Help Scout vs Tawk.to
Converge Team
Side-by-side comparison for 2026
| Feature | Help Scout | Tawk.to |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | From $45/seat/mo | From $58/mo |
| Best For | Small-medium businesses wanting simple, email-focused support | Businesses needing free website live chat |
| Standout Feature | Clean, intuitive interface with excellent knowledge base | Completely free with up to 15 agents and full features |
| Free Plan | ✓ | ✓ |
| G2 Rating | 4.4/5 | 4.5/5 |
Help Scout and Tawk.to serve different ends of the customer support spectrum. Help Scout offers comprehensive help desk functionality with premium features, while Tawk.to focuses on free live chat with optional paid agent services.
Tawk.to's 4.5/5 G2 rating reflects satisfaction with its free chat offering, while Help Scout's 4.4/5 shows solid performance across full help desk capabilities.
Feature Comparison
Help Scout provides comprehensive customer support with email management, knowledge base creation, live chat, and team collaboration features. Their Beacon widget offers proactive self-service, while workflow automation handles routine tasks.
Tawk.to specializes in live chat with a completely free tier including up to 15 agents and chats. Their paid services ($0-1/hour) add human agent support, but the platform lacks email management and advanced help desk features.
The fundamental difference is scope - Help Scout is a complete help desk solution while Tawk.to excels specifically at live chat functionality.
Pricing Comparison
Help Scout's pricing ranges from free (3 users) to $75/user/month, providing predictable costs that scale with team size and feature needs.
Tawk.to offers free live chat software with optional paid agent services at $0-1/hour, making it extremely cost-effective for businesses primarily needing chat functionality.
For chat-only needs, Tawk.to is unbeatable on price. For comprehensive support, Help Scout provides better value despite higher costs.
Help Scout
Pros
- ✓ Clean, intuitive interface
- ✓ Excellent for email-based support
- ✓ Strong knowledge base features
Cons
- ✗ No native WhatsApp or Telegram
- ✗ Live chat (Beacon) is basic
- ✗ Limited automation capabilities
Tawk.to
Pros
- ✓ Completely free
- ✓ Up to 15 agents
- ✓ Full-featured
Cons
- ✗ Website chat only
- ✗ No messaging platforms
- ✗ Branding on free plan
Verdict
Choose Help Scout if you need full help desk functionality with email, knowledge base, and team collaboration. Choose Tawk.to if live chat is your primary need and budget is a major constraint.
Choose Help Scout if: You need comprehensive customer support tools including email, knowledge base, and team features at $0-75/user/month.
Choose Tawk.to if: Live chat is your primary requirement and you want to minimize costs with their free platform and $0-1/hour agent services.
Consider Converge at $49/month flat rate for teams wanting comprehensive support features without per-user pricing complexity.
Looking for more options? Browse all 750+ platform comparisons, or see all Help Scout comparisons and all Tawk.to comparisons.