Zendesk vs Help Scout, and the all-in-one option
Zendesk's paid plans start at $19 per agent a month paid yearly for email ticketing and Help Scout's at $25 per user, and both bill AI per resolution: $1.50 or $2.00 past the Zendesk allowance, $0.75 for each Help Scout Envoy resolution. Neither includes a CRM; Laureo puts the pipeline, campaigns and invoices on every plan, with the help desk on Business and Ultra.
Which is better, Help Scout or Zendesk?
Help Scout suits a small team that works from shared inboxes, with a basic SLA policy on Standard at $25 per user and AI Drafts on Plus, and Zendesk suits a team that climbs a longer plan ladder, from $19 per agent for email to $115 on Suite Professional, where SLAs and CSAT surveys start. Neither includes a CRM, so when the team that answers tickets also sells, Laureo is the stronger choice, with the help desk and SLA targets on Business and Ultra beside the pipeline, campaigns and invoices.
One support and sales workflow, step by step, on each:
| Step | Zendesk | Help Scout | Laureo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Answer email tickets | Support Team, $19 an agent | Standard, $25 a user | Tickets & Help Desk (Business and Ultra) |
| Hold SLA targets | Suite Professional, $115 an agent | One basic policy on Standard | SLA targets per priority (Business and Ultra) |
| Publish help articles | A help center from Suite Team | Docs sites, $20 a month billed annually for each extra site | Knowledge Base and Public Help Center (Business and Ultra) |
| Track the deal | A CRM through Marketplace apps or APIs | Salesforce or HubSpot, through Plus integrations | CRM & Pipeline (every plan) |
Is Help Scout cheaper than Zendesk?
On the first paid plan, no: Help Scout Standard is $25 per user a month billed annually against $19 for Zendesk Support Team, but the Zendesk plan with SLAs, Suite Professional, is $115 per agent, while Help Scout includes a basic SLA policy on Standard. On AI, Help Scout charges $0.75 per Envoy resolution and Zendesk $1.50 or $2.00 per automated resolution past its allowance.
Laureo Business from $166.66/mo billed annually includes 2 full seats with tickets, SLA targets and the help center, and monthly AI credits on every plan.
Do Zendesk and Help Scout include a help center?
Zendesk includes no help center on Support Team and adds one from Suite Team, and Help Scout includes Docs knowledge base sites by plan and charges $20 a month billed annually for each site past the plan allowance. Laureo includes the Knowledge Base and a Public Help Center on Business and Ultra, in the same app as the tickets and the CRM.
Zendesk vs Help Scout, criterion by criterion
Each row puts Zendesk, Help Scout and Laureo on the same question. The Zendesk and Help Scout cells come from their own pages, and the date at the top of this page says when we last checked them.
| Criterion | Zendesk | Help Scout | Laureo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price per seat | Support Team, $19 an agent paid yearly ($25 monthly) | Standard, $25 a user billed annually | Business from $166.66/mo billed annually, with 2 full seats |
| Seat rules | Every agent is a paid seat, on every plan | Billed per user, and Pro needs at least 10 | No seat minimum; Business and Ultra include a second full seat |
| SLA targets | Only on Suite Professional, $115 an agent | One basic policy on Standard, two advanced on Plus, unlimited on Pro | SLA targets per priority on Business and Ultra |
| Help center | None on Support Team; a help center starts on Suite Team | Docs sites by plan; each extra site is $20 a month billed annually | Knowledge Base and a Public Help Center on Business and Ultra |
| AI that answers customers | 5 to 10 automated resolutions per agent a month, then $1.50 or $2.00 each | Envoy, $0.75 per resolution, billed monthly | Resolution agent on Ultra, included with fair-use limits; the AI Customer Support Agent is a paid Ultra add-on |
| AI help for agents | Copilot, $50 an agent paid yearly, on Professional and higher | AI Assist on paid plans; AI Drafts on Plus and Pro | AI email drafting on every plan; support reply drafts on Ultra |
| Sales pipeline | Zendesk Sell, which Zendesk retires on August 31, 2027; otherwise a CRM through Marketplace apps or APIs | No built-in CRM; Salesforce or HubSpot data through Plus integrations | CRM & Pipeline on every plan, with unlimited contacts |
| Campaigns, quotes and invoices | Not on its pricing page | Not on its pricing page | Campaigns and Quotes & Invoices on every plan |
| Your data and the AI | Service Data trains its cross-account models unless you opt out | Its terms allow de-identified training datasets unless you opt out by email | The AI never trains on your data |
Every tool in Laureo
The table covers the criteria that matter between Zendesk and Help Scout. Here is the whole Laureo toolset, by name. The pricing page shows which plans include each one.
Marketing & Communication
Deals & Revenue
- Quotes & Invoices
- Booking Pages
- Deal Rooms
Customer Support
- Tickets & Help Desk
- Knowledge Base
- Public Help Center
- Feedback
- Live Chat
- AI Customer Support Agent (add-on)
Automation
Zendesk, Help Scout, or the all-in-one option
Laureo beats Zendesk and Help Scout for a team that answers tickets and owns the sale: the help desk, SLA targets and help center sit on Business and Ultra with a second full seat and no seat minimum, the pipeline and invoices come on every plan, and on Ultra the resolution agent is included with fair-use limits, where Zendesk bills resolutions past its allowance and Help Scout bills each Envoy resolution.
- One plan and one bill cover your CRM, inbox, email campaigns, booking pages, and quotes and invoices, so you stop paying for separate tools.
- Business and Ultra include a second full seat in the plan price, and no plan has a seat minimum.
- Every plan includes monthly AI credits for the assistant, the agents and email drafting.
- The AI never trains on your data, and every AI request goes only to providers that keep none of it.
Related Resources
- ComparisonLaureo vs ZendeskA help desk priced per agent, with live chat on the Suite plans and the CRM kept in another product joined by an integration.
- ComparisonLaureo vs Help ScoutA support inbox priced per user, with live chat on Standard and the customer data pulled in from Salesforce or HubSpot on Plus.
- ComparisonInstantly vs Apollo, and the all-in-one optionInstantly vs Apollo: Outreach by volume with a separate CRM plan against Apollo seat plans and credits, next to Laureo Ultra: cold outreach inside the CRM.
- Comparisonlemlist vs Apollo, and the all-in-one optionlemlist vs Apollo: volume tiers and per-user Multichannel against Apollo seats and credits, next to Laureo Ultra: cold outreach, CRM, quotes and invoices.
- ComparisonCalendly vs Chili Piper, and the all-in-one optionCalendly vs Chili Piper: per-seat scheduling or a 15-seat routing platform, next to Laureo, a CRM with round-robin booking pages on every plan.
- ComparisonZendesk pricingHow much does Zendesk cost? Support Team to Suite Professional per agent, the AI resolution fees and add-ons, each dated, then one team priced on Laureo.
- AlternativeZendesk alternativeA Zendesk alternative for teams that sell and support: tickets, live chat and a knowledge base on Business and Ultra, in the same CRM as the deals.
- ComparisonHelp Scout pricingHow much does Help Scout cost? Free, Standard, Plus and Pro per user, the Pro minimum and Envoy per resolution, dated, and what the plans leave out.
- ComparisonBrowse every CRM comparisonSee how Laureo stacks up against the other CRMs you are weighing.
- PricingEvery plan, what is included, and the monthly AI credits.
Zendesk vs Help Scout FAQs
Common questions about choosing between Zendesk, Help Scout and Laureo
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