Hiver vs Zendesk Chat
Converge Team
Side-by-side comparison for 2026
| Feature | Hiver | Zendesk Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | From $35/seat/mo | From $89/seat/mo |
| Best For | Organizations heavily invested in Gmail who primarily handle email support | Large support teams needing comprehensive ticketing integration |
| Standout Feature | Native Gmail integration and shared mailbox management | Deep integration with Zendesk Support platform |
| Free Plan | ✓ | ✗ |
| G2 Rating | 4.6 | 4.2 |
Hiver and Zendesk Chat serve different aspects of customer support. Hiver transforms Gmail into a collaborative helpdesk for email-based support, while Zendesk Chat focuses on real-time website engagement and live chat functionality.
Hiver (G2 4.6/5) excels at Gmail-based workflows and email collaboration, whereas Zendesk Chat (G2 4.2/5) specializes in website chat and integrates with the broader Zendesk ecosystem.
Feature Comparison
Hiver's strength lies in email management features like shared inboxes, collision detection, and seamless Gmail integration. It maintains familiar email workflows while adding powerful collaboration capabilities.
Zendesk Chat focuses on real-time website engagement with features like proactive chat triggers, visitor tracking, and comprehensive chat analytics. It integrates seamlessly with Zendesk Support for unified customer profiles.
The fundamental difference: Hiver optimizes email-based support processes, while Zendesk Chat maximizes real-time website visitor engagement and conversion opportunities.
Pricing Comparison
Hiver costs $15 to $59 per user monthly, with pricing that includes all team members and doesn't distinguish between agents and administrators.
Zendesk Chat ranges from free (limited features) to $59 per agent monthly, with the free tier supporting basic chat functionality for small teams.
Zendesk Chat's free tier makes it attractive for startups, while Hiver's inclusive per-user pricing benefits teams where multiple people need access to support workflows.
Hiver
Pros
- ✓ Seamless Gmail integration
- ✓ Easy setup for Gmail users
- ✓ Good email management features
Cons
- ✗ Limited to Gmail ecosystem
- ✗ No modern messaging channels
- ✗ Expensive per-user pricing
Zendesk Chat
Pros
- ✓ Strong brand recognition
- ✓ Comprehensive support suite
- ✓ Good integrations
Cons
- ✗ Per-agent pricing gets expensive
- ✗ Limited to web chat only
- ✗ No social media messaging
Verdict
Choose Hiver if your support is primarily email-based and your team uses Gmail. Choose Zendesk Chat if you need robust live chat features and plan to use other Zendesk products.
Choose Hiver if: Your support is primarily email-based, your team uses Gmail extensively, or you need collaborative email management without complex chat features.
Choose Zendesk Chat if: Live chat is crucial for your website, you're already using Zendesk products, or you want to start with a free solution and scale up.
For teams seeking both email and chat capabilities without vendor lock-in, Converge provides unified support at $49/month flat rate, offering essential features from both platforms in one simple package.
Looking for more options? Browse all 750+ platform comparisons, or see all Hiver comparisons and all Zendesk Chat comparisons.