Customer support software for service businesses
Service businesses field questions about bookings, quotes and invoices, so a shared inbox keeps replies from slipping. Zoho Desk has a free plan for 3 agents and Express at $7 per agent billed yearly. Most integrations start on Standard and live chat is only on Enterprise, so it is not for you if chat is your main channel.
Top picks for service businesses
All 17 customer support tools, ranked for service businesses
| Tool | Fit for service business | Starts at | Pricing | Users | Integrations | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Zoho DeskZohoFit 80 | 80 | $7/person | Free tier | 3 on free; up to 5 on Express | Zoho CRM, Google Workspace, Slack, Salesforce, Jira, Microsoft Teams, Zapier (Standard and up) | View |
 FreshdeskFreshworksFit 80 | 80 | $19/person | Free trial | Per agent | Shopify, Slack, Jira, WhatsApp, 1,000+ marketplace apps | View |
 Help ScoutHelp ScoutFit 80 | 80 | $25/person | Free tier | Per user; 5 on free | Shopify, HubSpot, Slack, Jira, 100+ | View |
 WatiWatiFit 80 | 80 | $59 | Free trial | 3 on Growth; 5 on Pro and Business | Shopify, WooCommerce, HubSpot, Zapier, Google Sheets | View |
 TextlineTextlineFit 80 | 80 | Price by quote | Paid | 3 agents on Essentials; 5 on Pro | Zendesk, Salesforce, HubSpot, Help Scout, Freshdesk, Gorgias, Aircall, Slack, Zapier | View |
 FrontFrontFit 78 | 78 | $25/person | Free trial | Up to 10 on Starter | Gmail, Outlook, Salesforce, HubSpot, Slack, Shopify | View |
 TidioTidioFit 75 | 75 | $0 | Free tier | Unlimited | Shopify, WordPress, Wix, HubSpot, Mailchimp | View |
 LandbotLandbotFit 75 | 75 | Free for 1 user | Free tier | 1-3 seats by plan; extra seats €25/mo | WhatsApp, Zapier, HubSpot, Google Sheets, Stripe | View |
 tawk.totawk.toFit 75 | 75 | $0 | Free | Unlimited | WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Squarespace, WooCommerce | View |
 FreshchatFreshworksFit 75 | 75 | $19/person | Free tier | Per agent | Freshdesk, Shopify, WhatsApp, Instagram, Slack | View |
 LiveAgentQuality UnitFit 72 | 72 | $15/person | Free trial | Per agent | Shopify, WooCommerce, Slack, Zapier, Mailchimp | View |
 CrispCrispFit 70 | 70 | Free for 2 users | Free tier | 2 on free; 4 on Mini | Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, Slack, HubSpot, Stripe, Zapier | View |
 Text (formerly LiveChat)TextFit 70 | 70 | $19/person | Free trial | Per user | Shopify, WordPress, HubSpot, Salesforce, Zendesk | View |
 ZendeskZendeskFit 65 | 65 | $19/person | Free trial | Per agent | 1,500+ apps | View |
 TypewiseTypewiseFit 55 | 55 | $83.25 | Free trial | Additional users $89/mo | Zendesk, Freshdesk, Salesforce, Shopify, Stripe, Slack | View |
 FreshserviceFreshworksFit 35 | 35 | $19/person | Free trial | Per agent | Microsoft Teams, Slack, Workday, Freshworks Marketplace apps | View |
 GorgiasGorgiasFit 20 | 20 | $10 | Paid | 3 on Starter; 500 from Basic | Shopify, BigCommerce, Klaviyo, Yotpo | View |
Customer support for service businesses: questions
Which ones have a free plan?
Of the 13 that fit service businesses best, Zoho Desk, Help Scout, Tidio, Landbot, tawk.to, Freshchat and Crisp have a free plan. Check the limits on each tool page; most cap users, volume or features.
How are these ranked?
Each tool has a fit score from 0 to 100 for service businesses, based on what it is built for and who its features serve. We list tools scoring 70 or more as strong fits, then break ties by the monthly price for a team of six. Partner links never change the order. How we calculate prices.