Zendesk Alternatives: Top 7 Competitors in 2025

Why consider alternatives to Zendesk? Some find Zendesk’s pricing a bit steep, especially given its limited scope. Others grapple with its setup, which can feel like piecing together a complex puzzle that takes months to complete. Organizations seeking comprehensive digital-first customer service solutions inevitably end up looking for Zendesk alternatives in order to meet and serve customers where they prefer.

If you are at a similar crossroads, we've got you covered. This blog will guide you through 7 Zendesk competitors, each scrutinized for how they stack up in terms of ease of use, cost and customer satisfaction. Let’s get into it.

Why consider alternatives to Zendesk?

Zendesk is a household name when it comes to naming the leading customer service solutions in the market. Best known for its strong ticketing system, it helps teams keep track of customer requests efficiently and provides tools for handling support across multiple channels, including messaging, live chat, social media and voice. It also includes AI-powered bots for automating simple tasks and a customizable agent workspace, making it adaptable to different team setups.

Despite its many features, Zendesk might not be the best fit for some businesses that could benefit more from other tools similar to it, but free of its limitations. Let’s look at the reasons why you can consider Zendesk alternatives.

🏷️ Steep pricing and expensive add-ons

Zendesk’s pricing often raises concerns about its value for money, especially for teams on tighter budgets. While it excels as a ticketing solution, it’s clear that it was built with that focus in mind and has since expanded into broader customer support. This approach can feel less tailored compared to competitors designed specifically for omnichannel service from the ground up. Adding features like advanced reporting or enhanced support can quickly drive up costs, making it less appealing for teams looking for a more integrated solution.

🔐 Basic features behind paywalls

While Zendesk does seem to offer a myriad of features, the complete capability of the tool is often not enjoyed by users who are starting out with basic plans. For example, besides the expensive add-ons, basic reporting is a feature that users report as not available in beginner plans, as put forward by a user:

“Pricing can get pretty steep as you add on features. Most of our clients are small businesses in a stage of growth—so while the features make perfect sense for their teams, sometimes the bill ends up pricing our people out. They also recently removed basic reporting from their basic Support Team plan (used to be included) which is a HUGE bummer, as well as removing quick live support (have to send an email instead).”

😓 Not intuitive

Zendesk can be a bit of a tough nut to crack, especially if you're a new user of customer service software. Its features aren't exactly newbie-friendly and figuring it all out can really slow you down when you're just getting started. Even with demos and training, if you're not too techy, it might feel like you're wrestling with it more than using it. This can end up eating into your time and money.

🧑‍💻 Sub-par customer service

Poor service experience is a resounding reality for many users, which might prompt one to look for Zendesk alternatives. Customers often report lengthy average resolution times which seem to delay set-up timelines. And this has consistently been an issue with Zendesk. Here’s what a customer says in a 2021 review: “Medium to small-sized businesses seem to get the short end of the stick when it comes to support and account management.”

This only seems to corroborate with what another had to say in 2024: “It's difficult to cancel your contract. It's difficult to get through to a human in their support team.”

⚙️ Siloed operations

For seamless CX at each touchpoint, you need to ensure all your data and operations are unified on one platform, which becomes a task with Zendesk. “Customers that attempt to use Zendesk as their primary customer database oftentimes need to take additional measures to keep user data in sync with other systems...,” notes a user struggling to consolidate all their customer data.

7 Best Zendesk Alternatives

️Based on 2025 research, here’s a list of the top 7 Zendesk alternatives any business can prefer:

Zendesk Alternative #1: Sprinklr

Presently, Sprinklr is one of the top alternatives to Zendesk as it outperforms the tool in many areas. Built atop a Unified Customer Experience Management (Unified-CXM) platform, Sprinklr empowers teams to view and manage customer interactions from 35+ customer service channels on one unified console, integrating data and insights seamlessly. While a common gripe amongst Zendesk’s users is its inability to offer a true omnichannel customer experience, Sprinklr users vouch for its unification prowess. Additionally, analysts like IDC and Forrester praise Sprinklr for its contact center as a service (CCaaS) and ROI potential, respectively.

🚀 Key features

1. Agent Console

Sprinklr outshines Zendesk when it comes to equipping agents with a wider reach through a customizable agent console that is armed with productivity features such as:

• Broad channel coverage
  Sprinklr Agent Console allows your agents to manage interactions across 35+ channels, whereas Zendesk only covers 18 channels. Whether your customer has interacted with you on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram or WhatsApp, Sprinklr Agent Desktop unifies all kinds of engagement in a single-view format, giving full context at one glance.

• Limitless customization

While Sprinklr offers no-code set-up with customizable widgets for easy implementation, Zendesk users often report needing deep technical nuance and guidance to set up processes. 

• Intelligent routing logic
  Sprinklr is equipped with Smart Pairing, an AI logic that uses customer data to match incoming cases with appropriate agents, ensuring everyone gets the help they need from the best person for the job. Zendesk lacks this and users report finding the routing glitchy at times.
• Guided workflows for routine issues
  Sprinklr’s Guided Workflows come in handy to ensure quick resolutions to routine issues, keeping protocols and tonality consistent no matter who’s assisting the customer. Zendesk lacks this AI-driven functionality that makes customer self-service a lot more cohesive, standardized and on-brand across channels.

2. Chatbot maturity

Sprinklr chatbots are built on a proprietary conversational AI framework that has been termed “Strong Performer” by Forrester. Our build-once-deploy across chatbots stands out for disruptive capabilities like:

• Intent switch detection: Unlike Zendesk, Sprinklr chatbots can not only detect multiple intents in a single customer message but also any intent switches that may occur mid-conversation.
• Multilingual support: Moreover, while Zen desk’s language support is limited, Sprinklr’s multilingual chatbots support over 100 global languages ensuring nothing is lost in translation.
• Image processing: Sprinklr bots also support Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for smooth and accurate image processing, which Zendesk bots lack.

3. Analytical reporting

Where Zendesk falls short in conducting root cause analysis (RCA) of why your customers are contacting you, Sprinklr RCA also analyzes the associated metadata to surface the underlying cause of friction they face.

On the other hand, Zendesk customers even report not being able to leverage customer service reporting --- especially when done retrospectively.

Sprinklr Reporting and Analytics not only gives you performance insights on concurrent conversations but also multi-level dashboards that stealthily report on past and present customer experience metrics.

Sprinklr counteracts this with its ability to present data in engaging, consumable visuals. With Sprinklr Presentations, you can data in on-brand presentations all decked up with customizable widgets, advanced tables and charts. Such data democratization across teams also helps you reduce brand risk.

4. Case management

Sprinklr’s case management system helps teams handle customer cases across 30+ channels. AI-driven intent and sentiment analysis take the guesswork out of classification, making workflows faster and smarter. It also bundles related messages together, giving teams a clear view of trends, issues, and potential roadblocks impacting your business or customers. Escalation management with Sprinklr is effortless too — detailed case histories ensure smooth hand-offs and zero context lost.

Customer testimonials

💪 What works best

“I appreciate having a designated representative that we meet with weekly who serves as our point of contact with the company. It's great customer service. I also enjoy the product, which allows us to accomplish most of our publishing needs all in one place.” Source

💡 What could be better

“I think the cost per license can be decreased if Sprinklr makes a leaner version of the care license without the entire bells and whistles would be helpful.” Source

Verdict: When we analyze Sprinklr vs. Zendesk, Sprinklr seems to better option for handling your customer service needs. It streamlines your work by keeping channels, operations and teams in one spot, so you don't get buried under a mountain of tabs. It’s particularly slick for customer service, making the flow of cases way smoother than on native platforms. Sprinklr’s responsive and knowledgeable customer service team gives it a solid edge as an alternative to Zendesk. Plus, its generative AI integration (Sprinklr AI+) is pretty neat, crafts content that fits your brand, sharpens up agent responses and even handles some of the tedious admin stuff like summarizing cases and pulling insights from your knowledge base.

Price: Custom quotes available. Check pricing details.

Zendesk Alternative #2: Intercom

Intercom is not a new name when we talk about business messengers in the market. Over time, the tool has evolved to offer many standard service features and tools to help users deliver smooth customer service. For example, it also lets you create help centers in different languages and manage team tasks effectively, ensuring queries are directed to the right agents. However, for users looking for a comprehensive, full-stack customer service suite, many other tools on this list might have more to offer.

🚀 Top features

• Highly customizable business messenger that seamlessly integrates with your website and mobile apps
• AI Copilot gives agents instant information from all connected data and systems, helping them solve more cases in the first interaction.
• Strong logic-based case routing and workflow automation ensure effective case handling.

Customer testimonials

💪 What works best

“The best thing about Intercom is that you can make possible any ideas that you have in mind for your business. You can create custom features and implement them on Intercom, alongside the workflows that customize the customer experience. Intercom has been the key to developing a self-service support for our users and improving the quality of the content we provide. Also, one of the most useful things about the platform is that the support specialist can always customize their interface and work in the best way for them. The platform’s customization options, the possibility and flexibility of connecting external apps, are quite helpful.” Source

💡 What could be better

“We cannot chat with the client on behalf of other team members, if I need to transfer the chat midway to my colleague, customer gets to know that person who is handling a chat is now changed. Sometimes, chatbot fails to assign chats to any of the available team members and chat remains unassigned without any notification.” Source

Did you know? With Sprinklr’s Supervisor Console, you can keep an eye on your team's chats and spot conversations heading south when they do. And when that happens, you get an instant alert and you can jump right into the action. You can subtly guide your agent with whispers, drop some quick advice with internal notes or take over the chat control if need be. A powerful supervisor dashboard works as a safety net, ensuring that every customer interaction can be steered back on track smoothly. 

Sounds like something worth exploring? Take a personalized tour of it today with our experts at Sprinklr. 

BOOK A DEMO

Verdict: Intercom is very easy to configure and often praised by users for its nimble deployment timeline, which stands starkly against Zendesk’s. It is also known for continuously innovating its suite with an accelerated product roadmap aimed to smooth out road bumps users report. When it comes to daily operations, Intercom also renders lower downtime and quick rebound when issues arise.

Unlike Zendesk, which can sometimes lead to fragmented customer experiences, Intercom excels at integrating all necessary tools into a cohesive platform. This integration ensures that every customer interaction is both personal and conversational, making it highly effective across various customer service scenarios.

Price: $39 per seat/month

Zendesk Alternative #3: LivePerson

🚀Top features

• Advanced conversational AI capable of personalizing complex customer queries and improving over time through machine learning.
• Strong intent manager to analyze customer conversations to detect patterns and automate responses using natural language understanding (NLU).
• Conversational intelligence suite that drives customer interactions into insights using one of the largest customer datasets.

Customer testimonials

💪 What works best

“I have been working with LivePerson platforms for many years. Even prior to them going into chat. One of the things that I have always known about them is their daring to look at new, upcoming technology and to quickly move in that direction. Their integration with Conversational support software, with automation, and easy to use features, is providing our organization with much sought after and appropriate help just when our staff and the customer needs it.” Source

💡What could be better

“It can be confusing at first, but following the documentation will not be a problem.” Source

Verdict: LivePerson is a great choice for large-scale businesses seeking a fast, reliable and adaptable customer interaction platform. Its intuitive setup, smooth app integrations and trustworthy customer support make it easy to implement and scale. Unlike Zendesk, which excels in basic ticketing and case management, LivePerson’s AI capabilities are far superior. It’s designed to handle everything from real-time chats to complex digital interactions, making it a holistic and forward-thinking solution for modern customer support.

Price: Request a quote from sales

Wondering how LivePerson stacks up against other vendors like Sprinklr? Check out: Sprinklr vs. LivePerson

Zendesk Alternative #4: Khoros Service

Khoros Service is a comprehensive solution for omnichannel customer engagement, spanning social, digital, chat, voice and owned online communities. It combines bot-led support with human-led support to manage real-time and asynchronous conversations efficiently. With features like community syndication, group hubs and advanced content editing tools, Khoros excels at fostering vibrant customer communities.

🚀Top features

• Comprehensive social care capabilities to provide customer service on social media channels and review sites.
• Advanced tools like community syndication and group hubs for managing brand communities and online engagement spaces.
• Campaign management for planning, execution and analysis of marketing campaigns.

Customer testimonials

💪What works best

“The module is capable of generating good insights based on the data given. The diversity of getting more results "solutions" is so good compared to other modules that need plug-ins, structured analytical backgrounds, and a way of reporting. The integrated tools help to make good use of algorithm and semantic research, each one has its own good sides. My personal judgment that measures the good tool is by the multi uses and modestly modifications to see the needed outcome.” Source

💡What could be better

“While it offers many benefits, some users may find the pricing structure a bit steep for a smaller business or a startup. Additionally, the initial learning curve to fully utilise all features might be challenging.” Source

Verdict: When compared with Zendesk, Khoros is more adept at delivering customer service on social channels, thanks to its flexible features and team collaboration capability. It’s great for both simple and advanced social media automation needs, though the learning curve can be steep. While the pricing might feel a bit high, its user-friendly interface and customizable options make it a reliable pick for businesses focused on social engagement and creating tailored solutions.

Price: Contact Khoros for a quote

Zendesk Alternative #5: Freshdesk

Freshdesk features a shared inbox that consolidates messages from multiple channels into one streamlined platform. It’s customizable, allowing you to tailor your knowledge base to suit your needs. Plus, its marketplace apps facilitate easy integration with other systems. Freshdesk is great for small to medium-sized businesses as it offers a feature-rich suite at competitive rates.

🚀 Top features

• Robust ticket routing system that allows to categorize, prioritize and deflect calls efficiently
• Compared to Zendesk, Freshdesk has a fairly easy-to-navigate analytical reporting system that can be filtered to display daily, weekly and monthly reports
• Generative AI-powered Freddy AI automates most of the admin tasks, resolves routine queries and assists agents with real-time interactions

Customer testimonials

💪 What works best

“What I like best about Freshdesk is its intuitive user interface, which makes it easy to manage and track customer inquiries. The automation features save time by handling repetitive tasks, and the robust reporting tools provide valuable insights into team performance.” Source

💡 What could be better

“The number of integrations available is limited and integration support is minimal. Many a times, non-availability of a single point of contact - especially during initial setup can derail things a bit.” Source

Verdict: One of the top reasons why Freshdesk stands as a great alternative is its low time-to-market. While poor UX and technical heavy lifting are widely reported issues with Zendesk, Freshdesk consistently gets praised for powerful automation and an interface you can glide through. This makes change management much simpler with users even reporting how agents require little to no training to use it.

Another way Freshdesk makes up for a good Zendesk alternative is its watertight unification of communication. However, some users report finding limited dispositions in after-call work (ACW) a challenge with Freshdesk.

Did you know? Sprinklr’s Auto-Wrap feature makes ACW stress-free by automatically filling in the necessary details for your agents if they are running tight on time after a call. This functionality applies predefined values to fields if an agent doesn't get around to submitting the after-call work manually. It ensures everything stays smooth and efficient, keeping the workflow on track without any hiccups. 

Price: Offers a free plan. The most popular is the Pro plan - $48.99/per agent/month - billed annually

Zendesk Alternative #6: Salesforce Service Cloud

🚀Top features

• AI built into workflows with conversational, predictive and generative capabilities, supported by the Einstein Trust Layer.
• Case management enables agents to track, prioritize and resolve customer issues with tools like queues, assignment rules and escalation processes.
• Omnichannel routing delivers consistent support across phone, email, chat and social media.

Customer testimonials

💪 What works best

“One of the best features of Salesforce Service Cloud is its seamless integration with other Salesforce products, creating a unified platform for managing customer interactions. This integration allows service agents to have a 360-degree view of the customer, making it easier to personalize interactions and resolve issues more efficiently. I use this almost every day to manage the assets of my customer.” Source

💡What could be better

“Steep learning curve for new users, especially with complex customizations. User interface can sometimes feel cluttered or overwhelming Source

Custom AI models: No code, no headaches  

Worried about the complexity of AI customization? Sprinklr AI Studio makes it effortless with its no-code builder. Create precise text classification models to filter out noise, reduce manual work and reveal actionable insights — all without needing engineers or data scientists. Don’t just take it from us: Even Microsoft is a fan, calling it their go-to for organizing customer questions, spotting trends, and finding new ways to connect with their audience.  

It’s intuitive, powerful and lets your team focus on driving impact instead of managing endless keywords and queries. Customization has never been this simple. 

Want to see this live in action? Take a personalized tour of Sprinklr with us. 

BOOK A DEMO

Verdict: Salesforce Service Cloud is a powerhouse, offering unmatched integration with Salesforce’s ecosystem and third-party apps, making it a more comprehensive choice than Zendesk. The rapid deployment is a big win, helping teams quickly shift from basic email support to a full case management setup. That said, some users have found implementation a bit tricky.

Price: Starts at $25/User/Month

Zendesk Alternative #7: Gladly

Gladly is an all-in-one customer service platform that puts people — not tickets — at the center of every interaction. By unifying all conversations into a single, ongoing thread, it gives agents a complete view of customer history for faster, more personalized support. With multi-channel communication, businesses can connect with customers seamlessly across voice, email, chat, SMS and social media — all from one platform

🚀Top features

• Gladly’s People Match® technology pairs customers with the best-suited agent based on their unique history, needs and situation for more effective support.
• Unified customer view brings all customer interactions into a single, continuous conversation, regardless of the channel used.
• Channel statistics to keep track of channel activity by monitoring the total count of new, active, completed and outgoing messages and calls.

Customer testimonials

💪 What works best

“The most helpful thing about gladly is the fact that you can go back to previous interactions you've had and also set a task to follow up with customers in case you need to and they stay on the left side with easy access too. Now with the new updates, you get a timer for when you will be receiving a new phone call, which helps you be prepared in time. It is also really easy to use now and you are also able to check out how your coworkers are doing.” Source

💡What could be better

“I do not like the notifications that come across the top of the screen when you click next to get a new inquiry, it blocks the inquiry information that I am currently working on and is annoying. That is pretty much my only complaint though!” Source

Verdict: Gladly takes a fresh, customer-first approach to service, making it a great fit for businesses ready to move beyond ticket-based systems. It prioritizes simplicity and ease of use over the complexity often associated with Zendesk. Its intuitive, modern UI — reminiscent of mobile messaging apps — makes onboarding a breeze, with teams ready to serve in hours, not days. With top-rated customer support and expert guidance to achieve CX goals, Gladly empowers businesses to delight customers effortlessly.

Price: Starts at $180/User/Month

How to evaluate Zendesk competitors

Let’s consider a few questions you need to ask yourself while choosing a Zendesk alternative that truly meets your needs and delivers where Zendesk falls short.

1. How innovative and targeted is its product roadmap?

While Zendesk is broadening its scope to cover more customer service use cases, its core strength remains in ticketing. For businesses looking to address the daily challenges faced by front-line customer support teams, there are other solutions designed specifically with these needs in mind. When exploring alternatives, think about how well their product roadmap aligns with your business goals and the realities of your industry. Look for platforms that don’t just meet today’s needs but are clearly built to evolve with you and your customers over time.

2. Is it easy to set up and use?

Look for an alternative that promises a quicker, more intuitive setup process. It’s no news that Zendesk can be complex and time-consuming to set up, so prioritize platforms that offer straightforward onboarding, ensuring that your team can hit the ground running without the lengthy learning period.

3. Does it burn a hole in your pocket?

Zendesk can be costly, especially for smaller teams or those just scaling up. When evaluating alternatives, consider the total cost of ownership, including set-up, subscriptions and any extra fees for features you may need for your contact center operations. Aim for transparent pricing models that avoid unpleasant surprises.

4. Does it offer multi-channel support?

Zendesk handles multiple channels but often at extra cost. Ensure your chosen alternative includes comprehensive multi-channel support — like email, social media, live chat and phone —as part of the standard package, so you can deliver omnichannel customer service from one place efficiently.

5. How quick is its customer support?

Given Zendesk’s sometimes offersreportedly sluggish support, confirm that your new choice offers speedy and proactive customer service. Test their customer response time and problem-solving skills by contacting their support during your decision-making process.

6. Does its UI leave you scratching your head?

Opt for a solution with a modern, user-friendly interface that your team can navigate easily. A good UI/UX enhances your team’s productivity and reduces agent frustration which can cascade down into customer frustration. Users reported Zendesk’s interface to lack the ergonomics needed for smooth operations, so evaluating this factor should be a priority for you.

7. How well do your teams receive this choice?

Since different roles will interact with your chosen tools differently, have them all vet the tool during the trial period, to catch usability issues well in time. Team members from various levels, from front-line agents to managers should use the tools for all their use cases and flag glitches if any.

Final thoughts

When looking for a Zendesk alternative, think about what really matters for your team and customers. You'll want something that's not just affordable but also easy to use and packed with powerful features that can grow with your business without the hefty price tag. It’s important that your new platform meshes well with your current tech stack and offers support that helps when you need it.

If you’re on the hunt, take a peek at Sprinklr Service. A complete ensuite that brings everything together — data, AI, channels and functions — all on one platform. It’s designed to manage and measure customer interactions everywhere they happen, aiming to make every customer feel like they belong.

What really sets Sprinklr apart, according to The Forrester Wave™: Digital Customer Interaction Solutions, Q2 2024, is the absolute unification of everything it offers. Take a look at what Forrester has to say about Sprinklr and book a demo with us if you like what you read 😊

The Forrester Wave™: Digital Customer Interaction Solutions, Q2 2024

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