How to choose help desk software for a small support team

We compare nine help desks on what each company publishes about its entry plan: the cheapest paid plan that allows three agents. This guide explains what we weigh and why, the prices you will see, and the traps our research found. Every company page was read on Oct 1, 2026.

What we weigh, and why

• Cost for three agents (40%). Most help desks charge per agent, so a team of three pays three times the headline. We use the regular price, with annual prepay allowed, never an offer price.
• What the entry plan includes (30%). Five things: a shared email inbox, live chat, a knowledge base, automation and reporting. Without them, a help desk is just a shared mailbox.
• A free plan (15%) lets you start before you pay. A free trial scores less.
• Support (15%). Phone and chat, or 24/7 chat, scores highest; email only scores lowest.

The full formulas are in how we score help desks.

The prices you will see

Billed annually, per-agent entry plans run from $7 a user a month (Zoho Desk Express) to $26.10 a team member (Re:amaze Basic). For three agents that is $21 to $78.30 a month. Billed monthly, the same plans run from $9 to $35 a seat (Front Starter). Gorgias works differently: Starter is $10 a month for the whole account, with 3 user seats and 50 tickets. Our cost guide has the full table.

Traps our research found

An offer shown as the price. HubSpot Service Hub shows Starter at $7 a seat billed annually or $10 monthly, beside a struck-through $20, with no terms or end date. Budget for the $20 list price. We will re-check the offer on Oct 15, 2026.

A ticket cap instead of a seat price. Gorgias Starter includes 50 tickets a month and charges $0.40 for each one over. Each AI Agent interaction also counts as a ticket.

Live chat that isn't on the entry plan.

• Freshdesk: chat is in Freshdesk Omni, a separate product.
• Zendesk: messaging and live chat start at Suite Team, $55 an agent billed annually.
• Zoho Desk: Business Messaging chat starts at Standard.
• Front: Starter supports one channel type, so a team on email can't add chat.

No knowledge base, or only a private one. Zendesk Support Team has no help center. HubSpot puts its knowledge base on Professional. Zoho Desk Express has only a private one for agents.

Thin automation or no reports. LiveAgent Small business shows a dash on every reporting row. Zoho Desk Express gets 2 macros and 1 workflow rule, and Front Starter up to 10 automation rules.

User caps. Zoho Desk Express stops at 5 users, Front Starter at 10 seats and Help Scout Standard at 25 users. Gorgias Starter has 3 user seats.

Leaving costs time or money.

• Gorgias: 30 days' written notice, even on a monthly plan.
• Zendesk: at least 30 days' notice before the end of the term.
• HubSpot: "Mid-contract cancellations are not permitted."
• LiveAgent: may keep 50% of unused annual credit as a cancellation fee.
• Freshdesk: the account is suspended 24 hours after you ask.
• Help Scout: the account is terminated immediately.

Exports you can't run yourself. Zendesk's export article says its tools are not available on Team plans, which leaves the API. Front exports only through its support team. Help Scout exports reports in the app, and everything else through the API.

Pages that disagree. Where a company's own pages conflict, we use the worse reading for the buyer, and so should you until the company confirms:

• Gorgias gives Starter the "Community" support tier, while its help docs offer chat or email.
• HubSpot gives Starter email support in its pricing FAQ, and email and in-app chat in its catalog. The catalog also gives Starter 50 workflows, while the ticket-routing row says "Workflows not included."
• Freshdesk's pricing FAQ says a cancellation takes effect at the end of the term; its help article says suspension in 24 hours.
• Zendesk's comparison shows data exports on Support Team, and its help article says not on Team plans. Its Shopify actions list Support Team, but its Shopify setup article says Support needs Chat.
• Re:amaze shows a 10% annual saving on its pricing page; a help article says 5%.

Who supports you, and how

• Phone and chat: Freshdesk (24/7 in-product chat for urgent issues, plus a sales and support line) and Zendesk (messaging, and a phone line staffed 8am-6pm Eastern, Monday through Friday).
• One live channel: Zoho Desk Express (email and phone) and LiveAgent (best-effort support; chat, with phone lines for sales).
• Email only: Gorgias Starter, Help Scout, HubSpot Starter, Front and Re:amaze.

Free plans and trials

Three have a free plan: Zoho Desk for 3 users, Help Scout for 5 users and HubSpot for 2 users. The rest offer trials: 30 days at LiveAgent and Gorgias, and 14 days at Freshdesk, Zendesk, Front and Re:amaze.

If you sell online

Check whether Shopify order details, refunds and order-aware replies come on the plan you will buy, not a higher one. Our list for ecommerce stores ranks the help desks that state at least two of four store features on their entry plan.

A checklist before you buy

1. Multiply the per-agent price by your team size, at the billing you will use.
2. Check whether the price is an offer, and what it becomes.
3. Check user, seat or ticket caps on that plan.
4. Confirm the plan has a shared inbox, live chat, a knowledge base, automation and reports, or decide which you can live without.
5. Check the vendor's support channels on that plan, not the top one.
6. Read the cancellation terms: notice, refunds, and when access ends.
7. Find out how you get your tickets out.

Where to go next

See all nine in our help desk ranking.