Customer Service·Standings
Best Help Desk Software in 2026
This list covers 101 help desk tools for handling customer support requests. Compare the fields that affect fit: free plan, paid starting price, shared inbox, service-level agreement (SLA) management, help center, ticket automation, customer portal, API access and included agent seats.
Use the platform marks to see where each product runs: web, API, self-hosted, iOS, Android or Linux. The board also shows a signal score out of 10, plus marks for a public API, open-source code and a free tier.
- 101 platforms
- 24 with a public API on this page
- 17 with a free tier
- Checked 28 Sept 2026
- 1 OHOdoo Helpdeskodoo.com
Help desk with a free plan, API, shared inbox, SLA tools, help center, and ticket automation.
- 2 C
Cerbcerb.aiCerb provides shared inboxes for human and AI teams, routing and automating incoming work.
- 3 F
Freshdeskfreshworks.comHelp desk with free plan, API, shared inbox, SLA management, and plans from $19/month.
- 4 VHVtiger Help Deskvtiger.com
Help desk with a free plan, shared inbox, API, Android and iOS apps, and paid plans from $12/user/month.
- 5 F
Frontfront.comPaid help desk with API, shared inbox, SLA management, and plans from $25/user/month.
- 6 F
FreeScoutfreescout.netFreeScout is a free, open-source help desk and shared inbox built with PHP and Laravel.
- 7 C
Chatwootchatwoot.comOpen-source help desk with free plan, API, $19/month paid plans, and web, mobile, Linux, or self-hosting.
- 8 HS
Help Scouthelpscout.comHelp desk with a free plan, shared inbox, API, and paid plans from $25/user/month.
- 9 Z
Znunyznuny.orgFree help desk with API access, shared inbox, SLA management, and Linux, web, or self-hosted use.
- 10 D
Deskprodeskpro.comPaid help desk for Android, iOS, web or self-hosting, with API, automation and help center; from $39/month.
- 11 D
Deskerodeskero.comDeskero is a cloud help-desk platform that centralizes customer requests from email, chat, web, phone and social networks.
- 12 AH
Andrea Helpdeskandreahelpdesk.comAndrea Helpdesk is a self-hosted customer support platform built as a PHP application.
- 13 H
HelpDeskhelpdesk.comPaid API-based help desk with shared inbox; plans start at $19/user/month.
- 14 G
Gorgiasgorgias.comPaid help desk with a free plan, API, shared inbox, web and mobile apps, and a 30-day trial.
- 15 GGoatFlowgoatflow.io
Free self-hosted or web help desk for Linux with API, inbox, SLAs, help center, automation and portal.
- 16 ZD
Zoho Deskzoho.comHelp desk with a free plan, API, shared inbox, SLA tools, and a help center.
- 17 L
LiveAgentliveagent.com - 18 HHelpSpothelpspot.com
HelpSpot is a help-desk platform that turns support email into trackable requests and shared workflows.
- 19 Q
Qisutuqisutu.deQisutu is an open-source ticketing system for help desk and service desk teams, licensed under AGPL-3.0-or-later.
- 20 HHelpDeskZhelpdeskz.com
HelpDeskZ is free PHP based software for managing a site's support through a web-based ticket system.
- 21 KKayakokayako.com
Paid help desk with API access, shared inbox, SLA tools, help center, and ticket automation.
- 22 ZMZendesk Messagingzendesk.com
Zendesk Messaging provides customer support conversations through website widgets and mobile apps.
- 23 UUseResponseuseresponse.com
UseResponse combines customer feedback, help desk, knowledge base, and live chat in a customer service suite.
- 24 HHelpyhelpy.io
Helpy is a customer support platform designed for organizations that want control over customer data.
- 25 OHOpen Helpdeskopenhelpdesk.dev
Open Helpdesk is an open-source helpdesk for teams managing support across multiple clients.
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How to choose
Start with the plan you can try
Forty-seven of the 101 tools have a free plan, and 32 offer a free trial. Check whether the option you choose is a continuing free plan or a time-limited trial.
Some listed products use freemium pricing, including Vtiger Help Desk, Zoho Desk, Odoo Helpdesk, Help Scout and ManageEngine SupportCenter Plus.
Match the platform to your setup
The list includes 59 web products, 30 self-hosted options, 28 iOS apps, 28 Android apps and nine Linux options. A self-hosted product runs on infrastructure you manage.
API access is listed for 89 items. An API is a way for other software to exchange information with the help desk, so check this mark when connections to existing apps matter.
Compare the support tools
Use the comparison fields to check for a shared inbox, SLA management, a help center, ticket automation and a customer portal. These show how each product handles incoming requests, service targets, self-service content and customer updates.
Review the same fields across plans, because the list separates a free plan from paid starting prices.
Check seats and openness
Included agent seats show how many support users a plan covers. Compare that number with the people who need to answer or manage tickets.
One of the 101 products is open source. Open-source code can be inspected and changed, while the other products do not carry that mark on this list.
Questions
How many help desk tools are listed?
The list contains 101 help desk products.
How many have a free plan?
Forty-seven of the 101 products have a free plan. Another 32 offer a free trial.
Which platforms are covered?
The list covers web, API, self-hosted, iOS, Android and Linux. Counts are 59, 89, 30, 28, 28 and nine respectively.
What support features are compared?
The comparison covers free plan, paid starting price, shared inbox, SLA management, help center, ticket automation, customer portal, API access and included agent seats.
How many products are open source?
One of the 101 listed products is marked open source.
Some top positions on this board can be paid placements, standing where they were sold. The facts on each platform are not for sale. How we rank · Disclosure