Help Scout vs Text (formerly LiveChat)
Two customer support tools side by side. Prices are the starting plan a small business would pick, in USD.
Short version
Text (formerly LiveChat) costs less for a six-person team.
Help Scout fits service business, trades or contractor.
| Compare | Help ScoutHelp Scout | Text (formerly LiveChat)Text |
|---|---|---|
| In one line | Shared inbox that feels like email, plus a help center | Website live chat with AI replies, from $19 a user |
| Starting price | From $25/person | From $19/person |
| Six-person team | $150/mo | $114/mo |
| Plans | Free (5 users, 100 contacts/mo); Standard $25/user/mo; Plus $45/user/mo; Pro $75/user/mo; 16% off annual | Per user, billed yearly: Essential $19 ($25 monthly, 10 AI resolutions/mo); Growth $79 ($99, 200 AI resolutions); Enterprise by quote; extra AI resolutions $49.50 per 50; 14-day trial, no card |
| Pricing model | Free tier | Free trial |
| Free trial | 15 days | 14 days |
| Users | Per user; 5 on free | Per user |
| Integrations | Shopify, HubSpot, Slack, Jira, 100+ | Shopify, WordPress, HubSpot, Salesforce, Zendesk |
| Team size | 2–10 people · 11–50 people | 2–10 people · 11–50 people |
| Available in | US · UK · CA · AU | US · UK · CA · AU |
| Phone support | None listed | None listed |
| Live chat | None listed | Plans not stated |
| Support hours | Not published | Live chat: 24/7/365 support on all plans (channel not named) |
| Incidents posted | 6 incidents posted on Help Scout's status page in the 90 days to Oct 27, 2026; 0 marked major or critical by Help Scout. Status page | 4 incidents posted on Text's status page, which covers all Text products and regions, in the 90 days to Oct 27, 2026; 1 marked major or critical by Text. Status page |
| Capterra score | 4.6 / 5 from 226 reviews | 4.6 / 5 from 1,729 reviews |
| Trustpilot score | 3.0 / 5 from 40 reviews | 2.1 / 5 from 10 reviews (few reviews) |
| Fit: Retail shop | 60 | 55 |
| Fit: Restaurant or café | 40 | 35 |
| Fit: Service business | 80 | 70 |
| Fit: Agency or studio | 75 | 68 |
| Fit: Trades or contractor | 55 | 40 |
| Fit: Online store | 90 | 85 |
| Why people pick it |
|
|
| Where it falls short |
|
|
| Visit Help Scout | Visit Text (formerly LiveChat) |
Six-person prices are what a team of six would pay on the published plans; "Not listed" means those plans don't cover six. How we calculate prices
Help Scout: partner link. We may earn a commission; it never affects rankings.
More comparisons with Help Scout or Text (formerly LiveChat)
Help Scout vs ZendeskHelp Scout vs GorgiasHelp Scout vs TidioHelp Scout vs FreshdeskHelp Scout vs FreshserviceHelp Scout vs FreshchatHelp Scout vs LandbotHelp Scout vs WatiHelp Scout vs Zoho DeskHelp Scout vs CrispHelp Scout vs LiveAgentHelp Scout vs tawk.toHelp Scout vs FrontHelp Scout vs TypewiseHelp Scout vs TextlineZendesk vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Gorgias vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Tidio vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Freshdesk vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Freshservice vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Freshchat vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Landbot vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Wati vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Zoho Desk vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Crisp vs Text (formerly LiveChat)LiveAgent vs Text (formerly LiveChat)tawk.to vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Front vs Text (formerly LiveChat)Text (formerly LiveChat) vs TypewiseText (formerly LiveChat) vs Textline