The Kayako Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Kayako in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Kayako
The Insider’s Guide
Help desk with an AI agent billed per resolved ticket
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among help desk and live chat tools, read from Kayako’s own pages.
Made by ESW Operations, LLC · checked Nov 12, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Kayako’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Kayako’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Nov 12, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
1.8
GPA, above 6 of the 92 other help desk and live chat tools we grade
Kayako is a help desk platform that now leads with Kay, an AI agent that takes actions such as refunds, exchanges and account changes through connected systems. Kay is billed per resolved ticket, and a fuller platform called Kayako One adds a unified inbox, ticketing, a knowledge base and a live chat widget.
To get you started, here are 7 things to know about Kayako, taken from its own pages and our grades.
No store rating on record, and the page says Kayako's team sets up the platform for you.
- 1
Best for an AI agent paid per resolved ticket
The price of the Kayako One help desk behind it isn't published, there is no trial, and the vendor's team does the setup.
- 2
It runs on Web
Web.
- 3
Kay AI agent
Resolves tickets end to end by acting through connected tools, for example processing a refund, sending a return label or resetting a password.
- 4
Phased AI rollout
Kayako's team introduces AI in three phases: ticket triage, drafted answers, then continuous learning with escalation to agents.
- 5
Kayako One platform
A full help desk with a unified inbox, ticketing system, knowledge base, live chat widget, automation rules and reporting.
- 6
A 1.8 GPA, above 6 of 92
That is against the other help desk and live chat tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 7
Keep it
To replace Kayako you would be making an AI model answering your customers from your own help articles. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
Kayako at a glance
- Pricing
- Paid
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- ESW Operations, LLC
- Category
- Help Desks & Live Chat
- Our grade
- 1.8 GPA, weak
The report card
Best for an AI agent paid per resolved ticket
Kayako leads with Kay, an AI agent that takes actions such as refunds and exchanges and costs $1 per resolved ticket, with no seat or setup fees. The price of the Kayako One help desk behind it isn't published, there is no trial, and the vendor's team does the setup.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Kay is $1 per resolved ticket with no seat fees, but no price is published for Kayako One, so it can't be set against the category's $29 middle. |
| Free plan and trial | F | No free plan and no trial are on record, and the pages we read show nothing to try before paying. |
| Features | C | A help desk with ticketing, shared inbox and knowledge base, plus Kay, which acts through connected systems. The listing says little about the help desk's own limits, and a resolution counts only if no human was needed. |
| Ease of use | C | No store rating on record, and the page says Kayako's team sets up the platform for you. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web only, with 7 listed integrations. No phone or desktop app on record. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Kayako is for
- Fits if refunds and exchanges are most of your tickets and you want to pay per resolution
- Works for a team that wants the vendor to do the setup
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you want to see a price for the help desk, as Kayako One's is not published
- Not for you if you want to sign up and start alone, since the vendor sets it up
- Watch out: only fully resolved tickets cost $1, and a resolution means Kay solved it with no human agent
- Watch out: no free plan or trial is on record
Good to know
Good for
- Support teams with many repeat requests that an AI can close
- Ecommerce stores handling refunds, exchanges and address changes
- Buyers who prefer paying per outcome rather than per seat
Worth knowing
- Kay costs $1 per resolved ticket; escalations to humans and partial resolutions are not charged, and the page says there are no seat or setup fees.
- No price for Kayako One is published, so this listing records its pricing as unverified.
- A resolution means Kay solved the issue without a human agent, by acting or giving an answer the customer confirms.
- Kayako says its team sets up the platform for you, so it is less of a self-serve sign-up.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
Kayako's current pricing could not be confirmed from its own site.
No free plan and no trial are on record, and the pages we read show nothing to try before paying.
We could not confirm Kayako’s current prices from its own site, so this guide lists no plans. kayako.com has them.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
Help desk with an AI agent billed per resolved ticket. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: shared inbox, help desk, live chat, help center, AI support agent.
A help desk with ticketing, shared inbox and knowledge base, plus Kay, which acts through connected systems.
- Kay AI agent
- Resolves tickets end to end by acting through connected tools, for example processing a refund, sending a return label or resetting a password.
- Phased AI rollout
- Kayako's team introduces AI in three phases: ticket triage, drafted answers, then continuous learning with escalation to agents.
- Kayako One platform
- A full help desk with a unified inbox, ticketing system, knowledge base, live chat widget, automation rules and reporting.
- Works with your stack
- Kay connects to systems such as Slack, Stripe, Shopify, Zendesk, Salesforce, Twilio and HubSpot, or to any system with an API.
- Add Kay to an existing help desk
- Kayako says Kay can also run on top of a help desk you already use, instead of replacing it.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- Slack
- Stripe
- Shopify
- Zendesk
- Salesforce
- Twilio
- HubSpot
Kayako is made by ESW Operations, LLC.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
6/92
Other help desk and live chat tools it is graded above
Kayako's GPA of 1.8 is higher than 6 of the 92 other help desk and live chat tools we grade, and level with 19.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (B, above 12 of 92) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 93 help desk and live chat tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Kayako’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 23 of 92
- FFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 92
- CFeaturesAbove 3 of 92
- CEase of useAbove 5 of 92
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 12 of 92
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace Kayako you would be making an AI model answering your customers from your own help articles. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 67 of the 92 other help desk and live chat tools grade higher.
What you could make
- Help desk and help center: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- An AI model answering your customers from your own help articles.
- One mailbox that several people work at once.
- A chat box on your site that reaches you the moment a customer types.
- It plugs into other products, Slack, Stripe and Shopify among them.
- Hooks into the device itself: widgets.
What this rests on. Kayako’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, HappyFox and HelpDesk
The 5 tools Kayako is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.4GPA
Zendesk
Free trial · from $19/mo
Ticketing, messaging, help center and AI agents for support teams.
- Only Zendesk lists iOS and Android apps.
- Kayako also covers shared inbox.
- Zendesk also covers reports.
- 2.4GPA
Freshdesk
Free trial · from $19/mo
Email ticketing help desk with a knowledge base and AI agents.
- Only Freshdesk lists iOS and Android apps.
- Kayako also covers live chat.
- Freshdesk also covers reports.
- 2.4GPA
Intercom
Free trial · from $29/mo
Helpdesk with live chat and the Fin AI agent priced per outcome.
- Only Intercom lists iOS and Android apps.
- Intercom also covers reports.
- 2.0GPA
HappyFox
Free trial · from $24/mo
Ticketing help desk with SLAs, a knowledge base and add-on AI.
- Kayako also covers live chat and AI support agent.
- HappyFox also covers workflow automation and ticketing.
- 2.4GPA
HelpDesk
Free trial · from $19/mo
Ticketing with an AI agent for email, chat, Messenger and SMS.
- Kayako also covers help center.
- HelpDesk also covers sMS marketing and chatbots.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
10
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Kayako free?
No. Kayako is a paid product.
What platforms does Kayako work on?
Kayako is available on Web.
Does Kayako have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 12, 2026. Kayako is listed for Web.
Does Kayako have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 12, 2026. Kayako is listed for Web.
Is Kayako open source?
Kayako is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 12, 2026.
What does Kayako integrate with?
Kayako's listing names Slack, Stripe, Shopify, Zendesk, Salesforce, Twilio and HubSpot.
Who makes Kayako?
Kayako is made by ESW Operations, LLC.
What are the alternatives to Kayako?
The closest alternatives to Kayako in our directory are Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, HappyFox and HelpDesk.
How does Kayako compare with other help desk and live chat tools?
Kayako's GPA of 1.8 is higher than 6 of the 92 other help desk and live chat tools we grade, and level with 19.
Could I make my own version of Kayako?
To replace Kayako you would be making an AI model answering your customers from your own help articles.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Kayako’s own pages on Nov 12, 2026, and the grades were given on Nov 12, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Kayako's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by ESW Operations, LLC. Prices change, so check kayako.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
7,721
Tools graded, in 95 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
7,721
tools graded
95
categories
739
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Kayako, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/kayako
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Kayako: The Insider's Guide", checked Nov 12, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/kayako
Know someone choosing between help desk and live chat tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/kayako/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded help desk and live chat tools after Kayako, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Help Desks & Live Chat Insider's GuideEvery one of the 93 help desk and live chat tools we grade, compared
- Zoho Desk Insider's GuideLow-cost ticketing help desk with a free plan for three users3.4 GPA
- Tidio Insider's GuideLive chat, ticketing and the Lyro AI agent priced by conversations3.2 GPA
- ProProfs Live Chat Insider's GuideLive chat with an AI agent, free for a single operator3.0 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Kayako’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Kayako is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by ESW Operations, LLC. Prices and plans change: check kayako.com before you buy.