--- title: "Free Zendesk Alternative: NeetoDesk vs Zendesk" description: "NeetoDesk vs Zendesk: a permanent free plan for 10 agents with SLAs, routing, portal, SSO and audit logs, plus free migration. Compare features and pricing." canonical_url: "https://www.neeto.com/neetodesk/compare/zendesk-alternative" markdown_url: "https://www.neeto.com/neetodesk/compare/zendesk-alternative.md" --- # Free Zendesk Alternative: NeetoDesk vs Zendesk NeetoDesk vs Zendesk: a permanent free plan for 10 agents with SLAs, routing, portal, SSO and audit logs, plus free migration. Compare features and pricing. ## Overview Zendesk Suite starts at $55 a seat. NeetoDesk starts at $0. Zendesk has no free plan, only a 14-day trial, and its cheapest real helpdesk (Suite Team) is $55 per agent, per month, rising to $115 once you need SLAs, a portal and routing, with AI, QA and workforce add-ons stacked on top. NeetoDesk gives you the whole helpdesk free for up to 10 agents (then $5/user/month), with a free migration from Zendesk. - $0: NeetoDesk free plan, 10 agents, every feature included - No free plan: Zendesk offers only a 14-day trial - $55 to $115: Zendesk Suite per agent, per month, before add-ons ## Why growing teams pick NeetoDesk over Zendesk Here's exactly what changes when you switch Zendesk is powerful, and priced for it. There is no free tier, the per-agent Suite plans climb from $55 to $115, the features most teams consider essential (SLAs, self-service portal, skills-based routing) sit on the higher tiers, and AI, quality assurance and workforce management are separate per-agent add-ons. For a small or mid-sized team, that adds up fast. NeetoDesk delivers the core helpdesk free for up to 10 agents. ## Key differences ### A real free plan, not a 14-day trial Zendesk has no free plan; you get a 14-day trial, then pay. NeetoDesk's free plan is permanent and includes the full helpdesk: ticketing, automation, SLA, routing, customer portal, knowledge base, SSO and custom domain, for up to 10 agents. - NeetoDesk: Permanent free plan · 10 agents. The full helpdesk with no time limit, no trial clock and no credit card. - Zendesk: 14-day trial only. No free tier; every agent is paid after the trial. ### 10 agents free, then $5 a seat Zendesk Suite is $55 (Team) and $115 (Professional) per agent, per month, with Growth ($89) no longer offered on its pricing page, so every new agent adds to the bill. NeetoDesk is free for your first 10 agents, then just $5/user/month (or $30/user/year), a fraction of any Zendesk tier. - NeetoDesk: 10 agents free · then $5/user. Ten agents at no cost; beyond that $5/user/month, not $55+. - Zendesk: $55 to $115 per agent / month. Every seat is billed; tier jumps are steep and add up fast. ### No AI, QA or workforce add-ons Zendesk's Advanced AI / Copilot is about $50/agent/month, AI resolutions bill per outcome, Quality Assurance is about $35/agent and Workforce Management about $25/agent, often more than half the final bill. NeetoDesk includes analytics, automation and reporting free, with no add-on stack. - NeetoDesk: Analytics & automation · Free. No per-agent AI, QA or workforce surcharges layered on top. - Zendesk: AI + QA + WFM add-ons. Add-ons (about $50 + $35 + $25 per agent) stack on every seat. ### Enterprise controls without Enterprise pricing Zendesk reserves custom roles, audit logs and sandbox for its Enterprise tier (sales-quoted). NeetoDesk includes SSO, audit logs, custom roles and permissions, IP restriction and a custom domain on the free plan. - NeetoDesk: SSO, audit logs, roles · Free. Admin and security controls included, not a negotiated tier. - Zendesk: Controls on Enterprise (quoted). Custom roles, audit logs and sandbox sit on the top tier. ### SLAs, portal and routing included On Zendesk, a self-service portal and SLAs need Suite Growth ($89), and skills-based routing needs Suite Professional ($115). NeetoDesk includes SLA reminders and escalations, a customer portal, round robin and load-balancing routing on the free plan. - NeetoDesk: SLA, portal, routing · Free. Service levels, self-service and routing with no upgrade. - Zendesk: Portal/SLA on $89, routing on $115. Core service features are gated to the higher Suite tiers. ### Move off Zendesk for free NeetoDesk migrates your tickets, customers, knowledge-base articles, tags, custom fields and companies from Zendesk for free, and most migrations finish in under two weeks. Zendesk implementation and migration are typically paid professional services. - NeetoDesk: Free, done for you. We port your full history at no cost, usually within two weeks. - Zendesk: Paid professional services. Implementation and migration are commonly billed projects. ## NeetoDesk vs Zendesk, feature by feature - Free plan: NeetoDesk — Permanent; Zendesk — None (14-day trial) - Free data migration: NeetoDesk — Free, done for you; Zendesk — Paid professional services - Agents on the free plan: NeetoDesk — 10, free; Zendesk — None (no free plan) - Price per agent after the free tier: NeetoDesk — $5/user/mo; Zendesk — $55 to $115/agent/mo - SLA management: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Suite Growth+ ($89/agent) - Self-service customer portal: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Suite Growth+ ($89/agent) - Round robin routing: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Suite Team ($55/agent) - Advanced routing: NeetoDesk — Load-balanced, free; Zendesk — Skills-based: Suite Professional ($115/agent) - Unlimited automation rules: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Limited by tier - Knowledge base: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Suite plans - Analytics & reporting: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Advanced on higher tiers - AI features: NeetoDesk — No AI upsell, helpdesk free; Zendesk — Add-on (~$50/agent) - Quality assurance (QA): NeetoDesk — Built-in views & logs; Zendesk — Add-on (~$35/agent) - Workforce management: NeetoDesk — Free analytics & business hours; Zendesk — Add-on (~$25/agent) - SSO & audit logs: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Audit logs: Enterprise (quoted) - Custom roles & permissions: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Enterprise (quoted) - Custom domain & send-from-your-domain: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Paid plans only - IP restriction: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Enterprise (quoted) - API & webhooks: NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Free (usage limits) - Mobile app (iOS & Android): NeetoDesk — Free; Zendesk — Free - Remove provider branding: NeetoDesk — $5/user/mo or $30/yr; Zendesk — Higher tiers Disclaimer: Information on this page is based on publicly available data at the time of writing. Features, pricing, and limits may change. Please refer to each provider's official pricing page to confirm the latest information. ## The whole helpdesk is free Up to 10 agents free, every feature, and a done-for-you migration. Beyond 10 agents it is just $5 per user per month. ### Free plan: $0 Up to 10 agents · no credit card - Up to 10 agents, free - All ticketing, automation rules & SLA - Customer portal & knowledge base - SSO, audit logs, custom roles, custom domain - API, webhooks & integrations - Free migration, done for you ### Pro plan: $5 per user/month · $30/user/year, for agents beyond 10 - Add agents beyond the free 10 - Remove Neeto branding - Add your own custom CSS - Cancel anytime A 7-agent team on Zendesk Suite Professional (for SLAs, portal and skills-based routing) is about $9,660 a year ($115/agent), and Copilot alone adds roughly $4,200 a year on top. The same team on NeetoDesk is $0 (the free plan covers up to 10 agents), with a free migration. Beyond 10 agents, NeetoDesk is $5/user/month. ## Built for serious, multi-team support Across 9 companies, 8 industries and 5 countries, more than 110,000 tickets have been migrated into NeetoDesk. It handles granular, multi-team setups that usually push teams onto a premium Zendesk tier: ### Public school district (United States · 5,500+ tickets) 26 teams + 25 automation rules. A K-12 public school district runs its IT and facilities helpdesk on NeetoDesk with 26 teams, 25 automation rules, and 10 agents, with most tickets raised through the in-app portal. ### SAP / ERP consulting (India · 6 agents) 14 teams mapped to SAP modules. An SAP/ERP consulting firm manages support across 14 module-based teams via email, phone, and portal, a multi-team setup that usually pushes Zendesk customers to a higher Suite tier. ### Startup-competition SaaS (United States · 7 agents) 400+ tickets per month. A SaaS platform for startup competitions runs high-volume, heavily automated support: 97 saved replies, 30,000+ contacts and weekend coverage across four teams, all on the free plan. ### Retail chain (Belgium · 4,321 tickets) Dutch entire support in one language. A multi-store baby and toy retail chain runs its whole operation and customer support in Dutch, across four teams over email, phone and portal, after moving 4,321 tickets into NeetoDesk. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Is there a free Zendesk alternative? Yes. NeetoDesk is a free customer support platform with a permanent free plan for up to 10 agents that includes ticketing, automation, SLA, routing, a customer portal, knowledge base, SSO and audit logs. Zendesk has no free plan, only a 14-day trial. ### Can I migrate from Zendesk to NeetoDesk for free? Yes. NeetoDesk runs the migration for you at no cost, moving your tickets, customers, knowledge-base articles, tags, custom fields and companies. Most migrations finish in under two weeks. Moving onto or off Zendesk usually means paying for professional services or a third-party migration tool. ### How much cheaper is NeetoDesk than Zendesk? Zendesk Suite costs $55 (Team) or $115 (Professional) per agent, per month; Growth ($89) is no longer on its pricing page, and Enterprise is quoted by sales. Copilot, quality assurance and workforce management add roughly $50, $35 and $25 per agent on top. A 7-agent team on Suite Professional, the plan with SLAs, a portal and skills-based routing, pays about $9,660 a year before add-ons. The same team on NeetoDesk pays $0, and beyond 10 agents NeetoDesk is $5/user/month or $30/user/year. ### Does NeetoDesk handle SLAs and routing like Zendesk? Yes. NeetoDesk includes SLA policies with reminders and escalations, business hours, round robin and load-balanced ticket routing, and agent groups on the free plan. On Zendesk, SLAs and the self-service portal need Suite Growth or above, and skills-based routing needs Suite Professional at $115 per agent. ### What about AI? NeetoDesk doesn't sell AI as a per-agent add-on or bill you per resolution. The helpdesk itself, with automation rules, canned responses, SLAs, routing and reporting, is free, so your bill doesn't grow with an AI meter. On Zendesk, Copilot is about $50 per agent, per month on top of the plan, and automated AI resolutions are billed per outcome. ### Is NeetoDesk only for small teams? No. The free plan covers up to 10 agents, and larger teams pay $5/user/month beyond that, with every feature included and no higher tier to unlock. Teams already run granular setups on NeetoDesk, such as a school district with 26 teams and 25 automation rules, and an SAP consulting firm with 14 module-based teams. More than 110,000 tickets have been migrated into NeetoDesk so far. ## Links - [Human page](https://www.neeto.com/neetodesk/compare/zendesk-alternative)