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Intercom ranked #2 of 2 on /best/live-chat

Intercom alternatives

2 tools that compete with Intercom in live chat, ranked by entry price with live plan data. Intercom itself starts at $29/mo; verified .

Comparing against
Intercom
Starting at
$29/mo
Free plan
No
Plans
4
Migration paths
2 out

Ranked alternatives

Free-plan tools first, then ascending by entry price, then alphabetical. Tags are derived from each tool's verified plan data; no editorial verdict claims.

  1. 01
    Crisp

    Per-workspace live chat and shared inbox with omnichannel messaging.

    • Cheaper entry
    • Has free plan
    • Same category
    From
    Free
    Plans
    4
    Crisp profile Intercom vs Crisp
  2. 02
    Help Scout

    Conversation-centric help desk and shared inbox for support teams.

    • Cheaper entry
    • Has free plan
    • Primarily help desk
    From
    Free
    Plans
    4
    Help Scout profile Intercom vs Help Scout

How we ranked these

  • Candidates. Every tool we hand-flagged as a Intercom alternative, plus every tool sharing its primary category (live chat). Tools we don't yet track are not listed; we never link out to a tool we haven't verified.
  • Order. Free-plan tools first, then ascending by entry monthly price (the headline anchor we capture from each vendor). Custom-priced tools sort last. Ties broken alphabetically.
  • Tags. Each row's tags are computed against Intercom's data: cheaper entry, free plan present, more plan tiers, enterprise tier present. No editorial "better than" claims.
  • Freshness. Pricing is captured weekly from each vendor's pricing page, listed in the source citation below. Confirm at the vendor's page before buying.

Leaving Intercom? Read first 2 guides

Long-form migration guides written for Intercom departures. Each covers the cost math, what you lose, what you gain, and the pair-specific gotchas your alternatives shortlist won't surface on its own.

Compare on price

Want a price-only view across Intercom and the alternatives above? See the live chat pricing comparison : free tiers, entry paid plans, and mid-tier plans side by side in a single table. Same data spine, different angle.

Common questions

What's the cheapest alternative to Intercom?
Crisp starts at Free, the lowest entry price among 2 alternatives we track to Intercom (which starts at $29/mo). Pricing scales differently above the entry tier; check each plan grid before buying.
Which Intercom alternative has a free plan?
Crisp, Help Scout all offer permanent free plans. Free-tier limits vary, so the right pick depends on your contact count and send volume.
Are these all in the same category as Intercom?
1 of 2 share Intercom's primary category (live chat). The rest are adjacent tools that overlap on use case.
Where can I compare Intercom side-by-side with these alternatives?
Each Intercom-vs-alternative pair has a dedicated head-to-head page on TierGauge with verified plan data, side-by-side feature mapping, and limit comparison at the entry paid tier. Pairs are linked from each row in the ranked list above; the canonical URL is /compare/<a>-vs-<b> alphabetical.

Sources

Last verified . Pricing changes between refreshes; confirm at each vendor before purchasing.