---
title: Help Scout review
canonical: https://customersupportreviews.com/reviews/help-scout
grade: B−
points: 74
updated: 2026-10-08
---

# Help Scout review

**Grade B− (74/100) · #8 of 12 help desks**

Shared inbox help desk with live chat, a knowledge base and a pay-per-resolution AI chat agent.

> Help Scout switched to billing by contacts helped in late 2024 and now sells per-user plans again; accounts already on contact-based plans are billed under separate terms [7][17].

## Verdict
Help Scout suits small and mid-size teams that want an easy, email-first help desk with low seat prices and an AI agent billed only when it resolves a chat. The catch is a narrow AI agent: Compass answers website and in-app chat only, and cannot yet take actions or answer email.

**Good fit:** Small and mid-size teams moving off a shared Gmail or Outlook inbox; Teams that want AI chat answers without a per-seat AI fee; Businesses that value a simple interface over deep customization

**Look elsewhere:** Teams that need an AI agent to take actions such as refunds or order lookups; Contact centers that need native phone and skills-based routing; Companies that must host data in the EU

## Pros
- Seats start at $25 per user a month billed annually, with unlimited contacts on paid plans [1].
- AI Answers costs $0.75 per resolution, with a monthly spending cap and three free months for new accounts [1][3].
- Live chat, SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger come with the Standard plan [1].
- A Test tab runs simulated conversations with the AI agent before launch, free of charge [4].
- Users rate it 4.4 on G2 and 4.6 on Capterra, often praising ease of use [14][16].

## Cons
- Compass answers chat only; email answers and app connections are still marked Coming Soon [2].
- Phone calls need the Aircall integration, which is a paid add-on [1].
- Standard caps at 25 users and Plus at 50, while Pro needs at least 10 users [1].
- AI Drafts and AI Summarize need the Plus plan or higher [1].
- G2 reviewers say reporting is limited for larger teams [15].

## Grade breakdown
| Criterion | Weight | Level | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| True cost with AI on | 30% | 4/5 | $625 a month for 10 agents on Standard with AI on, or $63 per agent [1][3]. |
| Price transparency | 15% | 4/5 | Every plan and the AI Answers price are public with monthly billing, but Pro has a 10-user minimum and the prepay discount and HIPAA and SSO add-ons are not priced in numbers [1]. |
| AI agent and assist | 20% | 3/5 | Compass answers website and in-app chat from the help center, alongside AI Assist, Drafts and Summarize; it takes no actions in other systems [1][2]. |
| Help desk essentials | 15% | 4/5 | Email, live chat, Docs, SLAs and workflows, plus native WhatsApp, SMS and social messaging and phone through the listed Aircall integration [1]. |
| Security and data | 10% | 3/5 | SOC 2 Type II with a published data processing agreement; no ISO 27001 is published [8][12]. |
| What users say | 10% | 4/5 | An average of 4.4 from 431 G2 reviews and 4.6 from 226 Capterra reviews [14][16]. |

## What Help Scout is
Help Scout is a shared-inbox help desk for email, live chat and messaging, with a built-in knowledge base called Docs [1]. Reviewers praise its simple interface, and many describe it as a good fit for small teams [15][16].

Pricing is per user again: Standard, Plus and Pro cost $25, $45 and $75 per user a month on annual billing, with unlimited contacts on paid plans [1][6]. The company had moved to billing by contacts helped in late 2024, and accounts still on those plans are billed under separate terms [7][17]. The AI agent, Compass, is sold separately at $0.75 per resolution [1][2].

## AI
Compass, sold as AI Answers, answers questions in website and in-app chat using your help centers, websites and Google Docs, in 50+ languages [2]. It hands off to your team with full context, and you can exclude topics it must never touch [2]. A Test tab runs simulated conversations before launch without counting toward billing, and dashboards track performance and sentiment [2][4]. It does not take actions in other systems: email answers and connections to payment and CRM tools are marked Coming Soon [2].

Compass costs $0.75 per resolution, billed monthly in arrears; a resolution is one chat session closed without human help, billed once however many questions it covers [3]. New accounts get three months of free resolutions, you can cap monthly spend, and prepaying saves up to 33% [2][3]. Agent assist is bundled: AI Assist on every paid plan, and AI Drafts and AI Summarize on Plus and Pro [1].

## Pricing
A 10-agent team on Standard with 500 AI resolutions a month pays about $625 a month, or $62.50 per agent [1]. Monthly billing costs a fifth more: $30, $54 and $90 per user instead of $25, $45 and $75 [1]. The catches are plan limits rather than hidden fees. Standard tops out at 25 users and Plus at 50, Pro needs at least 10 users, and AI Drafts, round robin routing and the Salesforce, Jira and HubSpot apps start on Plus [1]. Extra Inboxes cost $10 a month and extra Docs sites $20 on annual billing, and phone calls need a paid Aircall add-on [1].

- **Free:** $0 billed annually; $0 billed monthly (Up to 5 users, 1 Inbox, 1 Docs site with 10 articles, 100 contacts a month, no AI tools)
- **Standard:** $25 per user a month billed annually; $30 per user a month billed monthly (Up to 25 users, 2 Inboxes, 2 Docs sites, unlimited contacts, live chat, SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger, 150 basic workflows, 1 basic SLA policy, AI Assist)
- **Plus:** $45 per user a month billed annually; $54 per user a month billed monthly (Up to 50 users, 5 Inboxes, 3 Docs sites, 500 advanced workflows, 2 advanced SLA policies, round robin routing, AI Drafts, Salesforce, Jira and HubSpot apps)
- **Pro:** $75 per user a month billed annually; $90 per user a month billed monthly (Unlimited users (minimum 10), 10 Inboxes, 5 Docs sites, unlimited workflows and SLA policies, load-balanced routing, SSO/SAML, HIPAA, up to 50 light users)
- **AI Answers (Compass):** $0.75 per resolution
- **AI Assist:** Included on paid plans
- **AI Drafts and AI Summarize:** Included on Plus and Pro

## Security and data
Help Scout is SOC 2 Type II certified for security and availability and runs on AWS in the USA [8][10]. It publishes a Data Processing Amendment, and a HIPAA BAA is available on Pro, with an extra addendum for AI features [9][12]. No ISO 27001 certificate or EU hosting is published [8]. AI features run on OpenAI foundation models; Help Scout does not send your data back to retrain them, but may use limited samples to tune small adapters for tone and clarity [11]. The sub-processor list also names Anthropic, Google and Freeplay for machine learning and AI quality work [10].

## What users say
Help Scout averages 4.4 out of 5 from 431 G2 reviews and 4.6 from 226 on Capterra [14][16]. Reviewers praise the interface, collaboration tools and knowledge base, while complaints center on thin reporting for larger teams, features held back for higher plans and gaps in integrations [15][16]. Public customer stories include eCatholic, The New Wheel, Litmus, Mixmax, TeamSnap and Threadless [13].

## Sources
1. [Help Scout pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
2. [Agent (Compass)](https://www.helpscout.com/agent/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
3. [AI Resolutions Pricing](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1746-ai-resolutions-pricing) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
4. [AI Agents in Help Scout](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1757-ai-agents-in-help-scout) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
5. [Copilot](https://www.helpscout.com/copilot/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
6. [Billing and Plans Guide](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/596-billing-and-plans-guide) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
7. [Manage Your Contact-based Plan](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1593-contact-based-billing-and-plans-guide) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
8. [Security](https://www.helpscout.com/company/legal/security/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
9. [HIPAA](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/330-hipaa) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
10. [List of Sub-processors](https://www.helpscout.com/company/legal/sub-processors/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
11. [AI Transparency Hub](https://www.helpscout.com/company/legal/ai-transparency/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
12. [Data Processing Amendment](https://www.helpscout.com/company/legal/dpa/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
13. [Customer stories](https://www.helpscout.com/customers/) — Help Scout, accessed 2026-10-08
14. [Help Scout reviews](https://www.g2.com/products/help-scout/reviews) — G2, accessed 2026-10-08
15. [Help Scout pros and cons](https://www.g2.com/products/help-scout/reviews?qs=pros-and-cons) — G2, accessed 2026-10-08
16. [Help Scout reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/136909/Help-Scout/reviews/) — Capterra, accessed 2026-10-08
17. [Help Scout pricing explained](https://www.getmacha.com/blog/help-scout-pricing-explained) — Macha, accessed 2026-10-08