Intercom vs Zendesk
Intercom is customer service helpdesk with a built-in AI agent, Fin. Zendesk is customer service software with ticketing, messaging, voice and AI agents. Here is how they compare on price, free plan, platforms and the jobs each does best, from each vendor's own pages.
| Intercom | Zendesk | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Customer service helpdesk with a built-in AI agent, Fin | Customer service software with ticketing, messaging, voice and AI agents |
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Free plan | No | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | $19/user/mo billed annually (Essential) | $19/user/mo billed annually (Support Team) |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card required; includes all features, Fin and add-ons | 14-day free trial of Suite Professional (Copilot included in the trial) |
| Platforms | Web | Web |
| Integrations (vendor's figure) | Not stated | 1,800+ apps, partners, and integrations |
| Open source | No | No |
| Made by | Fin (the company formerly named Intercom) | Zendesk |
Choose Intercom if…
- The job is answering routine customer questions automatically before they reach support staff.
- The job is running a shared support inbox and help centre for a small support team.
Choose Zendesk if…
- The job is handling customer emails as tracked tickets in a small support team.
- The job is combining chat, messaging and phone support in one queue.
Still weighing it up?
If neither is quite right, see how other AI customer support tools compare: Tidio vs Chatbase.
To see one of them doing real work, read How to Set Up an AI Chatbot to Answer Customer Questions on Your Website.
What Intercom does
- Shared inbox, ticketing and Messenger live chat on every plan
- Fin AI Agent on all plans, billed at $0.99 per outcome and at most once per conversation
- Workflow automation builder and round robin assignment on Advanced
- SSO, HIPAA support and SLAs on Expert
- Copilot AI assistant for support staff as an add-on ($35 per teammate/month shown with monthly billing)
- Fin Voice for phone support at $1.99 per voice outcome, via sales
Watch out for
- No free plan; a 14-day free trial is offered
- Fin is billed per outcome on top of seat fees, and using Fin with another helpdesk carries a minimum monthly commitment (the page's example is 50 outcomes)
- Multiple team inboxes and workflow automation start on Advanced; SSO and HIPAA support need Expert
What Zendesk does
- Email ticketing, routing, automations and triggers from the cheapest plan
- Messaging, live chat, telephony and omnichannel routing on Suite plans
- AI agents included in every Support and Suite plan, billed per automated resolution
- Admin Copilot, writing tools and App Builder on Suite Professional
- Copilot agent assistant as a paid add-on at $50/agent/month paid yearly
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
Questions
Is Intercom or Zendesk cheaper?
Their entry prices are the same: $19/user/mo billed annually (Essential).
Do Intercom and Zendesk have free plans?
Neither has a free plan. Intercom offers a 14-day free trial, no credit card required; includes all features, Fin and add-ons. Zendesk offers a 14-day free trial of Suite Professional (Copilot included in the trial).