# Best free help desk software

> We compare the permanent free plans of Jira Service Management, Help Scout, Zoho Desk and HubSpot Service Hub on user limits, features, AI and the cost of upgrading.

Published: September 19, 2026 · Updated: September 19, 2026 · Prices and figures verified: September 18, 2026 · By the help-desk.reviews team

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](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/how-we-review)

Four help desks have a permanent free plan: Help Scout (up to 5 users), Jira Service Management (3 agents), Zoho Desk (3 users) and HubSpot Service Hub (2 users). For customer support, Help Scout's free plan is the most usable; for an internal IT desk, Jira Service Management's is. None of these free plans includes an AI agent.

This list includes only products that document a free plan with no end date; time-limited offers such as Freshdesk's 6-month program for 2 agents do not qualify. The ranking uses our full [rubric](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/how-we-review), including the cost of the paid plan you would move to, because a free plan is only as good as the upgrade path behind it.

**Quick picks**

- **Customer support by email:** [Help Scout](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/help-scout) — 5 users, one inbox and a Docs site.
- **Internal IT requests:** [Jira Service Management](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/jira-service-management) — 3 agents, unlimited requesters, portal and email.
- **Cheapest paid upgrade:** [Zoho Desk](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/zoho-desk) — free for 3, then Express at $7.
- **Already on HubSpot CRM:** [HubSpot Service Hub](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/hubspot-service-hub) — free ticketing and live chat on your CRM records.

> **Scored on a public rubric, from prices and documents you can open.** Every score on this site comes from six published criteria: true cost with AI on, pricing transparency, AI as documented, access and switching, channels and languages, and data protection. The cost level is arithmetic on the vendor's list prices. Each price comes from one product database and links to its source, so every page agrees with every other page. The order of our lists is set by our editors and does not always follow the score. Rubric v1.0 · Scores rate list prices and public documentation. We have not run hands-on tests yet, and no page here claims we did. [Read the full method](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/how-we-review)

## The ranking

### 1. Jira Service Management — 8.7/10

_Internal IT, HR and operations service desks, especially at companies whose engineers already work in Jira_

- **Price from:** $20 per agent per month
- **Pricing model:** Per seat, plus AI usage
- **Free plan:** Yes
- **EU data hosting:** Yes

Jira Service Management is Atlassian's service desk for IT, HR and operations teams, built on Jira. In the cloud it is now sold only inside Atlassian Service Collection, which bundles it with Customer Service Management, Assets and Rovo AI. Atlassian headlines $20 (Standard) and $51.42 (Premium) per agent per month, but those are averages for a team of 75 agents: prices are banded, so the first 15 agents cost $25 and $57.30 each. Customers who raise requests are free and unlimited, and list prices rise on October 13, 2026.

> Free for 3 agents with 2 GB of storage and 1,250 automation steps a month, but no Rovo credits, no virtual agent and no data residency.

**The catch:** The advertised per-agent price is an average at 75 agents, so a small team pays more: on monthly billing each of the first 15 agents costs $25 on Standard, not $20. You also cannot buy Jira Service Management on its own any more, and prices rise again on October 13, 2026.

> **True cost at 10 agents (Premium):** $514 a month for seats alone, $514 a month with AI switched on.

[Read the review](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/jira-service-management) · [Pricing explained](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/jira-service-management) · [Alternatives](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/alternatives/jira-service-management)

### 2. Help Scout — 8.3/10

_Small teams that work mainly in email_

- **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.

> Free for 5 users, one inbox, one Docs site and 100 contacts a month, with no payment method required and no AI tools.

**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.

> **True cost at 10 agents (Plus):** $450 a month for seats alone, $825 a month with AI switched on.

[Read the review](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/help-scout) · [Pricing explained](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/help-scout) · [Alternatives](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/alternatives/help-scout)

### 3. Zoho Desk — 8.1/10

_Small and mid-size teams that want a complete help desk at a low per-user price_

- **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.

> Free for 3 users with email ticketing and limited features, no Zia AI, and EU hosting available even on the free plan.

**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.

> **True cost at 10 agents (Professional):** $230 a month for seats alone, $230 a month with AI switched on.

[Read the review](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/zoho-desk) · [Pricing explained](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/zoho-desk)

### 4. HubSpot Service Hub — 7.5/10

_Teams already on HubSpot's CRM that want support tickets on the same customer records as sales and marketing_

- **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.

> Free for 2 users with one inbox, basic ticketing and live chat, but no included credits and US-only hosting.

**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.

> **True cost at 10 agents (Professional):** $900 a month for seats alone, $1,120 a month with AI switched on.

[Read the review](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/hubspot-service-hub) · [Pricing explained](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/hubspot-service-hub)

## Comparison table

| Product | Score | Pricing model | Price from | Free plan | EU data hosting | German | Spanish | Best for |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Jira Service Management](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/jira-service-management) | 8.7 | Per seat, plus AI usage | $20 per agent per month | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Internal IT, HR and operations service desks, especially at companies whose engineers already work in Jira |
| [Help Scout](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/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](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/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 |
| [HubSpot Service Hub](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/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 |

## 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Jira Service Management](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/jira-service-management) | $60 | **$60** | $514 | **$514** | $2,571 | **$3,021** |
| [Help Scout](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/help-scout) | $75 | **$188** | $450 | **$825** | $2,250 | **$4,125** |
| [Zoho Desk](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/zoho-desk) | $42 | **$42** | $230 | **$230** | $1,150 | **$1,150** |
| [HubSpot Service Hub](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/pricing/hubspot-service-hub) | $21 | **$21** | $900 | **$1,120** | $4,500 | **$5,720** |

_3 agents: 750 tickets a month, 150 of them resolved by AI, agent-assist add-on on for every agent. 10 agents: 2,500 tickets a month, 500 of them resolved by AI, agent-assist add-on on for every agent. 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](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/tools/true-cost-calculator)

## How to choose

If you support customers by email and expect fewer than 100 contacts a month, pick [Help Scout](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/help-scout) Free. It covers the most users, and moving to Standard at $25 keeps the same inbox.

If you are setting up an IT or internal service desk, pick [Jira Service Management](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/jira-service-management) Free: requesters are unlimited and only agents count toward the limit of 3.

If you need EU hosting from day one or the cheapest paid upgrade, pick [Zoho Desk](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/zoho-desk) Free; the EU data center is available on every edition, including the free one.

If your sales and marketing already run on HubSpot, pick [HubSpot Service Hub](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/hubspot-service-hub) Free, but note that free-only accounts stay in the US and that Professional adds a $1,500 onboarding fee when you upgrade.

## Verdict

**Help Scout Free** is the best free help desk for customer support: the most users, a Docs site and a paid path with public prices. Ignore it if you need EU hosting (pick [Zoho Desk](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/zoho-desk)) or run an internal IT desk (pick [Jira Service Management](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/reviews/jira-service-management)).

## 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](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/guides/help-desk-software-and-data-protection-law)

## Frequently asked questions

### Is there a completely free help desk?

Yes. Help Scout is free for up to 5 users and 100 contacts a month, Jira Service Management for 3 agents, Zoho Desk for 3 users and HubSpot Service Hub for 2 users. These plans have no end date, but each limits features.

### Does any free help desk include AI?

Not in a useful form. Help Scout's free plan has no AI tools, Zoho Desk's has no Zia, Jira Service Management Free has no Rovo credits or virtual agent, and HubSpot's free plan includes no credits. AI starts on paid plans; see [do you need the AI add-on?](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/guides/do-you-need-the-ai-add-on).

### Does Freshdesk have a free plan?

Not a permanent one. Freshdesk offers a free program for 2 agents for 6 months and a 14-day trial, after which you move to a paid plan. That is why it is not on this list.

### Can I keep my data if I outgrow a free help desk?

Within the same product, yes: upgrading keeps your tickets. Moving to another vendor is harder, so check the export and import options before you commit. Our [migration checklist](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/guides/help-desk-migration-checklist) covers what to test.

## Keep reading

- [Best help desk software](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/best/help-desk-software)
- [Best help desk software for small business](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/best/for-small-business)
- [Best help desk for ecommerce](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/best/for-ecommerce)
- [Best enterprise help desk software](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/best/for-enterprise)
- [Best AI help desk software](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/best/ai-help-desk-software)
- [Best help desk software with EU data residency](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/best/with-eu-data-residency)
- [Help desk vs shared inbox](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/guides/help-desk-vs-shared-inbox)
- [Do you need the AI add-on?](https://help-desk.reviews/en-us/guides/do-you-need-the-ai-add-on)

## Sources

- [Service Collection pricing](https://www.atlassian.com/collections/service/pricing) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Cloud pricing tables (current and effective October 13, 2026)](https://www.atlassian.com/licensing/future-pricing/cloud-pricing/pricing-tables) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Service Collection licensing](https://www.atlassian.com/licensing/service-collection) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Rovo licensing](https://www.atlassian.com/licensing/rovo) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Purchasing and licensing](https://www.atlassian.com/licensing/purchase-licensing) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Data Center end of life](https://www.atlassian.com/licensing/data-center-end-of-life) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Manage your language preferences](https://support.atlassian.com/atlassian-account/docs/manage-your-language-preferences/) — Atlassian Support · September 19, 2026
- [Understand data residency](https://support.atlassian.com/security-and-access-policies/docs/understand-data-residency/) — Atlassian Support · September 19, 2026
- [SOC 2](https://www.atlassian.com/trust/compliance/resources/soc2) — Atlassian Trust Center · September 19, 2026
- [ISO/IEC 27001](https://www.atlassian.com/trust/compliance/resources/iso27001) — Atlassian Trust Center · September 19, 2026
- [HIPAA](https://www.atlassian.com/trust/compliance/resources/hipaa) — Atlassian Trust Center · September 19, 2026
- [Atlassian AI trust](https://www.atlassian.com/trust/ai) — Atlassian Trust Center · September 19, 2026
- [Service level agreement](https://www.atlassian.com/legal/sla) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Team '25 Europe: introducing Service Collection](https://www.atlassian.com/blog/announcements/team25-europe-service-collection) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [The Total Economic Impact of Jira Service Management](https://www.atlassian.com/blog/jira-service-management/total-economic-impact) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [The value of AI in Jira Service Management (Forrester TEI spotlight)](https://tei.forrester.com/go/Atlassian/JSMAISpotlight/) — Forrester Consulting · September 19, 2026
- [Automating customer support with the JSM virtual agent](https://www.atlassian.com/blog/atlassian-engineering/automating-customer-support-with-jsm-virtual-agent) — Atlassian · September 19, 2026
- [Atlassian Form 10-K for fiscal year 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001650372/000165037226000036/team-20260630.htm) — US Securities and Exchange Commission · September 19, 2026
- [Help Scout pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) — Help Scout · September 18, 2026
- [User-based billing and plans guide](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/596-billing-and-plans-guide) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [Light users](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1464-light-users) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [Manage your contact-based plan](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1593-contact-based-billing-and-plans-guide) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [About annual payments](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1421-about-annual-payments) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [Import emails or tickets into Help Scout](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1495-import-emails-or-tickets-into-help-scout) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [Security at Help Scout](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1263-security-at-help-scout) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [HIPAA at Help Scout](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/330-hipaa) — Help Scout Docs · September 18, 2026
- [AI transparency](https://www.helpscout.com/company/legal/ai-transparency/) — Help Scout · September 18, 2026
- [About Help Scout](https://www.helpscout.com/about/) — Help Scout · September 18, 2026
- [eCatholic customer story](https://helpscout.com/customers/ecatholic/) — Help Scout · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho Desk pricing](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho Desk price list data, all currencies](https://www.zohowebstatic.com/sites/zweb/json/pricing/desk-pricing-val.json) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho Desk edition comparison](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing-comparison.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Managing your agent seats](https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/desk/billing-and-subscriptions/articles/managing-your-agent-seats) — Zoho Desk Help · September 18, 2026
- [Zia, the AI assistant in Zoho Desk](https://www.zoho.com/desk/zia.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zia Agents pricing](https://www.zoho.com/agents/pricing.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho refund policy](https://www.zoho.com/refundpolicy.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Know your data center](https://www.zoho.com/know-your-datacenter.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Compliance at Zoho](https://www.zoho.com/compliance.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho and the GDPR](https://www.zoho.com/gdpr.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [HIPAA compliance guide for Zoho Desk](https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/desk/user-management-and-security/compliance/articles/hipaa-compliance-guide) — Zoho Desk Help · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho launches Zia LLM, prebuilt agents, a custom agent builder and an MCP server](https://www.zoho.com/news/zoho-launches-zia-llm-and-deepens-ai-portfolio-with-prebuilt-agents-custom-agent-builder-mcp-and-marketplace.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho Desk integrations](https://www.zoho.com/desk/integrations.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Zoho Desk product page](https://www.zoho.com/desk/) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [About Zoho](https://www.zoho.com/aboutus.html) — Zoho · September 18, 2026
- [Service Hub pricing](https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/service) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [Service Hub Preise](https://www.hubspot.de/pricing/service) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot Product & Services Catalog](https://legal.hubspot.com/hubspot-product-and-services-catalog) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot Service Hub pricing guide](https://blog.hubspot.com/service/hubspot-service-hub-pricing) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot Credits](https://www.hubspot.com/products/artificial-intelligence/credits) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [Understand HubSpot Credits and billing](https://knowledge.hubspot.com/account-management/understand-hubspot-credits-and-billing) — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 19, 2026
- [AI customer service agent](https://www.hubspot.com/products/artificial-intelligence/ai-customer-service-agent) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [Manage seats](https://knowledge.hubspot.com/account-management/manage-seats) — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot language offerings](https://knowledge.hubspot.com/help-and-resources/hubspot-language-offerings) — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot data centers](https://www.hubspot.com/data-centers) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot security](https://legal.hubspot.com/security) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [Security and compliance](https://www.hubspot.com/security-and-compliance) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [Sensitive data](https://www.hubspot.com/products/sensitive-data) — HubSpot · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot AI cloud infrastructure FAQ](https://knowledge.hubspot.com/hubspot-ai-cloud-infrastructure-frequently-asked-questions) — HubSpot Knowledge Base · September 19, 2026
- [HubSpot Form 10-K for fiscal year 2025](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1404655/000119312526046646/hubs-20251231.htm) — US Securities and Exchange Commission · September 19, 2026

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