LiveChatZendeskLiveChat vs Zendesk

LiveChat vs Zendesk: $245 against $275 a month

A live chat software against a help desk suite: LiveChat is $30 a month cheaper for five people. What decides between LiveChat and Zendesk, 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 LiveChat if website chat is the channel and you want the most refined console and widget available. Pick Zendesk if your support is ticket-first and email-heavy, with SLAs and a queue to manage. For five people, LiveChat is $30 a month cheaper than Zendesk ($245 a month on LiveChat against $275 on Zendesk), before AI. Sellio Mini is $45, $200 under LiveChat. LiveChat and Zendesk both include website chat in the price; only Zendesk has email and Instagram. Neither LiveChat nor Zendesk includes WhatsApp and Telegram outright. A team of two to ten choosing between LiveChat and Zendesk for chat and tickets at one price has a third option below.

At a glanceLiveChatLiveChatZendeskZendesk
Built aroundThe chat console · help desk and chatbot sold separatelyTickets and a queue · messaging came later
Entry plan$19/agent/mo · Starter: 60-day history$19/agent/mo · Support Team: email and tickets
Chat in the price$49/agent/mo · Team$55/agent/mo · Suite Team
AI agentChatBot from $52/mo · a separate productPer automated resolution · rate quoted, not printed
Copilot for agentsIncluded · Text Intelligence$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

    LiveChatLiveChat

    As a chat in the agent console, with the visitor's page and typing shown live; tickets go to the separate HelpDesk product. Zendesk raises a ticket where LiveChat keeps a conversation.

    ZendeskZendesk

    As a ticket. Every channel, chat included, becomes a ticket with a status, a priority and an SLA clock. LiveChat has no ticket queue behind its conversations.

  2. 02

    What the seat buys

    LiveChatLiveChat

    $19 buys the console with 60 days of history. Team at $49 keeps the history and adds reports. $245 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 $245 on LiveChat.

  3. 03

    How the AI is billed

    LiveChatLiveChat

    Text Intelligence assists are included; an AI answering customers means the separate ChatBot product from $52 a month. 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. LiveChat meters AI (ChatBot from $52/mo) above the seats as well.

  4. 04

    Channels in the price

    LiveChatLiveChat

    Website chat, Messenger, Apple Messages, WhatsApp and email in the console; SMS via integration. Zendesk adds email and Instagram, which LiveChat lacks.

    ZendeskZendesk

    Email, chat, WhatsApp, Instagram and voice on Suite plans; WhatsApp conversation fees still apply. email and Instagram are here and not on LiveChat.

  5. 05

    Beyond the inbox

    LiveChatLiveChat

    A large marketplace, and sibling products for chatbot, help desk and knowledge base at their own prices. Zendesk is a help desk suite instead.

    ZendeskZendesk

    A contact center: voice, workforce management, QA, and a marketplace of over a thousand apps. LiveChat is a live chat software instead.

  6. 06

    Time to the first reply

    LiveChatLiveChat

    An hour: paste the snippet, invite agents, answer. Zendesk is a project.

    ZendeskZendesk

    A project. Queue, SLAs, routing and macros are set up before the first ticket is answered. LiveChat is an hour.

Sources: LiveChat 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 LiveChat agent console: the chat list, the conversation and the visitor details
LiveChatLiveChat. The LiveChat agent console: the chat list, the conversation and the visitor details
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

What your team would pay

Move the sliders. Yearly-billing rates from each vendor’s pricing page, next to Sellio’s plan for the same number of seats.

5 people who answer customers

50

300 AI conversations on LiveChat, automated resolutions on Zendesk

3000+
LiveChatLiveChat

$245/mo

Full history, reports, agent groups.

5 × $49 seats
$245
300 AI conversations × $0
$0

Yearly billing; monthly costs more. LiveChat sells its chatbot as a separate ChatBot subscription from $52 a month, not per conversation; add that flat fee. Rates recorded on 2026-09-06.

ZendeskZendesk

$725/mo

Adds messaging, live chat, voice and AI agents.

5 × $55 seats
$275
300 automated resolutions × $1.5
$450
Copilot, 5 × $50
$0

Yearly billing; monthly costs more. Zendesk's pricing page says AI agents are priced per automated resolution and does not print the rate. $1.50 is the figure Zendesk has quoted publicly; change it to what your quote says. Rates recorded on 2026-09-06.

Sellio · Mini

$55/mo

One price for the workspace: 3 channels, 2 AI agents, $5 AI credit a month.

Workspace, 5 of 5 seats
$45
AI past 100 included conversations
$10
Copilot for agents
Included

About $0.05 per AI conversation past the credit, with a daily and monthly cap you set. Yearly billing takes 20% off. See every plan.

Pricing references: LiveChat pricing page (recorded 2026-09-06); Zendesk pricing page (recorded 2026-09-06). Calculator uses yearly-billing rates. Prices change; confirm current terms with each vendor.

5 people, website chat plus 2 more channels, 2 AI agents: $45 a month. Start free, no card.

Start freeSee every plan

LiveChat, 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.

FeatureLiveChatLiveChatZendeskZendeskSellio

Pricing

Pricing model
Per agent; ChatBot is a separate product.
Per agent; AI per resolution; add-ons extra
Per workspace; seats and channels are plan limits
Free plan
14-day trial.
None; 14-day trial
2 seats, 1 channel, 1 AI agent, no trial clock

Channels

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

AI

AI agent trained on your docs
ChatBot, a separate subscription.
All plans, trained on the help center
Crawl your site, upload PDFs and FAQs; answers only from those
How AI is billed
From $52/mo for ChatBot; copilot included.
Per automated resolution, on top of seats
Metered from an included credit, with caps you set
AI hands off to a person
ChatBot transfers to agents.
Escalates to agents
On low confidence, a keyword, or a teammate taking over

Support operations

Tickets
HelpDesk is a separate product.
Ticket-first
On Plus: raise from any chat; customer, back-office and tracker
Visual workflow automation
Routing rules; flows live in ChatBot.
Triggers and automations, form-based
From Mini: 11 triggers, 18 actions, no code
Analytics and CSAT
Reports and ratings.
Explore; advanced on higher plans
From Essentials: response times, resolution, CSAT; topics and email reports on Plus

Apps

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

Which one, for whom

Pick LiveChat if

  • Website chat is the channel and you want the most refined console and widget available.
  • You need Apple Messages for Business.
  • Five people cost $30 a month less than on Zendesk ($245 against $275), before AI.
  • You want native desktop apps, which Zendesk does not ship.

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.
  • You need email and Instagram in the price, which LiveChat does not include outright.
  • You need a ticket queue, which LiveChat does not have.

The third option: Sellio

  • Two to ten of you answer chat, messaging and email. Compare Sellio's workspace plans with $245 a month on LiveChat against $275 on Zendesk for five people, including each product's limits.
  • The AI invoice should be known in advance: LiveChat meters AI (ChatBot from $52/mo) above the seats and Zendesk meters AI (per automated resolution) above the seats, where Sellio's credit is included and capped by you.
  • You need Telegram and a free plan with no trial clock, which neither LiveChat nor Zendesk includes.

What two, five and ten people pay

LiveChat on Team: $98, $245 and $490 a month for two, five and ten people, before AI. 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, $200 less than LiveChat and $230 less than Zendesk for five people; Essentials at $95 for ten, the AI credit included. At ten people, Essentials at $95 is $395 under LiveChat and $455 under Zendesk.

Where the two agree, and where they split

LiveChat is a live chat software built around the chat console; Zendesk is a help desk suite built around tickets and a queue. Neither has a free plan: LiveChat offers 14 days, no card, Zendesk a 14-day trial of Suite Professional. LiveChat and Zendesk both include website chat in the price; only Zendesk has email and Instagram. Neither LiveChat nor Zendesk includes WhatsApp and Telegram outright. LiveChat (ChatBot from $52/mo) and Zendesk (per automated resolution) both meter AI above the seats. Zendesk has tickets and LiveChat does not, and only LiveChat ships desktop apps. LiveChat is an hour; Zendesk is a project.

What each price leaves out

LiveChat: Text Intelligence (copilot, suggestions, summaries) included. The ChatBot product is separate, from $52 a month yearly. 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 LiveChat's ChatBot from $52/mo 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
    LiveChatLiveChatAssumed $0$0
    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.

    LiveChatLiveChat · 14 days, 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

LiveChat vs Zendesk: the questions people ask

LiveChat is a live chat software built around the chat console; Zendesk is a help desk suite built around tickets and a queue. Zendesk has tickets and LiveChat does not, and only LiveChat ships desktop apps.

  • Entry plan: LiveChat $19/agent/mo (Starter: 60-day history); Zendesk $19/agent/mo (Support Team: email and tickets).
  • Chat in the price: LiveChat $49/agent/mo (Team); Zendesk $55/agent/mo (Suite Team).
  • Sellio puts every channel in one inbox: WhatsApp and Telegram, which neither LiveChat nor Zendesk has outright, plus the rest of the five, on every paid plan.

Sellio's side of the LiveChat 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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