Kayako vs Zendesk (2026): $1 vs $19 — Which Wins?
Compare / Kayako vs Zendesk
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Team size
25 seats

Kayako vs Zendesk

Help Desk/Support pricing comparison · 2026

Kayako pricing ranges from $1–$10000/resolution, while Zendesk ranges from $19–$169/agent/month. Zendesk is typically 83% more affordable, though your actual cost depends on tier and team size.

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See pricing on each vendor's site
Above-the-fold path — each link opens the vendor's pricing page in a new tab.
Visit Kayako pricing
Free plan limits → Discount programs →
Visit Zendesk pricing
Free plan limits → Discount programs →
Compare
2 products · Help Desk/Support
Side-by-side · live
Kayako
Kayako pivoted in 2025-2026 from traditional per-agent help desk pricing to a fully AI-res
verified 4d ago
View pricing →
Zendesk
Zendesk is the world's leading customer service software platform, serving over 160,000 bu
verified 17d ago
View pricing →
Estimated license cost
at 25 seats
List price × seats. Click a tier below to lock it.
Pricing model unknown
Pricing model unknown
no public list price found
Suite Team
$17K/yr
year 1 license · $55/seat
What buyers actually pay
median, annual
Vendr deal-flow data. The real benchmark, not list price.
No Vendr data
—
Not in Vendr's deal flow
Median annual
$48K/yr
Vendr · n=1,035 avg 15% negotiated
REF · 01

Sources & confidence

Every dollar amount and contract clause below traces back to a sourced fact. We don't manufacture composite scores.

Where this data comes from
Vendr · TrustRadius · Reddit · BBB · official docs
Sources No structured sources
Last verified 4d ago
Confidence Limited confidence
Sources 23 sourced facts
17 hidden-cost · 3 contract · Vendr median · 2 review platforms
Last verified 2w ago
Confidence High confidence
REF · 02

Plans at a glance

Every tier per product. Lock one to drive the cost row above and reveal a tier-specific outbound CTA.

Tier ladder
Click a tier to lock the cost row to it. Locking surfaces a tier-specific Visit CTA.
REF · 03

Hidden costs

Each cost is severity-ranked, with the dollar range quoted from its source (Vendr, Reddit, TrustRadius, BBB, official docs) — never our estimate.

Beyond the sticker
Severity-ranked, sourced
No hidden costs documented
5 documented
  • Per-Agent Licensing Costs Scale Quickly
    $55-$115/user/month
    1 source
  • Add-Ons Required for Basic Functionality
    20% of contract value for premium support alone
    2 sources
  • Annual Price Increases Not Disclosed Upfront
    5-15% annual uplift
    3 sources
  • Prohibitive Pricing Tiers for Small Organizations
    $2,000-$10,000
    1 source
  • AI Features Require Per-Agent Add-On Purchase
    $35-$50 per agent per month additional
    3 sources
REF · 05

What users say

Aggregated, with sample sizes. We use whichever review platform has data.

User reviews
TrustRadius · Trustpilot · G2
No public ratings yet
TrustRadius
7.2/5 (6)
Trustpilot
2.4/5 (25)
Best for
Small support teams
Watch out
Poor customer support responsiveness
Decide
Get a quote from each vendor
Each link opens the vendor's pricing page in a new tab.
Visit Kayako pricing
Free plan limits → Discount programs →
Visit Zendesk pricing
Free plan limits → Discount programs →
License cost is computed from publicly listed plans (real math, list price × seats). Median annual cost is from Vendr's deal flow when available — see source badges. Hidden costs and contract terms each cite their own sources. We do not invent composite scores.
Help Desk/Support

Kayako

$1–$10000
/resolution
1 plan
Full pricing breakdown →
VS
Help Desk/Support

Zendesk

$19–$169
/agent/month
4 plans
Full pricing breakdown →

Plan-by-Plan Pricing

Plan Kayako Zendesk
Kayako One Custom $19 /agent/month
Suite Team — $55 /agent/month
Suite Professional — $115 /agent/month
Suite Enterprise — $169 /agent/month

Continue researching

Kayako

Zendesk

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