Help Scout
Help Scout gives small support teams a shared inbox, AI automation, and a self-service knowledge base so customers get answers faster without adding headcount.
Overview
Help Scout brings all your customer conversations into one shared inbox, covering email, live chat, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp. The AI assistant resolves 70% of routine requests on average, and you only pay $0.75 per resolution it handles without human help. A free plan supports up to 5 users with 1 inbox and 1 knowledge base, so you can test the platform before spending anything. Paid plans start at $25 per user per month and add multiple inboxes, automated workflows, saved replies, and AI drafting tools. Help Scout connects with 100-plus apps including Salesforce, HubSpot, and Jira. Independent research showed their NPS is 7 times higher than competitors, and 80% of customers stay after four years. Their own support team answers 99% of emails within 24 hours.
Features
- Shared inbox with email, live chat, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp
- AI Answers chatbot resolves routine requests at $0.75 per resolution with a 3-month free trial
- Automated workflows route, tag, and assign conversations without manual effort
- Built-in knowledge base lets customers self-serve before contacting your team
- Pre-built and custom reports track volume, response time, and team performance
Best for
Help Scout fits small businesses with a dedicated support function that handles moderate to high conversation volume across multiple channels. It works well for teams that want AI to handle repetitive questions while keeping humans available for complex issues.
Why this SMB score
Help Scout earns a strong score because it offers a genuine free tier, transparent per-resolution AI pricing, broad channel coverage, and proven retention, though per-user costs and inbox limits require budget planning as teams scale.