fin is sold on its own to run on Zendesk, Salesforce, HubSpot or Freshworks, through sales with a minimum of 50 outcomes a month. See the help desk migration checklist.
Related pages
- Intercom reviewreview
- Intercom pricing explainedpricing
- Zendesk vs Intercomvs
- Help desk migration checklistguide
- Best help desk softwarebest list
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This page was researched and drafted with AI assistance from the sources listed on it. We have not run hands-on tests of these products. Method: How we review