Automate Basics

Zendesk vs Freshdesk

Pick up to 4 tools and see their free plans, entry prices, platforms and limits in one table. Every fact comes from each vendor's own pages, checked 16 October 2026.

Written head to head: Freshdesk vs Zendesk, with when to choose each side.

Compared on
Zendesk

Free trial · from $19/agent/mo

Freshdesk

Free trial · from $19/agent/mo

What it isCustomer service software with ticketing, messaging, voice and AI agentsFreshworks help desk with ticketing, a knowledge base and Freddy AI
Free planNoNo
Cheapest paid plan$19/agent/mo billed annually (Support Team)Zendesk pricing$19/agent/mo billed annually (Growth)Freshdesk pricing
What it coversCheapest self-serve plan; email-based support. AI agent usage is billed per automated resolution.Cheapest plan; includes the Freddy AI Agent with 500 free sessions once per account.
Free trial14-day free trial of Suite Professional (Copilot included in the trial)14-day free trial with access to the Enterprise plan, no credit card required
PlatformsWebWeb
Integrations (vendor's figure)1,800+ apps, partners, and integrationsNot stated
Open sourceNoNo
Good for
  • Handling customer emails as tracked tickets in a small support team
  • Combining chat, messaging and phone support in one queue
  • Resolving common questions with an AI agent that is billed only for requests it resolves without a human
  • Managing customer emails as tickets in a shared inbox
  • Publishing a self-service knowledge base and customer portal
  • Trying an AI agent on common questions using the included sessions
Watch out for
  • No free plan; the 14-day trial runs on Suite Professional
  • Support Team is email-focused; messaging, live chat and telephony need a Suite plan
  • Copilot costs extra ($50/agent/month paid yearly) except on Suite Enterprise + Copilot
  • No free plan on the pricing page; after the 14-day trial you buy a plan or, on Freshdesk only, move to a 6-month Free Program for up to two agents
  • Freddy AI Copilot is not offered on Growth and costs $29 per agent a month billed annually ($35 monthly)
  • The 500 free AI Agent sessions come once per account; more cost $49 per 100
Made byZendeskFreshworks Inc.

Entry prices are the cheapest paid plan, as each vendor publishes it; “What it covers” says what that price is per (a user, a channel, a brand, a number of contacts). The sources are listed on each tool's page.

Every tool in AI customer support tools is on its category page, with the written head-to-heads on Compare.