FreeScout vs Help Scout

FreeScout is a free, open-source help desk and shared inbox built with PHP and Laravel. It centralizes conversations from email, WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, Slack, and Live Chat, with email support for SMTP, IMAP, and POP3 and OAuth for Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. The product includes saved replies, internal notes, auto replies, conversation merging and forwarding, collision detection, and search, alongside SLA management, ticket automation, a help center, and a customer portal. Its free plan lists unlimited support agents, tickets, and mailboxes. FreeScout is self-hosted, and the maker presents this model as a way for organizations to retain control of their service and privacy. The listed platforms include Android, iOS, web, API, and self-hosted use. The maker says mobile apps support the same functionality and modules as the web installation. Zapier and Make integrations are listed, as is an API and webhooks module. FreeScout says it is translated into 33 languages.

Help Scout is customer support software that brings email, SMS, social, chat, and voice into a shared Inbox. It also provides ticket automation, SLA management, a customer portal, and Docs sites for searchable, branded help centers or knowledge bases. Teams can manage visibility and access with permissions at company, team, or user level, and connect the service to more than 100 tools or apps. Help Scout offers API access and a mobile app. Its Free plan costs nothing and includes five users, one Inbox, and one Docs site, with 100 contacts per month, 10 saved replies, and 10 tags. Paid plans start at $25 per user per month; annual pricing is shown as 16% lower than monthly pricing. Standard and Plus plans offer 15-day trials without a credit card. New accounts receive three months of unlimited AI Answers resolutions. Help Scout states that it is HIPAA and SOC 2 Type II compliant. Support options include email, onboarding, customer success management, and priority support on paid plans.