FreshdeskProProfsFreshdesk vs ProProfs

Freshdesk vs ProProfs: $175 apart for five people

A help desk against a live chat software: ProProfs is $175 a month cheaper for five people. What decides between Freshdesk and ProProfs, and a third option for small teams.

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 Freshdesk if your support is email tickets first and you want SLAs, time tracking and field service in one help desk. Pick ProProfs if one person answers chat and you want every feature free. For five people, ProProfs is $175 a month cheaper than Freshdesk ($275 a month on Freshdesk against $100 on ProProfs), before AI. Sellio Mini is $45, $55 under ProProfs. Freshdesk and ProProfs share no channel in the base price; only Freshdesk has email; only ProProfs has website chat. Neither Freshdesk nor ProProfs includes WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram outright. A team of two to ten choosing between Freshdesk and ProProfs for chat and tickets at one price has a third option below.

At a glanceFreshdeskFreshdeskProProfsProProfs
Built aroundEmail tickets · chat is the separate FreshchatThe chat widget · free for one operator
Entry plan$19/agent/mo · Growth: email and tickets$0 · one operator, all features
Chat in the price$55/agent/mo · Pro, with Freshchat on topAbout $20/operator/mo · Team plan
AI agent$49 per 100 sessions · 500 trial sessions once per account$450/year · 2,500 AI interactions a month
Copilot for agents$29/agent/mo · Freddy CopilotIn the AI add-on
Free planNone · 14-day trialYes · a single operator

The six differences that decide it

Everything else on this page follows from these.

  1. 01

    Where a conversation starts

    FreshdeskFreshdesk

    As a ticket in an email queue. Chat conversations live in Freshchat and become tickets when escalated. ProProfs has no ticket queue behind its conversations.

    ProProfsProProfs

    As a chat in the widget, greeted by a rule or the AI add-on, with the visitor's page shown. Freshdesk raises a ticket where ProProfs keeps a conversation.

  2. 02

    What the seat buys

    FreshdeskFreshdesk

    $19 buys email tickets on Growth. Chat and messaging mean adding Freshchat or an Omni bundle. $275 for five people, against $100 on ProProfs.

    ProProfsProProfs

    One operator is free with every feature; a team pays per operator, about $20 a month each. $100 for five people, against $275 on Freshdesk.

  3. 03

    How the AI is billed

    FreshdeskFreshdesk

    Freddy AI Agent: 500 trial sessions once per account, then $49 per 100. Freddy Copilot is $29 per agent on top. ProProfs folds AI ($450/year) into the plan instead.

    ProProfsProProfs

    AI chat automation is $450 a year for 2,500 interactions a month, a flat add-on. Freshdesk meters AI ($49 per 100 sessions) above the seats instead.

  4. 04

    Channels in the price

    FreshdeskFreshdesk

    Email and web forms on every plan; chat, WhatsApp and Instagram arrive with Freshchat. email is here and not on ProProfs.

    ProProfsProProfs

    Website chat, with WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger on the team plan; no Telegram. website chat is here and not on Freshdesk.

  5. 05

    Beyond the inbox

    FreshdeskFreshdesk

    Field service, time tracking, SLAs and a marketplace; the wider Freshworks suite for IT and sales. ProProfs is a live chat software instead.

    ProProfsProProfs

    A help desk, a knowledge base and surveys as sibling products; a suite from $499 a month. Freshdesk is a help desk instead.

  6. 06

    Time to the first reply

    FreshdeskFreshdesk

    A day or two: connect the support address, set groups and SLAs, then add Freshchat for the widget. ProProfs is minutes.

    ProProfsProProfs

    Minutes: paste the widget. Freshdesk is a day or two.

Sources: Freshdesk pricing · ProProfs 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 Freshdesk ticket view: the queue on the left, the ticket thread and the properties panel
FreshdeskFreshdesk. The Freshdesk ticket view: the queue on the left, the ticket thread and the properties panel
The ProProfs Chat operator view: the chat with the visitor's page and history
ProProfsProProfs. The ProProfs Chat operator view: the chat with the visitor's page and history

Pricing references: Freshdesk pricing page (recorded 2026-09-06); ProProfs pricing page (recorded 2026-09-13; needs verification). Prices change; confirm current terms with each vendor.

Freshdesk, ProProfs 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.

FeatureFreshdeskFreshdeskProProfsProProfsSellio

Pricing

Pricing model
Per agent; AI per agent and per session
Per operator; AI flat
Per workspace; seats and channels are plan limits
Free plan
Not on the pricing page; 14-day trial
One operator
2 seats, 1 channel, 1 AI agent, no trial clock

Channels

Website live chat
Via Freshchat or Omni
All plans
One script tag; guides for HTML, React, Next.js and more
Email in the inbox
Core of the product
Separate help desk product
From Mini: forward your support address; reply from the thread
WhatsApp
Via Freshchat or Omni
Team plan
From Mini: WhatsApp Business API, several agents on one number
Instagram DMs
Via Freshchat or Omni
Team plan
From Mini: Instagram DMs beside web chat
Telegram
Not native
Not offered
From Mini: paste a bot token; the webhook is set for you
Slack, Discord, Teams (two-way)
Slack and Teams notifications
Not offered
From Mini: two-way threads; a reply there reaches the customer

AI

AI agent trained on your docs
Freddy, trained on the knowledge base
AI add-on
Crawl your site, upload PDFs and FAQs; answers only from those
How AI is billed
500 one-time trial sessions, then $49 per 100
$450 a year flat
Metered from an included credit, with caps you set
AI hands off to a person
Escalates to agents
Hands to an operator
On low confidence, a keyword, or a teammate taking over

Support operations

Tickets
Ticket-first
Separate help desk product
On Plus: raise from any chat; customer, back-office and tracker
Visual workflow automation
Automations, form-based
Greetings and routing
From Mini: 11 triggers, 18 actions, no code
Analytics and CSAT
Reports and CSAT
Chat reports
From Essentials: response times, resolution, CSAT; topics and email reports on Plus

Apps

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

Which one, for whom

Pick Freshdesk if

  • Your support is email tickets first and you want SLAs, time tracking and field service in one help desk.
  • You are already on Freshworks products and want the same admin and billing.
  • You need email in the price, which ProProfs does not include outright.
  • You need a ticket queue, which ProProfs does not have.

Pick ProProfs if

  • One person answers chat and you want every feature free.
  • A flat yearly AI add-on beats a per-conversation meter for you.
  • Five people cost $175 a month less than on Freshdesk ($100 against $275), before AI.
  • You need website chat in the price, which Freshdesk does not include outright.

The third option: Sellio

  • Two to ten of you answer chat, messaging and email. Compare Sellio's workspace plans with $275 a month on Freshdesk against $100 on ProProfs for five people, including each product's limits.
  • The AI invoice should be known in advance: Freshdesk meters AI ($49 per 100 sessions) above the seats and ProProfs folds AI ($450/year) into the plan, where Sellio's credit is included and capped by you.
  • You need Telegram and WhatsApp in the base price, which neither Freshdesk nor ProProfs includes.

What two, five and ten people pay

Freshdesk on Pro: $110, $275 and $550 a month for two, five and ten people, before AI. ProProfs: $100 a month for five (5 operators × about $20); it does not print a per-seat rate to extend to two or ten. Sellio: Free for two seats; Mini at $45 for five, $230 less than Freshdesk and $55 less than ProProfs for five people; Essentials at $95 for ten, the AI credit included. At ten people, Essentials at $95 is $455 under Freshdesk.

Where the two agree, and where they split

Freshdesk is a help desk built around email tickets; ProProfs is a live chat software built around the chat widget. Only ProProfs has a free plan (a single operator); Freshdesk offers 14 days of Enterprise. Freshdesk and ProProfs share no channel in the base price; only Freshdesk has email; only ProProfs has website chat. Neither Freshdesk nor ProProfs includes WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram outright. Freshdesk meters AI ($49 per 100 sessions) above the seats; ProProfs folds AI ($450/year) into the plan. Freshdesk has tickets and ProProfs does not, and only ProProfs ships desktop apps. Freshdesk is a day or two; ProProfs is minutes.

What each price leaves out

Freshdesk: Freddy AI Copilot $29 per agent per month yearly; 500 AI agent trial sessions once per account, then $49 per 100 sessions. ProProfs: AI Chat Automation $450 a year for 2,500 interactions a month. Beside Freshdesk's $49 per 100 sessions and ProProfs's $450/year, 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 these figures were read

ProProfs does not print the figures above in a form a fetch can read (Free for one operator; the team plan is priced per operator and shown after sign-up, so its figure is from published summaries.), so they are marked unverified here beside Freshdesk's, and ProProfs's pricing page should be checked before you decide.

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
    FreshdeskFreshdesk$0.49$245
    ProProfsProProfsSee vendorNot quoted
    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.

    FreshdeskFreshdesk · 14 days of Enterprise
    ProProfsProProfs · 15-day trial of the team plan
    Sellio · Free plan, no card

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

Continue your research

FAQ

Freshdesk vs ProProfs: the questions people ask

Freshdesk is a help desk built around email tickets; ProProfs is a live chat software built around the chat widget. Freshdesk has tickets and ProProfs does not, and only ProProfs ships desktop apps.

  • Entry plan: Freshdesk $19/agent/mo (Growth: email and tickets); ProProfs $0 (one operator, all features).
  • Chat in the price: Freshdesk $55/agent/mo (Pro, with Freshchat on top); ProProfs About $20/operator/mo (Team plan).
  • Sellio: WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram, which neither Freshdesk nor ProProfs has outright, plus the rest of the five, on every paid plan.

Sellio's side of the Freshdesk and ProProfs 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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