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Zendesk alternatives
Teams usually look beyond Zendesk for two reasons: the price per agent, and the extra charge for each ticket its AI resolves. Here are five worth a look, what they cost, and who each suits.
Prices from each company’s pricing page, checked 25 October 2026. Zendesk itself is $55 to $115 per agent a month, billed annually, plus $1.50 to $2.00 per AI resolution beyond those included.
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1
Aither
- Best for
- Small and mid-sized teams that want AI to resolve tickets, including refunds and order changes they approve.
- Price
- $29 to $299 a month for the business, or from $499 for Enterprise. Seats included.
- AI
- Included on every plan.
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2
Intercom
- Best for
- Software companies that want support and in-product messaging in one place.
- Price
- From $29 per seat a month, billed annually.
- AI
- Fin AI Agent, $0.99 per resolution.
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3
Gorgias
- Best for
- Shopify stores, especially ones that handle social media comments and phone support.
- Price
- From $10 a month, priced by tickets (Basic $50 for 300, billed annually).
- AI
- AI Agent, $0.90 to $1.00 per resolution.
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4
Help Scout
- Best for
- Teams that want a simple shared inbox and help centre.
- Price
- Free for up to 5 users and 100 contacts a month. Paid plans $25 to $75 per user a month.
- AI
- AI Answers, $0.75 per resolution.
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5
Freshdesk
- Best for
- Teams that want traditional ticketing at a lower per-agent price.
- Price
- $19 to $89 per agent a month, billed annually.
- AI
- Freddy AI Agent: first 500 sessions included, then $49 per 100 sessions. Copilot $29 per agent a month.
At a glance
| Help desk | Priced by | AI resolutions | Phone | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aither | The business, seats included | Included | No | 14 days |
| Zendesk | Agent | $1.50 to $2.00 each | Yes | 14 days |
| Intercom | Seat | $0.99 each | Yes | 14 days |
| Gorgias | Tickets a month | $0.90 to $1.00 each | Yes | 7 days |
| Help Scout | User | $0.75 each | No | 15 days |
| Freshdesk | Agent | $49 per 100 sessions after 500 | Add-on | 14 days |
How to choose
- Count your AI resolutions
- Per-resolution pricing looks small until you multiply it. 1,000 AI-resolved tickets a month is $750 to $2,000 on top of seats with most of these tools.
- Check the channels you need
- If phone support has to live in the same tool, that rules out Aither and Help Scout today.
- Bring your history
- Aither imports past tickets from Zendesk, Intercom, Gorgias and Help Scout, and help articles from all but Gorgias, so customers’ old conversations aren’t lost.
Moving from Zendesk
- Start a trial. 14 days of Aither Pro, no credit card.
- Connect Zendesk. Paste your Zendesk API key under Integrations. Past tickets and help articles import in the background.
- Point your channels at Aither. Forward your support email, add the chat widget, and keep Zendesk running until you're ready to switch it off.
Aither is our product, and we’ve tried to be fair to the others. Prices are list prices in US dollars from each company’s public pricing page on 25 October 2026 and can change; taxes and add-ons not shown. Spot something out of date? Email [email protected] and we’ll fix it. Zendesk, Intercom, Gorgias, Help Scout and Freshdesk are trademarks of their owners; Aither isn’t affiliated with or endorsed by them.