Best customer support and live chat software
Help desks, ticketing systems, shared inboxes and live chat widgets for answering customers, from enterprise suites to free and open-source tools.
41 apps, ordered by visits from AppBreakup and how often our research lists each one as an alternative. Open any app to see its alternatives.
All customer support and live chat software
- Alternatives to Zendesk
The best-known help desk suite, covering ticketing, chat, voice, help centres and AI agents.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Help Scout
A friendly help desk that feels like email, with a knowledge base, chat and AI answers.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Intercom
A messenger-based customer service platform built around its Fin AI agent and a shared help desk inbox.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Crisp
A chat-first shared inbox with a website widget, AI agent and flat per-workspace pricing.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux - Alternatives to Freshdesk
Freshworks' help desk for email, chat and phone tickets, with Freddy AI agents on higher tiers.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Zammad
A German open-source help desk with email, chat, phone and social ticketing, hosted or self-hosted.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to tawk.to
Free live chat software with unlimited agents, funded by optional paid add-ons.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows - Alternatives to FreeScout
A free, open-source help desk and shared mailbox modelled on Help Scout, built with PHP and Laravel.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Tidio
A small-business live chat and help desk with the Lyro AI agent, popular with Shopify stores.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows - Alternatives to Chatwoot
An open-source omnichannel support inbox and live chat, available self-hosted or in the cloud.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, iOS, Android, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Zoho Desk
Zoho's context-aware help desk with a free plan and deep links to the Zoho app suite.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to LiveChat
A dedicated live chat platform for support and sales teams, with ticketing and AI agents.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows - Alternatives to Front
A shared inbox for customer-facing teams, combining email-style collaboration with help desk tools.
PaidWeb, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Gorgias
A help desk and AI agent built for ecommerce brands, especially on Shopify.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Gladly
A customer-centred service platform for retail brands, now led by AI for support and shopping.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Jira Service Management
Atlassian's service desk for IT and customer support, linked closely to Jira software projects.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Hiver
A help desk that runs inside Gmail, turning shared addresses into assignable, trackable conversations.
PaidWeb, Browser extension, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Helply (formerly Groove)
An AI-first support platform from the makers of Groove, with unlimited users and credit-based pricing.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to osTicket
A veteran open-source PHP ticketing system, with an optional hosted version called SupportSystem.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Trengo
A Dutch omnichannel inbox that brings WhatsApp, email, chat and social messages into one team view.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Kustomer
A CRM-style customer service platform that organises support around customer timelines instead of tickets.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Richpanel
An ecommerce help desk with AI agents, self-service returns and a single per-seat plan.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Dixa
A Copenhagen-built conversational customer service platform with phone, chat, email and AI agents.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Re:amaze
A help desk and live chat platform popular with ecommerce brands, with per-member pricing.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Helpwise
An affordable shared inbox for small teams, covering email, chat, SMS and social messages.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to HappyFox
An AI-powered help desk for customer and IT support, with optional unlimited-agent pricing.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Smartsupp
A Czech live chat and AI shopping assistant for online stores, with a free plan.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Lime Connect (formerly Userlike)
A German chat, messaging and AI agent platform, renamed from Userlike, with a free starter plan.
Free plan + paidWeb - Alternatives to Zoho SalesIQ
Zoho's live chat and visitor-tracking tool with chatbots, a free plan and Zoho CRM links.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - SaAlternatives to Salesforce Service Cloud
Salesforce's enterprise customer service platform for case management, contact centres and AI agents.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Pylon
A B2B support platform built around Slack Connect and Teams channels, with AI and account tools.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Plain
A modern, API-first support platform for B2B software companies, covering email, Slack and chat.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to HubSpot Service Hub
HubSpot's help desk and customer service tools, built on the same CRM as its sales and marketing hubs.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to UVdesk
An open-source PHP help desk aimed at ecommerce sellers and marketplaces, with a hosted SaaS edition.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Libredesk
A newer open-source, self-hosted omnichannel support desk shipped as a single binary.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Olark
A long-running, simple live chat tool that now offers an AI website agent alongside human chat.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Deskpro
A help desk for larger teams that can run in the cloud or be self-hosted on your own servers.
PaidWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Enchant
A straightforward help desk for small teams, with a free plan and optional AI features.
Free plan + paidWeb - Alternatives to Kayako
- Alternatives to JivoChat
An omnichannel business messenger with live chat, telephony and messaging apps in one window.
Free plan + paidWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to LiveAgent
An all-in-one help desk with live chat, email, call centre and social channels at low per-agent prices.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android
Our picks by need
Popular comparisons
Common questions
What is the best customer support and live chat software?
Based on how often our research lists them as alternatives and visits from AppBreakup, the leading customer support and live chat software options right now are Zendesk, Help Scout, Intercom, Crisp and Freshdesk.
Is there free customer support and live chat software?
Yes. Help Scout (free plan + paid), Crisp (free plan + paid), Zammad (open source), tawk.to (free plan + paid) and FreeScout (open source) have a free option, out of 18 free or freemium apps we track.
Which customer support and live chat software is open source?
Zammad, FreeScout, Chatwoot, osTicket, UVdesk and Libredesk.