Zendesk vs Intercom, and the all-in-one option
Zendesk prices agents from $19 a month paid yearly and starts live chat on Suite Team at $55, and Intercom includes Messenger live chat on every plan from $29 a seat, or $19 on Essential for new customers. Both bill AI by outcome and leave the sales pipeline out; Laureo puts the CRM, campaigns and invoices on every plan, with the help desk and live chat on Business and Ultra.
Which is better, Intercom or Zendesk?
Intercom fits a chat-first team, with Messenger live chat on every plan from $29 a seat ($19 for new customers) and Fin at $0.99 per outcome, and Zendesk fits a ticket-first team, from $19 per agent for email, with live chat from Suite Team at $55. Both leave the sales pipeline to another product, so a small team that also sells gets more from Laureo: one plan holds the CRM, campaigns and invoices, with live chat and tickets on Business and Ultra.
One support and sales workflow, step by step, on each:
| Step | Zendesk | Intercom | Laureo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Answer email tickets | Support Team, $19 an agent | Shared inbox and ticketing, from $29 a seat, $19 for new customers | Tickets & Help Desk (Business and Ultra) |
| Chat on the website | Suite Team, $55 an agent | Messenger, on every plan | Live Chat (Business and Ultra) |
| Hold SLA targets | Suite Professional, $115 an agent | Expert, $132 a seat | SLA targets per priority (Business and Ultra) |
| Track the deal | A CRM through Marketplace apps or APIs | No sales pipeline on its pricing page | CRM & Pipeline (every plan) |
Is Intercom more expensive than Zendesk?
Per seat, yes at most rungs: Intercom is $29, $85 or $132 a seat a month billed annually ($19 on Essential for new customers) against Zendesk's $19, $55 and $115 per agent paid yearly. On AI, Intercom charges $0.99 per Fin outcome, and Zendesk includes 5 to 10 automated resolutions per agent a month, then charges $1.50 committed or $2.00 pay as you go.
Laureo Business from $166.66/mo billed annually includes 2 full seats with tickets, SLA targets and live chat, and monthly AI credits on every plan.
| Plan rung | Zendesk, per agent | Intercom, per seat |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | $19 (Support Team) | $29 (Essential), $19 for new customers |
| Middle | $55 (Suite Team) | $85 (Advanced) |
| Top self-serve | $115 (Suite Professional) | $132 (Expert) |
Do Zendesk and Intercom include email campaigns?
Not as part of the plan: Zendesk's pricing page lists no email marketing campaigns, and Intercom charges email campaigns per bulk email sent, on top of seats. Laureo includes campaigns on every plan, with unlimited contacts on all plans, in the same CRM that holds the help desk on Business and Ultra.
Zendesk vs Intercom, criterion by criterion
Each row puts Zendesk, Intercom and Laureo on the same question. The Zendesk and Intercom cells come from their own pages, and the date at the top of this page says when we last checked them.
| Criterion | Zendesk | Intercom | Laureo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seat price | $19, $55 or $115 an agent a month paid yearly | $29, $85 or $132 a seat a month billed annually ($19 on Essential for new customers) | Business from $166.66/mo billed annually, with 2 full seats |
| Live chat | From Suite Team, $55 an agent paid yearly | Messenger live chat on every plan | Live Chat on Business and Ultra, in the ticket queue |
| SLA targets | Only on Suite Professional, $115 an agent | Only on Expert, $132 a seat | SLA targets per priority on Business and Ultra |
| AI that answers customers | 5 to 10 automated resolutions per agent a month, then $1.50 or $2.00 each | Fin, $0.99 per outcome | 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 | Copilot, $29 a seat billed annually after 10 included conversations a month | AI email drafting on every plan; support reply drafts on Ultra |
| Workflow automation | Automations and triggers on every plan; more Action Builder credits at $200 per 100K actions | The workflow automation builder from Advanced, $85 a seat | Automation rules and workflows on every plan, with no per-run fee: 5 rules and 2,000 runs a month on Pro, 10 and 5,000 on Business, unlimited on Ultra |
| Sales pipeline | Not in its pricing; Zendesk Sell retires on August 31, 2027, so a CRM connects through Marketplace apps or APIs | No sales pipeline, deals or quotes on its pricing page | CRM & Pipeline on every plan, with unlimited contacts |
| Email campaigns | Not on its pricing page | Charged per bulk email sent, on top of seats | Campaigns on every plan |
| Your data and the AI | Service Data trains its cross-account models unless you opt out | Its customer agreement allows AI model training on Customer Data | The AI never trains on your data |
Every tool in Laureo
The table covers the criteria that matter between Zendesk and Intercom. 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, Intercom, or the all-in-one option
Go with Laureo over Zendesk and Intercom when one small team both supports and sells: tickets, live chat and SLA targets on Business and Ultra sit in the same app as the pipeline, email campaigns ship on every plan instead of per bulk email, and on Ultra the resolution agent comes included with fair-use limits, where Zendesk bills per resolution and Intercom per Fin outcome.
- One plan and one bill cover your CRM, inbox, email campaigns, booking pages, and quotes and invoices, so you stop paying for separate tools.
- Every plan includes monthly AI credits for the assistant, the agents and email drafting.
- Business and Ultra include a second full seat in the plan price, and no plan has a seat minimum.
- Email campaigns are built in on every plan, with unlimited contacts on all plans.
- 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 IntercomA customer service platform priced per seat plus usage, with live chat and Fin on every plan and no sales pipeline, quotes or invoices.
- ComparisonInstantly vs Smartlead, and the all-in-one optionInstantly vs Smartlead: send and contact caps, a separate CRM plan against CRM access from Pro, next to Laureo Ultra with cold outreach inside the CRM.
- ComparisonZendesk vs Help Scout, and the all-in-one optionZendesk vs Help Scout: paid plans from $19 an agent or $25 a user, SLAs by plan, AI billed per resolution and no built-in CRM. Laureo includes the CRM.
- 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.
- 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.
- ComparisonIntercom pricingHow much does Intercom cost? Essential, Advanced and Expert per seat, Fin at $0.99 an outcome, Copilot and the usage charges, dated, then one team on Laureo.
- 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 Intercom FAQs
Common questions about choosing between Zendesk, Intercom and Laureo
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