How miniDesk compares to the tools you are probably paying for
Six comparisons, each priced from the vendor's own published page, each upfront about where the other product wins. Every figure is dated, sourced, and linked, because a claim about somebody else's prices that you cannot verify is not a comparison.
The full comparison
Every capability each vendor includes, gates behind a tier, or bills as an add-on. The same table each comparison below draws a single column of.
| Capability | miniDesk | Intercom | Zendesk | Crisp | Freshchat | tawk.to | Chatwoot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channels | |||||||
| Live chat widget on your site | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Shared email inbox | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Web form, separate from the chat widget | Included | Not available | Included | Included | Not available | Not available | Not available |
| AI | |||||||
| AI that answers customers on its own | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Answers drawn from your own documents | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Agent-assist copilot in the inbox | Included | Sold as a paid add-onpaid add-on | Included, on a higher planhigher plan | Included, on a higher planhigher plan | Included, on a higher planhigher plan | Included, then billed by usebilled by use | Included, then billed by usebilled by use |
| Developer | |||||||
| REST API | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| MCP server, published and supported | Included | Included | Not available | Included, on a higher planhigher plan | Not available | Not available | Not available |
| What the price covers | |||||||
| The AI costs nothing beyond the plan price | Included | Included, then billed by usebilled by use | Included, then billed by usebilled by use | Included, then billed by usebilled by use | Included, then billed by usebilled by use | Included, then billed by usebilled by use | Included, then billed by usebilled by use |
| A free plan with the AI on it | Included | Not available | Not available | Not available | Not available | Included | Not available |
| Unlimited free conversations | Included | Not available | Not available | Included | Included | Included | Included, on a higher planhigher plan |
| Adding a teammate costs nothing | Included | Not available | Not available | Included | Not available | Included | Not available |
Channels
Live chat widget on your site
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included
- Zendesk
- Included
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Included
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Included
Shared email inbox
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included
- Zendesk
- Included
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Included
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Included
Web form, separate from the chat widget
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Not available
- Zendesk
- Included
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Not available
- tawk.to
- Not available
- Chatwoot
- Not available
AI
AI that answers customers on its own
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included
- Zendesk
- Included
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Included
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Included
Answers drawn from your own documents
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included
- Zendesk
- Included
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Included
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Included
Agent-assist copilot in the inbox
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Sold as a paid add-onpaid add-on
- Zendesk
- Included, on a higher planhigher plan
- Crisp
- Included, on a higher planhigher plan
- Freshchat
- Included, on a higher planhigher plan
- tawk.to
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
- Chatwoot
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
Developer
REST API
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included
- Zendesk
- Included
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Included
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Included
MCP server, published and supported
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included
- Zendesk
- Not available
- Crisp
- Included, on a higher planhigher plan
- Freshchat
- Not available
- tawk.to
- Not available
- Chatwoot
- Not available
What the price covers
The AI costs nothing beyond the plan price
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
- Zendesk
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
- Crisp
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
- Freshchat
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
- tawk.to
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
- Chatwoot
- Included, then billed by usebilled by use
A free plan with the AI on it
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Not available
- Zendesk
- Not available
- Crisp
- Not available
- Freshchat
- Not available
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Not available
Unlimited free conversations
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Not available
- Zendesk
- Not available
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Included
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Included, on a higher planhigher plan
Adding a teammate costs nothing
- miniDesk
- Included
- Intercom
- Not available
- Zendesk
- Not available
- Crisp
- Included
- Freshchat
- Not available
- tawk.to
- Included
- Chatwoot
- Not available
- included
- costs more than the plan
- not available
Checked against each vendor's own published documentation, September 2026.
Checked against: Intercom pricing, Zendesk pricing, Crisp pricing, Freshchat pricing, tawk.to pricing, Chatwoot pricing
One price. All of customer support.
Start free, no card. When you upgrade, every feature is included, rather than a starting point with a list of add-ons to buy.
