eDeskZendeskeDesk vs Zendesk

eDesk vs Zendesk: $89 against $275 a month

An ecommerce help desk for marketplaces against a help desk suite: eDesk is $186 a month cheaper for five people. The six differences, what five people pay on each, and a third option.

By Khalid Nouri, founder of SellioPricing check dates are listed with each vendor below

Try the third optionSellio pricing

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The short answer

Pick eDesk if you sell on Amazon, eBay or Walmart and want marketplace messages in the same queue as email. Pick Zendesk if your support is ticket-first and email-heavy, with SLAs and a queue to manage. For five people, eDesk is $186 a month cheaper than Zendesk ($89 a month on eDesk against $275 on Zendesk), before AI. Sellio Mini, at $45 for the workspace, is $44 under eDesk. eDesk and Zendesk both include website chat, email and Instagram in the price. Neither eDesk nor Zendesk includes WhatsApp and Telegram outright. Below, a third option for a team of two to ten that wants what eDesk and Zendesk sell here at one price.

At a glanceeDeskeDeskZendeskZendesk
Built aroundMarketplace orders · Amazon, eBay, WalmartTickets and a queue · messaging came later
Entry plan$39/mo · Essential: 1 store$19/agent/mo · Support Team: email and tickets
Chat in the price$39/mo · live chat on every plan$55/agent/mo · Suite Team
AI agent$0.99 per outcome · AI Agent on every planPer automated resolution · rate quoted, not printed
Copilot for agentsAI Assist add-on$50/agent/mo
Free planNone · 14-day trialNone · 14-day trial

The six differences that decide it

Everything else on this page follows from these.

  1. 01

    Where a conversation starts

    eDeskeDesk

    As a ticket with the marketplace order beside it, so a reply can quote the shipment. Zendesk raises tickets too, from tickets and a queue.

    ZendeskZendesk

    As a ticket. Every channel, chat included, becomes a ticket with a status, a priority and an SLA clock. eDesk raises tickets too, from marketplace orders.

  2. 02

    What the seat buys

    eDeskeDesk

    Plans are priced by connected stores, from one on Essential at $39 to ten on Professional. $89 for five people, against $275 on Zendesk.

    ZendeskZendesk

    $19 buys email and tickets. Live chat, WhatsApp, Instagram and AI agents start at Suite Team, $55. $275 for five people, against $89 on eDesk.

  3. 03

    How the AI is billed

    eDeskeDesk

    The AI Agent is on every plan at $0.99 per outcome, charged only when it resolves a ticket. Zendesk meters AI (per automated resolution) above the seats as well.

    ZendeskZendesk

    AI agents are priced per automated resolution on top of seats, and the rate comes from your quote. eDesk meters AI ($0.99 per outcome) above the seats as well.

  4. 04

    Channels in the price

    eDeskeDesk

    Marketplace messages, email, live chat and social; WhatsApp on the higher plans, no Telegram. The same set as Zendesk.

    ZendeskZendesk

    Email, chat, WhatsApp, Instagram and voice on Suite plans; WhatsApp conversation fees still apply. The same set as eDesk.

  5. 05

    Beyond the inbox

    eDeskeDesk

    Feedback requests, translation and reporting for sellers on several marketplaces. Zendesk is a help desk suite instead.

    ZendeskZendesk

    A contact center: voice, workforce management, QA, and a marketplace of over a thousand apps. eDesk is an ecommerce help desk for marketplaces instead.

  6. 06

    Time to the first reply

    eDeskeDesk

    Hours: connect the stores and the mailbox; the order data follows. Zendesk is a project.

    ZendeskZendesk

    A project. Queue, SLAs, routing and macros are set up before the first ticket is answered. eDesk is hours.

Sources: eDesk pricing · Zendesk pricing. Each vendor’s own comparison of the other is linked so you can weigh both sides against ours.

What each one looks like

A look at the agent workspace. Interfaces can vary by plan and product version.

The eDesk ticket view: the marketplace message with the order and shipment on the right
eDeskeDesk. The eDesk ticket view: the marketplace message with the order and shipment on the right
The Zendesk Agent Workspace: a ticket view with the customer, the thread and the fields
ZendeskZendesk. The Zendesk Agent Workspace: a ticket view with the customer, the thread and the fields

Pricing references: eDesk pricing page (recorded 2026-09-13); Zendesk pricing page (recorded 2026-09-06). Prices change; confirm current terms with each vendor.

eDesk, Zendesk and Sellio, side by side

Fifteen things a support team checks. A dash means the product does part of it or charges extra for it.

FeatureeDeskeDeskZendeskZendeskSellio

Pricing

Pricing model
By connected stores; AI per outcome
Per agent; AI per resolution; add-ons extra
Per workspace; seats and channels are plan limits
Free plan
None; 14-day trial
None; 14-day trial
2 seats, 1 channel, 1 AI agent, no trial clock

Channels

Website live chat
All plans
Suite plans
One script tag; guides for HTML, React, Next.js and more
Email in the inbox
All plans
All plans
From Mini: forward your support address; reply from the thread
WhatsApp
Higher plans
Suite plans, plus conversation fees
From Mini: WhatsApp Business API, several agents on one number
Instagram DMs
Social messaging
Suite plans
From Mini: Instagram DMs beside web chat
Telegram
Not offered
Third-party apps only
From Mini: paste a bot token; the webhook is set for you
Slack, Discord, Teams (two-way)
Not offered
Slack notifications and side conversations
From Mini: two-way threads; a reply there reaches the customer

AI

AI agent trained on your docs
Trained on the store
All plans, trained on the help center
Crawl your site, upload PDFs and FAQs; answers only from those
How AI is billed
$0.99 per outcome
Per automated resolution, on top of seats
Metered from an included credit, with caps you set
AI hands off to a person
Escalates to an agent
Escalates to agents
On low confidence, a keyword, or a teammate taking over

Support operations

Tickets
With order data
Ticket-first
On Plus: raise from any chat; customer, back-office and tracker
Visual workflow automation
Rule-based automations
Triggers and automations, form-based
From Mini: 11 triggers, 18 actions, no code
Analytics and CSAT
Growth and up
Explore; advanced on higher plans
From Essentials: response times, resolution, CSAT; topics and email reports on Plus

Apps

Desktop app (Windows, macOS)
Browser and mobile
Browser and mobile only
Native Windows and macOS apps

Which one, for whom

Pick eDesk if

  • You sell on Amazon, eBay or Walmart and want marketplace messages in the same queue as email.
  • You want an AI agent billed only when it resolves something.
  • Five people cost $186 a month less than on Zendesk ($89 against $275), before AI.
  • Time to the first reply is hours here and a project on Zendesk.

Pick Zendesk if

  • Your support is ticket-first and email-heavy, with SLAs and a queue to manage.
  • You need phone support and a contact center in the same tool.
  • Time to the first reply is a project here and hours on eDesk.
  • Its pricing model suits you better than eDesk's: per agent per month, billed yearly. Monthly billing costs more. No free plan.

The third option: Sellio

  • You are two to ten people on eDesk or Zendesk who answer chat, messaging and email, and want to compare workspace pricing with $89 a month on eDesk against $275 on Zendesk for five people.
  • You want the AI bill known before the month starts: eDesk meters AI ($0.99 per outcome) above the seats, Zendesk meters AI (per automated resolution) above the seats; Sellio includes a credit and lets you cap it.
  • You need Telegram and native Windows and macOS apps, which neither eDesk nor Zendesk includes.

What two, five and ten people pay

eDesk: $89 a month for five ($89 for the account, 5 stores); it does not print a per-seat rate to extend to two or ten. Zendesk on Suite Team: $110, $275 and $550 a month for two, five and ten people, before AI. Sellio: Free for two seats; Mini at $45 for five, $44 less than eDesk and $230 less than Zendesk for five people; Essentials at $95 for ten, the AI credit included. At ten people, Essentials at $95 is $455 under Zendesk.

Where the two agree, and where they split

eDesk is an ecommerce help desk for marketplaces built around marketplace orders; Zendesk is a help desk suite built around tickets and a queue. Neither has a free plan: eDesk offers a 14-day trial, no card, Zendesk a 14-day trial of Suite Professional. eDesk and Zendesk both include website chat, email and Instagram in the price. Neither eDesk nor Zendesk includes WhatsApp and Telegram outright. eDesk ($0.99 per outcome) and Zendesk (per automated resolution) both meter AI above the seats. eDesk and Zendesk both raise tickets, and neither eDesk nor Zendesk ships a desktop app. eDesk is hours; Zendesk is a project.

What each price leaves out

eDesk: AI Agent on every plan at $0.99 per outcome; AI Assist and Translate add-ons. Zendesk: AI agents are billed per automated resolution on top of the seat price; the Copilot add-on is $50 per agent per month. Beside eDesk's $0.99 per outcome and Zendesk's per automated resolution, Sellio includes an AI credit with each paid plan. Usage consumes that credit; additional credits cost extra, and you can set a spending cap.

How to decide in an afternoon

  1. Step 1

    Count agents and channels

    Anyone who replies is a seat. List the channels customers actually use.

    5 people reply5 seats
    Website chat61%
    WhatsApp27%
    Email12%
  2. Step 2

    Price the AI you would use

    Estimate monthly conversations the AI could close, then apply each vendor's per-resolution or per-session rate.

    1,200 conversations × 40% AI closes480
    eDeskeDeskSee vendorNot quoted
    ZendeskZendeskAssumed $1.5$720
    Sellio$0.05$19

    Illustrative AI-only estimate; vendor units differ. Pack billing is rounded up. Sellio assumes Mini’s $5 credit and $0.05 per conversation.

  3. Step 3

    Trial the shortlist

    Check each vendor’s trial, free plan or demo terms. Where access is available, test one real channel before committing.

    eDeskeDesk · 14-day trial, no card
    ZendeskZendesk · 14-day trial of Suite Professional
    Sellio · Free plan, no card

    Confirm trial access and limits, then evaluate one real channel on each.

Continue your research

FAQ

eDesk vs Zendesk: the questions people ask

eDesk is an ecommerce help desk for marketplaces built around marketplace orders; Zendesk is a help desk suite built around tickets and a queue. eDesk and Zendesk both raise tickets, and neither eDesk nor Zendesk ships a desktop app.

  • Entry plan: eDesk $39/mo (Essential: 1 store); Zendesk $19/agent/mo (Support Team: email and tickets).
  • Chat in the price: eDesk $39/mo (live chat on every plan); Zendesk $55/agent/mo (Suite Team).
  • Sellio: WhatsApp and Telegram, which neither eDesk nor Zendesk has outright, plus the rest of the five, on every paid plan.

Sellio's side of the eDesk and Zendesk rows is on the shared inbox page.

Still have a question? Contact us or browse the docs.

Or the third option: one price, every channel.

Sellio puts website chat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram and email in one inbox with tickets and an AI agent, for $45 to $295 a month per workspace.

Get startedRead the docs

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