CRM & Support: CRM, helpdesk & live chat tools, compared
Sales CRMs, shared inboxes, helpdesk and live-chat platforms, compared on price, automation and fit for growing teams. Every pick below is compared on price, strengths and the use case it actually fits — no marketing copy.
27 tools reviewed · 15 buyer's guides · 22 head-to-head comparisons · 17 alternatives roundups.
Browse by category
all-in-one CRM
work-OS CRM
Google Workspace CRM
automated CRM
CRM + marketing automation
action-focused CRM
CRM + project management
simple CRM
enterprise CRM
relationship CRM
customer support / helpdesk
customer messaging + AI support
shared inbox / helpdesk
live chat software
live chat + AI chatbot
business messaging
customer communication
shared inbox / customer ops
Buyer's guides (best tools for a job)
★ Best free CRM & support tools (2026) — the tools with a real free plan (not just a trial), with the actual limits and the catch.
Short on time? Start with the guide that matches your goal.
- Best CRM Software for Small Business (2026)
- Best CRM for Startups (2026)
- Best Sales CRM Software (2026)
- Best Free CRM Tools (2026)
- Best CRM for Real Estate Agents (2026)
- Best CRM for Agencies & Consultancies (2026)
- Best CRM & Sales Affiliate Programs (2026)
- Best Help Desk Software (2026)
- Best Live Chat Software (2026)
- Best Customer Support Software (2026)
- Best Helpdesk for Shopify & Ecommerce (2026)
- Best AI Customer Support Tools (2026)
- Best Shared Inbox Software (2026)
- Best CRM for SaaS Companies (2026)
- Best Customer Support & Helpdesk Affiliate Programs (2026)
Head-to-head comparisons
Deciding between two specific tools? These break down pricing, strengths and the right pick.
- Pipedrive vs Zoho CRM
- Pipedrive vs Close
- Pipedrive vs HubSpot CRM (Sales Hub)
- Close vs Salesflare
- Zoho CRM vs Freshsales (Freshworks)
- Freshsales (Freshworks) vs Pipedrive
- monday CRM vs Pipedrive
- HubSpot CRM (Sales Hub) vs Salesforce Sales Cloud
- Copper vs Pipedrive
- Nutshell vs Pipedrive
- Zendesk vs Freshdesk (Freshworks)
- Zendesk vs Intercom
- Intercom vs Help Scout
- Help Scout vs Freshdesk (Freshworks)
- Tidio vs Intercom
- Tidio vs Crisp
- LiveChat vs Tidio
- Crisp vs LiveChat
- Gorgias vs Zendesk
- Gorgias vs Re:amaze
- Zoho Desk vs Freshdesk (Freshworks)
- Front vs Help Scout
Alternatives roundups
Already use a tool but want options? See the strongest alternatives for each.
- Pipedrive alternatives
- Salesforce Sales Cloud alternatives
- HubSpot CRM (Sales Hub) alternatives
- Zoho CRM alternatives
- Close alternatives
- monday CRM alternatives
- Copper alternatives
- Freshsales (Freshworks) alternatives
- Zendesk alternatives
- Intercom alternatives
- Freshdesk (Freshworks) alternatives
- Help Scout alternatives
- Gorgias alternatives
- Tidio alternatives
- LiveChat alternatives
- Crisp alternatives
- Front alternatives
Market data
Sizing up the category? See our CRM & Support statistics & trends (2026) — pricing ranges, free-tier prevalence and the busiest sub-categories, derived from the tools below.
Compare every tool
Want the whole field on one screen? The CRM & Support software comparison (2026) puts all 27 tools in a single table — entry price, free plan, best-for and standout — so you can build a shortlist before reading a single review.
All CRM & Support tools A–Z
Each tool has a full overview, an in-depth review and a pricing breakdown.
- Capsule CRM — simple CRM (review · pricing)
- Close — sales CRM (review · pricing)
- Copper — Google Workspace CRM (review · pricing)
- Crisp — business messaging (review · pricing)
- Freshdesk (Freshworks) — customer support / helpdesk (review · pricing)
- Freshsales (Freshworks) — sales CRM (review · pricing)
- Front — shared inbox / customer ops (review · pricing)
- Gorgias — ecommerce helpdesk (review · pricing)
- Help Scout — shared inbox / helpdesk (review · pricing)
- HelpCrunch — customer communication (review · pricing)
- HubSpot CRM (Sales Hub) — all-in-one CRM (review · pricing)
- Insightly — CRM + project management (review · pricing)
- Intercom — customer messaging + AI support (review · pricing)
- Keap — CRM + marketing automation (review · pricing)
- LiveChat — live chat software (review · pricing)
- monday CRM — work-OS CRM (review · pricing)
- Nimble — relationship CRM (review · pricing)
- Nutshell — sales CRM (review · pricing)
- OnePageCRM — action-focused CRM (review · pricing)
- Pipedrive — sales CRM (review · pricing)
- Re:amaze — ecommerce helpdesk (review · pricing)
- Salesflare — automated CRM (review · pricing)
- Salesforce Sales Cloud — enterprise CRM (review · pricing)
- Tidio — live chat + AI chatbot (review · pricing)
- Zendesk — customer support / helpdesk (review · pricing)
- Zoho CRM — all-in-one CRM (review · pricing)
- Zoho Desk — customer support / helpdesk (review · pricing)