Bouts / Help Scout vs Zendesk
Help Scout vs Zendesk
Red cornerHelp Scout
$25 per user a month, billed annually
Blue cornerZendesk
$19 per agent a month, billed annually (Support Team)
Help Scout: Help Scout switched to billing by contacts helped in late 2024 and now sells per-user plans again; accounts already on contact-based plans are billed under separate terms.
Zendesk: Zendesk retires AI agents - Essential, the legacy bot builder and autoreplies with articles on December 10, 2026, so older bots must move to the current AI agents.
Zendesk wins 3–2 at 10 agents (close call). Help Scout takes the bill and user verdict; Zendesk takes AI, desk basics and security; one round is even.
The judges' card
| Round | Help Scout | What happened | Zendesk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1The bill | W | At 10 agents with AI on: Help Scout $625, Zendesk $2,250 a month. Help Scout is 72% cheaper and takes the round. | |
| Round 2Price tags | = | Both offer AI prices in public, but with a minimum, annual-only terms or vague limits. Even. | = |
| Round 3AI | Zendesk offers an action-taking AI agent on chat, email and phone, with test runs and reporting; Help Scout offers an AI agent that answers from the help center. Zendesk takes the round. | W | |
| Round 4Desk basics | Zendesk offers every channel natively, skills-based routing and 300+ integrations; Help Scout offers all that plus phone and messaging apps. Zendesk takes the round. | W | |
| Round 5Security | Zendesk offers SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001, plus EU hosting, a HIPAA BAA or a no-training promise; Help Scout offers one audit report (SOC 2 Type II or ISO 27001). Zendesk takes the round. | W | |
| Round 6User verdict | W | On G2: Help Scout 4.4 from 431 reviews, Zendesk 4.3 from 7,095 reviews. Help Scout takes the round. | |
| Rounds won | 2 | Zendesk wins, 1 even | 3 |
Does team size change it?
Only the bill round depends on team size. Here is the full result in each weight class.
Small team
- Help Scout
- $188
- Zendesk
- $675
3 agents, 750 conversations a month. Zendesk wins 3–2.
Mid-size team
- Help Scout
- $625
- Zendesk
- $2,250
10 agents, 2,500 conversations a month. Zendesk wins 3–2.
Large team
- Help Scout
- $1,563
- Zendesk
- $5,625
25 agents, 6,250 conversations a month. Zendesk wins 3–2.
Monthly bills from USD list prices, annual billing where offered, with the AI agent resolving 20% of conversations and agent assist for every agent. Plans: Help Scout Standard; Zendesk Suite Professional.
Tale of the tape
| Help Scout | Made by | Zendesk |
|---|---|---|
| per agent | Pricing | per agent |
| $25 per user a month, billed annually | Paid plans from | $19 per agent a month, billed annually (Support Team) |
| Standard | Plan we priced | Suite Professional |
| $188 | 3 agents, AI on | $675 |
| $625 | 10 agents, AI on | $2,250 |
| $1,563 | 25 agents, AI on | $5,625 |
| $0.75 per resolution | AI agent price | $1.50 per automated resolution committed, $2.00 pay as you go |
| Email, Live chat, WhatsApp, Social, SMS | Channels | Email, Live chat, Phone, WhatsApp, Social, SMS |
| Up to 5 users, 1 Inbox, 1 Docs site and 100 contacts a month | Free plan | No |
| 15 days | Free trial | 14 days |
| Yes | Monthly billing | Yes |
| SOC 2 Type II | Audit reports | SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, ISO 27018, ISO 42001, FedRAMP Low, HDS |
| Hosted on AWS in the USA; no EU hosting is published | Data hosting | US, EEA and Asia Pacific data centers, with region choice through the Data Center Location add-on |
| 4.4 (431) | G2 rating | 4.3 (7,095) |
| 4.6 (226) | Capterra rating | 4.4 (4,094) |
Questions
Which is better, Help Scout or Zendesk?
Zendesk wins 3–2 at 10 agents (close call). Help Scout takes the bill and user verdict; Zendesk takes AI, desk basics and security; one round is even.
Is Help Scout cheaper than Zendesk?
At 10 agents with the AI agent and agent assist on, Help Scout comes to $625 a month and Zendesk to $2,250, from list prices. Help Scout takes the bill round.
Which has the better AI, Help Scout or Zendesk?
Zendesk offers an action-taking AI agent on chat, email and phone, with test runs and reporting; Help Scout offers an AI agent that answers from the help center. Zendesk takes the round.
