Zendesk and Intercom at a glance
| Zendesk | Intercom | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest paid plan (yearly) | Support Team, $19 per agent a month | Essential, $29 per seat a month |
| Paid plans | Support Team, Suite Team, Suite Professional, Suite Enterprise | Essential, Advanced, Expert |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14 days of Suite Professional with Copilot. No free plan. | 14 days, no card needed. No free plan. |
| Your email address | Forwards your address into their inbox | Chat-first. Email is a secondary channel routed through them |
| Mac app | Web only. | Web only. Intercom has no desktop app. |
What each costs per year
| Plan, per year | 1 person | 3 people | 10 people |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zendesk Support Team | $228 | $684 | $2,280 |
| Intercom Essential | $348 | $1,044 | $3,480 |
| Zendesk Suite Team | $660 | $1,980 | $6,600 |
| Intercom Advanced | $1,020 | $3,060 | $10,200 |
| Zendesk Suite Professional | $1,380 | $4,140 | $13,800 |
| Intercom Expert | $1,584 | $4,752 | $15,840 |
The table sorts by price, which puts Zendesk Support Team first. It is the cheapest seat here and it has no chat, so it only competes with Intercom for a team that answers email. For a chat team the fair pairs are Intercom Essential with Zendesk Suite Team, then the two routing tiers, Intercom Advanced (round robin) and Zendesk Suite Professional (skills-based routing): at 3 people, $3,060 against $4,140 a year. SLAs come with Zendesk Suite Professional, and not until Expert at Intercom.
None of these totals includes AI. On both products the seat price is the floor, and the AI bill rises with your volume.
Every plan, side by side
Zendesk
| Plan | Billed yearly | Billed monthly | What it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support Team | $19 | $25 | Email ticketing only, 5 AI resolutions per agent a month. No messaging or live chat. |
| Suite Team | $55 | $69 | Messaging and live chat, AI agents, telephony and omnichannel routing. |
| Suite Professional | $115 | $149 | SLAs, skills-based routing, IVR, AI writing tools, 10 AI resolutions per agent a month. |
| Suite Enterprise | Sales only | Sales only | Sold through sales, with Copilot included. No public price. |
Intercom
| Plan | Billed yearly | Billed monthly | What it adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential | $29 | $39 | Shared inbox, Fin AI agent, messenger, basic help centre. |
| Advanced | $85 | $99 | Workflow builder, multiple team inboxes, round robin, multilingual help centre, 20 free lite seats. |
| Expert | $132 | Yearly only | SSO, HIPAA, SLAs, multibrand, 50 free lite seats. Monthly self-serve is listed for Essential and Advanced only. |
Prices are in US dollars per seat per month, read from Zendesk’s and Intercom’s pricing pages on 27 September 2026.
A live price test. In September 2026 Intercom was testing a lower Essential price ($19 on annual billing) with some visitors, so the price you see may differ from the list price here. Zendesk’s ladder has moved too: Suite Growth has disappeared from the public pricing page, and Suite Enterprise no longer shows a price.
AI and usage charges
Both meter AI, and they count different events. Zendesk charges for resolutions, after an allowance that renews per agent each month. Intercom charges per outcome, and a handoff to a person counts as one, so a conversation Fin passes on is still billed.
- Zendesk: AI resolutions past the included ones: $1.50 each committed, $2.00 pay as you go. Copilot: $50 per agent a month on annual billing, Suite Professional and up only.
- Intercom: Fin AI agent: $0.99 per outcome, which counts a resolution, a completed procedure or a handoff. Fin Voice: $1.99 per voice outcome. Copilot: $29 per seat a month on annual billing, $35 monthly. WhatsApp, SMS, bulk email and phone are charged by usage.
Which one fits which team
- Choose Zendesk if support arrives mostly by email and forms, you want the cheapest way into proper ticketing, or you are building a large operation that needs SLAs, IVR and workforce tools. A full customer-service platform: ticketing, routing, SLAs, reporting, voice, and a workforce to run it.
- Choose Intercom if your customers talk to you through a chat messenger in your product or on your site, and you want an AI agent answering there first. A messaging-first support platform built around an in-app chat widget and the Fin AI agent.
- Choose neither if the support team is you. Both are priced for coordinating people, and both add a charge per AI result on top of the seat.
That last case is the one Moorline is built for, and the Intercom alternative page sets it out without the sales voice.
Questions people ask
Is Intercom cheaper than Zendesk?
At the entry price, no: Zendesk Support Team is $19 per agent on yearly billing and Intercom Essential is $29 per seat. But Support Team is email ticketing with no messaging or live chat. Zendesk's cheapest plan with messaging and live chat is Suite Team at $55, so for a chat-first team Intercom Essential is the cheaper start. In September 2026 Intercom was testing a lower Essential price ($19 on annual billing) with some visitors, so the price you see may differ from the list price here.
What is the difference between Zendesk and Intercom?
Zendesk is built around tickets; Intercom is built around a chat messenger. Zendesk: A full customer-service platform: ticketing, routing, SLAs, reporting, voice, and a workforce to run it. Intercom: A messaging-first support platform built around an in-app chat widget and the Fin AI agent.
Does Zendesk or Intercom have a free plan?
Neither has a free plan. Both offer a trial instead. Zendesk: 14 days of Suite Professional with Copilot. No free plan. Intercom: 14 days, no card needed. No free plan.
How do Zendesk and Intercom charge for AI?
Both charge per use, on top of seats. Zendesk counts AI resolutions and includes a small monthly allowance per agent: AI resolutions past the included ones: $1.50 each committed, $2.00 pay as you go. Copilot: $50 per agent a month on annual billing, Suite Professional and up only. Intercom counts outcomes, which include handoffs to a person: Fin AI agent: $0.99 per outcome, which counts a resolution, a completed procedure or a handoff. Copilot: $29 per seat a month on annual billing, $35 monthly.
Should a startup use Zendesk or Intercom?
Follow where your customers already talk to you. If they write in from a chat bubble inside your product or site, Intercom is built for exactly that. If they email you or fill in a form, Zendesk Support Team is the cheapest way into proper ticketing, with the Suite above it when you add channels. If one founder answers everything, neither is priced for you.