Gladly vs Intercom (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Gladly if

• Fits if you run a retail or ecommerce brand with heavy chat, SMS and phone volume
• Works for teams that want service and sales handled by the same AI

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a price, as none is published
• Not for you if you want a free plan or trial, because neither is listed
• Watch out: the pages are written for retail, so other industries get less detail
• Watch out: its resolution-rate figures come from customer examples, with no published method

Pick Intercom if

• Fits if you run a software or app company and support people inside the product
• Works for startups with under $10M raised and fewer than 15 staff, which get 93% off the first year

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you get lots of questions, as every Fin resolution adds $0.99 to the bill
• Skip it if you need a fixed monthly cost, since WhatsApp, SMS, phone and bulk email are billed by use
• Tight if you want automation workflows or several team inboxes, as both start on Advanced at $85 a seat
• Watch out: each agent gets 10 Copilot conversations a month free, and unlimited Copilot is $29 an agent on top
• Watch out: product tours and surveys need Proactive Support Plus, from $99 a month for 500 messages

Gladly

• No prices are published; the site routes every visit to a demo request, and a /pricing address redirects to the home page.
• The pages are written for retail and ecommerce brands and mention Shopify integration, so other industries get less detail.
• The pages list no standalone desktop or phone apps for agents; iOS and Android are SDKs for adding chat to your own app.
• The vendor states its figures, such as resolution rates, from customer examples and does not publish a method.

Intercom

• Every Fin outcome costs $0.99 on top of seats, and WhatsApp, SMS, phone and bulk email are billed by usage.
• Unlimited Copilot costs $29 per agent / month billed annually ($35 monthly); the Pro add-on with Operator starts at $100 a month per workspace.
• Fin can run on another helpdesk such as Zendesk or Salesforce for $0.99 per outcome with a monthly minimum and no seat fees, sold through sales.
• Outbound features such as product tours and surveys need Proactive Support Plus, from $99 a month for 500 messages.

Gladly

One record per customer

Every chat, email, text, call and social message lands on one lifelong customer profile with order history and preferences, so agents and AI start with the context.

AI for service

Gladly AI answers on chat, email, SMS and voice and works multi-step requests through, handing off to a person with the full conversation when needed.

AI for commerce

The commerce agent recommends products from a shopper's past orders and can take payment in the conversation through a secure card form.

Phone and omnichannel

A built-in phone system with IVR sits beside chat, SMS, email, WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram, with iOS and Android SDKs for in-app chat.

Routing and operations

People Match routing, tasks, quality assurance, workforce management, CSAT surveys and FAQ management are part of the workspace.

Works beside other help desks

The vendor says Gladly AI can run alongside an existing Zendesk or Salesforce help desk.

Intercom

Fin AI Agent

Answers customers across channels and hands off to the team inbox. It costs $0.99 per outcome, charged at most once per conversation and not when a human takes over.

Messenger live chat

A chat widget for websites and mobile apps that feeds the same inbox as email and other channels.

Shared inbox and tickets

Conversations and tickets in one inbox with pre-built reports. Advanced adds multiple team inboxes and round-robin assignment.

Help center

A public help center on every plan; Advanced adds private and multilingual help centers and Expert adds one per brand.

Workflows

Basic automation on Essential and a visual workflow automation builder from Advanced up, with SLAs on Expert.

Copilot

An AI assistant in the inbox. Each agent gets 10 Copilot conversations a month free; unlimited use is a paid add-on per agent.

Gladly

Pricing could not be confirmed. See gladly.ai.

Intercom

• Essential$29

  per seat / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)

  Messenger live chat, a shared inbox and tickets, pre-built reports, a public help center and basic automation. Fin costs $0.99 per outcome on top.

• Advanced$85

  per seat / month, billed annually ($99 billed monthly)

  Adds a workflow automation builder, multiple team inboxes, round-robin assignment, a private and multilingual help center and 20 free Lite seats.

• Expert$132

  per seat / month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly)

  Adds SSO and identity management, HIPAA support, SLAs, a multibrand Messenger and help center, and 50 free Lite seats.

Gladly

No public discounts listed.

Intercom

• Annual discount

  Lower price with annual billing

  Intercom's pricing page lists Essential at $29 per seat a month billed annually against $39 billed monthly, Advanced at $85 against $99 and Expert at $132 against $139.

• Other savings

  New customers save 35% on annual Essential

  Some loads of the pricing page show Essential at $19 per seat a month billed annually instead of $29 for new customers, or 25% off monthly, kept for as long as the subscription lasts.

• Startups

  Early Stage: 93% off the first year

  Startups with under $10M raised and fewer than 15 employees get 93% off in year one, 50% in year two and 25% in year three, plus a year of Fin with 300 outcomes.