16 Best Zendesk alternatives for 2024

Customer service software is essential for seamless communication and efficient issue resolution. Companies rely on these tools to deliver exceptional service, build customer loyalty, and drive business growth. While Zendesk remains popular due to its robust customer service tools, businesses often require more specialized or diverse solutions to meet specific needs.

So, this article will explore a range of alternatives to Zendesk for 2024, providing comprehensive insights into their features, strengths, and comparisons. The top 16 Zendesk alternatives include Yellow.ai’s advanced customer service platform alongside Zoho Desk, Salesforce Service Cloud, Freshdesk, and others. Understanding these options allows you to select a solution that aligns with your team’s objectives and enhances your customer service strategy.

Understanding Zendesk

Zendesk is a well-established leader in customer service software, known for its comprehensive features that simplify customer interactions. Its popularity stems from offering businesses a unified platform for managing customer inquiries, providing multichannel support, and creating a seamless user experience. 

Despite its strengths, some businesses might find that Zendesk still needs to meet their specific requirements fully. Reasons for seeking alternatives include greater customization flexibility, a more scalable pricing model, or specialized features that align better with unique workflows and customer engagement strategies. In other cases, businesses might look for tools that complement their existing Zendesk systems to enhance capabilities or streamline operations. 

16 Zendesk alternatives for 2024

We’ve compiled a list of the 16 best Zendesk alternatives for 2024, each with unique features to enhance your customer service strategy. Let’s dive into how these platforms.

Yellow.ai

A powerful platform that can independently automate your end-to-end customer service, or integrate seamlessly with your existing Zendesk ecosystem to help you get significantly more our of your investments.

In today’s fast-paced digital world, customer service is becoming more critical than ever. Robust, scalable solutions are needed to handle increasing customer demands by maintaining personalized and efficient services.

If you are already using Zendesk and keen on unlocking the true potential of a modern AI-powered customer service, then you’ve come to the right place. Yellow.ai, is a comprehensive customer service platform recognized as a Challenger in the 2023 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ and in 2024 Gartner® Market Guide for conversational AI solutions. Yellow.ai’s AI-first customer service automation platform integrates beautifully with Zendesk to streamline your workflows, provide omnichannel support, and seamlessly transfer requests to human agents when necessary.

The perfect partnership: Yellow.ai and Zendesk

1. Streamline and enhance customer service

Integrate Yellow.ai and Zendesk to provide consistent support experiences across all Sunshine Conversation Channels and offer 24/7 instant support. This partnership enables the user to:

• Omnichannel support: Deliver personalized and human-like support is delivered across different channels like messaging, email, and social channels.
• Contextual conversations: Foster meaningful connections by maintaining the historical context of conversations across channels.
• Scalability: Build once and deploy across all Sunshine Conversations Channels, ensuring rapid scaling capabilities.

2. Significant cost savings

Reduce costs by up to 60% by leveraging the joint power of Yellow.ai and Zendesk. Here’s how:

• Skyrocket customer support efficiency: Routine queries are handled by automation, creating the bandwidth for the agents to handle complex issues.
• Seamless agent handover: Dynamic AI agents can transfer calls to human agents seamlessly to intricate queries, ensuring smooth transitions.
• Empower agents with rich information: The contextual information and conversation history are passed on to the agents, providing personalized resolution suggestions.

Why Yellow.ai is the best Zendesk alternative for enterprises?

Yellow.ai provides several industry-first AI innovations that make it a powerhouse when it comes to customer service automation in today’s complex and highly competitive market.

Pricing

Zoho Desk

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Zoho Desk is a cloud-based customer service software designed to enhance the service operations of businesses of all sizes. It provides a centralized platform to efficiently manage and resolve customer inquiries and support requests. Zoho Desk tracks and manages customer interactions across various channels such as social media, chat, email, and phone, ma king it an essential tool for comprehensive customer engagement.

Additionally, Zoho Desk offers many integrations, allowing it to connect seamlessly with the rest of your tech stack. For larger teams, it provides team management features like time tracking. The software also includes AI capabilities such as chatbots, sentiment analysis, ticket fields, etc to streamline the support process further.

Pricing

• Standard: $15 per user per month Professional
• $25 per user per month Enterprise
• $38 per user per month

Salesforce Service Cloud

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While most are familiar with Salesforce as a leading CRM provider, it also offers customer service platform – Service Cloud – enables companies to deliver omnichannel support, construct a comprehensive knowledge base, automate service processes through advanced workflows, and expedite customer responses with Einstein, Salesforce’s proprietary AI technology.

Service Cloud comes equipped with specialized features for field service management, including dispatch and scheduling tools, work order management, and a mobile app designed to support field technicians in remote locations without Wi-Fi.

Pricing

• Starter suite: $25 per user per month
• Professional: $80 per user per month
• Enterprise: $165 per user per month

ServiceNow

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ServiceNow is commonly recognized for its robust IT service management capabilities. It enhances internal workflows by automating ticket assignments with AI-assisted technologies.

The platform also features self-service options and virtual assistants that quickly answer employee inquiries, minimizing downtime and streamlining communication. Additionally, comprehensive reporting tools are available within ServiceNow, allowing managers to track performance metrics and identify areas for improvement effectively.

Pricing

ServiceNow offers customized pricing based on your organization’s specific needs and scale.

Freshdesk

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Freshdesk allows businesses to enhance customer service operations, focusing on usability and multi-channel support. It offers features like a shared inbox, knowledge base builder, and workflow automation that simplify the management of customer communications across several channels, including email, social media, live chat, and WhatsApp.

Freshdesk’s Freddy AI offers AI-powered chatbots for support agent assistance for drafting replies, and AI-enhanced reporting to help save time and reduce ticket volume. Freshdesk also supports extensive customization, allowing users to tailor ticket fields and workflows. It’s real-time updates and agent collision detection prevents multiple agents from handling identical inquiries, ensuring efficient resolution of customer issues.

Pricing

• Growth: $14 per user per month
• Pro: $51 per user per month
• Enterprise: $83 per user per month

Intercom

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Intercom has grown from its initial focus on sales and marketing to become a capable customer service platform, offering similar functionalities to Zendesk. Its strengths lie in proactive engagement and customer onboarding, facilitated by its messenger-centric approach which integrates well with sales, marketing, and customer success.

The platform supports various customer communication channels, including in-app chat, email, and social media. Its AI-powered capabilities, such as custom bots and proactive messaging, allow for prioritization of urgent issues and real-time customer updates on order and payment status. However, it lacks the customization options in its help center and the advanced reporting features found in Zendesk.

Pricing

• Essential: $39 per user per month
• Advanced: $99 per user per month
• Expert: $139 per user per month

Gorgias

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Gorgias is tailored for e-commerce and integrates with platforms like Shopify. This enables support teams to access and adjust order details directly within their helpdesk, streamlining certain tasks. However, despite its useful features, some may find the platform more complimentary than transformative. It also offers a unified inbox that aggregates messages from various channels like email, social media, and live chat, facilitating easier management of customer interactions.

Additionally, Gorgias provides a self-service help center and detailed analytics dashboards for insight into support operations. It employs a usage-based pricing model, where costs vary depending on the volume of customer interactions, and certain advanced features may attract additional charges.

Pricing

• Basic: $60 per user per month
• Pro: $360 per user per month
• Advance: $900 per user per month
• Enterprise: Contact Gorgias’s team

Kustomer

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Kustomer merges CRM and help desk functionalities into a single platform, offering a comprehensive view of customer interactions across various communication channels like email, chat, social media, SMS, and voice. This integration is designed to streamline support operations, although it may not entirely replace all existing systems within a business.

The platform enhances support capabilities with AI-powered tools that automate responses and manage large volumes of support queries, which can significantly lighten the workload for support teams. Additionally, features such as sentiment analysis and language detection help provide personalized and timely support, while comprehensive knowledge bases and chatbots assist in efficiently handling customer inquiries.

Pricing

• Enterprise: $89 per user per month
• Ultimate: $139 per user per month

Hiver

Hiver integrates seamlessly with Gmail, turning it into an efficient customer support center, which is ideal for teams already familiar with Google’s email service. This integration leverages the familiarity of Gmail to reduce the learning curve, making the adoption of a more organized support system straightforward.

In addition to managing emails through shared inboxes, tagging, and internal notes, Hiver offers features like live chat and the ability to create a knowledge base for customer self-service. Advanced capabilities such as chatbots and AI-powered tools are available in higher-tier plans to help manage conversation volumes and improve team productivity. Hiver is known for its user-friendly interface and can be set up quickly, particularly benefiting teams entrenched in the Google ecosystem.

Pricing

• Lite: $24 per user per month
• Pro: $59 per user per month
• Elite: $99 per user per month

Help Scout

HelpScout offers a user-friendly and cost-effective alternative to Zendesk, tailored for small to medium-sized businesses aiming to improve their customer service. It integrates well with existing systems, featuring shared inboxes, chat support, and a comprehensive knowledge base that can reduce direct inquiries significantly.

The platform includes the “Beacon” tool, enhancing quick resolutions by allowing users to save and access replies and codes directly within the interface, highlighting HelpScout’s emphasis on efficient and personalized customer support. However, it lacks the advanced features and scalability that larger enterprises might require, making it less ideal for more complex needs.

Pricing

• Standard: $25 per user per month
• Plus: $50 per user per month
• Pro: Contact the HelpScout team (Annual plans only)

Helpjuice

Helpjuice provides a robust self-service portal that facilitates independent user access to information through a well-organized knowledge base. This platform manages dual knowledge bases, one dedicated to customer support and another for internal purposes, to aid both customers and employees to find necessary guidelines, FAQs, and other resources.

The customization capabilities of Helpjuice stand out, allowing organizations to adapt the knowledge bases to their specific branding and operational requirements. This includes customizing the layout, setting access controls, and managing content with a user-friendly drag-and-drop interface.

Pricing

• Starter: $120 per month for up to 4 users
• Run-up: $200 per month for up to 16 users
• Premium limited: $289 per month for up to 60 users
• Unlimited: $659 per month for unlimited Users

HubSpot Service Hub

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HubSpot’s Service Hub is an addition to its CRM platform, offering tools like a shared inbox, live chat, and chatbots designed to integrate customer support with its marketing and sales services. These features support better client engagement and help manage support tasks more effectively, though they may not be as comprehensive as some dedicated support platforms.

While the integration of marketing, sales, and customer support under HubSpot’s CRM can be useful for businesses seeking a unified customer relationship management solution, the Service Hub also offers a basic free version which provides essential tools without the need for a significant initial investment. This can be particularly appealing to smaller businesses, though larger enterprises might find it lacks some of the customization and scalability

Pricing

• Free: $0/month
• Starter: $20/month per user
• Professional: $100/month per user
• Enterprise: $130/month per seat

LiveAgent

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LiveAgent is a help desk software designed to consolidate various customer service tools into one platform. It supports functionalities such as setting up a call center, enabling live chat on websites and social media, and developing a comprehensive knowledge base for customer self-service. The software includes a gamification feature, where agents earn badges for completing tasks, which serves to both motivate the staff and provide insights into performance metrics.

Pricing

• Small: $15 per user per month
• Medium: $35 per user per month
• Large: $59 per user per month
• Enterprise: $85 per user per month

HappyFox

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HappyFox uniquely combines help desk functionality with project management features, enhancing its ability to manage customer inquiries dynamically. It offers a shared inbox, a comprehensive knowledge base, and automation capabilities designed to streamline communication and minimize repetitive tasks. Notably, it introduces a Kanban view for managing ticket queues, which significantly improves visibility and the coordination of ongoing conversations across teams.

For IT departments, HappyFox offers an asset manager that tracks company-owned devices and related issues, optimizing the management of technical support and IT assets. In addition to its primary functions, HappyFox supports additional features such as live chat, chatbots, and AI tools, available through separate purchases.

• Mighty: $39 per user per month
• Fantastic: $59 per user per month
• Enterprise: $79 per user per month
• Enterprise Plus: $99 per user per month

Tidio

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Tidio serves as a chat-centric customer service platform, particularly suitable for businesses that emphasize chat functionality. The platform includes live chat, typing previews, automatic chat routing, and multilingual support, structured with a usage-based pricing model. Basic plans at Tidio do not cover chatbot functionality, which is available for an extra cost. For more advanced conversational needs, Tidio offers Lyro AI, an AI-powered chatbot, at a higher price, enhancing its capability to manage complex customer interactions effectively.

It’s important to note that its chatbot functionality is not included in the basic service plans. Tidio provides a rule-based chatbot for automated customer interaction, available at an additional cost and equivalent to the standard customer service plan. For more advanced needs, the Lyro AI agent, an AI-powered chatbot, is available at a higher price point.

Pricing

• Free: $0
• Starter: $29 per user per month
• Growth: $59 per user per month

Front

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Front has grown from a basic tool for managing personal and team inboxes into a comprehensive customer communication platform, serving as a robust alternative to traditional systems like Zendesk. It supports a wide array of communication channels, including email, live chat, social media, messaging, and voice, and enriches these with advanced features like chatbots and an integrated help center.

The platform’s interface is designed to be “email-like,” making it intuitive and easy for teams to adopt and use efficiently. Front boosts productivity with automated workflows, customizable message templates, and extensive integrations with third-party applications, streamlining the communication process significantly. It also excels in SLA management, equipping teams with tools to leverage customer history and relevant data for crafting better responses and maintaining high service levels. Despite its advantages, Front’s Starter plan may fall short for some businesses due to its lack of advanced reporting features and CSAT support, which are typically included at similar price points in competitive offerings.

Pricing

• Starter: $29 up to 10 seats per month
• Growth: $79 up to 35 seats per month
• Scale: Annual plans only
• Premier: Annual plans only

How to choose the right Zendesk alternative for your team?

When considering alternatives to Zendesk, it’s essential to thoroughly evaluate different factors to ensure you select the best software for your business needs. Here are some key considerations to guide you through the decision-making process:

1. Budget considerations
   Start by assessing what you can afford. Budget constraints are typical for most teams, and establishing a clear financial framework early can help you create a shortlist of viable options. Consider both the initial cost and any ongoing expenses associated with the software.
   
2. Essential features
   Identify the critical features your team cannot work without. Make a comprehensive list of potential features each tool provides, then categorize these into “must-have” and “nice-to-have.” This will focus your search on solutions that meet your essential operational needs.
   
3. Implementation timeline
   Evaluate how long each tool will take to implement and how much training will be required. Some platforms may allow for quick integration and minimal training, while others might need more extensive setup and user education. Choose a solution that fits within your operational timelines.
   
4. All-in-one functionality
   The ideal solution should serve as an all-in-one platform that unifies developers, customer support executives, and customers. This integration ensures everyone is on the same page, enhancing overall communication and operational efficiency.
   
5. AI capabilities
   Opt for a platform that leverages AI to gather and utilize customer data effectively. AI-driven insights can significantly enhance decision-making and customer interaction strategies.
   
6. Integration with third-party apps
   Ensure the software can integrate smoothly with various third-party applications. This flexibility allows for managing multiple tasks within a single interface, streamlining workflows and improving productivity.
   
7. Customization and onboarding
   The software should offer robust customization options to tailor its functionalities to fit your requirements. Additionally, easy onboarding processes are crucial for swiftly bringing your team up to speed.
   
8. Collaborative features
   Look for a platform that facilitates effective collaboration between customers and internal teams. This should include tools for knowledge base management, transparent communication channels, and options for shared problem-solving.

Considering these factors, you can make an informed decision that aligns with your business’s needs, budget, and strategic goals. This comprehensive approach ensures you choose a Zendesk alternative that meets and enhances your team’s customer service capabilities.

Conclusion: Yellow.ai – A comprehensive Zendesk alternative and enhancer

In evaluating Zendesk alternatives, it’s clear that while many platforms offer specific strengths, Yellow.ai is the most comprehensive and effective solution. It combines advanced AI capabilities, seamless integration with existing systems, and a broad spectrum of communication channels to provide a genuinely all-encompassing customer service platform. Unlike other alternatives that excel in isolated aspects of customer service, Yellow.ai offers a holistic approach that addresses every facet of customer interaction and support.

Yellow.ai not only meets but exceeds the standard set by Zendesk through its innovative use of generative AI, making every customer interaction more personalized and effective. Its ability to integrate fluidly with Zendesk’s Sunshine Conversations further enhances its appeal, providing businesses with a powerful toolset that is both adaptive and scalable. Choosing Yellow.ai as your Zendesk alternative ensures that you leverage a solution designed for maximum efficiency, cost savings, and customer satisfaction, positioning your business for success in the competitive digital marketplace.

Opt for Yellow.ai and transform your customer service into a strategic asset that drives growth and fosters lasting customer relationships.