Intercom is a good customer messaging tool that helps businesses connect with their audience through chat, email and automated messages. Companies use it to provide personalized and efficient customer service.
However, Intercom isn’t necessarily the right choice for every company. Many find it too expensive, and user reviews point out the learning curve and performance issues.
Fortunately, it also isn’t the only option.
In this article, we look at the top 12 Intercom alternatives. We’ll break down their features, pros and pricing. Plus, you’ll get a clear view of their user ratings to help you pick the best fit for your business.
Here are some reasons companies are looking for Intercom alternatives.
High cost
Intercom can be expensive, particularly for smaller businesses with limited budgets.
The more agents you bring on, the faster those costs add up. And as your business grows, it becomes harder to predict what you’ll end up paying since there are extra charges for each conversation you receive.
There’s also different pricing for “full” and “lite” seats. Full seats give users complete access to all the plan’s features, while lite seats offer only partial access. However, the pricing isn’t clearly laid out, making it hard to know precisely how much you’ll pay. Plus, you’ll need to decide who gets full access and who only needs limited features. This adds complexity when managing costs and choosing plans.
Complicated use
Intercom’s interface can feel overwhelming, especially at first. It’s loaded with features, so finding your way around isn’t always easy. Many new users struggle to get the hang of it and may need serious training.
Performance issues
Intercom sometimes has some glitches and bugs. It also has limited reporting capabilities. This might slow things down and mess with your workflow. Reports might not be as detailed or as accurate as expected.
On top of that, fixes for these issues take time, which can be frustrating.
Challenging integrations
Connections with systems like HubSpot and Jira can be a hassle and feel limited. Data syncing doesn’t always work smoothly, and not all fields are configurable. So, you'd likely need to manually configure the tools, which takes time and may require technical knowledge or hiring a developer.
This adds complexity to the setup and can make your costs even higher.
1. Intelswift
Image source: Intelswift
Intelswift is an AI-powered customer service platform that boosts your team’s efficiency and customer engagement.
You get an easy to setup and use software dedicated to streamlining customer interactions. Automate repetitive tasks with visual workflow builders, provide FAQ answers and transfer high-intent leads to sales teams seamlessly and accurately every single time.
With Intelswift, your teams can collaborate, deliver exceptional customer service and boost sales—all within a single platform.
You get AI-powered insights from analytics and customer interactions. This way, your support teams can resolve issues faster and more accurately. Another AI-powered support comes through AI Agents that handle inquiries 24/7 and ensure no question goes unanswered and no lead is lost.
Intelswift lets you create a unique experience for each customer. With personalized product recommendations, you can offer targeted suggestions that make their experience even better.
You can also check out most of Intelswift’s features for free—a rare offer among customer service platforms.
Key Features
Pros
Customer opinions
Intelswift scores 5 out of 5 stars on Producthunt.
Image source: G2
Pricing
Any plan goes with 1 seat. You can add extra seats and extra conversations any time. It costs $10/per seat and $7 per 100 conversations.
2. Zendesk
Image source: Zendesk
Zendesk is a well-known customer service platform that helps businesses manage interactions through a shared workspace. Customer service teams can handle interactions from a shared inbox. They can track SMS, calls, and emails and set up automations.
Zendesk also includes AI features that help create knowledge base articles and send automatic responses to customers.
On the flip side, similarly to Intercom, Zendesk can be pricey for smaller businesses. It also has a steep learning curve and might be challenging to optimize for your business without some technical knowledge.
Key Features
Pros
Customer opinions
Zendesk has 4.3 out of 5 stars on G2.
Image source: G2
Pricing
Zendesk For Sales:
Zendesk For Service:
3. Freshdesk
Image source: Freshdesk
The next Intercom alternative is Freshdesk. It’s a customer support software designed to help businesses manage customer queries across multiple channels, including email, chat, phone and social media.
Freshdesk offers useful automation tools. It can automatically assign tickets to the right customer support agents based on their skills. You can also set up automatic email updates to inform customers and agents about ticket progress.
While the platform unifies communication across channels, support agents’ experience is still fragmented. They have to switch between different interfaces for chat and phone tickets. Reporting tools are also limited and tricky to use. Plus, updating or editing the help center can be challenging and often requires technical knowledge or support.
Key Features
Pros
Customer opinions
Users rate Freshdesk with 4.4 out of 5 stars.
Image source: G2
Pricing
4. Drift
Image source: Salesloft
Drift, now under the Salesloft platform, is a popular tool known for its conversational marketing and sales tools. It helps businesses connect with website visitors and potential customers in real-time via messaging.
It does so with live chat and AI-powered chatbots. Businesses get the ability to transfer customer requests from chatbots to human support agents, as well as access to advanced reporting and customizable workflows.
However, Drift lacks native email marketing and knowledge base options. Some users report a decline in support quality over time and find the AI's responses somewhat basic. The platform is also considered challenging to learn.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Drift’s G2 score is 4.4 out of 5.
Image source: G2
Pricing
Drift pricing is available only upon request.
5. HubSpot Service Hub
Image source: Hubspot
HubSpot Service Hub is a comprehensive customer service platform that is part of the larger HubSpot ecosystem. It helps businesses manage customer support, track interactions, and improve overall customer satisfaction by integrating with HubSpot’s CRM, offering a unified view of all customer experiences and interactions.
Businesses can connect HubSpot Service Hub with Facebook Messenger and use its conversational bots and customer portal. It also offers live chat, email automation, and a ticketing system.
This handy system has a notable drawback. When you resolve a support ticket, it doesn’t automatically close the related email conversation. Your team must manually close both the ticket and the email thread, which can disrupt the immediate support workflow and cause confusion if left open.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
HubSpot Service Hub scores 4.4 out of 5 stars on Capterra.
Image source: Capterra
Pricing
InBoxiduals and Small Teams:
For Businesses and Enterprises:
6. Help Scout
Image source: Help Scout
Next on our list of the best Intercom alternatives is Help Scout. It’s a customer support tool that works well for teams managing customer support mainly through email.
Help Scout provides a shared inbox for team collaboration and a knowledge base for self-service customer support channels. It also features automation tools to simplify ticket management and AI that helps summarize conversations and write responses.
However, Help Scout has some limits on customization for help docs; you can’t change their look or functions as much as you might like. Another potential issue is that detailed reporting is only available in the pricier Pro and Plus plans.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Help Scout’s score on G2 is 4.4 / 5.
Image source: G2
Pricing
7. LiveChat
Image source: LiveChat
LiveChat is a customer engagement platform that simplifies real-time customer communication. As you can guess by the name, it offers live chat software. But it’s not just for this one purpose. LiveChat also has advanced reporting and analytics, interactive pop-up chats that prompt user interactions, and conversation management features.
However, the platform can be pricey for smaller businesses, and setting it up can be complex and often requires tech support. There’s no free version available, and extra features like chatbots and a knowledge base are only accessible as additional paid services.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Users rate LiveChat with 4.5 out of 5 stars on G2.
Image source: G2
Pricing
8. HelpCrunch
Image source: HelpCrunch
HelpCrunch is an Intercom alternative with a shared inbox that helps you manage customer chats, emails, and social media messages all in one place. The platform includes AI tools to assist with your inbox and knowledge base, and there’s an AI chatbot coming soon.
HelpCrunch also keeps track of important customer details like location, website visits, and preferences. It lets agents tag, assign, and merge conversations to keep things organized. On the downside, the AI chatbot features are still evolving, and there are no built-in analytics for website visitors. This means you’ll need another platform to get those important insights.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
HelpCrunch’s score on G2 is 4.7 out of 5.
Image source: G2
Pricing
9. ChatBot
Image source: ChatBot
ChatBot is another good alternative to Intercom. It's a messaging platform that easily integrates with Facebook Messenger and Slack. ChatBot can provide live chat, but this feature comes with an additional cost.
The platform’s visual builder makes designing conversation flows simple. ChatBot also includes a knowledge base feature, though it requires a separate subscription.
This tool can be difficult to learn. Many users report that the Learning Academy and help topics don’t provide enough guidance. Users often struggle to set up and train chatbots.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Customers rate ChatBot with 4.7 out of 5 stars on Capterra.
Image source: Capterra
Pricing
10. Quickchat AI
Image source: Quickchat AI
Quickchat AI offers businesses a conversational chatbot that feels human-like, automates customer support, and streamlines tasks. It allows companies to build and customize AI assistants tailored to your brand. Teams can also build and manage internal knowledge bases.
The platform offers custom features, integrations, and API access. Businesses also get a dedicated implementation assistant for a smooth setup and ongoing support. Quickchat AI enables companies to provide 24/7 support via email, Slack, Zoom, and phone.
However, Quickchat’s customization might feel limited for more specific needs, and it doesn’t offer mobile app tracking or AI-driven analytics, which could be a downside if you’re looking for more in-depth insights.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Quickchat AI has 3.5 out of 5 stars on G2.
Image source: G2
Pricing
11. Chatfuel
Image source: Chatfuel
Chatfuel is an Intercom alternative that automates business communication. Its AI tools let businesses handle conversations on various social media platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram.
The AI can assist with booking appointments, answering FAQs, qualifying leads, and providing product recommendations. Businesses can also send personalized messages in response to abandoned carts or to drive sales and collect feedback.
However, Chatfuel also has some limitations. It doesn’t offer live chat support nor AI-driven insights. You also can’t customize the dashboard to your specific needs. Another potential limitation is poor documentation. For example, there’s no support for subroutines, which can limit complex task automation.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Chatfuel scores 4.4 out of 5 on Capterra.
Image source: Capterra
Pricing
12. WotNot
Image source: WotNot
The WotNot chatbot platform offers chat widget capabilities and connections with channels on social media platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook. It comes with a no-code bot builder and lets you create unlimited bots. Plus, it supports lead generation and even hotel room bookings.
Businesses can also set up a helpful knowledge base so their customers can find answers on their own. WotNot’s AI chatbots handle common questions and automate tasks, stepping in when human agents are busy.
But, there are a couple of things to watch out for. WotNot doesn’t offer AI-driven insights, so you might need another tool to get those. Also, integrating WotNot with your existing systems and third-party apps can be a bit tricky and time-consuming.
Key Features
Pros
Customer Opinions
Users rate WotNot with 4.6 out of 5 stars on G2.
Image source: G2
Pricing
WotNot offers the following pricing tiers:
Tool | Key Features | Free Trial/Plan | Starting Price | |
Intelswift |
| 21-day free trial | $19/month or $7/month for startups | |
Zendesk |
| 14-day free trial | $19/month/agent | |
Freshdesk |
| 14-day free trial | $15/month/agent | |
Drift |
| N/A | N/A | |
HubSpot Service Hub |
| Free plan | $15/month | |
Help Scout |
| 15-day free trial | $68/month | |
LiveChat |
| 14-day free trial | $20/month | |
HelpCrunch |
| 14-day free trial | $12/month | |
ChatBot |
| 14-day free trial | $52/month | |
Quickchat AI |
| 7-day free trial | $29/month | |
Chatfuel |
| 7-day free trial | $19.99 for 1000 conversations | |
WotNot |
| Free plan | $99/month |
To pick the best Intercom alternative, start by analyzing your business’s needs and goals. Consider the features, ease of use and pricing you need.
But most importantly, ask yourself: Do you need just a messaging tool or a complete solution to boost your entire customer service experience?
We’re talking about delivering relevant customer data, offering personalized product recommendations and ensuring your most valuable leads are always close to your offerings.
If that sounds like what you’re looking for, Intelswift has it all.
It’s a powerhouse for customer service, giving you everything you need to build and maintain great customer relationships. Intelswift offers a single customer relationship management platform with easy-to-set-up workflow automation, reliable live chat capabilities and powerful AI insights and forecasts.
Curious to see it in action?
What is better than Intercom?
Intelswift is a better platform than Intercom if you want an all-in-one solution for customer service. It lets you set up messaging automation, streamline support tasks with AI-powered chatbots and get insights into your customer engagement and services—all from one platform.
Is there an app that works like Intercom?
Intelswift is a platform similar to Intercom but with a free plan and more budget-friendly pricing. It’s an Intercom alternative that's easier to use and features an AI Insights Copilot that spots issues in support conversations and provides precise data forecasts. This helps you make smart, data-driven decisions and better manage your customer support.
Can I use Intercom for free?
You can try Intercom for free for 14 days, but you will need to upgrade to a paid plan after the trial.
Is Intercom similar to Zendesk?
Yes, Intercom is similar to Zendesk, but the two tools focus on slightly different aspects. Zendesk’s main feature is the ticketing system, while Intercom’s key advantage is real-time customer communication channels.