Freshdesk vs Help Scout

Freshdesk is customer service software for organizing support requests across email, web forms, chat, social networks, and messaging channels. Its shared inbox brings conversations together, while ticket automation, case management, SLA management, and workflow actions support service teams. Customers can use a help center and portal, and service analytics can be customized. Freshdesk supports multiple languages, and Freddy AI Copilot translates conversations and replies in 60+ languages. Teams can set role-based permissions; the Enterprise plan adds audit logs, allowed domains, and IP whitelisting. Authentication includes SAML single sign-on and JWT, with API access available. The Free program covers 1–2 agents for six months. Paid plans start at $19 per agent per month, billed annually, and a 14-day trial is offered. The first 500 Freddy AI Agent sessions are included; additional sessions cost $49 per 100.

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.