Zendesk - Top Competitors (Sep 2023)

Shlomi Lavi / updated: Sep 28, 2023

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Zendesk vs. Alternatives in 2024

Zendesk competes with other CRM systems like Freshdesk, Kustomer, and HubSpot Service Hub. We will compare these CRM systems in some specific aspects below.

• Functionality: Zendesk offers features like AI chatbots, Contact form, Conversation tags, Social channels, Standard themes, Widget customization, Customizable offline form, Unlimited concurrent chats, Automations & workflows, integrations, analytics, etc. Freshdesk offers features like Ticketing, Collaboration, Automation (available in Zendesk), Help Widget, Reporting and Analytics, Security, Integrations (available in Zendesk), etc. Kustomer offers features like CRM-Powered Chatbots (available in Zendesk), Timeline View, Agent Productivity, Send Automated Messages (available in Zendesk & Freshdesk), etc. HubSpot Service Hub offers features like Reporting Dashboard, Company insights, help desk automation (available in all alternatives), knowledge base functionality, customer feedback surveys, reporting (available in Freshdesk), etc.
• Customers/industries: Zendesk targets industries with specialties in Education, Financial Services, Government, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Media, Retail, Software, Telecommunications, etc. Examples of customers using Zendesk are MySugar, NatureBox, Scribe, PayJoy, Olala Homes, Tile, Simense, Polaris, Chupi, Udacity, etc. Freshdesk targets industries with specialties in Retail & E-commerce, NGOs & Non-Profits, Education, Real Estate, Healthcare, Insurance, Logistics, Media & Entertainment, Manufacturing, Managed Service Providers, etc. Examples of customers using Freshdesk are Cinnamon, Pearson, Aramex, orderin, Thai Union, Bridgestone, BigBus, Misa, Trainline, etc. Kustomer targets industries with specialties in Retail and eCommerce, Financial Services, Travel and Hospitality, Marketplace, Healthcare, Higher Education, Government, etc. Examples of customers using Kustomer are Sweetgreen, ring, Stella &Dot, Glossier, Rappi, hopper, etc. HubSpot Service Hub has customers like WWF, Suzuki, SoundCloud, VMware, survey monkey, ClassPass, G2 crowd, Trello, etc.
• Cost: According to ITQlick expert cost research, Zendesk is cost-rated at 1/5, which means it is low-cost CRM software. The rating system considers this software rated 1-2 as low-cost and 4-5 as high cost. Zendesk starts at $49 per agent per month billed annually and $59 on a monthly subscription. It comes with a free trial. Freshdesk starts at $15/agent per month billed annually and $18 per agent per month billed monthly. It comes with a free trial Kustomer starts at $89.00 per feature per month. Kustomer does not have a free version and a free trial. HubSpot Service Hub Starts at $45 per month and is billed at $540 per year.
• Cloud-based/On-premise: Zendesk and all its alternatives are cloud-based.
• Popularity: Zendesk is publicly traded on the NYSE under the ZEN symbol with over 160,000 businesses. Freshdesk is privately held and trusted by 50,000+ businesses. HubSpot Service Hub is publicly traded on the NYSE under the HUBS symbol with 128,000 customers in over 120 countries.
• Scalability: Zendesk and Freshdesk can accommodate businesses of all sizes. Kustomer can accommodate Mid-market and Enterprise businesses.
• Support: Zendesk, HubSpot Service Hub, and Freshdesk offer support channels like Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, Phone Support, 24/7 (Live Rep), and Chat. Kustomer lacks 24/7 (Live Rep) but offers all support channels of Zendesk, HubSpot Service Hub, and Freshdesk.