Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

HelpScout VS Kayako

Compare HelpScout VS Kayako and see what are their differences

HelpScout logo HelpScout

Help Scout is a simple, straightforward way to provide excellent support

Kayako logo Kayako

Help Desk Software and Customer Service Software by Kayako. Improve customer satisfaction, increase sales.
  • HelpScout Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-14
  • Kayako Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-09

HelpScout features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    HelpScout is known for its intuitive and easy-to-use interface, which reduces the learning curve for new users and makes it easier for support teams to manage customer inquiries efficiently.
  • Integrated Knowledge Base
    HelpScout offers an integrated knowledge base, allowing businesses to create and organize self-service resources for customers, reducing the number of support tickets.
  • Collaboration Features
    With features like private notes, assignments, and collision detection, teams can collaborate effectively on customer issues without duplicating efforts or missing important information.
  • Multichannel Support
    HelpScout supports email, live chat, and phone integrations, enabling teams to handle customer inquiries from various channels within a single platform.
  • Customer Profiles
    HelpScout provides detailed customer profiles, which include interaction history and data from integrated apps, helping support agents to offer personalized support.
  • Strong API and Integrations
    The platform offers a robust API and integrates with numerous third-party applications, such as CRM, e-commerce, and project management tools, enhancing its functionality and adaptability.
  • Reporting and Metrics
    HelpScout includes comprehensive reporting and analytics tools that provide insights into team performance, customer satisfaction, and ticket trends, helping businesses to improve their support operations.
  • Scalability
    HelpScout is designed to support small businesses as well as larger teams, making it a scalable solution that can grow with the company's needs.

Possible disadvantages of HelpScout

  • Cost
    HelpScout's pricing can be considered high, especially for smaller businesses or startups with tight budgets, when compared to some other customer support solutions.
  • Limited Customization
    Some users find that HelpScout offers limited customization options for workflows and ticket forms compared to more flexible support platforms.
  • No Built-In Phone Support
    While HelpScout integrates with third-party phone systems, it does not offer built-in phone support, which might be a drawback for businesses that rely heavily on phone interactions.
  • Chat Functionality
    The live chat feature is relatively basic and may not include advanced functionalities found in dedicated live chat platforms.
  • Limited Automation
    HelpScout's automation rules, while useful, can be less sophisticated compared to other help desk solutions offering more complex workflow automation capabilities.
  • Storage Limitations
    There are storage limitations on the number of attachments per customer conversation, which may be a constraint for businesses that need to regularly exchange large files with customers.
  • Ticket Management
    Some users report that the ticket management system could be improved, particularly in handling ticket prioritization and categorization.
  • Mobile App Limitations
    The mobile app, while functional, has fewer features and is less robust than the desktop version, limiting the ability of support teams to work effectively on the go.

Kayako features and specs

  • Unified Customer Service Platform
    Kayako combines email, social media, and live chat into a single platform, enabling a seamless customer service experience and improving communication efficiency.
  • Intuitive User Interface
    The platform features an easy-to-navigate interface that simplifies the management of support tickets and reduces the learning curve for new users.
  • Customization Options
    Kayako offers extensive customization options that allow businesses to tailor the platform to their specific needs, including personalized workflows and automated responses.
  • Customer Self-Service Portal
    The software includes a self-service portal where customers can find answers to common issues, reducing the workload on support teams.
  • Collaboration Tools
    Built-in collaboration tools facilitate better teamwork by allowing multiple agents to work on a single ticket and share customer information in real-time.
  • Robust Analytics
    Kayako provides comprehensive analytics and reporting features that help track performance metrics and gain insights into customer behavior.
  • Multi-Channel Support
    The platform supports multiple communication channels, including social media, live chat, and email, ensuring customers can reach out in their preferred method.

Possible disadvantages of Kayako

  • Pricing
    Kayako can be expensive, particularly for small and medium-sized businesses, as the pricing structure may not be as competitive as other options in the market.
  • Limited Third-Party Integrations
    Despite its comprehensive features, Kayako's integration options with third-party applications are somewhat limited compared to other support platforms.
  • Occasional Performance Issues
    Users have reported occasional performance issues such as slow load times and downtime, which can hinder productivity and customer satisfaction.
  • Complex Initial Setup
    The initial setup of the platform can be complex and time-consuming, requiring a significant amount of time to customize and configure according to business needs.
  • Limited Mobile App Functionality
    The mobile app lacks some of the functionalities available on the desktop version, which can be limiting for agents who need to manage support tickets on the go.
  • Lack of Advanced Automation
    While Kayako offers basic automation features, it lacks advanced automation capabilities found in other customer support platforms, which may limit efficiency.

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Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to HelpScout and Kayako)
Customer Support
65 65%
35% 35
Help Desk
70 70%
30% 30
Help Desk And Ticketing
76 76%
24% 24
Customer Service
62 62%
38% 38

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare HelpScout and Kayako

HelpScout Reviews

9 Best Tidio Alternatives Compared
HelpScout is built for email-centric businesses, which means their live chat and automation functionality is less-developed compared to Tidio’s. HelpScout also doesn’t offer an AI-powered chatbot, which means more tickets for your agents to manage.
Source: www.tidio.com
The Best Help Desk Software in 2020
HelpScout really focuses on the customer interface. It values the customer journey and makes it easy for them to navigate. It is set up in a way to boost internal team collaboration. However, because of this emphasis on team collaboration, HelpScout's structure and ticketing systems are not as defined. It doesn't have a dedicated customer-facing portal or ticket numbers....
Source: www.jitbit.com
Help Scout Alternative - Have you outgrown Help Scout?
With over 500 more integrations than Help Scout, it’s easy to understand why many customers see Kayako as one of the best Help Scout alternatives. With Kayako you can connect to all the apps your team already uses. As you scale the need for automation becomes critical. Kayako helps save you time through a simple and easy setup for workflow automations across multiple apps.
Source: www.kayako.com
Top 10 Alternatives to Zendesk: Analysis of Leading Help Desk Software Solutions
Help Scout is preferred by many freelancers and small businesses for the right balance of features and affordability. In fact, it offers a free app for shared inbox. Its paid plan starts at $20 per user/month, providing you with a reliable set of automation, reporting and integration tools.
8 Zendesk Alternatives to Rock Your Customer Service
Also I don’t see Front (frontapp.com) in the list. Front is the biggest alternative to Zendesk & HelpScout on the customer service use case.

Kayako Reviews

9 Best Tidio Alternatives Compared
Kayako and Tidio both offer customer support solutions that aim to streamline support workflows. Kayako is known for its help desk solution that focuses on ticketing and multichannel support, but is more focused on email automation rather than live chat or real-time support.
Source: www.tidio.com
10 Best Freshdesk Alternatives for Businesses in 2024
Kayako is a customer service software platform that enables businesses to effectively manage and support their customers. It provides a suite of tools and features designed to streamline customer support processes and enhance the overall customer experience.
11 Best Help Desk Software to Totally Check out in 2020!
The intuitive help desk ticketing system helps you manage and close tickets with much ease. Kayako offers a lot of useful features like email integration, service level agreement management, knowledge base management, a self-service portal, network monitoring, automated routing and alerts. Kayako is also a context-driven tool that lets you keep track of every customer...
Best helpdesk software of 2020: for ticketing and support
Kayako is a help desk software offering that focuses on ease to use, and fosters a personal conversation with the customer. Standout features include support for the creation of multiple help centers each with their own content (termed Multibrand), live chat support, canned responses for common questions, support for SLA’s, and the ability to automate the workflow with smart...
The Kayako Alternative for your Enterprise.
As a Kayako user, you have hardly any choice of integrations, be it CRMs or Accounting apps. You might have to stop using your favorite CRM and reluctantly move to one that Kayako is integrated with. Or you could use HappyFox - the best Kayako Alternative and give your company the freedom to use a host of integrations in CRMs, eCommerce, Accounting and even Screencasts.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, HelpScout should be more popular than Kayako. It has been mentiond 2 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

HelpScout mentions (2)

  • Makers, what are the tools you can't live without?
    Slack for communication Helpscout for customer support Calendly for meeting scheduling Usermaven for website and product analytics Contentstudio.io for social media management. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Have you ever done a product comparison chart on your site?
    Not my site, but Helpscout (https://helpscout.com) has my favorite product comparison model. Source: about 3 years ago

Kayako mentions (1)

  • What ticketing software isn't hot garbage?
    One we used at a previous place, Https://kayako.com/ Small company, I'm sure there was not much effort put in customizing it. No idea on pricing but wouldn't expect it to be on the high side. Source: about 3 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing HelpScout and Kayako, you can also consider the following products

Freshdesk - Freshdesk is a cloud-based customer support software that lets you support customers through traditional channels like phone and email, social channels like Facebook and Twitter, and your own branded community

Zendesk - Zendesk is a beautiful, lightweight help-desk solution.

LiveAgent - LiveAgent is a fully-featured web-based live chat and help desk software. It harnesses the power of a universal inbox, real-time live chat, built-in call center, and a robust customer service portal. Start your free 1 month trial today!

Front - The platform for exceptional customer service at scale.

Intercom - Intercom is a customer relationship management and messaging tool for web businesses. Build relationships with users to create loyal customers.

Zoho Desk - Industry's first context-aware Helpdesk Software