The calculator
| Plan | Per seat, per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Zoho Desk Express | $7 | $84 |
| Moorline One plan | $9 | $108 |
| Missive Starter | $14 | $168 |
| Zoho Desk Standard | $14 | $168 |
| Zendesk Support Team | $19 | $228 |
| Freshdesk Growth | $19 | $228 |
| Zoho Desk Professional | $23 | $276 |
| Missive Productive | $24 | $288 |
| Help Scout Standard | $25 | $300 |
| Front Starter | $25 | $300 |
| Intercom Essential | $29 | $348 |
| Missive Business | $36 | $432 |
| Zoho Desk Enterprise | $40 | $480 |
| Help Scout Plus | $45 | $540 |
| Zendesk Suite Team | $55 | $660 |
| Freshdesk Pro | $55 | $660 |
| Front Professional | $65 | $780 |
| Intercom Advanced | $85 | $1,020 |
| Freshdesk Enterprise | $89 | $1,068 |
| Front Enterprise | $105 | $1,260 |
| Zendesk Suite Professional | $115 | $1,380 |
| Intercom Expert | $132 | $1,584 |
Plans that cannot be bought for this many people (seat caps and minimums) are left out. Free plans, AI usage, add-ons and tax are not included.
The cheapest way into each help desk
| Help desk | Entry plan | Per agent/mo | 1 person, 1 year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoho Desk | Express | $7 | $84 |
| Missive | Starter | $14 | $168 |
| Zendesk | Support Team | $19 | $228 |
| Freshdesk | Growth | $19 | $228 |
| Help Scout | Standard | $25 | $300 |
| Front | Starter | $25 | $300 |
| Hiver | Growth | $25 | $600 (minimum 2 users) |
| Intercom | Essential | $29 | $348 |
| Moorline | One plan | $9 | $108 |
Entry plans are the floor, not the typical bill. Each one leaves something out that a growing team adds back, and the per-vendor pages below list exactly what.
How the numbers are worked out
- Published prices only. Each plan’s per-seat price as the vendor lists it, times your team size, times twelve. Nothing is estimated.
- Seat limits applied. A plan capped at 5 or 10 users disappears when your team is bigger, and a plan with a minimum does not show below it.
- Left out on purpose: free plans, AI usage, add-ons, discounts and tax. Each depends on your volume, and a calculator that guesses them is confidently wrong.
For the full ladder of any one vendor, with add-ons and a worked AI example, start with Help Scout pricing or pick one from the list below.
Questions people ask
How much does help desk software cost per month?
Entry plans run from $7 (Zoho Desk Express) to $29 (Intercom Essential) per agent per month on yearly billing. The next tier up, which adds back what the entry plan leaves out, runs from $14 to $85 per agent, and AI features are often billed on top.
Why is help desk software priced per agent?
Because it was built to coordinate a support team, and what it sells (assignment, routing, collision detection, reporting across agents) grows in value with the number of people. That model is fair for a team and awkward for one person, who pays for coordination with nobody.
Is yearly billing worth it?
Across the plans on this page it saves between 11 and 34 percent against monthly billing, which is real money at ten seats. It also locks you in for twelve months. For a first help desk, a quarter on monthly billing before committing often costs less than committing early and switching.
Does this include AI costs?
No. AI is priced differently everywhere: per resolution at Help Scout, per outcome at Intercom, per session at Freshdesk, per seat as an add-on at Zendesk and Front. Each vendor page linked below works through an example with round numbers.