HelpCrunch vs Intercom (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, HelpCrunch and Intercom share a 2.4 GPA, neither has a free plan and their prices can't be set side by side, so the choice depends on whether you care more about value for money, where HelpCrunch grades higher, or features, where Intercom does.
Checked Nov 2, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
HelpCrunch
Live chat, shared inbox, chatbot and email in one platform
Intercom
Helpdesk with live chat and the Fin AI agent priced per outcome
Which one is for you
Pick HelpCrunch if
- Fits if one or two people answer site visitors and also send email campaigns
- Works for a small team that wants chat and a shared inbox at $12 a seat
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need WhatsApp, chatbots or AI Agents, which start on PRO at $20
- Pricey if you outgrow PRO, since Unlimited is $495 a month billed annually
- Tight if you lean on AI: extra AI conversations are $29 a month for 100 on monthly billing
- Watch out: the shown price is for 1 team member and the lowest email volume, and sliders raise it
- Not for you if you want a free plan, as there is only a trial
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
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAHelpCrunchFair | 2.4GPAIntercomFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | B$12 per team member a month on annual billing is inside the cheapest quarter of this category ($19). PRO is $20, then Unlimited jumps to $495 a month. | CEssential is $29 a seat a month billed yearly ($39 monthly), above this category's middle of $24 but short of the dearer quarter. Fin is $0.99 per resolved conversation on top, and workflows and team inboxes need Advanced at $85. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free trial with no credit card, and no free plan after it. | CA 14-day free trial with all features, Fin and the add-ons, and no card needed, so you see the whole product. There is no free plan to drop back to when it ends, though. |
| Features | CLive chat, shared inbox, chatbot flows, AI agents, a knowledge base, popups and email campaigns. The listing's gap: Basic has no WhatsApp, chatbot or AI Agents, and no ticketing with SLAs is shown. | BThe Messenger for websites and apps, a shared inbox with tickets, a help center on every plan, the Fin AI agent, workflows and Copilot in the inbox. Product tours and surveys cost extra, but the support job itself is covered. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and widgets, channels, chatbot flows and popups all need setting up. | CNo store rating on record. The Messenger has to go into your site or app, Fin learns from your content, and the automations come with a builder to learn. Not a quick switch-on. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus iPhone and Android apps, and the pages list a REST API and mobile SDKs. Only 3 integrations are named. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Salesforce, HubSpot, Shopify, Stripe, Statuspage, Zendesk and WhatsApp. Fin can even run on top of Zendesk or Salesforce. No desktop app, though. |
| Best for | live chat and email for a small site | in-app chat with an AI agent answering first |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: HelpCrunch and Intercom. How we grade
Price against what you get
HelpCrunch starts at $12 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Intercom starts at $29 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
Intercom scores higher, and starts $17 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other help desk and live chat tools on the chart, 4 score higher than HelpCrunch for less, and 3 score higher than Intercom for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- HelpCrunch also covers email campaigns, chatbots and popups.
- Intercom also covers reports and help desk.
At a glance
| HelpCrunch | Intercom | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $12 per month for 1 team member, billed annually ($15 billed monthly) | $29 per seat / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | Free trial, no credit card required | 14-day free trial with all features, Fin and add-ons, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | HelpCrunch Corporation | Intercom, Inc. |
| Price read from | helpcrunch.com | intercom.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 2, 2026 |
Worth knowing
HelpCrunch
- Basic has no WhatsApp channel, chatbot, AI Agents or branding removal; those start on PRO.
- AI conversations are an extension: on monthly billing 100 more cost $29 a month and 1,000 cost $200.
- The displayed price is for 1 team member and the lowest email volume; the page's sliders raise it with more members and emails.
- Unlimited is $495 a month billed annually ($620 billed monthly), a large step above PRO.
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.
Key features
HelpCrunch
- Live chat and shared inbox
- Chat widgets for websites and apps feed a shared inbox, with Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, Viber and WhatsApp channels counted as messenger channels.
- AI Agents
- AI Agents trained on your content answer common questions across channels and languages. Plans include a limit of AI conversations and data sources, extendable for a fee.
- Chatbot flows
- Chatbot flows handle common questions and engagement; PRO allows 15 active flows and Unlimited has no cap.
- Email and popups
- Email blasts, automated campaigns and popups are part of the product, with a monthly email allowance that the pricing slider sets.
- Knowledge base
- A help center for customer self-service; Basic is limited to one language and PRO and Unlimited are multilingual.
- Mobile apps and SDKs
- Mobile apps let agents reply on the go, and iOS, Android and React Native SDKs add the chat widget to your own app.
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.
Plans
HelpCrunch
Basic$12
per month for 1 team member, billed annually ($15 monthly)
1 widget, 15 messenger channels, 3 auto messages and popups, 20 AI Editor requests. No WhatsApp, chatbot or AI agents. Price rises with team size and email volume.
PRO$20
per month for 1 team member, billed annually ($25 monthly)
5 widgets, 25 messenger channels, WhatsApp, 15 chatbot flows, 5 AI Agents and 50 AI conversations. Price rises with team size and email volume.
Unlimited$495
per month for unlimited team members, billed annually ($620 monthly)
50,000 emails, unlimited widgets, chatbot flows and AI Agents, 100 messenger channels, 100 AI conversations and the highest priority support.
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.
Ways to pay less
HelpCrunch
- Annual discount
20% off with annual billing
The pricing page says billing annually saves 20%, and shows Basic at $12 against $15, PRO at $20 against $25 and Unlimited at $495 against $620.
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.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, HelpCrunch or Intercom?
As of Nov 12, 2026, HelpCrunch starts at $12 per month for 1 team member, billed annually ($15 billed monthly), and Intercom starts at $29 per seat / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, HelpCrunch or Intercom?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither HelpCrunch nor Intercom has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.