10 best help desk software solutions in 2025

In 2025, customer service goes far beyond mere ticket resolution as a means to a business's growth. Forbes CxO’s Growth Survey 2025 revealed that 90% of C-suite executives actively focus on improving a customer’s experience to enhance revenue and brand value, signifying business value.⁽¹⁾

This parallels a growing trend where companies are investing in more sophisticated, faster, and agile help desk software solutions due to growing competition and the need to drive value. But which software is right for your organization?

We have analyzed the market to identify the most advanced help desk software platforms. These offer AI-powered workflows, automated multichannel support, and numerous other automation tools, allowing businesses to boost issue resolution and customer satisfaction while scaling operations seamlessly.

What is help desk software?

Your team has probably seen emails sliding through the gaps, duplicate responses, or agents missing critical tickets if it maintains client contacts across several channels. Help desk software is meant to prevent exactly the kind of chaos that exists here.

From email, chat, social, phone, or web, a contemporary helpdesk system aggregates all support requests—into one consistent workspace. It lets you effectively allocate, rank, and monitor tickets. Growing teams and rising companies depend on this must-have to remain orderly, respond quickly, and maintain high customer satisfaction.

But the technologies of today go much beyond simple ticketing. To enable your agents to concentrate on what counts most—resolving problems with speed and empathy—the finest help desk systems also bring in artificial intelligence-powered automation, self-service portals, reporting dashboards, and collaboration tools.

Whether your company is small or large, selecting the correct helpdesk program enhances agent performance, speeds resolution, and enhances the whole customer experience. Freshdesk also provides exactly what you need for a future-ready solution—with AI at its core and scalability built-in from first day.

What are the benefits of using help desk software?

By giving your staff structure, speed, and clarity, help desk software simplifies customer assistance. It facilitates as follows:

• Unified ticketing from email, chat, and social media guarantees nothing goes missed.

• SLAs and automated routing enable response objectives to be met and prioritizing of pressing problems.

• Built-in tools for team sharing tickets, internal note adding, and quick query resolution help teams work together.

• Knowledge bases and self-service alternatives help to liberate agents' time and cut back on repeated questions.

• Reports and real-time dashboards give information to raise agent output and service quality.

The correct platform helps your staff and your clients to have smoother support.

10 most popular help desk software: a head-to-head comparison

Here’s an at-a-glance comparison of the 10 most popular help desk solutions based on their G2 reviews, base pricing, and USPs.

This table gives an overview of the 10 most preferred help desk platforms. Moving forward, let’s explore each option in detail.

Detailed overview of the top help desk solutions

Curious about which help desk platform best fits your team’s needs? In this section, we break down the key use cases, features, pros, cons, and real user feedback for each of the top solutions we’ve shortlisted.

Let’s dive into the details, starting with our own platform, Freshdesk.

1. Freshdesk

Best for: Small to mid-sized businesses seeking a scalable help desk with multichannel support.

Freshdesk is an AI-powered help desk ticketing software built to deliver fast, personalized support at scale. Its powerful blend of automation, omnichannel capabilities, and insightful reporting helps businesses streamline operations without overwhelming support teams.

Freshdesk’s intelligent ticketing system enables support teams to handle large volumes of queries without compromising quality or speed. Freddy AI Copilot auto-suggests responses, flags sentiment, and reduces response time by up to 40%, enabling agents to focus on more complex cases. The software also scales well with both SMBs and enterprises.

Key features of Freshdesk

• Unified agent workspace: Creates a single space for agents to centrally manage customer interactions across email, chat, phone, and social channels.

• Ticket dispatch: Automates the flow of incoming tickets by categorizing, prioritizing, and assigning them to the correct agents, enabling teams to maintain control.

• Helpdesk AI: Empowers agents with AI-driven suggestions, automated responses, and predictive insights, leading to shorter response times and improved service accuracy.

• Skill-Based ticket assignment: Routes tickets to agents based on their expertise, ensuring that each query is handled by the most qualified personnel.

• Custom real-time dashboards: Provides real-time visibility into key metrics and operational performance through a custom help desk insight dashboard, helping managers make data-driven decisions.

Freshdesk pricing

Freshdesk’s pricing plans include: Growth, Pro, Pro + AI Copilot, and Enterprise. Additionally, you can also opt for a 14-day free trial plan to use the platform before making a purchase. Here’s how each pricing plan works:

• Growth ($18/agent/month): Essential ticketing and automation for small teams getting started with helpdesk software.

• Pro ($59/agent/month): Advanced reporting and workflow management for growing support teams.

• Pro + AI Copilot ($94/agent/month): AI-powered productivity tools on top of Pro features for faster, smarter agent responses.

• Enterprise ($95/agent/month): Full-scale enterprise features and security for large, complex support operations.

User reviews and opinions on Freshdesk

2. Zendesk

Best for: Large and scaling teams needing advanced workflow automation and customization.

Zendesk is a widely used customer service and engagement platform designed to help businesses manage and streamline their support operations. It offers a comprehensive suite of tools, including ticketing, live chat, messaging, call center capabilities, knowledge base management, and community forums.

In addition to its core help desk functionalities, Zendesk provides advanced features such as AI-powered automation, analytics, and customizable workflows. These capabilities help businesses improve response times, enhance customer satisfaction, and scale their support operations efficiently.

If you’re considering your options, here’s a helpful guide on Zendesk vs Freshdesk to see how the two platforms compare.

Key features of Zendesk

• Ticket routing: Uses skill-based routing, triggers, and automation rules to assign tickets to the right agents based on priority and experience.

• Knowledge base: Enables businesses to create and manage a self-service portal, empowering customers to find answers quickly and reducing ticket volume.

• Analytics: Provides built-in reports and customizable dashboards that help teams track key metrics, monitor agent performance, and optimize the support experience.

• Workforce management: Offers tools for forecasting, scheduling, and real-time monitoring of support teams to ensure efficient staffing and improve service levels.

Pros and cons of Zendesk

Zendesk pricing

Zendesk’s pricing is available in four plans: Support Team, Suite Team, Suite Professional, and Suite Enterprise. Here’s how each pricing plan works:

• Support Team ($25/agent/month): Simplified email support with core ticketing, automated routing, pre-built reporting, and access to 1,000+ integrations.

• Suite Team ($69/agent/month): Omnichannel support across email, messaging, live chat, phone, and social media.

• Suite Professional ($149/agent/month): Adds advanced collaboration, smart routing, agent Copilot, CSAT insights, HIPAA compliance, and more granular workflow controls.

• Suite Enterprise (Custom pricing): Built for large organizations with complex support needs and customization requirements.

3. Zoho Desk

Best for: Startups and SMBs seeking budget-friendly help desk software with automation.

Zoho Desk is a reliable, budget-friendly help desk software built for startups and small to mid-sized businesses. Trusted by 100,000+ businesses globally, it offers a comprehensive set of tools for managing customer support across email, social media, live chat, and telephony.

Zoho Desk’s AI assistant, Zia, powers smart automation, predictive insights, customizable dashboards, and sentiment analysis—helping teams improve efficiency and deliver better customer experiences.

With flexible customization and strong data privacy compliance, Zoho Desk is a leading choice for desk ticketing software among teams looking to scale their support operations affordably. For a closer look at how it stacks up against Freshdesk, check out our in-depth comparison of Zoho Desk vs Freshdesk.

Key features of Zoho Desk

• Real-time insights: Provides live dashboards to track ticket volume, agent performance, and customer satisfaction, enabling teams to stay proactive and data-driven.

• Workflow automation:  Automates ticket routing, triggers, and escalations using Blueprints and custom functions—streamlining support processes without coding.

• Predictive intelligence: Powered by AI assistant Zia, it offers response suggestions, ticket auto-tagging, field prediction, and anomaly detection to help teams work smarter.

• Sentiment analysis: Automatically identifies customer sentiment from ticket conversations, enabling proactive support and improving customer experience.

Pros and cons of Zoho Desk

Zoho Desk pricing

Zoho Desk offers four pricing tiers: Express, Standard, Professional, and Enterprise. These plans are billed on a monthly and yearly basis, with annual billing providing up to 34% better cost efficiency.

• Express ($7/user/month): Covers essential email ticketing, cloud analytics, and social media support—ideal for very small teams of up to 5 agents.

• Standard($14/user/month): Adds help center, feedback widget, advanced web forms, and support across email, social media, and messaging channels.

• Professional($23/user/month):  Includes ticket collision alerts, multi-channel support via telephony/chat, ticket-to-KB functionality, and basic automation tools.

• Enterprise($40/user/month): Unlocks full-scale features—100+ email channels, unlimited web forms, brand portals, live chat, sandbox, and advanced AI (Zia).

4. Salesforce Service Cloud

Best for: Deep CRM and help desk integration, and cross-department collaboration.

Salesforce Service Cloud is one of the most preferred enterprise-grade help desk platforms built on Salesforce’s industry-leading CRM. It helps businesses deliver personalized, connected service experiences across every channel—email, chat, phone, social media, and self-service.

With built-in AI (Einstein), advanced case management, automation, and real-time analytics, Service Cloud empowers agents to resolve issues faster and drive customer satisfaction. Its seamless integration with sales, marketing, and data tools makes it especially valuable for businesses looking to unify customer relationships and scale service operations across departments.

If you're weighing this platform against other solutions, this breakdown of Salesforce Service Cloud vs Freshdesk can help clarify the differences.

Key features of Salesforce Service Cloud

• Case management: Streamlines issue tracking and resolution by organizing customer cases in one central workspace.

• Omni-Channel routing: Directs customer requests from multiple channels—such as email, chat, phone, and social media—to the right agents based on availability and skill.

• Unified voice & messaging: Provides seamless communication through integrated voice and messaging tools, helping agents manage all conversations in a single interface.

• Service intelligence: Delivers AI-powered insights and recommendations to help agents respond faster, improve case outcomes, and enhance the overall customer experience.

Pros and cons of Salesforce Service Cloud

Salesforce Service Cloud pricing

Salesforce Service Cloud offers five pricing options: Starter Suite, Pro Suite, Enterprise, Unlimited, and Einstein 1 Service. The platform is priced on the higher end, making it best suited for enterprises. Here’s a detailed pricing overview:

• Starter Suite ($25/user/month): Entry-level plan that covers basic service, sales, and marketing tools, making it great for small businesses starting out.

• Pro Suite ($100/user/month): Adds real-time chat, enhanced customization, automation, and AppExchange access, making it ideal for growing teams.

• Enterprise ($165/user/month): Integrates AI-driven customer service and workflow automation, making it well-suited for mid-size to larger operations.

• Unlimited ($330/user/month):  Includes AI-powered chatbots, 24/7 support, and a full sandbox, making it a strong fit for high-demand enterprises.

• Einstein 1 Service ($500/user/month): Adds generative AI, service intelligence, digital channels, Slack integration, and Data Cloud—best for AI-first, data-driven customer service teams.

5. Help Scout

Best for: Teams that want simple, automation-driven customer support with a human touch.

If you are looking for a user-friendly service desk platform built for small to mid-sized businesses, Help Scout is one of the best help desk software solutions on the market. Help Scout helps teams scale support through workflow automation, shared inboxes, a built-in knowledge base, and reporting, all while maintaining a personal touch.

Help Scout claims its tools enable support teams to assist 52% more customers by automating routine tasks. Its clean interface and fast setup make it one of the most popular help desk solutions for small businesses, startups, SaaS companies, and customer-focused brands.

You can also explore how it compares against other popular help desk solutions like Freshdesk in this detailed guide on Help Scout vs Freshdesk.

Key features of Help Scout

• Workflow automation: Automates repetitive support tasks like tagging, assigning, and responding to tickets, giving agents more time to focus on complex cases.

• Knowledge base: Provides a self-service knowledge base (Docs) to help customers find answers and reduce ticket volume.

• Pre-Built reports: Gives actionable insights into team performance and customer experience with out-of-the-box reporting dashboards.

• Advanced permissions: Enables admins to control access to conversations, features, and settings—essential for managing multi-role support teams.

Pros and cons of Help Scout

6. HappyFox Help Desk

Best for: Mid-sized to large support teams handling high ticket volumes.

HappyFox Help Desk is one of the best cloud help desk software designed to bring automation and efficiency to high‑volume support teams. It centralizes all inbound support requests—email, chat, phone, and social—into a unified support ticket system where smart automation, SLA timers, and bulk actions simplify everyday workflows.

Tailored for mid-to-large teams, HappyFox Help Desk combines robust self-service (knowledge base and customer portal) with collaboration and customization features such as custom fields, status tracking, and detailed audit logs. Its AI features, mobile support, and integrations ensure that support teams can scale without sacrificing control or visibility.

If you're considering your options, take a look at this detailed comparison of HappyFox vs Freshdesk to evaluate which solution better fits your support needs.

Key features of HappyFox Help Desk

• Self-Service tools: Offers a comprehensive knowledge base and portal tools that empower customers to resolve issues independently, reducing ticket volumes.

• Status tracking: Keeps teams informed with SLA timers, customizable statuses, and alerts to ensure timely ticket handling.

• Omnichannel support: Captures tickets across email, chat, phone, and social media, centralizing all conversations in one interface.

• HappyFox AI: Supports smart automation and productivity features like collision detection, task management, asset tracking, and proactive responses.

Pros and cons of HappyFox Help Desk

HappyFox Help Desk pricing

HappyFox Help Desk offers agent-based pricing and unlimited agent pricing. The agent-based pricing includes the following:

• Basic ($29/agent/month): Includes unlimited tickets, omnichannel support, SLA management, knowledge base, SSO—ideal for small teams with up to 5 agents.

• Team ($69/agent/month): Builds on Basic with multi‑brand help desk, custom email/domain, roles, queues, and 24/5 support. 

• Pro ($119/agent/month): Includes advanced features such as collision detection, asset management, task workflows, load-balanced assignment, and 24/7 support.

• Enterprise PRO (custom pricing): Offers agent scripting, extended attachment storage, full reporting history, audit logs, phone support, and a dedicated customer success manager.

The unlimited agents plan includes the following pricing tiers:

• Growth ($1,999/month): Supports up to 20,000 tickets per year and includes 20 custom fields. Suitable for mid-sized teams needing basic enterprise-level capacity.

• Scale ($3,999/month): Increases capacity to 150,000 tickets per year and offers up to 100 custom fields—ideal for larger teams handling high ticket volumes.

• Scale Plus ($5,999/month): Supports 300,000 tickets per year and 200 custom fields tailored for very large teams with extensive customization needs.

• Unlimited (custom): Designed for enterprise-scale operations, includes up to 1,000,000 tickets per year and 300 custom fields, with bespoke features and support.

7. Intercom

Best for: Product-led and SaaS businesses that prioritize AI-powered customer engagement.

Intercom is a conversational customer messaging platform built for real-time, one-to-one engagement. Its core product, the Intercom Customer Service Suite, combines a powerful AI agent (Fin), live chat, inbox, help center, and automation tools.

With seamless multichannel capabilities—web, mobile, email, apps, and WhatsApp—Intercom enables personalized support that’s fast, proactive, and deeply contextual. Designed for product-led and SaaS businesses, Intercom focuses on delivering proactive, in-app experiences that enhance engagement and adoption.

For teams comparing platforms, our Intercom vs Freshdesk guide highlights where the two tools align—and where they don’t.

Key features of Intercom

• Fin AI agent: Instantly resolves common queries, reducing wait times and deflecting tickets while delivering accurate, conversational answers.

• Performance management: Helps track and improve team efficiency with built-in analytics that measure key support metrics like resolution time, customer satisfaction, and workload distribution.

• Workflow automation builder: Designs custom, no-code workflows to automate repetitive tasks and route conversations efficiently.

• Round-robin assignment: Ensures fair workload distribution by automatically assigning incoming conversations to available team members in a rotating order.

Pros and cons of Intercom

Intercom pricing

Intercom’s pricing is divided into three tiers: Essential, Advanced, and Expert. Additionally, you can also opt for Fin AI Agent, which is priced at $0.99 per Fin resolution. Here’s a pricing breakdown:

• Essential ($39/seat/month): Ideal for individuals and small teams, this plan offers a shared inbox, live chat, basic ticketing, reporting, and a public Help Center.

• Advanced ($99/seat/month): Designed for growing teams, it adds powerful automation tools, multiple team inboxes, workflow builders, and round-robin assignment.

• Expert ($139/seat/month): Suited for larger organizations, this tier includes everything in Advanced plus SSO, HIPAA support, SLAs, and multi-brand capabilities.

• Fin AI Agent ($0.99 per resolution): Available across all plans, this advanced AI agent auto-resolves customer inquiries, ensuring you only pay per resolved conversation.

8. HubSpot Service Hub

Best for: Customer success teams looking to unify service and CRM data.

HubSpot Service Hub is a customer service software designed to deepen customer relationships, streamline support operations, and turn customers into promoters. Built natively within the HubSpot ecosystem, it gives teams complete visibility into customer interactions across the entire lifecycle.

With tools like live chat, a shared inbox, ticketing, a knowledge base, customer feedback surveys, and automation workflows, teams can respond faster and more personally. HubSpot Service Hub also offers a customer portal for self-service, advanced reporting dashboards, and integration with sales and marketing, ensuring every customer touchpoint is consistent and data-informed.

Key features of HubSpot Service Hub

• Omni-channel messaging: Connects with customers across live chat, email, and social in one shared inbox for seamless communication and faster resolutions

• Customer success workspace: Provides a unified view of customer interactions, tickets, and history, enabling support agents to deliver personalized, context-rich service.

• Feedback management: Collects, analyzes, and acts on customer feedback using built-in surveys to continually improve service quality.

• Knowledge base: Helps build and manage a searchable library of help articles so customers can self-serve, reduce ticket volume, and empower agents with quick access to answers.

Pros and cons of HubSpot Service Hub

HubSpot Service Hub pricing

HubSpot Service Hub offers two pricing tiers: Service Hub Professional and Service Hub Enterprise. Here’s a detailed price breakdown:

• Service Hub Professional ($100/month/seat): Includes ticketing, help desk automation, knowledge base, customer portal, SLAs, and feedback surveys—ideal for scaling support teams.

• Service Hub Enterprise (starts at $150/month/seat): Adds custom objects, advanced permissions, playbooks, and deeper reporting—built for large teams needing full customization and control.

9. Gorgias

Best for: eCommerce stores looking to streamline and automate customer support.

Gorgias is an eCommerce-focused help desk software designed to streamline support within the context of your online store. It consolidates all customer channels into a unified inbox, pulling in vital details like order history, subscription status, and past communications directly into tickets. 

This platform also enables actions such as refunds, cancellations, and discount approvals directly from the help desk, reducing context switching and improving efficiency. With powerful automation tools, including rule-based workflows and templated responses, Gorgias can autonomously handle up to 60% of customer requests.

If you're evaluating options, this Gorgias vs Freshdesk comparison can help you assess which solution fits your store's needs best.

Key features of Gorgias

• Agent workspace: Centralizes all customer interactions from email, chat, social, and SMS into one unified view so that agents can respond faster with full context.

• AI assistance: Automates responses to common questions, surfaces relevant macros, and summarizes conversations to speed up resolution time with AI-powered tools.

• Performance reporting: Tracks agent performance, response time, ticket volume, and customer satisfaction through detailed dashboards that link support to revenue.

• User management: Helps assign roles, manage permissions, and streamline workflows to ensure the right agents handle the right tickets efficiently.

Pros and cons of Gorgias

Gorgias pricing

Gorgias offers five pricing tiers: Starter, Basic, Pro, Advanced, and Enterprise. Here’s a detailed pricing breakdown:

• Starter ($10/month): Includes 50 billable tickets and up to 3 agent seats; ideal for testing basic features on email, chat, and social channels.

• Basic ($60/month): Covers 300 tickets, unlimited agents, full Shopify or WooCommerce support, and up to 150 integrations; add-ons like AI Agent and live chat campaigns available.

• Pro ($360/month): Includes 2,000 tickets, all Basic features, CSAT surveys, revenue analytics, and AI automation add‑on; seat count unlimited.

• Advanced ($900/month): Supports 5,000 tickets, adds advanced automation with AI, priority onboarding, and a dedicated Customer Success Manager.

• Enterprise (custom pricing): Designed for brands processing more than 5,000 monthly tickets, offering tailored volume, integrations, and support.

10. Kapture

Best for: Enterprises needing AI-powered, customizable support across multiple channels.

Kapture is an AI-powered service platform tailored for large organizations that need intelligent, scalable customer support. It consolidates tickets from email, chat, phone, social media, and mobile apps into a single dashboard, automatically categorizing and routing them based on source, priority, and agent expertise.

Built with Generative AI (including ChatGPT) at its core, Kapture offers features such as smart ticket summaries, response templates, and automated triage, helping businesses reduce handling time and enhance accuracy. With deep automation, hybrid chatbots, and strong compliance (GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2), Kapture helps enterprises scale support, reduce resolution time, and boost customer satisfaction.

Key features of Kapture

• Sentiment analysis: Analyzes customer tone in real time to prioritize and escalate tickets based on urgency or emotional cues.

• Intent detection: Automatically identifies the purpose behind customer queries, enabling faster routing and more accurate responses.

• Ticket summaries: Generates concise ticket overviews using AI, helping agents quickly understand context and reduce handling time.

• Response generation: Auto-generates relevant replies based on ticket content, customer history, and past interactions to boost agent efficiency.

Pros and cons of Kapture

Kapture pricing

Kapture offers three pricing tiers: Enterprise, Professional, and Enterprise. The plans can be customized as per your requirements. You can contact the Kapture team for a price quotation. That wraps up our list of the top help desk and customer support software solutions. Now that you’ve seen the strengths, limitations, features, and pricing of each platform, the big question is: how do you choose the right one for your team? The next section will help you make that decision with clarity.

How to choose the right help desk solution for your business?

Picking a help desk ticketing system is easier when you know what to look for. Here are five factors to consider when evaluating your options:

1. User reviews and ratings

Start by exploring user reviews on platforms like G2 or Capterra to understand real-world experiences. Look for patterns in feedback—what do users praise or complain about? Prioritize helpdesk tools with consistently strong ratings in support responsiveness, ease of use, and feature reliability.

2. Integration capabilities and configurations

Assess your current tool stack (e.g., CRM, HRIS, communication apps) and choose a help desk that integrates seamlessly. Platforms with out-of-the-box integrations or open APIs reduce manual work, improve team productivity, and offer smoother workflows across departments.

3. Automation capabilities

Evaluate how much routine work the platform can automate, like ticket assignment, SLA reminders, or follow-ups. Strong automation saves time, reduces human error, and allows your customer support team to focus on complex, high-impact requests.

4. Pricing and budget-friendliness

Balance cost with value. Look beyond the monthly fee—factor in features offered, hidden charges (like for integrations or users), and scalability. Some tools like Freshdesk, HelpScout, and Zoho Desk offer free tiers or all-in-one packages that deliver better ROI as your needs grow.

5. Ease of use and implementation time

Choose a platform that your team can adopt quickly without steep learning curves or costly onboarding. A clean UI, low setup time, and clear documentation lead to faster rollouts and quicker value realization, especially for smaller or non-technical teams.

With the right criteria in mind, choosing the ideal help desk platform becomes far more strategic. Now, let’s take a closer look at one of the most trusted names in the space: Freshdesk.

Improve efficiency and satisfaction with Freshdesk

Once you know what to look for in a help desk system, the next step is choosing a solution that brings it all together.

Freshdesk was developed to accomplish precisely that. It has everything you need for a helpdesk automation, from smart features to support that works across email, chat, and social media. Whether your company is small or expanding staff, it helps you keep customers satisfied and handle tickets quickly.

Your staff keeps focused with clever features and an easy UI. And with Freddy AI in the background, agents can react faster and provide every time superior service.

If you're looking to:

• Boost customer satisfaction

• Improve agent productivity

• Scale support operations effortlessly

...then Freshdesk is the right fit.

👉Start your 14-day free trial today

Sources

1. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes-research/2025/03/20/forbes-cxo-growth-survey-2025-insights-into-leadership--transformation/