Table of Contents
- Key takeaways: the best Zendesk Chat alternatives at a glance
- What is Zendesk Chat?
- Zendesk Chat vs Zendesk messaging: what changed
- Problems with Zendesk Chat that send teams to alternatives
- How the alternatives solve these problems
- How these Zendesk Chat alternatives were ranked
- The 6 best Zendesk Chat alternatives in 2026
- 1. Crisp: best flat-price Zendesk Chat alternative for small teams
- Key features
- Pros
- Cons
- Pricing
- Rating
- Best for
- 2. Tidio: best Zendesk Chat alternative with a free plan and ticketing
- Key features
- Pros
- Cons
- Pricing
- Rating
- Best for
- 3. SiteGPT: best for knowledge-trained AI answers, alone or inside Zendesk messaging
- Key features
- Pros
- Cons
- Pricing
- Rating
- Best for
- 4. Text by LiveChat: best per-user live chat with AI resolutions included
- Key features
- Pros
- Cons
- Pricing
- Rating
- Best for
- 5. Tawk: best free Zendesk Chat alternative
- Key features
- Pros
- Cons
- Pricing
- Rating
- Best for
- 6. Intercom: best Zendesk Chat alternative with a native AI agent
- Key features
- Pros
- Cons
- Pricing
- Rating
- Best for
- Zendesk Chat alternatives comparison table
- Zendesk Chat pricing per agent, against the alternatives
- The stack: which tool does which job
- How to choose a Zendesk Chat alternative
- Zendesk Chat alternatives use-case cheat sheet
- Zendesk Chat alternatives FAQ
- Basics
- What is the best alternative to Zendesk Chat?
- Is Zendesk Chat being discontinued?
- What is the difference between Zendesk Chat and Zendesk messaging?
- What is a good Zopim alternative?
- Pricing
- How much does Zendesk Chat cost per agent?
- What is the cheapest Zendesk Chat alternative?
- Which Zendesk Chat alternative is cheaper for 5 agents?
- Comparisons
- Zendesk vs Intercom for live chat: which is better?
- Crisp vs Zendesk: which is better for a small team?
- Is LiveChat a good replacement for Zendesk Chat?
- AI and integrations
- Can SiteGPT replace Zendesk Chat?
- Does SiteGPT work with Zendesk?
- Which Zendesk Chat alternatives include an AI agent?
- Compliance
- Which Zendesk Chat alternatives support HIPAA?
- Sources
Created by
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Created time
Jan 28, 2026 11:03 AM
The best alternative to Zendesk Chat for most small teams in 2026 is Crisp, a live chat and shared inbox tool with a free plan and flat paid plans from $45 a month per workspace.
No tool in this guide is best overall. Each of the six Zendesk Chat alternatives below has a "best for" label, a price read from the vendor's pricing page, and a G2 rating.
TL;DR
- Zendesk Chat is a legacy product. Zendesk states that it is in maintenance mode, is not sold to new customers, and will be deprecated on January 31, 2028. Zendesk messaging replaces it.
- Crisp is the closest swap for a small team. It bills a flat price per workspace. Essentials is $95 a month and includes 10 seats.
- Tidio has live chat and ticketing with a free plan. Starter is $24.17 a month billed annually.
- SiteGPT is not a live chat helpdesk. It is the knowledge-trained answer layer. It runs on its own widget from $59 a month ($39 a month billed yearly), or inside Zendesk messaging on the Scale plan.
- Text by LiveChat, Tawk, and Intercom cover per-user live chat, a free inbox, and a helpdesk with a native AI agent.
- Live chat for 5 agents costs $275 a month on Zendesk Suite Team paid yearly. The same team pays $95 on Crisp Essentials, which is $180 less (65%).
Key takeaways: the best Zendesk Chat alternatives at a glance
Tool | Best for | Type | Starting price | G2 rating |
1. Crisp | Flat-price live chat for small teams | Live chat and shared inbox | Free for 2 seats. Mini is $45 a month per workspace | 4.5 (205 reviews) |
2. Tidio | Live chat and ticketing with a free plan | Live chat helpdesk with an AI agent add-on | Free plan. Starter $24.17 a month billed annually | 4.6 (1,962 reviews) |
3. SiteGPT | Knowledge-trained AI answers, alone or inside Zendesk messaging | AI chatbot trained on your content. Not a live chat helpdesk | $59 a month, or $39 a month billed yearly | 4.9 (12 reviews) |
4. Text by LiveChat | Per-user live chat with AI resolutions included | Live chat, inbox, and ticketing | $19 per user a month billed annually | 4.5 (813 reviews, listed as LiveChat) |
5. Tawk | A free chat widget and inbox | Live chat with paid add-ons | Free. AI Assist is $29 a month | 4.5 (203 reviews) |
6. Intercom | A helpdesk with a native AI agent | Helpdesk with the Fin AI agent | $29 per seat a month billed annually, plus $0.99 per Fin outcome | 4.5 (3,918 reviews, listed as Fin) |
What is Zendesk Chat?
Zendesk Chat is the live chat product that Zendesk built on Zopim, a live chat company that Zendesk acquired. Agents use it to answer website visitors in real time from a chat dashboard.
Zendesk now calls Zendesk Chat a legacy product. New Zendesk customers get messaging instead. Messaging and live chat are part of the Zendesk Suite plans, which start at $55 per agent a month paid yearly.
Zendesk Chat vs Zendesk messaging: what changed
Zendesk Chat and Zendesk messaging are two different products, and only messaging is still developed. The facts below come from Zendesk's own help article, About the removal of Zendesk Chat and migration to messaging.
Question | Zendesk Chat | Zendesk messaging |
Status | Legacy product in maintenance mode | Current product |
Sold to new customers | No | Yes, in Suite plans |
End date | Deprecated on January 31, 2028 | None announced |
Who must move | Accounts on a Suite or Support Suite plan, or with both Chat and Support | Not applicable |
Chat-only plans (Chat Team, Chat Professional, Chat Enterprise) | Not currently eligible to migrate. Zendesk says more information will follow | Not applicable |
Requirements to migrate | Not applicable | A qualifying plan and the Zendesk Agent Workspace |
A Zendesk Chat customer therefore has two choices before 2028. The first is to migrate to Zendesk messaging. The second is to move live chat to another tool.
Problems with Zendesk Chat that send teams to alternatives
The problems with Zendesk Chat fall into five groups: product status, the end date, migration work, price, and complexity. Each point comes from a Zendesk page or from Zendesk reviews on G2.
- Zendesk Chat is in maintenance mode. Zendesk describes Chat as a legacy product that is no longer available to new customers. Zendesk states that messaging includes capabilities that Chat does not have.
- Zendesk Chat has an end date. Zendesk will deprecate Zendesk Chat on January 31, 2028. Eligible accounts must migrate to messaging before that date to avoid disruption.
- Migration takes manual work. Zendesk's migration tool recreates supported settings. Zendesk states that some Chat settings are not migrated automatically and must be reviewed and recreated by hand. Routing, reporting, operating hours, and workflows each have their own migration guide.
- Chat-only plans are in limbo. Accounts on Chat Team, Chat Professional, or Chat Enterprise are not currently eligible for migration. Zendesk says these accounts will receive more information at a later date.
- Live chat is priced per agent inside a suite. The $19 Support Team plan covers email and ticketing. Messaging and live chat start on Suite Team at $55 per agent a month paid yearly. Five agents cost $275 a month. AI agents are billed per automated resolution on top, and Copilot is an add-on at $50 per agent a month paid yearly.
- Reviewers report complexity. The top complaint tags on G2 for Zendesk for Customer Service are Missing Features (216 mentions), Limited Features (180), Learning Curve (179), Limited Customization (158), and Complexity (137). These tags cover the whole Zendesk product and are not specific to Chat.
Zendesk still rates well. Zendesk for Customer Service holds 4.3 out of 5 from 7,094 reviews on G2. The alternatives below fit teams that do not want a per-agent suite for live chat.
How the alternatives solve these problems
Each Zendesk Chat problem maps to one type of alternative.
Zendesk Chat problem | What solves it | Tools |
A legacy product with an end date | A live chat tool that is under active development | Crisp, Tidio, Text by LiveChat, Tawk, Intercom |
Per-agent suite pricing | A flat price per workspace, or a free platform | Crisp, Tidio, Tawk |
AI billed per automated resolution | An AI layer with a fixed monthly quota | SiteGPT, Crisp |
Complexity and learning curve | A chat-first tool with fewer modules | Crisp, Tidio, Tawk |
Staying on Zendesk after the move to messaging | An AI agent that installs on Zendesk messaging | SiteGPT, Zendesk AI agents |
How these Zendesk Chat alternatives were ranked
These Zendesk Chat alternatives were ranked on five criteria, in this order.
- Fit as a replacement. Does the tool give human agents a live chat widget and an inbox?
- Price for a small team. What does live chat cost for 5 agents on published prices?
- AI answers. Is an AI agent included, and how is it billed?
- Channels and ticketing. Does the inbox also cover email, social messaging, and tickets?
- Third-party reviews. What is the G2 rating, and how many reviews sit behind it?
Crisp is first because it replaces the live chat widget and the agent inbox at a flat price. A team of up to 10 pays $95 a month on Essentials with no per-agent fee.
SiteGPT is this site's own product. It is third because it does a different job. It answers visitors from your own content and hands the conversation to a person when needed. It does not give agents a full live chat helpdesk, and its limits are listed with the same weight as the others.
The 6 best Zendesk Chat alternatives in 2026
1. Crisp: best flat-price Zendesk Chat alternative for small teams
Crisp is a live chat and shared inbox tool that bills a flat price per workspace. One workspace covers the website chat widget, a team inbox, and an AI agent named Hugo. Crisp plan limits are compared with seven competing tools in the Crisp alternatives guide.
Key features
- Website chat widget, shared inbox, and mobile apps on the free plan
- Shared email inbox, chat triggers, and shortcuts from Mini
- Omnichannel inbox, AI chatbot, knowledge base, and routing rules from Essentials
- Ticketing system and white labelling on Plus
- AI credits included in every paid plan
Pros
- Flat price per workspace. Crisp does not limit conversations on any plan
- Free plan with 2 seats
- Essentials includes 10 seats for $95 a month, which is $9.50 per seat
- 14-day free trial of all features
Cons
- The free plan includes no AI credits.
- The omnichannel inbox and knowledge base start on Essentials at $95 a month.
- The ticketing system starts on Plus at $295 a month.
- Customer profiles are capped at 5,000 on Mini and 50,000 on Essentials.
Pricing
Plan | Price per workspace | Seats included | Included AI credits |
Free | $0 | 2 | None |
Mini | $45 a month | 4 | $5 |
Essentials | $95 a month | 10 | $25 |
Plus | $295 a month | 20 or more | $75 |
Source: Crisp pricing. Additional agents are listed at $10 each a month.
Rating
Crisp holds 4.5 out of 5 from 205 reviews on G2.
Best for
Crisp is best for teams of 2 to 10 agents that want live chat and a shared inbox on one flat bill. Teams that want a different AI on top of Crisp can read the guide to the best AI chatbot for Crisp.
2. Tidio: best Zendesk Chat alternative with a free plan and ticketing
Tidio is a live chat and helpdesk platform for small businesses and online stores. It combines live chat, ticketing, email, and social channels in one inbox, and it adds an AI agent named Lyro. Plans and limits are covered in the Tidio review.
Key features
- Live chat and ticketing on every paid plan
- Live visitors list and operating hours
- Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, and email integrations
- Lyro AI agent with human handoff. Lyro can import Zendesk help articles
- Flows, a visual builder for sales and FAQ automations
- Desktop and mobile apps
Pros
- Free plan with 50 billable conversations a month
- Ticketing is included from the Starter plan
- Growth lists 10 seats in its flat price
- The largest G2 review base among the small-team tools here: 1,962 reviews
Cons
- Plans are metered by billable conversations. Starter includes 100 a month.
- Lyro is priced separately. It starts at $32.50 a month billed annually for 50 AI conversations, which is $0.65 per conversation.
- Removing Tidio branding is an add-on at $16.67 a month.
- The Plus plan starts at $300 a month plus usage.
Pricing
Plan | Price | Included |
Free | $0 | 50 billable conversations |
Starter | $24.17 a month billed annually | 100 billable conversations, live chat and ticketing |
Growth | From $49.17 a month billed annually | From 250 billable conversations, analytics, macros, automatic chat assignment |
Plus | From $300 a month plus usage | Custom limits, departments, custom branding, OpenAPI |
Premium | Contact sales | From 3,000 Lyro conversations, pay-per-resolution billing |
Lyro AI agent | From $32.50 a month billed annually | From 50 Lyro conversations |
Source: Tidio pricing. Paid plans have a 7-day free trial.
Rating
Tidio holds 4.6 out of 5 from 1,962 reviews on G2.
Best for
Tidio is best for small teams and online stores that want live chat and tickets in one tool and want to start free. The feature and price math against SiteGPT is in SiteGPT vs Tidio.
3. SiteGPT: best for knowledge-trained AI answers, alone or inside Zendesk messaging
SiteGPT is an AI chatbot trained on your own content. It is not a live chat helpdesk. It answers visitors first and passes the conversation to a person when the visitor asks for one.
SiteGPT works in two ways for a Zendesk Chat team. The first is the SiteGPT widget on your website, with human escalation to your team. The second is the Zendesk integration. On the Scale plan, SiteGPT installs as the AI agent on the Zendesk Web Widget for messaging and hands off to Zendesk agents. Other options for that route are in the guide to the best AI chatbots for Zendesk.
Key features
- Trains on websites, sitemaps, files, raw text, YouTube, GitHub, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, and Notion
- Zendesk messaging integration on Scale. SiteGPT answers first, and Zendesk creates a ticket at handoff
- Chat integrations from Growth: Slack, Crisp, Messenger, Google Chat, Freshdesk Messaging, and Zoho SalesIQ
- iOS app from Growth with a live inbox and one tap to take over from the AI
- Auto refresh of trained content: monthly on Growth, weekly with a daily scan on Scale
- 95+ languages
Pros
- Flat monthly price with a message quota. Starter includes 4k GPT-4.1-mini messages a month and Growth includes 10k
- No per-agent fee. Growth includes 4 members and Scale includes 10
- Answers come from your own website and documents
- Conversations that SiteGPT answers alone do not create a Zendesk ticket
Cons
- SiteGPT is not a live chat helpdesk. It has no shared inbox for email or tickets.
- The Zendesk integration needs the Scale plan ($429 a month, or $259 a month billed yearly) and Zendesk Suite Professional or above with Sunshine Conversations access.
- The integration is built for Zendesk messaging. The setup guide does not cover the legacy Zendesk Chat product.
- Starter has no chat integrations.
- No free plan. The 7-day free trial requires a credit card.
- The quota is in GPT-4.1-mini messages. A GPT-4.1 message uses ten times as much quota.
- Integrations are not available in a HIPAA workspace.
Pricing
Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly (per month) | Messages a month | Members | Zendesk integration |
Starter | $59 | $39 | 4k GPT-4.1-mini | 1 | No |
Growth | $129 | $79 | 10k GPT-4.1-mini | 4 | No |
Scale | $429 | $259 | 40k GPT-4.1-mini | 10 | Yes |
Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom | Custom | Yes |
A signed DPA and a HIPAA BAA are available on the Enterprise plan only. Source: SiteGPT pricing and the Zendesk integration guide.
Rating
SiteGPT holds 4.9 out of 5 from 12 reviews on G2.
Best for
SiteGPT is best for teams whose chats are mostly repeat questions that a website or help center already answers. It also fits Zendesk Suite Professional teams that move to messaging and want a flat AI bill. The seat and allowance math is in SiteGPT vs Zendesk.
4. Text by LiveChat: best per-user live chat with AI resolutions included
Text is the live chat product from the team behind LiveChat. The LiveChat pricing page now sells Text plans, and each plan includes a chat widget, an inbox, a ticketing system, and a monthly allowance of AI resolutions.
Key features
- Chat, inbox, and ticketing system on every plan
- Omnichannel inbox and selling through Shopify
- 1 AI agent on Essential and 10 on Growth
- Chat supervision and takeover, shared canned responses, and team reports on Growth
- Proactive campaigns and workflow automation
Pros
- Essential is $19 per user a month billed annually, the same entry price as Zendesk Support Team, and it includes live chat
- AI resolutions are included: 10 a month on Essential and 200 a month on Growth
- 14-day free trial with no credit card required
- 4.5 out of 5 on G2 from 813 reviews
Cons
- Pricing is per user. Five users on Growth cost $395 a month billed annually.
- Essential tracks 50 live visitors. Unlimited chat history starts on Growth.
- Extra AI resolutions cost $49.50 per pack of 50, which is $0.99 each.
- White-label widget and SSO are on the Enterprise plan.
Pricing
Plan | Price per user a month, billed annually | AI resolutions included | Live visitors tracked |
Essential | $19 | 10 a month | 50 |
Growth | $79 | 200 a month | 400 |
Enterprise | Custom | Custom | Custom |
Source: Text live chat pricing.
Rating
G2 lists the product as LiveChat. It holds 4.5 out of 5 from 813 reviews on G2.
Best for
Text by LiveChat is best for teams that want a per-user live chat tool similar in shape to Zendesk Chat, with AI resolutions in the plan. Response-time and workload benchmarks from LiveChat's data are in the guide to the advantages of online chat for customer service.
5. Tawk: best free Zendesk Chat alternative
Tawk, styled tawk.to by the vendor, is a free live chat platform with a chat widget, an inbox, a CRM, and a knowledge base. The company charges for optional add-ons and keeps the platform free. More options in this price range are in the tawk.to alternatives guide.
Key features
- Chat widget and inbox at no cost
- CRM, pipeline, automations, and a knowledge base
- AI Assist: AI agents trained on your knowledge base, with handoff to your team
- Whitelabel add-on for custom domains and branded emails
- Add-ons are billed per property and not per seat
Pros
- The platform is free, with no credit card needed to start
- AI Assist has a free tier for limited volume
- Add-ons can be switched on or off at any time
- 4.5 out of 5 on G2 from 203 reviews
Cons
- The widget shows the vendor's badge unless you pay $29 a month for Whitelabel.
- AI Assist paid plans start at $29 a month.
- Voice Agents and Data Enrichment are on a waitlist.
- A free inbox still needs people to answer every chat that the AI does not handle. Before you staff it, the chatbot vs live chat guide prices that staff time against a chatbot and a hybrid setup.
Pricing
Item | Price | Notes |
Tawk platform | $0 | Chat widget, inbox, CRM, knowledge base |
AI Assist | From $29 a month | Free tier for limited volume |
Whitelabel | $29 a month per property | Removes the badge, adds custom domains |
Voice Agents | From $49 a month plus usage | Waitlist |
Data Enrichment | From $59 a month | Waitlist |
Source: tawk.to add-ons.
Rating
Tawk holds 4.5 out of 5 from 203 reviews on G2.
Best for
Tawk is best for teams with no software budget that need a chat widget and an inbox today. Free AI options are compared in the free chatbot for website guide.
6. Intercom: best Zendesk Chat alternative with a native AI agent
Intercom is a helpdesk with a Messenger, a shared inbox, ticketing, and a native AI agent named Fin. It is the closest full replacement for teams that want to leave Zendesk and keep a suite. Fin is covered in the Intercom Fin AI review.
Key features
- Messenger, shared inbox, and ticketing system on every plan
- Fin AI agent for service, sales, and ecommerce
- Workflows automation builder and multiple team inboxes from Advanced
- Public help center, with private and multilingual help centers from Advanced
- SSO, SLAs, and HIPAA support on Expert
Pros
- Live chat, support email, and in-app chats are unlimited on all plans
- The inbox and the AI agent come from one vendor
- Essential costs $29 per seat a month billed annually, which is $26 less per seat than Zendesk Suite Team
- The largest review base in this list: 3,918 G2 reviews
Cons
- Pricing is per seat plus usage. Five Essential seats cost $145 a month billed annually before Fin.
- Fin costs $0.99 per outcome. 300 outcomes add $297 a month.
- SMS, WhatsApp, phone, and email campaigns are pay-as-you-go.
- Copilot is an add-on at $29 per agent a month billed annually, or $35 billed monthly.
Pricing
Item | Price | Notes |
Essential | $29 per seat a month, billed annually | Messenger, shared inbox, ticketing, public help center |
Advanced | $85 per seat a month, billed annually | Workflows, multiple inboxes, 20 free Lite seats |
Expert | $132 per seat a month, billed annually | SSO, HIPAA support, SLAs, 50 free Lite seats |
Fin AI agent | $0.99 per outcome | Also sold for other helpdesks with no seats required |
Copilot add-on | $29 per agent a month billed annually, or $35 billed monthly | AI assistant for human agents |
Source: Intercom pricing.
Rating
G2 lists the product as Fin. It holds 4.5 out of 5 from 3,918 reviews on G2.
Best for
Intercom is best for teams that want to replace the whole Zendesk suite and pay for AI by outcome. The head-to-head is in Zendesk vs Intercom, and more helpdesks of this size are in the Intercom alternatives guide.
Zendesk Chat alternatives comparison table
This Zendesk Chat alternatives comparison table lines up Zendesk and all six tools on the ranking criteria.
Tool | Live chat inbox for agents | Pricing model | Entry paid price | AI agent billing | G2 rating |
Zendesk (messaging and live chat) | Baseline | Per agent plus usage | $55 per agent a month paid yearly (Suite Team) | Per automated resolution | 4.3 (7,094) |
Crisp | Yes | Flat per workspace | $45 a month | Credits included in the plan | 4.5 (205) |
Tidio | Yes | Flat, metered by billable conversations | $24.17 a month billed annually | Lyro from $32.50 a month billed annually | 4.6 (1,962) |
No. Answer layer with human escalation | Flat with a message quota | $59 a month, or $39 billed yearly | Included in the plan quota | 4.9 (12) | |
Text by LiveChat | Yes | Per user | $19 per user a month billed annually | 10 to 200 resolutions included, then $49.50 per 50 | 4.5 (813) |
Tawk | Yes | Free with add-ons | $0 | AI Assist from $29 a month | 4.5 (203) |
Intercom | Yes | Per seat plus usage | $29 per seat a month billed annually | $0.99 per Fin outcome | 4.5 (3,918) |
Zendesk Chat pricing per agent, against the alternatives
Zendesk live chat costs $55 per agent a month paid yearly, because messaging and live chat start on the Suite Team plan. A 5-agent team pays between $0 and $275 a month across the tools in this guide.
Tool | Plan priced | Monthly price for 5 agents | Difference against Zendesk | 12-month cost |
Tawk | Free platform | $0 | $275 less | $0 |
Tidio | Growth, billed annually, 10 seats listed | From $49.17 | $225.83 less (82%) | From $590.04 |
Crisp | Essentials, 10 seats included | $95 | $180 less (65%) | $1,140 |
Text by LiveChat | Essential, 5 x $19, billed annually | $95 | $180 less (65%) | $1,140 |
Intercom | Essential, 5 x $29, billed annually | $145 | $130 less (47%) | $1,740 |
Zendesk | Suite Team, 5 x $55, paid yearly | $275 | Baseline | $3,300 |
The table leaves out AI usage, and that changes the order. Tidio Growth starts at 250 billable conversations, and Lyro is extra. Intercom adds $0.99 for every Fin outcome, so 300 outcomes add $297 a month. Zendesk bills AI agents per automated resolution and publishes no unit price.
SiteGPT is not in this table because it is not an agent inbox. Costs for AI chatbots alone are in the AI chatbot pricing comparison.
The stack: which tool does which job
The stack for a team leaving Zendesk Chat has four layers, and one tool does not have to cover all of them. SiteGPT is not a live chat helpdesk. It takes the knowledge-trained answer layer and leaves the agent inbox to Zendesk messaging or to another live chat tool.
Layer | Job | Tool |
Live chat inbox | Agents reply to visitors in real time, assign conversations, and report on them | Zendesk messaging, Crisp, Tidio, Text by LiveChat, Tawk, or Intercom |
Knowledge-trained answer layer | Answers first from your website, files, and cloud drives | |
Handoff | Moves the conversation to a person | In Zendesk messaging, SiteGPT passes control to Zendesk and Zendesk creates a ticket |
Knowledge source | Holds the content the answer layer trains on | Your website, documents, and help articles |
There are two common versions of this stack.
- Stay on Zendesk. Five Zendesk Suite Professional agents cost $575 a month paid yearly. SiteGPT Scale adds $259 a month billed yearly. The total is $834 a month.
- Leave Zendesk. Crisp Essentials costs $95 a month. SiteGPT Growth adds $129 a month, or $79 a month billed yearly. The total is $224 a month, or $174 with yearly billing. SiteGPT connects to Crisp from the Growth plan.
The stack has limits. The Zendesk integration needs Zendesk Suite Professional or above, so Suite Team accounts do not qualify. While a Zendesk agent has the conversation, SiteGPT does not reply. Integrations are not available in a SiteGPT HIPAA workspace, and a BAA is available on the Enterprise plan only. Program details are on the SiteGPT HIPAA page.
How to choose a Zendesk Chat alternative
Choose a Zendesk Chat alternative by answering four questions: whether you stay on Zendesk, how you want to pay, who answers most chats, and how big the team is.
If you need... | Pick... | Why |
Live chat and an inbox on one flat bill | Crisp | Essentials is $95 a month with 10 seats |
Live chat and tickets with a free plan | Tidio | Free plan, and Starter is $24.17 a month billed annually |
AI answers from your own content | Flat price with a message quota, on its own widget or inside Zendesk messaging | |
Per-user live chat that feels like Zendesk Chat | Text by LiveChat | $19 per user a month billed annually, with live chat included |
A free widget and inbox today | Tawk | The platform costs $0 |
A full suite with a native AI agent | Intercom | One vendor for the inbox and Fin |
To stay on Zendesk | Zendesk messaging | Zendesk's migration tool recreates supported Chat settings |
Teams that mainly care about escalation quality can read the AI chatbots with human handoff roundup.
Zendesk Chat alternatives use-case cheat sheet
This cheat sheet maps ten common situations to one pick each.
Scenario | Best pick | Why |
Team of 4 on a legacy Chat-only plan | Crisp | Mini is $45 a month with 4 seats |
Shopify store with 2 agents and no budget | Tidio | Free plan with 50 billable conversations |
Solo founder who needs a chat widget today | Tawk | Free platform with no credit card |
SaaS team whose chats repeat the docs | Trains on the website and files. Starter is $59 a month, or $39 billed yearly | |
Zendesk Suite Professional team moving to messaging | Installs as the AI agent on the Zendesk Web Widget on Scale | |
Sales team of 5 that lives in live chat | Text by LiveChat | Proactive campaigns and Shopify selling on every plan |
Team of 10 on a tight budget | Crisp | $95 a month flat, which is $455 less than 10 Zendesk Suite Team agents |
Team that wants to leave Zendesk and keep a suite | Intercom | Messenger, inbox, ticketing, and Fin on every plan |
Agency that needs its own branding on the widget | Tawk | Whitelabel is $29 a month per property |
Service desk with phone lines and many agents | Zendesk messaging | Suite plans include telephony and omnichannel routing |
Zendesk Chat alternatives FAQ
Basics
What is the best alternative to Zendesk Chat?
Crisp is the best alternative to Zendesk Chat for most small teams. It has a live chat widget, a shared inbox, a free plan, and flat paid plans from $45 a month. Teams that want tickets and a free plan can pick Tidio.
Is Zendesk Chat being discontinued?
Yes. Zendesk states that it will deprecate Zendesk Chat on January 31, 2028. Zendesk describes Chat as a legacy product in maintenance mode that is no longer available to new customers.
What is the difference between Zendesk Chat and Zendesk messaging?
Zendesk Chat is the legacy live chat product. Zendesk messaging is the current product that replaces it. Zendesk states that messaging supports real-time conversations and includes capabilities that Chat does not have.
What is a good Zopim alternative?
Zendesk acquired Zopim and built Zendesk Chat on it, so the same alternatives apply. Crisp, Tidio, Text by LiveChat, and Tawk all provide a website chat widget and an agent inbox.
Pricing
How much does Zendesk Chat cost per agent?
Zendesk sells live chat to new customers inside the Suite plans. Suite Team costs $55 per agent a month paid yearly, and Suite Professional costs $115. The $19 Support Team plan covers email and ticketing.
What is the cheapest Zendesk Chat alternative?
Tawk is the cheapest Zendesk Chat alternative because the platform is free. Among paid plans, Text by LiveChat Essential is $19 per user a month billed annually, and Tidio Starter is $24.17 a month billed annually.
Which Zendesk Chat alternative is cheaper for 5 agents?
Every tool in this guide is cheaper than Zendesk for 5 agents. Zendesk Suite Team costs $275 a month paid yearly. Crisp Essentials and Text Essential cost $95, Intercom Essential costs $145, and Tidio Growth starts at $49.17.
Comparisons
Zendesk vs Intercom for live chat: which is better?
Intercom is cheaper per seat, and Zendesk is deeper in ticketing. Intercom Essential costs $29 per seat a month billed annually with unlimited live chat. Zendesk Suite Team costs $55 per agent a month paid yearly. Intercom adds $0.99 per Fin outcome.
Crisp vs Zendesk: which is better for a small team?
Crisp suits a small team that wants one flat bill. Ten agents cost $95 a month on Crisp Essentials and $550 a month on Zendesk Suite Team paid yearly. Zendesk suits larger teams that need ticket routing and telephony.
Is LiveChat a good replacement for Zendesk Chat?
Yes, for teams that want per-user live chat. The LiveChat pricing page now sells Text plans from $19 per user a month billed annually. Each plan includes chat, an inbox, a ticketing system, and AI resolutions.
AI and integrations
Can SiteGPT replace Zendesk Chat?
No. SiteGPT is not a live chat helpdesk. It answers visitors from your content and escalates to a person. Human agents still need an inbox, and that can be Zendesk messaging, Crisp, or another live chat tool.
Does SiteGPT work with Zendesk?
Yes, with Zendesk messaging. SiteGPT installs as the AI agent on the Zendesk Web Widget. It needs the SiteGPT Scale plan or above and Zendesk Suite Professional or above with Sunshine Conversations access.
Which Zendesk Chat alternatives include an AI agent?
All six do in some form. Crisp includes AI credits in paid plans. Text by LiveChat includes 10 to 200 AI resolutions a month. Tidio sells Lyro from $32.50 a month billed annually. Tawk sells AI Assist from $29 a month. Intercom charges $0.99 per Fin outcome. SiteGPT includes AI messages in every plan.
Compliance
Which Zendesk Chat alternatives support HIPAA?
Intercom lists HIPAA support on its Expert plan. SiteGPT offers a HIPAA BAA on its Enterprise plan only, and integrations such as Zendesk are not available in a HIPAA workspace. More vendors are compared in the HIPAA compliant AI chatbot guide.
Sources
All pages below were opened on 8 October 2026.
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