HelpDesk alternatives · Help Desks
Free alternatives to HelpDesk
HelpDesk has no free plan. 22 of the 66 other help desk and live chat tools in this directory are free or have a free plan.
HelpDesk is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly). 1 of them has no paid plan at all; the rest pair a free plan with paid ones.
22 tools · Listings checked up to Nov 12, 2026 · Where the facts come from
The 12 closest to HelpDesk
- Free plan · from $24.17/mo
Tidio
Live chat, ticketing and the Lyro AI agent priced by conversations
What is free: 50 billable conversations a month and 10 seats, with live chat, ticketing, email, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp, 50 one-off Lyro AI conversations and 100 Flows visitors a month.
- Tidio starts at $24.17 per month for 100 conversations, billed annually ($29 monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Tidio has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Tidio lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps.
- HelpDesk also covers shared inbox, sMS marketing and chatbots.
- Free plan · from $12/mo
Desk365
Help desk built around Microsoft Teams, with a lifetime free plan
What is free: Up to 50 tickets a month, for solo use or personal projects. It starts automatically at the end of the trial and has no end date.
- Desk365 starts at $12 per agent / month, billed annually ($16 billed monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Desk365 has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Desk365 also covers workflow automation and help center.
- HelpDesk also covers live chat, sMS marketing and chatbots.
- Free plan · from $29/mo
Featurebase
Help desk, chat and feedback boards with a per-resolution AI agent
What is free: 1 seat with live chat, inbox and ticketing, unlimited conversations, a help center and the mobile app.
- Featurebase starts at $29 per seat / month, billed yearly ($37 billed monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Featurebase has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Featurebase also covers help center.
- HelpDesk also covers sMS marketing and chatbots.
- Free plan · from $12/mo
osTicket
Open-source support ticketing, self-hosted or as a cloud edition
What is free: Open Source edition: free to download and host yourself, with community support.
- osTicket starts at $12 per agent / month, for the cloud-hosted edition (billing basis not stated). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- osTicket has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- osTicket is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- osTicket also covers workflow automation.
- Free plan · from $28/mo
JivoChat
Live chat and messenger inbox with a free plan and paid add-on modules
What is free: Website live chat, Telegram, Facebook, Instagram and Viber channels, callback, offline forms and the desktop, mobile and browser apps.
- JivoChat starts at $28 per agent / month, billed annually. HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- JivoChat has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only JivoChat lists macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android apps.
- JivoChat also covers whatsApp messaging.
- Free plan · from $25/mo
Chatra
Live chat with chatbots, email and social inboxes, now part of Brevo
What is free: Free plan for one agent, with the chat widget and basic visitor info, limited to 5 chats a month.
- Chatra starts at $25 per agent / month, billed yearly ($31 billed monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Chatra has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Chatra lists iOS and Android apps.
- HelpDesk also covers AI support agent and sMS marketing.
- Free plan · from $7/mo
Zoho Desk
Low-cost ticketing help desk with a free plan for three users
What is free: Free edition: email ticketing for up to 3 users with one support email address. No knowledge base, automation, SLAs or AI features.
- Zoho Desk starts at $7 per user / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Zoho Desk has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Zoho Desk lists iOS and Android apps.
- Zoho Desk also covers reports and help center.
- Free plan · from $45/mo
Crisp
Live chat and shared inbox priced per workspace, not per seat
What is free: 2 seats, the website chat widget, a contact form and shared inbox, mobile and desktop apps, store integrations and 100 customer profiles. No AI credits.
- Crisp starts at $45 per workspace / month, with 4 seats. HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Crisp has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Crisp lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps.
- Crisp also covers help center.
- Free plan · from $19/mo
Chatwoot
Open-source support inbox you can self-host or use in the cloud
What is free: Hacker cloud plan: up to 2 agents and 500 conversations a month, live chat only, 30 days of history. The self-hosted Community Edition is also free.
- Chatwoot starts at $19 per agent / month, billing term not stated. HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Chatwoot has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Chatwoot lists iOS and Android apps.
- Chatwoot is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Free plan · from $29/mo
tawk.to
Free live chat, ticketing and help center, with paid add-ons
What is free: The whole platform is free: live chat, inbox, ticketing, knowledge base, chat pages and CRM, with no seat charges. A "Powered by tawk.to" badge stays unless removed for a fee.
- tawk.to starts at $29 per month for the AI Assist or Whitelabel add-on. HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- tawk.to has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only tawk.to lists Windows, macOS, iOS and Android apps.
- tawk.to also covers help center.
- Free plan · from $17/mo
Smartsupp
Live chat, WhatsApp and email inbox with the Mira AI shopping agent
What is free: 1 operator, 25 conversations a month across live chat, WhatsApp and Messenger, and 14 days of chat history.
- Smartsupp starts at $17 per month for 1 operator, billed annually ($24 billed monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Smartsupp has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Smartsupp lists iOS and Android apps.
- HelpDesk also covers help desk, sMS marketing and chatbots.
- Free plan · from €7/mo
Zammad
Open-source help desk, hosted in Germany or run on your own server
What is free: The open-source software is free to download and run on your own servers; you handle updates, backups and availability.
- Zammad starts at €7 per agent / month, billed annually (€9 billed monthly). HelpDesk starts at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
- Zammad has a free plan. HelpDesk does not, though it has a free trial.
- Zammad is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- HelpDesk also covers AI support agent, sMS marketing and chatbots.
10 more that are free or have a free plan
All 22 in one tableCommon questions
Is there a free alternative to HelpDesk?
Yes. Tidio, Desk365, Featurebase, osTicket, JivoChat, Chatra, Zoho Desk, Crisp and 14 more are free or have a free plan.
Does HelpDesk have a free plan?
HelpDesk has no free plan. HelpDesk is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $19 per user / month, billed yearly ($25 billed monthly).
When was this checked?
Each listing shows its own date. On this page they run from Oct 17, 2026 to Nov 12, 2026. Vendors change prices and plans without notice, so confirm on their site before you buy.
This page is built from the listings. A tool is here because its listing says so, and the order is how close each is to HelpDesk: the alternatives its listing names first, then the tools that share the most features with it.