LiveHelpNow vs Zendesk (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, LiveHelpNow and Zendesk share a 2.4 GPA, neither has a free plan, and Zendesk starts cheaper, at $19 a month for each person against $39 a month for each person.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
LiveHelpNow grades higher on value for money. Zendesk grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
LiveHelpNow
Live chat, ticketing and knowledge base with a built-in AI agent
Zendesk
Ticketing, messaging, help center and AI agents for support teams
Which one is for you
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
Pick Zendesk if
- Fits if your team answers email, chat and phone and wants one queue for all of it
- Works for funded startups, which can get Suite Professional free for 6 months
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you need live chat or a help center, as both start at $55 an agent billed yearly
- Too light for chat-first teams on the $19 plan, which covers email tickets only
- Skip it if you need a fixed bill, since AI resolutions past the allowance cost $1.50 to $2 each
- Watch out: Copilot is a $50 an agent add-on, and phone numbers and call minutes are billed on top
- Watch out: the listing doesn't say whether the trial needs a card, and Suite Enterprise is sold only through sales
How we grade them
| 2.4GPALiveHelpNowFair | 2.4GPAZendeskFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | DSupport Team is $19 an agent billed yearly, a little under this category's middle, but it's email tickets only. Chat, phone and a help center start on Suite Team at $55 an agent, above the dearest tenth of help desks, and extra AI resolutions are $1.50 to $2 each. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free trial set up after a short call; its length and any card requirement aren't stated. There is no free plan. | CA 14-day free trial of Suite Professional with Copilot, which shows you the top of the range. There's no free plan, and the listing doesn't say whether the trial needs a card. Funded startups can get 6 months free. |
| Features | 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. | BTicketing across email, chat, social and phone, AI agents on every plan, help centers in 40+ languages with forums, voice numbers in 75+ countries, an IVR and reports you ask for in plain words. The whole job is covered. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. A trial is arranged by a call, and channels and routing have to be set up. | B4.5 from 4,219 App Store ratings for the agent app. Prebuilt dashboards and pre-written replies come on every plan, but routing, triggers and automations take setting up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with Salesforce, HubSpot, Zendesk, Slack and Shopify connections. No desktop or phone apps are listed. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, X, Slack, WeChat and LINE as channels, and an API. No desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | live chat and a help desk in one workspace | support teams handling email, chat and phone |
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: LiveHelpNow and Zendesk. How we grade
Price against what you get
LiveHelpNow starts at $39 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Zendesk starts at $19 a month for each person and scores 3.0.
Zendesk scores higher and starts $20 a month lower. Of the other help desk and live chat tools on the chart, 4 score higher than LiveHelpNow for less, and 1 scores higher than Zendesk 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
- LiveHelpNow also covers shared inbox.
- Zendesk also covers reports.
At a glance
| LiveHelpNow | Zendesk | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $39 per seat / month, billing basis not stated | $19 per agent / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | Free trial, set up for your team after a short call | 14-day free trial of Suite Professional with the Copilot add-on |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | LiveHelpNow LLC | Zendesk, Inc. |
| Price read from | livehelpnow.net | zendesk.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Zendesk
- Support Team covers email ticketing only; live chat, voice and a help center start at Suite Team, $55 per agent / month billed annually.
- AI resolutions beyond the included allowance cost $1.50 each on a committed volume or $2.00 each pay-as-you-go.
- Copilot, which adds Auto Assist and suggested first replies, is an add-on at $50 per agent / month billed annually.
- Phone numbers and call minutes are billed as add-ons, and Suite Enterprise is sold only through the sales team.
Key features
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.
Zendesk
- Ticketing across channels
- Email, messaging, phone and social conversations land in one ticket queue, with routing, pre-written responses, triggers and automations.
- AI agents billed per resolution
- AI agents answer email on every plan and chat wherever messaging is on. Each agent seat includes 5 automated resolutions a month (10 on Suite Professional).
- Messaging and live chat
- Suite plans add chat for websites and apps plus WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, X, Slack, WeChat and LINE as channels.
- Help center
- Suite Team includes one help center in one language. Suite Professional allows up to 5 help centers in 40+ languages, plus community forums.
- Voice
- Phone support in the browser with toll-free or local numbers from 75+ countries. Suite Professional adds an IVR phone tree.
- Reporting
- Prebuilt analytics dashboards on every plan. Suite Professional adds Quick Reports, which builds reports from questions typed in plain language.
Plans
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.
Zendesk
Support Team$19
per agent / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly)
Email ticketing with routing, prebuilt dashboards, pre-written replies and automations. No help center, live chat or phone.
Suite Team$55
per agent / month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
Adds messaging and live chat, telephony, omnichannel routing, a knowledge base and Action Builder, with one help center in one language.
Suite Professional$115
per agent / month, billed annually ($149 billed monthly)
Adds skills-based routing, an IVR phone tree, AI writing tools, Quick Reports and App Builder, and up to 5 help centers in 40+ languages.
Suite Enterprise + CopilotCustom
Adds intelligent triage, Auto Assist, generative AI for voice, approval workflows, a sandbox and custom agent roles. Sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
LiveHelpNow
No public discounts listed.
Zendesk
- Annual discount
About 20% off with annual billing
Zendesk's pricing page marks annual billing as 20% off: Suite Team is $55 per agent a month billed yearly against $69 billed monthly.
- Startups
Startups: 6 months free, up to 2 years via partners
Funded startups up to Series B and under 10 years old get Suite Professional and Copilot free for 6 months, or 1 to 2 years through VC partners, for up to 50 agents.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, LiveHelpNow or Zendesk?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Zendesk is cheaper to start with: $19 a month for each person, against $39 a month for each person for LiveHelpNow. LiveHelpNow starts at $39 per seat / month, billing basis not stated, and Zendesk starts at $19 per agent / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, LiveHelpNow or Zendesk?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither LiveHelpNow nor Zendesk has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do LiveHelpNow and Zendesk run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Zendesk 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.