Hesk vs LiveAgent (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LiveAgent grades higher than Hesk: 2.6 against 2.4 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 2, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 2, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Hesk grades higher on value for money and the free plan. LiveAgent grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Hesk
PHP help desk you host yourself, or a flat-fee cloud version
LiveAgent
Help desk with email tickets, live chat, call center and AI agents
Which one is for you
Pick Hesk if
- Fits if you want a basic ticket system with no per-agent fee
- Works for a team with a server and someone to run it
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you have no server or tech help, because the free edition includes no hosting, installation or backups
- Too light for a team that wants automation and integrations, as none are on record
- Watch out: a licence only removes branding links and adds support, it unlocks no features
- Watch out: on Hesk Cloud, email-to-ticket is off by default and you must contact Hesk to turn it on
Pick LiveAgent if
- Fits if your team answers email, chat and phone and wants one help desk for all three
- Works for small support teams paying per agent, at $15 billed yearly or $19 monthly on Starter
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want social channels, phone support or reports on the entry plan, as they start on Team at $29 an agent
- Tight if you're on Starter, with 5 agents at most, 3 email accounts and 2 chat buttons, and Team stops at 15 agents
- Watch out: the AI runs on your own AI provider account, at about 1 to 2 cents a chat by LiveAgent's estimate, and each extra knowledge base is $19 a month
- Pricey if you're a big team, as Enterprise is a flat $3,199 a month for 80 agents billed yearly
- Not for you if you want a free plan: after the 30-day trial you pay
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAHeskFair | 2.6GPALiveAgentGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | ACloud is $29.99 a month for up to 10 agents, about $6 a seat for a team of five, under 60% of the $19 where support tools start. The self-hosted licences are $49.99 and $199.99 once. | BStarter is $15 an agent a month billed yearly ($19 monthly), inside the cheaper quarter of help desks, with email tickets, live chat, a knowledge base and an AI agent. But it caps at 5 agents and leaves out social channels, calls and reports, which start on Team at $29. |
| Free plan and trial | BThe free edition costs nothing to install on your own PHP and MySQL server. You handle hosting, updates and backups, so it is free only if you have a server. | CA 30-day free trial with no card needed, which is one of the longer ones here. There's no free plan, so after the month you pay or leave. |
| Features | CTickets, a built-in knowledge base, self-hosted or cloud, language packs. Some cloud-only modules, such as escalation and surveys, cannot move to a self-hosted install. | BEmail tickets, live chat, a call center with IVR, AI agents, a knowledge base and customer portal, and Facebook, Instagram, X, Viber, Telegram and WhatsApp in the same queue from Team up. That covers the whole job. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record. The free edition needs a PHP and MySQL server and you run the install. | CNo store rating on record. There's a lot in one product, email accounts, chat buttons, phone queues and automation rules, so expect a learning curve before it all runs. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only on the listing, with no integrations on record. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Slack, Zapier, WordPress, Stripe, BigCommerce and Asana, plus WhatsApp and Telegram as channels and an API. There's no desktop app, so it stops at a B. |
| Best for | a small team wanting a plain ticket system | email, chat and phone support on a budget |
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: Hesk and LiveAgent. How we grade
Price against what you get
Hesk starts at $29.99 a month and scores 1.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. LiveAgent starts at $15 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
LiveAgent scores higher and starts $14.99 a month lower. Of the other help desk and live chat tools on the chart, 35 score higher than Hesk for less, and 1 scores higher than LiveAgent 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
- Hesk is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Hesk also covers ticketing.
- LiveAgent also covers reports, live chat and AI support agent.
At a glance
| Hesk | LiveAgent | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $29.99 per month for up to 10 agents (Hesk Cloud) | $15 per agent / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Hesk Free: install it on your own PHP/MySQL server at no cost; you handle hosting, updates and backups. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Hesk | Quality Unit, LLC |
| Price read from | hesk.com | liveagent.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 2, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Hesk
- The free edition includes no hosting, installation, backups or email-to-ticket setup; the license does not cover them either.
- A license only removes branding links and adds support; it activates no new features.
- Cloud-only features such as the escalate and survey modules cannot be exported to a self-hosted install.
- Email-to-ticket on Hesk Cloud is switched off by default and has to be enabled by contacting Hesk.
LiveAgent
- Starter has no social channels, call center or reports, and is capped at 5 agents; Team is capped at 15.
- Starter is limited to 3 email accounts and 2 chat buttons, and each extra knowledge base costs $19 a month on Starter, Team and Business.
- AI runs on the buyer's own AI provider account; LiveAgent puts the cost at about 1 to 2 cents per AI-resolved chat and adds no fee of its own.
- Enterprise is a flat fee for 80 agents, $3,199 a month billed annually or $3,999 monthly, with extra agents at $39 or $49 each.
Key features
Hesk
- Ticket management
- Customers submit tickets that staff track, assign and answer, with canned responses and automatic assignment to cut repeat typing.
- Built-in knowledge base
- A self-help knowledge base sits alongside the ticket form so customers can find answers before they write in.
- Self-hosted or cloud
- Run it on your own PHP/MySQL hosting, or choose Hesk Cloud in a US, EU or Australian data center.
- Flat pricing without per-agent fees
- Cloud plans set a staff limit (10, 50 or 200 agents) and a flat monthly or yearly price, rather than charging each agent.
- Cloud-only modules
- Cloud Pro and MAX add escalation, survey and recurring-ticket modules; the site says some modules are not available self-hosted.
- Language packs
- The site lists packs for more than 35 languages that can be enabled in the admin settings.
LiveAgent
- Email ticketing
- Support emails become tickets with collision detection, merging, splitting, tags, custom fields and canned replies.
- Live chat
- A chat button for websites with a real-time visitor monitor and satisfaction surveys. Proactive chat invitations start on Team.
- Call center
- From Team up: call queues, IVR, call routing and transfers, and call recording inside the help desk.
- AI agents
- An AI chatbot that hands chats to a person, an answer assistant for agents, and AI that replies to, sorts and summarizes tickets.
- Self-service
- A knowledge base, customer portals and a customer forum on every plan. Extra knowledge bases cost $19 a month each.
- Social and messaging channels
- Facebook, Instagram, X, Viber, Telegram and WhatsApp messages land in the ticket queue. WhatsApp works through Twilio or 360dialog.
Plans
Hesk
Hesk Free$0
Self-hosted help desk and knowledge base on your own server, with Powered by Hesk links shown.
Hesk Cloud$29.99
per month for up to 10 agents, billed monthly
Hosted by Hesk with 10 GB of uploads, unlimited tickets and a statistics module. $299 a year if prepaid.
Hesk Cloud Pro$49.99
per month for up to 50 agents, billed monthly
Adds escalate and survey modules and recurring tickets, with 50 GB of uploads. $499 a year if prepaid.
Hesk Cloud MAX$99.99
per month for up to 200 agents, billed monthly
Everything in Pro for large teams, with 200 GB of uploads. $999 a year if prepaid.
Website License$49.99
one-time, one self-hosted installation
Removes the Powered by Hesk branding and adds a year of email support; unlocks no new features.
Advanced License$199.99
one-time, five self-hosted installations
Branding removal on five installations and five years of support from the Hesk team.
LiveAgent
Starter$15
per agent / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)
Up to 5 agents. Email, live chat, contact forms, a knowledge base, 1 AI agent and SSO; 3 email accounts and 2 chat buttons. No social channels, calls or reports.
Team$29
per agent / month, billed annually ($35 billed monthly)
Up to 15 agents. Adds Facebook, Instagram, X, Viber, WhatsApp, Telegram and calls, 5 AI agents, reports and CSAT surveys, SLA rules and custom roles.
Business$49
per agent / month, billed annually ($59 billed monthly)
Any team size. Adds 50 AI agents, an MCP server, branding removal, an audit log, department roles and a dedicated account manager from 20 agents.
Enterprise$3,199
per month for up to 80 agents, billed annually ($3,999 billed monthly)
A flat fee with 80 agents, unlimited AI agents, departments and channels, priority support and custom billing. Extra agents are $39 each a month on annual billing.
Ways to pay less
Hesk
- Annual discount
Prepay a year of Hesk Cloud and save
Annual prepayment costs $299 (Cloud), $499 (Pro) or $999 (MAX), which the page says saves $60, $100 and $200 against monthly billing.
LiveAgent
- Annual discount
About 21% off with annual billing
LiveAgent lists Small at $15 per agent a month billed annually against $19 billed monthly, with lower annual rates on every plan.
- Other savings
Special offer until November 22, 2026
Starter is $11 per agent a month billed annually ($15 monthly), Team $22 ($26) and Business $38 ($44). Buyers keep the offer price for as long as they keep the plan.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Hesk or LiveAgent?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Hesk starts at $29.99 per month for up to 10 agents (Hesk Cloud), and LiveAgent starts at $15 per agent / month, billed annually ($19 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, Hesk or LiveAgent?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Hesk has a free plan. LiveAgent does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Hesk and LiveAgent run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only LiveAgent lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.