Help Scout Alternative: AI Included, Not Per-Resolution
Looking for a Help Scout alternative? Compare pricing, AI costs, and features. See why teams choose Support Station's flat-rate AI over Help Scout's $0.75 per resolution model.
Support Station Team
December 15, 2025 · 6 min read
Help Scout has earned a reputation as the "friendly" helpdesk—clean design, human-focused approach, and a simpler alternative to Zendesk. For email-centric support teams, it's been a solid choice.
But Help Scout's AI pricing creates a familiar problem: $0.75 per resolution adds up fast when you're trying to scale automation. Combined with per-user pricing and user caps on lower tiers, growing teams often find themselves looking for alternatives.
Support Station offers what Help Scout pioneered (simple, human-friendly support) with modern AI pricing: AI credits included in every paid plan, no per-resolution fees.
Quick Pricing Comparison
| Team Size | Support Station (Standard) | Help Scout (Plus) | Annual Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 users | $175/month | $225/month + AI | $900+/year |
| 10 users | $175/month | $450/month + AI | $3,600+/year |
| 25 users | $175/month | $1,125/month + AI | $11,700+/year |
Help Scout Plus at $45/user/month (annual). AI Answers at $0.75/resolution extra.
Help Scout Gets a Lot Right
Help Scout genuinely cares about the customer experience. Their Beacon widget is clean, their email threading feels natural, and they've built a loyal following among startups who prioritize human-feeling support over ticket-number bureaucracy.
But their AI pricing model undermines the goal of efficient support, and per-user pricing creates the same growth tax as larger competitors.
The Per-Resolution AI Problem
Help Scout's AI Answers charges $0.75 per resolution—every time the AI successfully answers a customer's question.
“AI Answers (chatbot add-on): $0.75 per resolution with pre-paid discounts available.”
Here's what that means at scale:
| Monthly AI Resolutions | Help Scout AI Cost | Support Station (included) |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $750 | $0 (2,000 credits included) |
| 5,000 | $3,750 | $0 (10,000 credits included) |
| 10,000 | $7,500 | $0 (on Pro plan) |
The irony: success with AI deflection becomes expensive. The more your AI works, the more you pay. This creates a perverse incentive to limit AI usage instead of maximizing it.
Support Station includes AI credits in every paid plan. Successful deflection doesn't cost extra—it just works.
User Caps and Per-Seat Pricing
Help Scout's pricing tiers include frustrating user limits.
“Standard: 25-user cap, no AI Drafts, no Salesforce integration.”
The tier structure:
- Free: 5 users max
- Standard: 25 users max, limited features
- Plus: 50 users max, most features
- Pro: Unlimited, but 10 user minimum
Growing teams hit these caps and face forced upgrades. A 26-person team can't stay on Standard—they must jump to Plus at significantly higher per-user pricing.
Support Station has no user caps on paid plans. Starter, Standard, or Pro—add as many team members as you need without tier gymnastics.
Limited AI Capabilities
Help Scout's AI, while improving, has received mixed reviews on accuracy.
“In our testing, Help Scout's AI consistently gave inaccurate responses—sometimes contradicting its own sources or itself. It's great in theory, but in practice, it's not yet reliable to trust for automated support.”
“The thin line between switching between auto and manual workflow, which can trigger 1000's of responses to closed emails is a problem.”
Users report concerns about:
- Inaccurate AI responses contradicting source material
- Workflow automation triggers causing unintended mass responses
- Limited chatbot automation (no no-code bot builder)
Support Station's AI uses strict RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) that only answers from your approved knowledge base. When it's uncertain, it escalates to humans rather than guessing.
Missing Channel Support
Help Scout is email-first by design, but this creates gaps for modern omnichannel support.
“The lack of native phone and chat support tools.”
“Channel limitations: while Help Scout has expanded its native integrations to include channels like Facebook Messenger and Instagram Direct Messages, the platform does not natively support certain channels like WhatsApp or voice calls.”
Help Scout focuses on email and basic chat. If you need WhatsApp, voice, or SMS support, you'll need additional tools and integrations.
Support Station supports email, chat widget, Slack, and API-driven channels—covering the channels most startups actually use without bolted-on complexity.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Support Station | Help Scout |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Flat rate per org | Per user |
| AI included | $0.75/resolution | |
| Unlimited team members | Caps by tier | |
| User cap (mid-tier) | None | 25-50 users |
| Knowledge base | ||
| AI chatbot | Included | Per resolution |
| Email integration | ||
| Slack integration | ||
| Widget chat | Beacon | |
| Custom domain KB | Standard+ | All plans |
| Salesforce integration | API | Plus+ only |
| Starting price | $60/month | $100/month (5 users) |
What You Might Miss
Here's where Help Scout excels:
- Email-first UX: Help Scout's interface is optimized for email conversations. The threading and UI feel natural for email-heavy teams.
- Beacon widget maturity: Their Beacon widget has years of polish and a strong reputation.
- Docs integration: Help Scout Docs integrates tightly with their support system.
- Startup program: 6 months free for startups under 2 years old with less than $1M ARR.
For teams whose support is 90%+ email-based, Help Scout's email-first approach may feel more natural. For teams with mixed channels and AI needs, Support Station offers more flexibility.
Who Should Switch
Support Station is ideal for:
- Teams who want AI without per-resolution fees
- Growing companies hitting Help Scout's user caps
- Multi-channel support teams (chat, email, Slack, API)
- Cost-conscious teams tired of AI success costing money
Consider staying with Help Scout if:
- Your support is almost entirely email-based
- You're under 25 users and don't plan to grow beyond that
- You qualify for their startup program and value the free period
- You've deeply integrated with Help Scout Docs
Making the Switch
Migrating from Help Scout to Support Station:
- Export your Docs articles from Help Scout
- Import into Support Station's knowledge base
- Set up email forwarding to Support Station
- Install the Support Station widget on your site
- Connect Slack for team notifications
Most teams complete the transition in a day or less.
Ready to switch from Help Scout?
Join growing teams who chose predictable pricing and modern AI support.
- Flat-rate pricing (no per-seat fees)
- AI credits included in every paid plan
- No mandatory onboarding fees
- 14-day free trial, no credit card required
The Bottom Line
Help Scout built its reputation on making support feel human. But per-resolution AI pricing and per-user seat costs undermine the efficiency gains that modern AI should provide.
Support Station delivers the same human-friendly approach with economics that make sense: AI included, no per-resolution fees, no user caps.
For a 10-person team using AI, you could save $7,000+ per year compared to Help Scout Plus with AI Answers.
Ready for AI that doesn't penalize success? Start your free trial and experience the difference.
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