Independent · sourced · Updated June 2026
Best Helpdesk Software (2026)
The cheapest helpdesk software is Freshdesk at $0/mo. 4 offer a free tier (Freshdesk, Help Scout, Tidio). This page compares 9 options on entry price, free tier, HIPAA/SOC 2 and best-for — every figure linked to its source, updated June 2026.
9 options compared on price, free tier, compliance and fit — ranked cheapest-first. Every figure links to the vendor's own page and the date we captured it; quote-only tiers show “—”, never a guess.
Key takeaways
- Cheapest: Freshdesk at $0/mo (Free).
- Typical paid price: from $7/mo, median $19/mo, up to $29/mo — across 9 with published pricing.
- Free tier: Freshdesk, Help Scout, Tidio, Zoho Desk.
- HIPAA-ready: Freshdesk, Help Scout, Zoho Desk, Gorgias, Zendesk, Front, Intercom.
- Tracked: 9 vendors, data current through 2026-06-15.
Comparison
| # | Helpdesk Software | Entry price | Free | HIPAA | SOC 2 | Best for | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Freshdesk | $0/mo Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | SMBs scaling their first support team | freshworks.com |
| 2 | Help Scout | $0/mo Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Healthcare and HIPAA-regulated support teams (Pro plan) | helpscout.com |
| 3 | Tidio | $0/mo Free | Yes | — | Yes | E-commerce SMBs on Shopify or WooCommerce wanting AI chat | tidio.com |
| 4 | Zoho Desk | $0/mo Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Teams already in the Zoho ecosystem | costbench.com |
| 5 | Gorgias | $10/mo Starter | No | Yes | Yes | Shopify and DTC e-commerce brands | gorgias.com |
| 6 | LiveAgent | $15/mo Small Business | No | — | — | SMBs wanting an all-in-one helpdesk + call center without extra cost | liveagent.com |
| 7 | Zendesk | $19/mo Support Team | No | Yes | Yes | Large enterprise support teams | costbench.com |
| 8 | Front | $25/mo Starter | No | Yes | Yes | Operations and logistics teams managing high-volume external email | front.com |
| 9 | Intercom | $29/mo Essential | No | Yes | Yes | SaaS product teams wanting in-app chat + support in one tool | intercom.com |
Prices are the lowest published self-serve monthly rate as captured on the linked source. Annual-billing and usage details are on each vendor's record in our open dataset.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest helpdesk software?
Freshdesk has the lowest published entry price at $0/mo (Free), as of 2026-06-15.
How much does helpdesk software cost per month?
Across the 9 helpdesk software with published paid pricing, the median starting price is $19/mo, ranging from $7/mo to $29/mo, as of 2026-06-15. 4 also offer a free tier.
Which helpdesk software have a free plan?
Freshdesk, Help Scout, Tidio, Zoho Desk offer a free tier.
Which helpdesk software support HIPAA?
Freshdesk, Help Scout, Zoho Desk, Gorgias, Zendesk, Front, Intercom state HIPAA support (a BAA). Always confirm current scope with the vendor.
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How we compiled this
Published self-serve pricing was collected from each provider's own pricing page on 2026-06-13 (accessedAt); every figure is a real listed price, with quote-only/contact-sales tiers recorded as null monthlyUsd. Prices are per-seat/per-agent USD billed annually unless a flat per-account or ticket-based model is noted in the plan notes. Two providers (Zendesk, Zoho Desk) geo-redirected to EUR/INR storefronts, so their USD figures are taken from a corroborating price index (last verified Apr 2026) with the vendor pricing page kept as corroboration; minutes/calls/overage-per-minute fields are not applicable to this software category and are null throughout.
Last verified 2026-06-15. We re-check published prices and compliance on a recurring cadence and update this page when they change.
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