Help Scout and Front both turn a shared address like support@ into a team inbox, so everyone can see who is answering what. Help Scout is built around customer support, with a help site and chat. Front is a team inbox used across support, sales and operations.
The short verdict
Pick Help Scout if your shared inbox is mainly for customer support, you want to start free, or you want chat, social messaging and email on the entry plan.
Pick Front if several teams, such as sales and operations, work from shared email, or you need advanced rules and workspaces as you grow.
Prices and plans
All prices are in US dollars per user or seat per month, as of October 2026, from each vendor's pricing page.
- Free: up to 5 users, 1 inbox, 1 help site and 100 contacts a month.
- Standard: $25 billed annually, or $30 monthly. Up to 25 users, 2 inboxes, live chat, SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.
- Plus: $45 billed annually, or $54 monthly. Up to 50 users, 5 inboxes, advanced workflows and unlimited AI drafts.
- Pro: $75 billed annually, or $90 monthly. A minimum of 10 users, through the sales team.
Extra Help Scout inboxes cost $10 a month billed annually, or $12 monthly.
- Starter: $25 billed annually, or $35 monthly. Up to 10 seats, one channel type, up to 10 automation rules and 1 workspace.
- Professional: $65 billed annually, or $85 monthly. Up to 50 seats, several channel types, macros, up to 20 rules and up to 5 workspaces.
- Enterprise: $105 a seat, annual billing only. Unlimited rules, custom roles, and its AI Copilot, QA and CSAT tools included.
Channels
This is the biggest practical difference at the entry level.
Help Scout Standard includes email, live chat, SMS and social messaging such as WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger. Phone works through an integration such as Aircall.
Front Starter allows a single channel type, such as email, Front Chat or SMS. Several channel types, including email, SMS, social and WhatsApp, start at Professional. Front's native WhatsApp channel is an add-on on Professional and Enterprise.
So if you want email and chat in one place on a small budget, Help Scout Standard covers both. On Front, that means Professional.
Free plan and trials
Help Scout has a free plan with no end date. Watch the limit of 100 contacts a month. Standard and Plus also have a 15-day trial with no credit card.
Front has no free plan. Its 14-day free trial includes Professional features and needs no credit card.
AI features and costs
Help Scout sells AI Answers, which replies to customers, at $0.75 per resolution. You can set a monthly spending cap, and the first three months are free. AI drafts are unlimited from Plus.
Front sells Copilot, which helps your team plan next steps and draft replies, for $20 per seat a month on Starter and Professional. It is included on Enterprise. Its AI agent, Autopilot, is an add-on that starts at $0.05 per conversation, through the sales team.
Before you let any AI reply to customers, read AI chatbots for customer service.
Teams beyond support
Front's site lists teams such as customer support, operations, inbound sales, account management and customer success. Workspaces let you split inboxes so each team has its own rules and reports. That suits a business where one client might email sales, billing and support.
Help Scout is focused on support, with a help site, a help widget called Beacon, and reports on support work. It suits a business where the shared inbox is mostly customer questions.
How to decide
- List who will use the inbox. Only support, or sales and operations too?
- List your channels. If you need email and chat together, compare Help Scout Standard with Front Professional.
- Count your seats. Front Starter stops at 10, Help Scout Standard at 25.
- Start Help Scout's free plan and Front's trial with the same week of real emails.
For a wider view, see the best help desk software for small business and Help Scout vs Zendesk.
Shared inboxes need shared wording
When several people answer from one address, customers notice when the tone changes from reply to reply. Agree on a few saved replies early. Customer service email templates and how to handle difficult customers are good places to start.
Nive is being built for a nearby problem: you write how your business works once, and it drafts emails in your voice for you to review and send. It is not a shared inbox or a help desk. Join the waitlist to get the demo first.