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Switching from Zendesk: export access, 30 days' notice and the help center gap
Updated Oct 15, 2026
Ask Zendesk Support to turn on data exports, then export tickets, users and organizations as JSON, CSV or XML; Team plans can only use the API, and help center articles have no export tool. Give at least 30 days' notice before your term ends; charges aren't refunded. Gorgias imports from Zendesk with an API token, Zoho Desk migrates for free through Zwitch, and Freshdesk has a free Zendesk app.
The steps
- Step 1 · Give notice at least 30 days before your subscription term ends · No refund; unpaid amounts for the rest of the term are still owed
Check your renewal date and give notice
Zendesk renews for an equivalent term unless you give notice at least 30 days before the term ends. Charges are non-refundable, and cancelling early leaves the rest of the term to pay.
source - Step 2 · not stated on its pages · not stated on its pages
Ask Zendesk to turn on data exports
The account owner contacts Zendesk Customer Support to enable exports. The export tools aren't on Team plans; there, only the REST API can export data.
source - Step 3 · A few minutes to a day or more; the download link lasts at least three days · not stated on its pages
Export tickets, users and organizations
Run a JSON, CSV or XML export. CSV leaves out ticket comments and descriptions; XML leaves out custom ticket fields.
source - Step 4 · not stated on its pages · Zendesk partners charge a fee (amount not stated)
Save your help center articles
Zendesk has no prebuilt article export. Use the Help Center API or hire a Zendesk partner. Or let Gorgias or Freshdesk import them directly.
source - Step 5 · About 720 tickets an hour; a few days for a large history · not stated on its pages
Import into Gorgias
Connect Gorgias's Zendesk importer with an API token. It brings tickets, macros, users, tags and ticket fields, but not ticket attachments or satisfaction ratings.
source - Step 6 · More than two weeks: Phase 2 begins about two weeks after Phase 1 is complete; Zoho gives an exact ETA after data analysis · not stated on this page
Or import into Zoho Desk
Submit Zendesk's organizations, users and tickets export files to Zwitch. Tags, groups, teams, collaborators and inline images don't migrate. Zoho's Zwitch page calls the migration free and says 'move within two weeks'; this help article gives a longer timeline, and we use it.
source - Step 7 · not stated on its pages · Free app
Or import into Freshdesk
Install the Migrate from Zendesk app. Above 200,000 tickets, contact Freshdesk support instead.
source - Step 8 · Takes effect when your billing cycle ends · not stated on its pages
Cancel Zendesk
A self-service account cancels in Admin Center; billing admins can't, and sales-assisted accounts can't cancel online. Keep it open until your import has finished.
source - Step 9 · Data deleted 90 days after cancellation · Reactivation is billed from cancellation to the present billing period
Finish exporting before the cancellation takes effect
Zendesk says you lose access to your data when you cancel. A temporary reactivation within 90 days lets you export, but Zendesk bills for the time since cancelling.
source
Carries over
- Tickets, users and organizations export as JSON, CSV or XML once Zendesk switches exports on.
- Gorgias and Freshdesk each import Zendesk help center articles, so you skip Zendesk's missing article export.
- Gorgias brings over macros, tags and ticket fields along with tickets.
- Free migration at Zoho Desk (Zwitch) and a free Zendesk app at Freshdesk.
What you lose
- Team plans can't use the export tools; only the REST API.
- No refund, and cancelling before the term ends leaves the rest of it to pay.
- Gorgias leaves ticket attachments and satisfaction ratings behind; Zoho Desk drops tags and inline images.
- Worse reading of Zendesk's pages: no data access after cancelling without a billed reactivation.
Where to switch to
| Destination | Price from | Visit |
|---|---|---|
| Gorgias No affiliate relationship | $10 per month | Visit GorgiasOn gorgias.com |
| Zoho Desk No affiliate relationship | $0 per month | Visit Zoho DeskOn zoho.com |
| Freshdesk No affiliate relationship | $23 per month | Visit FreshdeskOn freshworks.com |
Leaving Zendesk takes planning. Data exports are off until Zendesk turns them on, Team plans don't get the export tools at all, and help center articles have no export button. Everything here comes from the companies' own pages, read Oct 1, 2026.
Leaving Zendesk
Getting your data out. Zendesk's export article says the account owner must contact Zendesk Customer Support to turn data exports on. After that, you can export tickets, users or organizations as JSON, CSV or XML. An export can take from a few minutes to a day or more. The download link is valid for at least three days.
What the export leaves out. The export tools are not available on Team plans. Team customers can only pull data through the Zendesk REST API. The CSV export also skips ticket comments and descriptions, and the XML export skips custom ticket fields. Help center articles are harder still. Zendesk says its knowledge base has no CSV export option and no prebuilt tool to export articles. You use the Help Center API or pay a Zendesk partner.
When you can cancel. You cancel in Admin Center. Billing admins can't, and sales-assisted (managed) accounts can't cancel online. Zendesk says you must give at least 30 days' notice before the end of your subscription term; on a self-service account, cancelling in Admin Center counts as notice. If you cancel mid-cycle, you keep the account until the billing cycle ends. The Customer Agreement adds three things. Charges are non-refundable. The term renews for an equivalent term unless notice is given. And if you cancel before the term ends, you pay any unpaid amounts for the rest of it.
Your data after cancelling. Zendesk's pages differ here. The Customer Agreement allows exports for 30 days after the subscription term. A help article says you lose access to your data when you cancel. To export afterwards, you ask Support for a temporary reactivation within 90 days, and Zendesk bills you for the time since cancelling. We use the stricter reading: finish your exports before the cancellation takes effect. Under the data deletion policy, deletion starts 90 days after cancellation.
Where to go
Gorgias has a named Zendesk importer on all its Helpdesk plans. It connects with a Zendesk API token rather than an export file. It brings over tickets, macros, users, tags and ticket fields from up to two years of recent data. Its migration guide lists the limits: ticket attachments and satisfaction ratings stay behind, and you get one import per Zendesk domain. It runs at about 720 tickets an hour, so a long history can take a few days. Don't cancel Zendesk mid-import: the API token expires and the import stops. Gorgias also imports help center articles straight from Zendesk.
Zoho Desk migrates Zendesk data through Zwitch. You upload the three zip files from Zendesk's own export (organizations, users and tickets). That means you need Zendesk's export tools, which Team plans lack. Tags, groups, teams, collaborators and inline images don't migrate. The Zwitch page calls the migration free and says "move within two weeks"; it adds that 500,000 to 1,000,000 records with 80,000 to 100,000 attachments can be done in one day. Zoho's Zwitch help article is longer: Phase 2 begins about two weeks after Phase 1 is complete. We use that reading, so plan on more than two weeks.
Freshdesk lists a free Migrate from Zendesk app. It imports users and agents, companies and groups, tickets, forums and knowledge base articles. Freshworks says the tool suits low ticket volumes; above 200,000 tickets, you contact its support team. Freshdesk also offers free onboarding and migration support based on your needs. The app page gives no timeline.
Who should move, and who should wait
Gorgias and Freshdesk import Zendesk help center articles, which gets round Zendesk's missing article export. If you're on a Team plan, Gorgias's importer works from an API token, while Zoho's route depends on the export files Team plans can't make. If you have years of tickets with attachments, note that Gorgias's import leaves the attachments behind.
Whichever you pick, run the import while Zendesk is still active. Give your 30 days' notice before the term ends, and keep exporting until the cancellation takes effect. Compare the options on our help desk ranking, and see how we score them in the methodology.