CRM Comparison

Gorgias vs Help Scout (2026)

Gorgias is the e-commerce helpdesk built for Shopify. Help Scout is the conversational, email-first helpdesk for SaaS and growing businesses. Here's how to pick in 2026.

Gorgias

Ecommerce-focused customer support helpdesk with deep Shopify integration and AI automation built to resolve tickets and drive sales simultaneously.

Pricing From $10/mo (Starter, 50 tickets); Pro from $360/mo
Our rating 4.4/5
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Help Scout

Human-centric customer support platform that pairs AI automation with a shared inbox designed to feel like email, keeping interactions personal at scale.

Pricing Free plan available; paid from $25/user/mo
Our rating 4.5/5
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TL;DR

  • Pick Gorgias if you sell physical products on Shopify, BigCommerce, or Magento. The native order data, returns, and refund workflows make every ticket faster than a generic helpdesk.
  • Pick Help Scout if you run SaaS, services, or a digital business where email is the primary channel. The shared inbox UX, knowledge base, and Beacon widget are best-in-class for thoughtful, conversation-style support.

Pricing model — per-ticket vs per-seat

This is the most consequential difference. Gorgias prices per ticket: $10 starter, $60 basic, $360 pro, $900 advanced, with overage rates and AI Agent priced separately. That scales naturally with e-commerce volume (fewer agents handling many short interactions). Help Scout prices per agent: $25, $50, $65 per user per month with unlimited conversations. That scales naturally with SaaS volume (more agents handling fewer, longer threads). Run a back-of-envelope: if you have 8 agents and 5,000 tickets/month, Help Scout is roughly half the cost. If you have 3 agents and 15,000 tickets/month, Gorgias is roughly half.

E-commerce features

Gorgias is unmatched here. Shopify orders appear inline next to every ticket, agents can refund or edit orders without leaving the helpdesk, and macros can be customer-aware (different message for VIPs vs first-time buyers). Help Scout has Shopify integrations but they're surface-level — the depth difference is large. For DTC brands processing returns and order issues, Gorgias is structurally faster.

SaaS and service features

Help Scout is unmatched here. The shared inbox is the cleanest in the category, Docs is a mature, fast knowledge base with strong search, and the Beacon widget on your site offers contextual help articles before they become tickets. Customer profiles, custom fields, and integrations with Stripe, HubSpot, and Jira are deep. Gorgias can be wrestled into this shape but it's the wrong tool.

AI

Both ship AI features in 2026. Gorgias AI Agent auto-handles common e-commerce queries (order status, return initiation, shipping ETAs) and resolves a substantial percentage of tickets without an agent — the e-commerce specificity is the moat. Help Scout AI Assist drafts replies and summarizes, with strong knowledge-base grounding. For pure deflection volume, Gorgias has the edge on retail use cases; for reply quality on complex SaaS questions, Help Scout has the edge.

Omnichannel

Gorgias supports email, chat, SMS, social (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok), and WhatsApp natively — designed for the DTC reality where customers DM your Instagram. Help Scout focuses on email, chat (Beacon), and Docs, with fewer social channels. Help Scout is being deliberately email-first; Gorgias is being deliberately omnichannel.

Reporting

Gorgias reporting is e-commerce-tuned — revenue attributed to support, refund rates, repurchase impact. Help Scout reporting is conversation-tuned — first-response, resolution time, happiness scores. Both are good at what they target.

Who should pick what

  • Shopify or BigCommerce DTC brand → Gorgias.
  • B2B SaaS support team → Help Scout.
  • High-volume retail with social DMs → Gorgias.
  • Service business with knowledge base needs → Help Scout.
  • Coaching, agency, or consultancy → Help Scout.
  • Multi-channel brand running Instagram support → Gorgias.

Bottom line

These two tools don't really compete — they serve different operating realities. If you sell products and need order context in every ticket, Gorgias is the right answer. If you sell software or services and need a great shared inbox with knowledge base, Help Scout is the right answer. Pick by business model first, feature list second.

Try them yourself

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Frequently asked questions

Gorgias vs Help Scout — which is better?
It depends entirely on your business model. Gorgias is purpose-built for e-commerce — Shopify-native, order data inline, refund actions in-thread. Help Scout is purpose-built for SaaS and service businesses — clean shared inbox, mature knowledge base, and Beacon widget. There's almost no overlap in the ideal customer.
How much do Gorgias and Help Scout cost?
Gorgias is priced per ticket: Starter $10/month (50 tickets), Basic $60/month (300 tickets), Pro $360/month (2,000 tickets), Advanced $900/month (5,000 tickets), with overage charges. Help Scout is priced per user: Standard $25/user/month, Plus $50/user/month, Pro $65/user/month, with unlimited tickets. Per-ticket pricing favors e-commerce volume; per-seat favors SaaS teams with fewer agents handling complex conversations.
Does Gorgias work for non-e-commerce businesses?
It can, but you're paying for unused features (Shopify integration, BigCommerce, order management) and inheriting a UX optimized for retail workflows. SaaS and service teams almost always end up happier with Help Scout, Front, or Intercom.
Does Help Scout have AI features in 2026?
Yes. Help Scout AI Assist (launched in 2024 and expanded through 2025) drafts replies, summarizes conversations, and suggests knowledge base articles. It's competitive with Gorgias AI Agent for SaaS use cases. Gorgias has a head start specifically on e-commerce AI (order lookups, return policy enforcement).
Can I migrate from Zendesk to either?
Yes. Both Gorgias and Help Scout ship native Zendesk importers that bring tickets, contacts, macros, and knowledge base articles over. Gorgias migrations are most common for Shopify-first brands; Help Scout migrations are common for SaaS teams looking for a cleaner UX at a lower per-seat price.