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Price against what you get

Best-value help desk and live chat tools

Going by our grades, Zoho Desk gives the most for the money among help desk and live chat tools: no tool on this chart scores higher without costing more.

Paid plans start at a middle price of $24.17 a month across the 19 that charge, from $7 (Zoho Desk) to $335.06 (Trengo). 3 of the 19 score above the category's average while starting at or below its middle price. 8 cost more than the middle price and score below the average.

Set price against

Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged

C2.0B3.0A4.0$5$10$20$50$100$200$500More for lessCosts more, scores moreCosts less, scores lessCosts more, scores lessZoho DeskeDeskKommunicate

What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →

  • Nothing scores higher without costing more
  • The best score at each price
  • Has a free plan
  • No free plan
19 of the 20 help desk and live chat tools in this directory. Scores are ToolGPA’s own grades; prices are each vendor’s own, read up to Oct 17, 2026. The lines cross at the middle starting price ($24.17) and the average score (2.7). The data as JSON · The chart as a picture
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Paste this where you want it. The picture links back here and is redrawn whenever a price or a grade changes. Use it freely, with the link left in.

<a href="https://toolgpa.com/charts/customer-support"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/charts/customer-support/chart.svg" alt="19 help desk and live chat tools by starting price and by ToolGPA score" width="1200" height="675" style="max-width:100%;height:auto"></a>

The best at every price

Each step is the highest score help desk and live chat tools reach at that price or below. Nothing on the chart beats these without costing more.

  1. $7

    a month to start · scores 3.3 of 4

    • Zoho Desk$7 per user / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly)BAB

Paying more for less

The help desk and live chat tools that the most others beat on both counts: a higher score and a lower starting price.

  1. eDeskStarts at $39 a month for each person and scores 2.3 of 4.11 of 18 score higher for lessCCB
  2. KommunicateStarts at $34 a month and scores 2.3 of 4.11 of 18 score higher for lessCCB
  3. ChatbaseStarts at $32 a month and scores 2.3 of 4.11 of 18 score higher for lessCCB
  4. tawk.toStarts at $29 a month and scores 2.3 of 4.10 of 18 score higher for lessCCB
  5. TrengoStarts at about $335.06 a month and scores 2.7 of 4.4 of 18 score higher for lessBCB

A high starting price often means a product is sold to companies and has no small plan, and a score is three letters, not the whole product. Read a tool’s own page before ruling it out.

The four quarters

Where the tools fall when the chart is cut at the middle price and the average score.

More for less3

Each scores above the category's average and starts at or below its middle price.

Zoho Desk, Tidio, Zendesk

Costs more, scores more1

Each scores above the average and starts above the middle price.

Crisp

Costs less, scores less7

Each scores below the average and starts at or below the middle price.

Gorgias, Helpwise, LiveAgent, Chatwoot, Freshdesk, Text by LiveChat, Smartsupp

Costs more, scores less8

Each scores below the average and starts above the middle price.

Re:amaze, Intercom, Deskpro, Trengo, tawk.to, Chatbase, Kommunicate, eDesk

All 19 on the chart

Highest score first, then lowest price. The last column counts the tools that score higher and start lower.

#ToolScoreFeatures, ease, platformsA monthAs its listing states itScore higher for less
1Zoho Desk3.3BAB$7$7 per user / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly)None
2Tidio3.3CAA$24.17$24.17 per month for 100 conversations, billed annually ($29 monthly)None
3Zendesk3.0BBB$19$19 per agent / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly)1
4Crisp3.0BCA$45$45 per workspace / month, with 4 seats2
5Gorgias2.7BCB$10$10 per month for 50 tickets, billed monthly1
6Helpwise2.7BCB$12$12 per user / month, billed annually ($15 billed monthly)1
7LiveAgent2.7BCB$15$15 per agent / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)1
8Chatwoot2.7BCB$19$19 per agent / month, billing term not stated1
9Freshdesk2.7CBB$19$19 per agent / month, billed annually1
10Text by LiveChat2.7CCA$19$19 per user / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly)1
11Re:amaze2.7BCB$26.10$26.10 per team member / month, billed annually ($29 billed monthly)3
12Intercom2.7BCB$29$29 per seat / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)3
13Deskpro2.7BCB$39$39 per agent / month, billed annually (minimum 5 agents)3
14Trengo2.7BCB$335.06€299 per month for up to 10 users, billed annually (€349 billed monthly)4
15Smartsupp2.3CCB$17$17 per month for 1 operator, billed annually ($24 billed monthly)4
16tawk.to2.3CCB$29$29 per month for the AI Assist or Whitelabel add-on10
17Chatbase2.3CCB$32$32 per month for 700 message credits, billed annually ($40 billed monthly)11
18Kommunicate2.3CCB$34$34 per month for 250 conversations, billed annually ($40 billed monthly)11
19eDesk2.3CCB$39$39 per agent / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)11

How help desk and live chat tools grade

Every bar is all the help desk and live chat tools we grade, cut by the letter each got on that count.

  • Value for moneyaverage 2.3
  • Free plan and trialaverage 2.0
  • Featuresaverage 2.5
  • Ease of useaverage 2.3
  • Platforms and integrationsaverage 3.2

An A is worth 4 and an F nothing. C is the ordinary grade. Every help desks grade in one table

Not on the chart

Sold for a single payment, or with no public price that can be put as dollars a month. They are graded like the rest.

Common questions

Which help desk and live chat tools give the most for the money?

Zoho Desk. Each is the highest-scoring tool at its price or below: Zoho Desk scores 3.3 out of 4 and starts at $7 a month for each person. This goes by ToolGPA's own grades for features, ease of use and platforms, averaged out of 4, set against the price each tool's paid plans start at.

Which help desk and live chat tools are best for under $20 a month?

Zoho Desk, with a score of 3.3 out of 4: the highest among the 9 that start at $20 a month or less. Zoho Desk starts at $7 a month for each person.

Which help desk and live chat tools cost the most for what they offer?

On this chart, eDesk (starts at $39 a month for each person, scores 2.3 out of 4, and 11 tools score higher for less), Kommunicate (starts at $34 a month, scores 2.3 out of 4, and 11 tools score higher for less) and Chatbase (starts at $32 a month, scores 2.3 out of 4, and 11 tools score higher for less). A high starting price often means a product is sold to companies and has no small plan, so check what the price includes before ruling one out.

How much do help desk and live chat tools cost?

The middle starting price is $24.17 a month: half of the 19 help desk and live chat tools with a recurring price start below that and half above. 0 of the 20 in this directory have no paid plan, and 6 of those that charge also have a free plan.

How is the score on this chart worked out?

It is the average of three of the five grades ToolGPA gives every tool: features, ease of use, and platforms and integrations, with an A worth 4 and an F worth 0. The other two grades, value for money and the free plan, are about price, so they are left out and price gets an axis of its own. 19 of the 20 help desk and live chat tools are on the chart; 1 are left off because they are sold for a single payment or publish no price that can be put as dollars a month.

How this chart is made

  • The score is the average of three of a tool’s five grades: features, ease of use, and platforms and integrations. An A is 4 points and an F none. Value for money and the free plan are left out because they are about price, and price has an axis of its own.
  • The price is what paid plans start at, in dollars a month, on the cheapest way of paying the listing names. A yearly price is divided by twelve, and a price in another currency is converted. A price for each person is shown for one person.
  • A tool with no paid plan sits in the band marked Free. A tool with a free plan beside paid ones is placed at its paid price and drawn as a filled dot.
  • The grades are ToolGPA’s own judgement from each vendor’s pages and from public reviews, not from testing, and no vendor can pay for one. How we grade

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