Live Chat Software Cost: What Each Tool Charges
How much live chat software costs: what Intercom, Zendesk, Freshdesk and Laureo list per seat or plan, and the usage and tier costs to check first.
Live chat pricing comes in three shapes. Some tools charge per seat, plus usage. Some put chat inside a help desk plan, priced per agent. A few include it in a CRM plan. Every rival price below comes from the vendor's own pricing page, read on 2026-10-28.
How much does live chat software cost?
The main live chat tools list $29 to $55 per seat a month, billed annually. Laureo includes live chat on Business and Ultra, with the help desk and the CRM.
| Live chat | Listed price a month | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Intercom Essential | $29 per seat, billed annually ($19 for new customers) | Seats, plus usage charges for AI outcomes and some channels |
| Zendesk Suite Team | $55 per agent, billed yearly | A Zendesk Suite plan, with messaging and live chat |
| Freshdesk Omni Growth | $29 per agent, billed annually | The omnichannel edition of the help desk |
| Laureo Business | Business from $166.66/mo billed annually | 2 Power seats in the plan, then per added seat, with the help desk, help center and CRM |
What else adds to the bill
The seat price is only the start. Check three things before you compare totals.
- Usage. Intercom pricing has two parts: a seat for each teammate, and usage for Fin outcomes and messaging channels.
- The plan tier. On Zendesk, Support Team is $19 per agent a month, paid yearly, and covers email and ticketing. Messaging and live chat start on Suite Team, at $55. On Freshdesk, the $19 Growth plan is for service over email. The omnichannel edition starts at $29.
- The CRM. Check whether a chat lands on the customer's record. Freshworks sells its CRM, Freshsales, as a separate product, priced per user.
What Laureo charges
Laureo puts live chat on Business and Ultra. It sits on the same subscription as the help desk, the help center and the CRM. Each chat opens a ticket in the service inbox.
Business from $166.66/mo billed annually ($199.99 month-to-month) includes 2 Power seats. Each added Power seat is $83.33 a month billed annually on Business, or $124.99 on Ultra. Ultra from $249.99/mo billed annually ($299.99 month-to-month) also includes 2. Unlimited contacts on all plans, and no setup fee.
How to compare quotes
- Ask for one monthly total for your team size, with usage at your real chat volume.
- Ask which plan adds live chat, and what else that plan forces you to buy.
- Ask where a chat lands: on the customer's record, or in a separate tool.
New to the term? Read what live chat software is in the CRM glossary.
Omar Kheir is the founder and CEO of Laureo. He writes about CRM, sales, email, automation and AI in the CRM for the Laureo blog.