LiveAgent vs LiveHelpNow (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LiveAgent grades higher than LiveHelpNow: 2.6 against 2.4 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 2, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 2, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
LiveAgent grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
LiveAgent
Help desk with email tickets, live chat, call center and AI agents
LiveHelpNow
Live chat, ticketing and knowledge base with a built-in AI agent
Which one is for you
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
Pick LiveHelpNow if
- Fits if your support team wants chat and tickets in one place
- Works for teams that also take calls and social messages
Look elsewhere if
- Tight on Essential: ticketing, call logging and workforce tools need Professional at $59
- Pricey if you want AI, since Hue add-ons start at $99 a month and go to $799
- Skip it if you want to start on your own, as the trial is set up after a call
- Watch out: the page does not say if seat prices are billed monthly or yearly
- Not for you if you want phone apps, as only the web workspace is listed
How we grade them
| 2.6GPALiveAgentGood | 2.4GPALiveHelpNowFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | C$39 a seat a month for Essential, which sits between the middle ($29) and the dearer quarter ($45) of the category. Tickets need Professional at $59. |
| Free plan and trial | 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. | CA free trial set up after a short call; its length and any card requirement aren't stated. There is no free plan. |
| Features | 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. | BLive chat, tickets, a knowledge base, phone, social channels, automations and an API. The listing shows no gap in the core job, though ticketing is on Professional. |
| Ease of use | 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. | CNo store rating on record. A trial is arranged by a call, and channels and routing have to be set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | BWeb only, with Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk, Slack and Shopify connections. No desktop or phone apps are listed. |
| Best for | email, chat and phone support on a budget | live chat and a help desk in one workspace |
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: LiveAgent and LiveHelpNow. How we grade
Price against what you get
LiveAgent starts at $15 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. LiveHelpNow starts at $39 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and LiveAgent starts $24 a month lower. Of the other help desk and live chat tools on the chart, 1 scores higher than LiveAgent for less, and 4 score higher than LiveHelpNow 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
- LiveAgent also covers reports.
- LiveHelpNow also covers shared inbox.
At a glance
| LiveAgent | LiveHelpNow | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $15 per agent / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly) | $39 per seat / month, billing basis not stated |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial, no credit card required | Free trial, set up for your team after a short call |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Quality Unit, LLC | LiveHelpNow LLC |
| Price read from | liveagent.com | livehelpnow.net |
| Checked | Nov 2, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
LiveHelpNow
- Ticketing, call logging and workforce management need Professional or higher.
- Hue AI add-ons cost extra: Knowledge AI from $99 a month, Conversational AI from $499 and Conversational AI Plus from $799.
- The pricing page does not say whether seat prices are billed monthly or annually.
- The pages list no desktop or mobile apps; agents use the web workspace.
Key features
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.
LiveHelpNow
- Live chat and ticketing
- Website chat, SMS and email tickets sit in one agent workspace; ticketing starts on the Professional plan.
- Knowledge base and portal
- Essential includes a knowledge base with unlimited articles, a customer support portal and secure forms.
- Phone and social channels
- Call flows, callbacks and Zoom Phone, plus Facebook Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, Google Business Messages and Slack.
- Hue AI assistant
- Hue answers from your knowledge base, past chats and uploaded documents, in chat, on tickets and on the phone, and suggests replies to agents.
- Automations and routing
- Conversations are routed by skill, availability and context, with automations that grow more advanced on higher plans.
- API and developer tools
- A REST API, OAuth, webhooks and a JavaScript SDK for the chat widget are documented for developers.
Plans
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.
LiveHelpNow
Essential$39
per seat / month, billing basis not stated
Live chat, knowledge base, support portal, surveys, social channels, basic automations and reporting; one chat domain.
Professional$59
per seat / month, billing basis not stated
Adds ticketing, workforce management, advanced automations, KPI dashboards, data export and call logging.
Premium$79
per seat / month, billing basis not stated
Adds onboarding, a monthly success call, priority support, no LiveHelpNow branding and higher limits.
EnterpriseCustom
For large or complex requirements. Priced through sales.
Ways to pay less
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.
LiveHelpNow
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, LiveAgent or LiveHelpNow?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LiveAgent is cheaper to start with: $15 a month for each person, against $39 a month for each person for LiveHelpNow. LiveAgent starts at $15 per agent / month, billed annually ($19 billed monthly), and LiveHelpNow starts at $39 per seat / month, billing basis not stated.
Which has a free plan, LiveAgent or LiveHelpNow?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither LiveAgent nor LiveHelpNow has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do LiveAgent and LiveHelpNow run on?
As of Nov 13, 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.