Customer Support & Help Desk
Help Scout
Human-first, AI-powered customer support in one simple shared inbox.
4.4· 424 reviews· via G2Founded 2011 · Boston, MA
What is Help Scout?
Help Scout is a customer support platform built around a shared inbox, help center, and live chat. It targets small and mid-sized teams that want email-style, human-friendly support without a heavy ticketing feel.
Best known for: An email-friendly shared inbox help desk for small teams
Key features
- Shared inbox for support teams
- Help center and knowledge base
- Live chat via Beacon widget
- AI-assisted replies and summaries
- Workflows and automation
- Reporting, CSAT, and SLAs
Who Help Scout is best for
- Small teams that want email-style support without heavy ticket clutter
- SaaS and DTC brands offering personal, conversational support
- Teams that need a knowledge base and live chat bundled with the inbox
Ideal team: Small-to-midsize SaaS and DTC support teams (2–50) who want a clean shared inbox and docs over a heavy ticketing suite.
Help Scout pricing
Free
$0
- 5 users
- 1 inbox
- 1 Docs help center
Standard
$25/per user / mo
- Multiple inboxes
- Live chat (Beacon)
- Basic workflows
Popular
Plus
$45/per user / mo
- Advanced workflows
- 2 SLA policies
- Salesforce/Jira/HubSpot
Costs to watch before you commit
- AI Answers are metered at ~$0.75 per resolution, separate from seat cost.
- Extra inboxes run ~$10–12/mo each and extra Docs sites ~$20–24/mo.
- HIPAA and SSO/SAML are gated to the Pro tier or paid add-ons.
- Per-user pricing means cost scales linearly with headcount.
Top Help Scout alternatives
Popular Customer Support & Help Desk tools teams evaluate alongside Help Scout.
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HiverThe Gmail-based, multichannel help desk that turns shared inboxes into a support desk.
HelpCrunchAffordable multichannel support with live chat, email, and built-in AI.