Help Scout is the best help desk for most small businesses: it has a permanent free plan for 5 users, Standard costs $25 per user, and its AI agent is charged $0.75 only when it resolves a conversation. Zoho Desk is cheaper per seat, and Freshdesk is the pick if you need EU hosting or a phone line.
Small teams feel add-on pricing most, because a per-agent AI copilot or a mandatory onboarding fee can double a modest bill. This list covers products sold to small teams, scored on our rubric, which weights true cost with AI switched on most heavily. If you are not sure you need a help desk at all, start with help desk vs shared inbox.
Quick picks
- Email-first small team: Help Scout — free for 5 users, then $25 per user.
- Tightest budget: Zoho Desk — free for 3 users; Express from $7 for up to 5.
- Need EU hosting or phone: Freshdesk — Growth from $19 per agent, EEA region chosen at sign-up.
- Online store: Gorgias — priced by ticket, so adding agents costs nothing extra.
The ranking
Help Scout
Small teams that work mainly in email8.3- Price from
- $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 $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 $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 $30 instead of $25 on Standard.
Zoho Desk
Small and mid-size teams that want a complete help desk at a low per-user price8.1- Price from
- $7 per agent per month
- Pricing model
- Per agent seat
- Free plan
- Yes
- EU data hosting
- Yes
Zoho Desk is a ticketing help desk with email, social and WhatsApp channels, a help center and a chat widget, sold as part of the wider Zoho suite. Paid editions start at $7 per user per month on annual billing, there is a free plan for up to 3 users, and the Zia AI assistant is included from the Professional edition at $23. Zia AI Agents come with a free monthly token allowance, but the price of usage beyond it is not published.
The catch: Below Professional there is no bundled generative AI: on Express and Standard, AI features need your own OpenAI or DeepSeek API key, billed by that provider. And once Zia AI Agents use up the free token allowance, they draw on AI credits whose price Zoho does not publish.
Freshdesk
Budget-conscious teams that want EU hosting and a cheap per-agent entry price8.0- Price from
- $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 $19 per agent per month on annual billing and Omni at $29. The Freddy AI Agent is sold in packs of 100 sessions for $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: $49 per 100 sessions, against $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
- $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 $7 (Starter), $90 (Professional) and $150 (Enterprise) per seat per month on an annual commitment. Professional and Enterprise also require one-time onboarding at $1,500 and $3,500. The Breeze Customer Agent costs $0.50 per resolved conversation, paid in HubSpot Credits.
The catch: The advertised prices leave things out. Professional and Enterprise need one-time onboarding ($1,500 and $3,500), the Starter price of $7 assumes an annual commitment against $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.
Gorgias
Shopify and other ecommerce brands with many agents and moderate ticket volume7.4- Price from
- $10 per month
- Pricing model
- Per ticket volume
- Free plan
- No
- EU data hosting
- Yes
Gorgias is a help desk built for online stores, above all Shopify stores, with order data in the inbox and an AI agent that can handle refunds, cancellations and address changes. It is priced by billable tickets a month rather than per agent. Basic costs $50 a month for 300 tickets, Pro $300 for 2,000 and Advanced $750 for 5,000, on annual billing. The AI Agent costs $0.90 per automated interaction, and each of those interactions also uses up one of your plan's tickets.
The catch: Every conversation the AI Agent handles is billed twice: once as an automated interaction at $0.90 and once as a helpdesk ticket against your plan's allowance. Beyond the interactions included in your plan, the AI rate rises to $1.50.
Front
Small and mid-size operations and account teams that work mainly in email6.8- Price from
- $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 $25, $65 and $105 per seat per month on annual billing. Copilot adds $20 per seat below Enterprise, and the Autopilot AI agent is charged per conversation by what it achieved: $0.05 to triage, $0.39 to hand off and $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 $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
- $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 center in one suite. Omnichannel plans start at $55 per agent per month on annual billing, the Copilot agent-assist add-on costs $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 center currently describe differently.
The catch: Copilot cannot be licensed for a subset of agents: once it is on, every Suite Professional seat costs $115 plus $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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Help Scout | 8.3 | Per seat, plus AI usage | $25 per agent per month | Yes | No | Not documented | Not documented | Small teams that work mainly in email |
| Zoho Desk | 8.1 | Per agent seat | $7 per agent per month | Yes | Yes | Not documented | Not documented | Small and mid-size teams that want a complete help desk at a low per-user price |
| Freshdesk | 8.0 | Per seat, plus AI usage | $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 | $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 |
| Gorgias | 7.4 | Per ticket volume | $10 per month | No | Yes | Not documented | Not documented | Shopify and other ecommerce brands with many agents and moderate ticket volume |
| Front | 6.8 | Per seat, plus AI usage | $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 | $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
seats only with AI on
3 agents · Entry tier
3 agents: 750 tickets a month, 150 of them resolved by AI, agent-assist add-on on for every agent.
10 agents · Mid tier
10 agents: 2,500 tickets a month, 500 of them resolved by AI, agent-assist add-on on for every agent.
50 agents · Mid tier
50 agents: 12,500 tickets a month, 2,500 of them resolved by AI, agent-assist add-on on for every agent.
Estimates from vendors' published USD list prices with annual billing, verified on the date shown on this page. Taxes, discounts, onboarding fees and telephony usage are not included.
Help desk true-cost calculator
How to choose
If you answer customers by email and want to start free, pick Help Scout. The free plan covers 5 users and 100 contacts a month, and the paid plans have no minimum below Pro.
If every dollar counts and you have no more than 3 agents, start on Zoho Desk Free and move to Standard at $14 when you need a help center and chat. Remember that AI on Express and Standard needs your own OpenAI or DeepSeek key.
If you must keep customer data in the EU, pick Freshdesk and choose the EEA region when you sign up; Help Scout hosts in the US only. Freshdesk vs Help Scout compares the two in detail.
If you sell on Shopify, pick Gorgias; if your team shares one busy inbox with other departments, compare Help Scout vs Front.
Before adding any AI product, read do you need the AI add-on? and price it at your own volume in the true-cost calculator.
Verdict
Help Scout is the default for small businesses: free to start, simple to price and cheap to add AI to. Ignore it if you need EU data hosting or a phone channel, in which case pick Freshdesk, or if you run an online store, in which case pick Gorgias.
For buyers in the United States
A help desk holds your customers' personal information, so the vendor's contract has to meet state privacy law: California and about twenty other states require written limits on what a vendor may do with that data. Healthcare teams also need a signed business associate agreement before any patient information reaches a ticket.
Every vendor we cover publishes a US dollar price list, so the prices on this site are the prices you will be quoted before discounts. If you also serve customers in Europe or the United Kingdom, check where the product can host data; each review lists EU and UK data hosting and whether a HIPAA business associate agreement is available.
Help desk software and data protection law in the United States
Frequently asked questions
What is the best help desk for a small business?
Help Scout suits most small support teams: a free plan for 5 users, Standard at $25 per user on annual billing and an AI agent billed $0.75 per resolution. Zoho Desk is cheaper per seat, and Freshdesk is the pick when you need EU hosting.
Is there a free help desk for small teams?
Yes. Help Scout is free for 5 users, Zoho Desk for 3, and HubSpot Service Hub for 2; none of these free plans include an AI agent. See free help desk software.
Is Zendesk too expensive for a small business?
Usually, if you want AI. Suite Team costs $55 per agent, and Copilot is only available from Suite Professional at $115, plus $50 per agent for every seat. See Zendesk alternatives.
Do small teams need a help desk or a shared inbox?
A shared inbox is enough while one or two people answer from a single address. A help desk earns its cost once you need assignment, SLAs, a help center or reporting. Our guide to help desk vs shared inbox sets out the signs.
Keep reading
- Best help desk softwarebest list
- Best help desk for ecommercebest list
- Best enterprise help desk softwarebest list
- Best free help desk softwarebest list
- Best AI help desk softwarebest list
- Best help desk software with EU data residencybest list
- Help desk vs shared inboxguide
- Do you need the AI add-on?guide
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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