FreshdeskSmartsuppFreshdesk vs Smartsupp

Freshdesk vs Smartsupp: $192 apart for five people

A help desk against a live chat and chatbot for ecommerce: Smartsupp is $192 a month cheaper for five people. What decides between Freshdesk and Smartsupp, 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 Smartsupp if you are a small European store and want chat, Messenger and WhatsApp in one package. For five people, Smartsupp is $192 a month cheaper than Freshdesk ($275 a month on Freshdesk against $83 on Smartsupp), before AI. Sellio Mini is $45, $38 under Smartsupp. Freshdesk and Smartsupp share no channel in the base price; only Freshdesk has email; only Smartsupp has website chat and WhatsApp. Neither Freshdesk nor Smartsupp includes Instagram and Telegram outright. A team of two to ten choosing between Freshdesk and Smartsupp for chat and tickets at one price has a third option below.

At a glanceFreshdeskFreshdeskSmartsuppSmartsupp
Built aroundEmail tickets · chat is the separate FreshchatChat with visitor recordings · packages, not seats
Entry plan$19/agent/mo · Growth: email and tickets$17/mo · Solo: 1 agent, yearly
Chat in the price$55/agent/mo · Pro, with Freshchat on top$0 · Free: 1 agent, 25 conversations
AI agent$49 per 100 sessions · 500 trial sessions once per account$16 per 100 conversations · Mira AI, yearly
Copilot for agents$29/agent/mo · Freddy CopilotIncluded · AI reply assistant on paid plans
Free planNone · 14-day trialYes · 1 agent, 25 conversations a month

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. Smartsupp has no ticket queue behind its conversations.

    SmartsuppSmartsupp

    As a chat in the widget, with a recording of the visitor's session you can replay. Freshdesk raises a ticket where Smartsupp 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 $83 on Smartsupp.

    SmartsuppSmartsupp

    Packages, not seats: Solo is one agent at $17, Plus three at $25, Expert five or more at $83. $83 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. Smartsupp meters AI ($16 per 100 conversations) above the seats as well.

    SmartsuppSmartsupp

    Mira, the AI agent, is $16 per 100 conversations a month on yearly billing, bought in packs. Freshdesk meters AI ($49 per 100 sessions) above the seats as well.

  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 Smartsupp.

    SmartsuppSmartsupp

    Website chat, Messenger and WhatsApp on every plan, email on paid plans; no Instagram or Telegram. website chat and WhatsApp are 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. Smartsupp is a live chat and chatbot for ecommerce instead.

    SmartsuppSmartsupp

    Visitor recordings, automated messages and a Shoptet and Shopify presence in Europe. 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. Smartsupp is minutes.

    SmartsuppSmartsupp

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

Sources: Freshdesk pricing · Smartsupp 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 Smartsupp dashboard: the chat with the visitor's session recording beside it
SmartsuppSmartsupp. The Smartsupp dashboard: the chat with the visitor's session recording beside it

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

Freshdesk, Smartsupp 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.

FeatureFreshdeskFreshdeskSmartsuppSmartsuppSellio

Pricing

Pricing model
Per agent; AI per agent and per session
Packages with agents included
Per workspace; seats and channels are plan limits
Free plan
Not on the pricing page; 14-day trial
1 agent, 25 conversations
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
Paid plans
From Mini: forward your support address; reply from the thread
WhatsApp
Via Freshchat or Omni
All plans
From Mini: WhatsApp Business API, several agents on one number
Instagram DMs
Via Freshchat or Omni
Not offered
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
Mira
Crawl your site, upload PDFs and FAQs; answers only from those
How AI is billed
500 one-time trial sessions, then $49 per 100
$16 per 100 conversations
Metered from an included credit, with caps you set
AI hands off to a person
Escalates to agents
Hands to an agent
On low confidence, a keyword, or a teammate taking over

Support operations

Tickets
Ticket-first
Chats only
On Plus: raise from any chat; customer, back-office and tracker
Visual workflow automation
Automations, form-based
Automated messages; workflows on Plus
From Mini: 11 triggers, 18 actions, no code
Analytics and CSAT
Reports and CSAT
Chat statistics
From Essentials: response times, resolution, CSAT; topics and email reports on Plus

Apps

Desktop app (Windows, macOS)
Browser and mobile only
Browser and mobile
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 Smartsupp does not include outright.
  • You need a ticket queue, which Smartsupp does not have.

Pick Smartsupp if

  • You are a small European store and want chat, Messenger and WhatsApp in one package.
  • Session recordings beside the chat help you sell.
  • Five people cost $192 a month less than on Freshdesk ($83 against $275), before AI.
  • You need website chat and WhatsApp 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 $83 on Smartsupp 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 Smartsupp meters AI ($16 per 100 conversations) above the seats, where Sellio's credit is included and capped by you.
  • You need Telegram and native Windows and macOS apps, which neither Freshdesk nor Smartsupp 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. Smartsupp: $83 a month for five ($83 for the package with five agents); 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 $38 less than Smartsupp 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; Smartsupp is a live chat and chatbot for ecommerce built around chat with visitor recordings. Only Smartsupp has a free plan (1 agent, 25 conversations a month); Freshdesk offers 14 days of Enterprise. Freshdesk and Smartsupp share no channel in the base price; only Freshdesk has email; only Smartsupp has website chat and WhatsApp. Neither Freshdesk nor Smartsupp includes Instagram and Telegram outright. Freshdesk ($49 per 100 sessions) and Smartsupp ($16 per 100 conversations) both meter AI above the seats. Freshdesk has tickets and Smartsupp does not, and neither Freshdesk nor Smartsupp ships a desktop app. Freshdesk is a day or two; Smartsupp 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. Smartsupp: Mira AI $16 per 100 conversations a month on yearly billing; AI reply assistant included on paid plans. Beside Freshdesk's $49 per 100 sessions and Smartsupp's $16 per 100 conversations, 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
    FreshdeskFreshdesk$0.49$245
    SmartsuppSmartsuppSee 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
    SmartsuppSmartsupp · 14-day trial of the paid plans
    Sellio · Free plan, no card

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

Continue your research

FAQ

Freshdesk vs Smartsupp: the questions people ask

Freshdesk is a help desk built around email tickets; Smartsupp is a live chat and chatbot for ecommerce built around chat with visitor recordings. Freshdesk has tickets and Smartsupp does not, and neither Freshdesk nor Smartsupp ships a desktop app.

  • Entry plan: Freshdesk $19/agent/mo (Growth: email and tickets); Smartsupp $17/mo (Solo: 1 agent, yearly).
  • Chat in the price: Freshdesk $55/agent/mo (Pro, with Freshchat on top); Smartsupp $0 (Free: 1 agent, 25 conversations).
  • Sellio puts every channel in one inbox: Instagram and Telegram, which neither Freshdesk nor Smartsupp has outright, plus the rest of the five, on every paid plan.

Sellio's side of the Freshdesk and Smartsupp 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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