# 10 best Gorgias alternatives for Shopify in 2026, with pricing compared
Commslayer is the best Gorgias alternative for most Shopify brands: AI agent included, $199 a month at 2,000 conversations vs $1,380 on Gorgias.
Canonical URL: https://www.commslayer.com/compare/gorgias-alternatives
Published 2026-10-30. Updated 2026-10-30. Last verified 2026-10-30.
Commslayer makes the first tool on this list. Every competitor fact links to that vendor’s own page, checked October 30, 2026.
The best Gorgias alternatives for Shopify in 2026 are [Commslayer](/), [Richpanel](https://www.richpanel.com/), [Re:amaze](https://www.reamaze.com/), [Zendesk](https://www.zendesk.com/), [Freshdesk](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/), [Help Scout](https://www.helpscout.com/), [Intercom](https://www.intercom.com/) with its Fin AI agent, [Chatbase](https://www.chatbase.co/), [Siena](https://www.siena.cx/) and [Yuma](https://yuma.ai/). Commslayer is listed first because it is our product and because it is the cheapest full helpdesk in the cost table at all three volumes. The other nine follow in order of how close each is to a like-for-like Gorgias replacement. To keep Gorgias and only add AI, look at Siena or Yuma. If you sell on more than Shopify, staying on Gorgias or moving to Zendesk or another general-purpose helpdesk fits better than a Shopify-only tool.
The market map puts each tool at its monthly bill for 2,000 conversations, 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI at the lowest published price, worked out by the calculator below, cheapest at the top. Left: general-purpose tools. Right: tools built for ecommerce. Siena and Yuma are AI layers that run on a helpdesk you buy separately.
- **General-purpose:** Chatbase from $305, Freshdesk from $664, Help Scout from $1,000, Intercom (Fin) from $1,264 and Zendesk from $1,990.
- **Built for ecommerce:** Commslayer $199, Richpanel from $516, Re:amaze from $1,107, Gorgias from $1,380, Siena from $1,830 plus your helpdesk and Yuma (quote only).
Every price below was checked on the vendor's own pricing page or Shopify App Store listing on October 30, 2026. In short:
- **Commslayer:** best for Shopify brands that want the AI agent included in the plan.
- **Richpanel:** best for a helpdesk priced per seat with no per-ticket fees, AI metered per conversation, and a returns product.
- **Re:amaze:** best for small teams that want low seat prices and month-to-month terms.
- **Zendesk:** best for large or multi-channel teams that need a general helpdesk with enterprise controls.
- **Freshdesk:** best for a low per-agent price on a general helpdesk.
- **Help Scout:** best for small email-first teams, with a free plan for up to 5 users.
- **Intercom (Fin):** best for chat-first support, or for adding Fin to a helpdesk you already run.
- **Chatbase:** best for a self-serve AI agent with a built-in helpdesk inbox, on a plan that includes message credits.
- **Siena:** best for keeping Gorgias or another helpdesk and adding a separate AI layer.
- **Yuma:** best for keeping Gorgias or Zendesk and adding an AI layer that bills only for tickets it fully resolves.
Very small stores that only need storefront chat can start with Shopify Inbox, which is free.
## Why brands leave Gorgias
These are the reasons Shopify merchants gave on our sales and demo calls between June and October 2026. These buyers were already shopping for an alternative, so this is not a survey of Gorgias customers. We kept only the reasons Gorgias's own pricing page, docs or terms back up.
The Gorgias plan cards on monthly billing with AI Agent added, which is the page default: each price is a Helpdesk line plus an AI Agent line. Captured October 30, 2026.
### The bill grows with your ticket count
Gorgias plans are sold in [ticket tiers](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing): Starter includes 50 tickets a month for $10, Basic 300 for $60, Pro 2,000 for $360 and Advanced 5,000 for $900 on monthly billing. Each extra ticket costs $0.40 on Starter and Basic and $0.36 on Pro and Advanced. Above 5,000 conversations a month, Gorgias points you to a custom Enterprise plan.
> "The pricing has just gotten a little bit out of control, especially for the number of tickets and customer emails and chats that we have come in." (Ecommerce manager, home goods brand)
### AI is billed per automated interaction
The Gorgias AI Agent is billed on its own line, at [$1.00 per automated interaction](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing) on a monthly contract and $0.90 on annual. Interactions past the plan's allowance cost $1.50 each. Each automated interaction also counts as one helpdesk ticket, so an AI-resolved conversation past both limits costs $1.86 to $1.90.
> "I don't want to pay for every shipping inquiry or where is my order." (Support lead, multi-brand beauty company)
### Extra channels are add-ons
The AI Agent is priced separately from the helpdesk plan. Voice and SMS are also [add-ons for any plan](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing), with pricing that scales with call and text volume. Brands told us they had switched off features they liked because each one raised the monthly bill.
### Annual plans are paid up front
Annual Gorgias plans are [billed up front for 12 months](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing), and Starter is the only plan sold monthly only. The [terms of service](https://www.gorgias.com/terms-of-service) renew a subscription for another term of the same length, ask for cancellation at least 30 days before the term ends, make fees non-refundable, and allow a renewal price increase with at least 60 days' notice. Merchants on annual plans told us they plan a switch around the renewal date.
> "We have paid Gorgias till the end of the year, so we can't cut it halfway." (Support lead, multi-brand beauty company)
### Setup takes time
Gorgias custom actions are built on a [visual canvas](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/create-an-action-for-ai-agent-567325), and the AI Agent needs its guidance and knowledge set up before it can answer well.
> "I couldn't set up myself the guidance and the knowledge for Gorgias." (Support manager, cosmetics brand)
### AI refunds run through cancel and item changes
The Gorgias [AI Agent has no standalone refund action](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/ai-agent-actions-make-changes-to-shopify-orders-757792), so refunds happen through cancel, remove item and replace item, and a cancel changes the order in Shopify only, not in a 3PL or fulfillment app.
## The 10 alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Price unit | AI pricing | Free plan or trial |
| -------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------- |
| Gorgias | Baseline | $10/mo (Starter, monthly only) | Ticket tier | $1.00 per automated interaction monthly, $0.90 annual, $1.50 over limit | 7-day trial |
| Commslayer | Shopify brands that want the AI agent included in the plan | Free; paid from $39/mo | Billable conversations, unlimited seats | Included in the plan; $0.075 per extra AI agent message | Free plan |
| Richpanel | Seat pricing, AI per conversation, returns | $69/agent/mo billed annually | Seat | About $0.20 per AI-handled conversation, $200/mo minimum on annual | 14-day trial on its Shopify App Store listing |
| Re:amaze | Low seat prices, no contract | $29/member/mo, or $26.10 annual | Seat | 5 to 20 resolutions per user included, then $0.85 each (beta) | 14-day trial |
| Zendesk | Large multi-channel teams | $19/agent/mo annual, $25 monthly | Agent | 5 or 10 resolutions per agent included, then $1.50 committed or $2.00 | 14-day trial |
| Freshdesk | Low per-agent price | $19/agent/mo billed annually | Agent | 500 sessions once per account, then $49 per 100 sessions | 14-day trial |
| Help Scout | Small email-first teams | Free; paid from $25/user/mo | User | $0.75 per resolution | Free plan for up to 5 users; 15-day trial |
| Intercom (Fin) | Chat-first support, or Fin on another helpdesk | $19/seat/mo annual, $29 monthly | Seat | $0.99 per outcome, with a monthly minimum | 14-day trial |
| Chatbase | Self-serve AI agent with a helpdesk inbox | $32/mo billed yearly; helpdesk inbox from $120 | Plan with seats and message credits | Credits per AI request, each lookup charged; then $40 per 1,000 | 7-day trial when bought direct |
| Siena | AI layer on top of your helpdesk | $750/mo platform fee, plus your helpdesk | Platform fee plus automated ticket | $0.90 per automated ticket | Not stated |
| Yuma | AI layer on your helpdesk, per resolved ticket | Quote only | Fully resolved ticket, plus your helpdesk | Per fully resolved ticket, rate by quote | 30-day trial on live tickets |
### Self-service portal, phone and Voice AI
| Tool | Self-service portal | Phone | Voice AI |
| -------------- | ---------------------------- | ------------------------ | ---------------------------- |
| Gorgias | ✓ Track, return, cancel | ✓ Voice add-on | ~ Third-party apps |
| Commslayer | ~ Orders, edits, help center | ✓ Per minute, paid plans | ✓ $0.20/min, paid plans |
| Richpanel | ✓ Included; returns add-on | ~ Aircall, Voice in beta | — |
| Re:amaze | ~ Help center only | ~ Via Aircall and others | — |
| Zendesk | ~ Help center only | ✓ Zendesk Voice | ✓ Zendesk Voice customers |
| Freshdesk | ~ Help center, tickets | ✓ Sold separately | ~ Third-party apps |
| Help Scout | ~ Help center, tickets | ~ Via Aircall | ✗ |
| Intercom (Fin) | ~ Help center only | ✓ Pay as you go | ~ Select customers via sales |
| Chatbase | ~ AI chat only | — | ✓ Basic and up |
| Siena | — | — | — |
| Yuma | — | ~ AI voice agent only | ✓ Quote only |
## 1. Commslayer: best for Shopify brands that want the AI agent included in the plan
Commslayer homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Commslayer](/) is a helpdesk and AI agent built only for Shopify, with email, live chat, Instagram and Facebook DMs and comments, WhatsApp and phone in one inbox.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** $199 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: Plus 3K covers 2,000 conversations and 2,400 AI agent messages.
**Compared with Gorgias.** With the AI resolving 60% of conversations, Commslayer costs $39, $199 and $499 at 300, 2,000 and 5,000 conversations a month, against Gorgias from $212, $1,380 and $3,450 on annual billing.
**AI pricing.** There is no per-resolution fee. The AI agent is part of the plan price, which works out to about $0.06 per AI resolution on Plus. Above the allowance, an extra conversation costs $0.15 and an extra AI agent message $0.075. You set a monthly spending cap for usage beyond the plan. It starts at $150 and can be set as low as $0, which stops all extra charges.
**Voice AI.** Commslayer's AI agent also answers inbound phone calls on a Commslayer number, with the same knowledge, actions and rules it uses on chat and email. It hands the caller to a teammate when needed, and every call gets a transcript and a summary. [Voice AI](/voice-ai-for-shopify) is available on current paid plans with Commslayer AI, not on the Free plan or bring-your-own-AI plans, at $0.20 a minute on top of the regular call rate, with each call rounded up to the next minute.
**What imports from Gorgias.** Commslayer imports Gorgias ticket history, contacts, tags, agents and response templates for free. The import runs in the background while Gorgias keeps handling tickets. Automations do not import and have to be rebuilt. See [how migration works](/migration).
**Time to import.** The Gorgias import takes about an hour. The [migration checklist](/migration) puts an import at an hour to a day, depending on how much history you have.
**Pricing.** The [Free plan](https://www.commslayer.com/pricing) includes 300 billable conversations, 300 AI agent messages and 300 AI drafts a month. Plus starts at $39 a month for 700 conversations and 1,400 AI agent messages, Scale starts at $299 for 4,500 conversations, and brands at 45,000 or more conversations a month get a custom plan. Every plan includes unlimited seats, and all plans are month to month. A billable conversation is one your team or the AI replied to. Bring-your-own-AI plans, without the Commslayer AI agent, start at $29 a month.
**Shopify depth.** The AI agent and your team can edit, cancel and refund orders, change shipping addresses and manage subscriptions across six subscription apps: Recharge, Loop, Skio, Appstle, Stay AI and Kaching. Refunds are a standalone action with merchant-set limits per refund and per day. Customers can also edit their own order on the thank-you page, in chat and on the order status page.
**Good at:**
- Unlimited custom reporting dashboards, shared per user, per team or with the whole account.
- Custom actions can be built by describing them to Claude through Commslayer's MCP, or with Draft with AI from a description, API docs or a curl command. An action can chain up to three HTTP steps and use OAuth 2.
**Watch out for:**
- Commslayer works with Shopify only.
- Its integration catalog is smaller than Gorgias's.
- There is no revenue attribution report and no Auto QA scoring.
- Custom actions have no visual builder with branching.
- SMS is not available.
**Shopify reviews:** Commslayer is rated 4.9 from 237 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/commslayer/reviews).
- 5 stars from [Squish Planet](https://apps.shopify.com/commslayer/reviews), United Arab Emirates, October 16, 2026: “These guys are the GOAT. They ship really fast. If you have a feature that you want, they will help you.”
- 1 star from [BUYBARBER.COM](https://apps.shopify.com/commslayer/reviews), United States, August 11, 2026: “Unfortunately, nobody showed up, and I received no communication letting me know they wouldn’t be attending.”
**Who should skip it:** brands that sell on platforms other than Shopify, or that depend on an integration Commslayer does not have.
## 2. Richpanel: best for a seat-priced helpdesk with per-conversation AI
Richpanel homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Richpanel](https://www.richpanel.com/) is a customer service platform for ecommerce brands, priced per human seat, with AI agents and a returns product sold alongside the helpdesk.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $516 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: 4 PRO seats at $69 + 1,200 AI conversations at about $0.20.
**Compared with Gorgias.** Richpanel bills per seat with no per-ticket fees and meters AI at about $0.20 per conversation, against $0.90 to $1.50 per automated interaction on Gorgias, but its plan cards are yearly contracts.
**Pricing.** Richpanel's [pricing page](https://www.richpanel.com/pricing) showed two sets of prices on October 30. The plan cards list PRO at $69 per agent a month and PRO MAX at $99, billed annually, and the page says all subscriptions are on yearly contracts. The same page also lists a helpdesk seat at $99 a month on annual or $119 monthly. Returns and Exchanges starts at $99 a month.
**AI pricing.** AI is bought in credits at $0.50 each on annual or $0.60 monthly, which Richpanel puts at about [$0.20 per AI-handled conversation](https://www.richpanel.com/ai-agents) on annual, with a $200 monthly minimum. Richpanel says a conversation the AI resolves is not billed again as a ticket. Its AI page says to confirm with sales what counts as a billable conversation.
**Shopify depth.** Richpanel's AI page says the AI can handle tracking, address edits, exchanges, store credit, cancellations, returns, and subscription skips and pauses with Shopify, Recharge, Loop and Skio. Each action has its own permission, and a refund waits for approval by default.
**Good at:**
- No per-ticket fees on the helpdesk.
- Per-action permissions, with approval before refunds.
- Its own returns and exchanges product.
**Watch out for:**
- Yearly contracts on the plan cards, and a $200 monthly AI minimum on annual.
- The pricing page offers a demo but no trial. Its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/customer-support) lists a 14-day trial, with PRO at $89 a month or $828 a year.
- Its [terms of service](https://www.richpanel.com/terms-of-service) make fees non-cancelable and non-refundable for the term, and allow a 6% renewal increase each year unless the order form says otherwise.
**Shopify reviews:** Richpanel is rated 4.9 from 136 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/customer-support/reviews).
- 5 stars from [Ekmiveda](https://apps.shopify.com/customer-support/reviews), United States, September 1, 2026: “Richpanel is an amazing tool for any D2C brand.”
- 2 stars from [Frankster](https://apps.shopify.com/customer-support/reviews), Australia, September 22, 2025: “First of all, it is way more expensive than you initially think it is. You need to pay for the Self-Service add-on.”
**Who should skip it:** brands that need monthly terms, unless Richpanel sales confirms them, since its plan cards say all subscriptions are yearly.
## 3. Re:amaze: best for small teams that want low seat prices and no contract
Re:amaze homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Re:amaze](https://www.reamaze.com/) is a helpdesk and live chat tool designed for ecommerce and online businesses, priced per team member, with an AI agent sold as a per-resolution add-on.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $1,107 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: 4 Basic seats at $26.10 + 1,180 resolutions at $0.85 after 20 included.
**Compared with Gorgias.** Re:amaze bills per team member instead of per ticket and sells month to month, but each AI resolution past the small allowance costs $0.85, close to the Gorgias annual rate of $0.90.
**Pricing.** [Basic costs $29](https://www.reamaze.com/pricing) per team member a month, Pro $49 and Plus $69, with 10% off on annual billing ($26.10, $44.10 and $62.10). Starter is a flat $59 a month for unlimited team members, capped at 500 responded conversations a month.
**AI pricing.** Each user gets 5 AI resolutions a month on Basic, 10 on Pro and 20 on Plus. Each extra resolution costs $0.85. The pricing page labels the AI agent as a beta.
**Shopify depth.** Re:amaze's [Shopify integration page](https://www.reamaze.com/integrations/shopify) lists refunding and cancelling an order and creating draft orders from the helpdesk. Admins can [set who may refund and cancel](https://www.reamaze.com/blog/new-shopify-and-reamaze-permissions-for-returns-and-refunds/).
**Good at:**
- No contracts and no cancellation fees.
- A 14-day trial with no credit card.
**Watch out for:**
- The AI agent is in beta, with a small included allowance.
- SMS and voice channels start at the Pro plan.
**Shopify reviews:** Re:amaze is rated 4.4 from 180 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/reamaze/reviews).
- 5 stars from [Eversio Wellness](https://apps.shopify.com/reamaze/reviews), Canada, June 9, 2026: “We have been using Re:amaze for over a year now and it has been a great tool for helping us help our customers efficiently.”
- 1 star from [EuroVan-shop](https://apps.shopify.com/reamaze/reviews), France, August 12, 2026: “Chat support seems to be full AI which cannot give clear answers.”
**Who should skip it:** brands that want the AI to handle most conversations, since every resolution past the small allowance costs $0.85.
## 4. Zendesk: best for large multi-channel teams that need enterprise controls
Zendesk homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Zendesk](https://www.zendesk.com/) is a general-purpose customer service platform used across industries, priced per agent, with AI agents billed per automated resolution.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $1,990 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: 4 Suite Team seats at $55 + 1,180 resolutions at $1.50 after 20 included (committed rate; pay as you go is $2.00).
**Compared with Gorgias.** Zendesk bills per agent instead of per ticket and works beyond Shopify, but each automated resolution past the allowance costs $1.50 on a commitment, above the Gorgias annual rate of $0.90.
**Pricing.** [Support Team costs $19](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/) per agent a month on annual billing or $25 monthly. Suite Team is $55 annual or $69 monthly, and Suite Professional is $115 annual or $149 monthly. Suite Enterprise is quoted by sales.
**AI pricing.** Support Team and Suite Team include 5 automated resolutions per agent a month, and Suite Professional includes 10. Past that, each automated resolution costs $1.50 on a commitment or $2.00 pay as you go. Copilot for human agents is a $50 per agent add-on on Professional and higher.
**Shopify depth.** Zendesk's [Shopify help article](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408837984026-Using-the-Shopify-integration-in-Support-and-Chat) says agents can view orders, refund in full or in part, and cancel unfulfilled orders from the ticket sidebar. An admin has to [turn refunds and cancellations on](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408820093850-Setting-up-the-Shopify-integration-for-Support-and-Chat), and the integration needs Zendesk Chat.
**Good at:**
- Monthly and annual billing on every published plan.
- Enterprise plans for large teams.
- A 14-day trial that includes Copilot.
**Watch out for:**
- Copilot costs an extra $50 per agent a month.
- Shopify cancellations work only on unfulfilled orders.
**Shopify reviews:** The Zendesk app is rated 3.2 from 95 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/zendesk/reviews). Its newest review with 4 or 5 stars is from 2022.
- 4 stars from [O’Neill](https://apps.shopify.com/zendesk/reviews), United States, March 31, 2022: “Answering tickets has become much more seamless since using the Shopify integration.”
- 1 star from [The Artists Quarter](https://apps.shopify.com/zendesk/reviews), United Kingdom, September 30, 2026: “Unfortunately, the setup experience was so poor that I gave up.”
**Who should skip it:** small Shopify teams that want order actions to work out of the box with little setup.
## 5. Freshdesk: best for a low per-agent price on a general helpdesk
Freshdesk homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Freshdesk](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/) is the Freshworks helpdesk for multi-channel support teams, priced per agent, with the Freddy AI agent billed per session.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $664 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: 4 Growth seats at $19 + 12 blocks of 100 sessions at $49 (after the one-time 500; handovers add sessions).
**Compared with Gorgias.** Freshdesk bills per agent and sells AI in blocks of 100 sessions at $49, or $0.49 a session, but a session is billed whether or not the AI resolves it.
**Pricing.** [Growth costs $19](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/) per agent a month, Pro $55 and Enterprise $89, all billed annually. The page does not show monthly-billed prices.
**AI pricing.** Each account gets 500 Freddy AI Agent sessions once, then pays $49 per 100 sessions. An email session is a 72-hour window from the customer's first email, and every AI reply in that window counts as one session. Freddy AI Copilot is a $29 per agent add-on on Pro and Enterprise.
**Shopify depth.** The [Freshworks Shopify app](https://crmsupport.freshworks.com/support/solutions/articles/195382-the-shopify-app) lets agents view orders, cancel an order before it is fulfilled, and refund in full or in part. Its doc does not describe editing orders. Setup means creating a custom app in the Shopify Dev Dashboard, and we found no Freshdesk listing on the Shopify App Store.
**Good at:**
- A $19 per agent entry price on annual billing, the same as Zendesk Support Team and Intercom Essential.
- Several Shopify stores in one account.
**Watch out for:**
- Sessions are billed whether or not the AI resolves the conversation.
- The [Freshworks terms](https://www.freshworks.com/terms/) do not let you reduce users or downgrade during a term, and payments are non-cancelable and non-refundable except as the agreement permits.
- The Shopify connection is a custom app you set up yourself.
**Shopify reviews:** Freshdesk has no app of its own on the Shopify App Store, so there are no reviews to quote.
**Who should skip it:** brands that want the AI to edit orders, or that want a Shopify-native install.
## 6. Help Scout: best for small email-first teams
Help Scout homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Help Scout](https://www.helpscout.com/) is a shared inbox and help center for small support teams, priced per user, with AI Answers billed per resolution.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $1,000 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: 4 Standard seats at $25 + 1,200 resolutions at $0.75.
**Compared with Gorgias.** Help Scout bills per user and charges $0.75 per AI resolution, below the Gorgias annual rate of $0.90, with a monthly spending cap you set.
**Pricing.** The [Free plan](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) covers up to 5 users, one inbox and 100 contacts a month. Standard costs $25 per user a month, Plus $45 and Pro $75, with Pro requiring at least 10 users. The page does not say whether those prices are monthly or annual, and its annual toggle, which is on by default, shows a 16% discount.
**AI pricing.** AI Answers costs $0.75 per resolution, charged once per conversation, and a resolution counts only when the customer does not escalate or ask for more help. You can set a monthly spending cap. New accounts get three months of unlimited AI Answers resolutions free.
**Shopify depth.** Help Scout's [Shopify doc](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/294-shopify) says agents can refund, cancel, edit or duplicate a customer's most recent orders from the sidebar, and see lifetime and average order value.
**Good at:**
- A free plan.
- A spending cap on AI Answers.
- Refund, cancel and edit from the sidebar.
**Watch out for:**
- The Free plan caps contacts at 100 a month and allows one integration.
- Its [terms of service](https://www.helpscout.com/terms-of-service/) give no refunds for partial months or annual payments after the first 30 days.
**Shopify reviews:** The Help Scout app is rated 3.7 from 19 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/help-scout/reviews).
- 5 stars from [Del Mar Laboratories](https://apps.shopify.com/help-scout/reviews), United States, March 6, 2024: “Friendly user”
- 2 stars from [Matchatori](https://apps.shopify.com/help-scout/reviews), Sweden, July 15, 2026: “Not possible to install the Beacon using the app.”
**Who should skip it:** brands that need public social comments and phone handled in one place with an AI agent doing most of the work.
## 7. Intercom (Fin): best for chat-first support or adding Fin to another helpdesk
Intercom homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Intercom](https://www.intercom.com/) is a messenger-led customer service platform, priced per seat, with the Fin AI agent billed per outcome on every plan or on its own.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $1,264 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: 4 Essential seats at $19 + 1,200 outcomes at $0.99 (Fin has a monthly minimum).
**Compared with Gorgias.** Intercom bills per seat and charges $0.99 per Fin outcome, above the Gorgias annual rate of $0.90, and it cannot cancel orders from the inbox.
**Pricing.** [Essential costs $19](https://www.intercom.com/pricing) per seat a month on annual billing or $29 monthly. Advanced is $85 and Expert $132 per seat a month; the page does not say whether those are annual or monthly. The [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/intercom) shows higher prices ($39, $99 and $139 monthly). Multiple team inboxes and the workflow builder start at Advanced.
**AI pricing.** Fin costs $0.99 per outcome, with a monthly minimum, and is charged once per conversation. An outcome counts when the customer confirms a resolution, stops asking for help after Fin replies, or Fin completes a workflow, handoffs included.
**Shopify depth.** Intercom's [Shopify doc](https://www.intercom.com/help/en/articles/14738005-manage-shopify-orders-from-the-intercom-inbox) lets agents refund line items, shipping or both, with the amount calculated from the items. Cancelling is not available in the inbox, and editing works only through a replacement order or a draft order.
**Good at:**
- Fin works standalone on top of an existing helpdesk, with no seat fees.
- No contract on the self-serve plans.
- Several Shopify stores in one workspace.
**Watch out for:**
- Orders cannot be cancelled from the inbox.
- Its [terms](https://www.intercom.com/legal/terms-and-policies) allow Intercom to move plans to the current list price at renewal.
**Shopify reviews:** The Fin AI Agent & Intercom app is rated 3.7 from 18 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/fin/reviews).
- 5 stars from [Premier Fabrics](https://apps.shopify.com/fin/reviews), United States, August 29, 2025: “Intercom’s Shopify app has been a game-changer for our customer experience.”
- 1 star from [Little Formula](https://apps.shopify.com/fin/reviews), Germany, August 19, 2026: “they just launched an update. Now nothing is working on shopify. No widget showing, no chat available”
**Who should skip it:** brands whose tickets are mostly order changes and cancellations.
## 8. Chatbase: best for a self-serve AI agent with a built-in helpdesk inbox
Chatbase homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Chatbase](https://www.chatbase.co/) is a general-purpose platform for building AI agents for customer support across chat, email and voice. Its [helpdesk](https://www.chatbase.co/features/helpdesk) adds a human inbox: tickets get statuses, assignment and notes, the AI can open a ticket for a teammate to follow up by email, and a teammate can step into a live chat, which pauses the AI.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $305 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: Basic, 3 seats + 1 extra seat at $25, 4,000 credits + 4,000 extra at $40 per 1,000; from $145 on its cheapest model with no order lookups.
**Compared with Gorgias.** Chatbase includes message credits in its plan price, then $40 per 1,000 extra, instead of billing per interaction, but its Shopify actions do not include refunds, cancellations or order edits.
**Pricing.** The [pricing page](https://www.chatbase.co/pricing) shows yearly prices: Hobby at $32 a month, Basic at $120 and Business at $400, against $40, $150 and $500 billed monthly on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/chatbase). The helpdesk inbox and voice start on Basic, and Enterprise is quoted by sales. Hobby includes 2 seats, Basic 3 and Business 5. Each extra seat is an add-on at $25 a month, or $300 a year on yearly plans, listed in its [workspace settings docs](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/user-guides/workspace/settings) and not on the plan cards. Installing through the Shopify App Store allows only the credit auto-recharge add-on.
**AI pricing.** Each plan includes message credits every month: 700 on Hobby, 4,000 on Basic and 15,000 on Business. When the balance runs low, auto-recharge buys more at $40 per 1,000 credits. Its [FAQ](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/faq/faq#how-do-message-credits-work) says each AI reply uses credits by model: 1 on its most economical models, 2 on most mainstream ones such as Claude 5.5 Sonnet, GPT-5.2 and Gemini 3.1 Pro, 4 on GPT-5.5 and 5 on Claude 5.5 Opus. Credits are spent per AI request, and an action such as an order lookup is a request of its own, so a lookup and a reply use credits twice. Commslayer counts the AI's replies and its write actions, such as a refund, a cancellation or an address change, as AI agent messages, and does not count lookups such as order status, tracking or product search.
**Shopify depth.** Chatbase's [Shopify docs](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/user-guides/integrations/shopify) list looking up products and orders, updating a cart, creating an order or an exchange, starting a return, updating a customer's profile and billing address, and tagging an order. Refunds, cancellations and edits to an existing order are not in that list. Installing through the Shopify App Store bills through Shopify, allows one AI agent and has no free trial. Chatbase can also [answer or escalate Zendesk tickets](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/user-guides/integrations/zendesk); the docs we checked do not mention Gorgias.
**Good at:**
- A low entry price, with message credits included in the plan.
- A built-in helpdesk inbox where a teammate can take over a live chat.
- Self-serve setup with a 7-day trial.
**Watch out for:**
- The Shopify actions in its docs do not include refunds, cancellations or order edits.
- Credit use per request depends on the model, from 1 to 5 credits, and every order lookup is a request, so the bill moves with the model you pick and the lookups the AI makes.
- The helpdesk inbox starts on Basic, and Basic includes 3 seats. Each extra seat is a $25 a month add-on that the plan cards do not show.
- Optional add-ons cost extra: removing the Powered by Chatbase branding is $99 a month ($1,188 a year), an extra AI agent $25 a month, and extra storage $25 a month per 10 MB. Custom domains are Enterprise only.
- Its [terms](https://www.chatbase.co/legal/terms) make payment obligations non-cancellable and fees non-refundable.
**Shopify reviews:** Chatbase is rated 4.9 from 39 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/chatbase/reviews).
- 5 stars from [King Apparel](https://apps.shopify.com/chatbase/reviews), Pakistan, October 28, 2026: “Chatbase makes customer support more efficient with its AI-powered chatbot.”
- 2 stars from [Flush Packaging](https://apps.shopify.com/chatbase/reviews), United States, May 12, 2026: “Model worked ok but needed assistance training and onboarding. No demo or support aside from email available.”
**Who should skip it:** brands whose tickets are mostly refunds, cancellations and order edits.
## 9. Siena: best for keeping your helpdesk and adding an AI layer
Siena homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Siena](https://www.siena.cx/) is an AI agent for consumer brands that runs on top of an existing helpdesk such as Gorgias, Zendesk, Intercom, Kustomer, Dixa or Gladly, rather than replacing it.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** From $1,830 a month with 4 seats and 60% resolved by AI: $750 platform fee + 1,200 tickets at $0.90, on top of your helpdesk.
**Compared with Gorgias.** Siena does not replace Gorgias: it adds a $750 platform fee and $0.90 per automated ticket on top of the Gorgias bill.
**Pricing.** The [pricing page](https://www.siena.cx/pricing) lists a $750 a month platform fee, and implementation is priced on request. The page also says pricing is tailored, so treat these figures as a starting point.
**AI pricing.** Siena charges $0.90 per automated ticket on top of the platform fee. The page does not define what counts as an automated ticket.
**Shopify depth.** Siena's [Shopify page](https://www.siena.cx/integrations/shopify) says its agent can cancel orders, process refunds, send replacements, edit orders and update shipping addresses. We found no Siena listing on the Shopify App Store.
**Good at:**
- You keep your current helpdesk, history and workflows.
- It works with [six helpdesks](https://www.siena.cx/integrations), Gorgias included.
**Watch out for:**
- You still pay for the helpdesk underneath, including its ticket charges.
- The pricing page states no contract terms, minimums or trial.
**Shopify reviews:** We found no Siena app on the Shopify App Store, so there are no reviews to quote.
**Who should skip it:** brands that are leaving Gorgias because of the total bill, since Siena adds a second bill on top.
## 10. Yuma: best for an AI layer on Gorgias or Zendesk billed per resolved ticket
Yuma homepage. Captured October 30, 2026.
[Yuma](https://yuma.ai/) is an AI agent for ecommerce support that runs on top of the helpdesk you already have rather than replacing it. Its [FAQ](https://yuma.ai/faq) names nine, including Gorgias, Zendesk, Kustomer, Gladly and Re:amaze.
**Cost at 2,000 conversations.** Quote only: Yuma prices per resolved ticket and doesn’t publish the rate.
**Compared with Gorgias.** Yuma does not replace Gorgias: it runs on top of it and bills each fully resolved ticket at a quoted rate, on top of the Gorgias bill.
**Pricing.** Yuma publishes no prices. Its [pricing page](https://yuma.ai/pricing) says you pay for the conversations its AI fully resolves, and the FAQ says the price depends on ticket volume, workflows, channel mix and implementation, so you ask for a quote. Every contract starts with a free 30-day trial on live tickets against an agreed automation target.
**AI pricing.** Yuma bills per fully resolved ticket, and tickets it escalates or does not resolve are not charged. The rate is quoted, and the pages we checked do not define a fully resolved ticket.
**Shopify depth.** Yuma's [Shopify page](https://yuma.ai/integrations/shopify) lists searching, tagging, cancelling, refunding (in full, in part or by percentage) and reshipping orders, changing line items and notes, and sending invoices. It names Recharge and Skio as subscription integrations without saying what it does in them.
**Good at:**
- Built only for ecommerce, with named Shopify refund, cancel and reship actions.
- You pay only for tickets it fully resolves, after a 30-day trial on live tickets.
- You keep your current helpdesk, Gorgias included.
**Watch out for:**
- There is no public price; every price is a quote.
- You still pay for the helpdesk underneath, including its ticket charges.
- Contract length, renewal and cancellation terms are not published.
**Shopify reviews:** Yuma is rated 5.0 from 9 reviews on its [Shopify App Store listing](https://apps.shopify.com/yuma/reviews). All nine reviews have 5 stars, so there is no critical review to quote.
- 5 stars from [Uproot Clean](https://apps.shopify.com/yuma/reviews), United States, June 23, 2026: “Our biggest concern with AI support was whether it could actually handle WISMO tickets accurately. That’s where Yuma has been really impressive.”
**Who should skip it:** brands that are leaving Gorgias because of the total bill, since Yuma adds a second bill on top, and stores that want a self-serve tool.
### A note on Shopify Inbox for very small stores
[Shopify Inbox](https://apps.shopify.com/inbox) is a free storefront chat app made by Shopify, with an opt-in AI agent that answers from your catalog and policies. Its [help page](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/inbox) describes storefront chat and does not cover email, social channels or order actions. It suits a store that needs live chat and nothing else.
## What each alternative costs
The numbers below use these assumptions, the same for every tool:
- **Volumes:** 300, 2,000 and 5,000 support conversations a month.
- **Seats:** 2 seats at 300 conversations, 4 at 2,000 and 8 at 5,000. Commslayer includes unlimited seats, Chatbase plans include 3 or 5 and sell extra seats, and Gorgias and Siena do not price per seat.
- **AI share:** the AI fully resolves 60% of conversations, which is 180, 1,200 and 3,000. Each one counts as one unit of that vendor's AI meter, except Commslayer, counted at 2 AI agent messages per conversation, and Chatbase, counted at 2 replies and 1 order lookup per conversation at 2 credits each. Any included allowance is subtracted first.
- **Metering:** Chatbase charges credits for every AI request, including each order lookup. Commslayer counts only the AI's replies and its write actions, not lookups.
- **Billing:** the lowest published price, which is annual where a vendor offers it. Commslayer has no annual plan.
- **Order:** rows are sorted by the 2,000-conversation column, lowest first. Yuma, which we could not price this way, comes last.
| Tool | Billing basis | 300 conversations | 2,000 conversations | 5,000 conversations |
| ----------------- | ------------------------------------- | ----------------- | ------------------- | ------------------- |
| Commslayer | Monthly | $39 | $199 | $499 |
| Chatbase | Annual, Basic or Business | from $120 | from $305 | from $595 |
| Richpanel | Annual contract | from $338 | from $516 | from $1,152 |
| Freshdesk | Annual, Growth | from $136 | from $664 | from $1,622 |
| Help Scout | Annual toggle, Standard | from $185 | from $1,000 | from $2,450 |
| Re:amaze | Annual, Basic | from $197 | from $1,107 | from $2,725 |
| Intercom (Fin) | Annual, Essential | from $216 | from $1,264 | from $3,122 |
| Gorgias (annual) | Annual, paid up front | from $212 | from $1,380 | from $3,450 |
| Gorgias (monthly) | Monthly | from $240 | from $1,560 | from $3,900 |
| Siena | Platform fee, plus your helpdesk | from $912 | from $1,830 | from $3,450 |
| Zendesk | Annual, Suite Team, committed AI rate | from $365 | from $1,990 | from $4,880 |
| Yuma | Quote only, plus your helpdesk | Quote | Quote | Quote |
Of the tools we could price, Commslayer costs the least at all three volumes. Chatbase is next at each (from $120, $305 and $595), and Hobby, its $32 plan, is left out because it has no helpdesk inbox. Of the others, Freshdesk is lowest at 300 conversations (from $136), and Richpanel at 2,000 and 5,000 (from $516 and $1,152) because of its $0.20 AI rate. Siena's figures come on top of the helpdesk it runs on, and so would Yuma's.
How each row was worked out:
- **Commslayer:** the cheapest plan that covers the conversations and two AI agent messages per AI-resolved conversation: Plus 700 at 300, Plus 3K at 2,000 and Scale 7.5K at 5,000. AI replies in conversations handed to a teammate are not counted, so this is a floor.
- **Gorgias:** the plan that covers the tickets, plus each AI-resolved conversation at $0.90 annual or $1.00 monthly, as in our [Commslayer vs Gorgias](/compare/commslayer-vs-gorgias) article.
- **Richpanel:** $69 PRO seats plus $0.20 per AI conversation, with the $200 monthly minimum at 300. The $99 helpdesk seat on the same page would add $30 per seat.
- **Re:amaze:** $26.10 Basic seats, 5 included resolutions per seat, then $0.85.
- **Zendesk:** $55 Suite Team seats, which include chat, 5 included resolutions per agent, then $1.50 committed. Pay as you go at $2.00 costs more.
- **Freshdesk:** $19 Growth seats plus $49 per 100 sessions, billed in blocks of 100 sessions, after the one-time 500 are used. Sessions that end in a handover would add to this. Growth's listed features do not include live chat, so a chat channel may need a higher plan or another Freshworks product.
- **Help Scout:** $25 Standard seats plus $0.75 per resolution, before the three free months for new accounts.
- **Intercom:** $19 Essential seats plus $0.99 per outcome.
- **Siena:** the $750 platform fee plus $0.90 per automated ticket, with no helpdesk cost added. The page says pricing is tailored, so these are starting points.
- **Chatbase:** Basic or Business, whichever is cheaper once the missing seats are bought at $25 each and the missing credits at $40 per 1,000. Hobby is left out because it has no helpdesk inbox. Each AI-resolved conversation is counted as 2 replies and 1 order lookup at 2 credits each, the rate its [FAQ](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/faq/faq#how-do-message-credits-work) gives for mainstream models. On its most economical models (1 credit) with no lookups, the bill starts at $145 at 2,000 conversations. AI replies in conversations handed to a teammate are not counted, so this is a floor.
- **Yuma:** not modeled, because every price is a quote.
None of these figures includes tax, add-ons such as Copilot, implementation, or quote-only plans.
## When Gorgias is still the right call
Gorgias is stable and has a deep feature set. It is still the better fit if one of these is true:
- **You sell on more than Shopify.** The Gorgias helpdesk [supports other commerce platforms](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing), and Commslayer does not.
- **You use revenue attribution or Auto QA.** Gorgias reports [revenue attributed to support](https://helpcenter.gorgias.com/en-US/revenue-statistics-81744) and [scores ticket quality automatically](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/review-ticket-quality-in-the-auto-qa-report-861072). Commslayer has neither.
- **You build actions on a visual canvas.** The Gorgias [action builder](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/create-an-action-for-ai-agent-567325) has branching, conditions and connected-app steps.
- **Your volume is low.** At 300 conversations a month, Gorgias costs from $212 on annual billing, $173 more than Commslayer and close to Re:amaze, Help Scout and Intercom.
- **You depend on a specific integration.** Gorgias lists [254 app integrations](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing), so check that the ones you use exist on the tool you move to.
## How to choose a Gorgias alternative
Start with how the tool bills its AI, since the AI meter decides most of the cost once the AI handles a large share of conversations:
- **AI included in the plan:** Commslayer, and Chatbase as message credits.
- **AI per conversation or session at a low rate:** Richpanel at about $0.20 and Freshdesk at $0.49 per session.
- **AI per resolution, outcome or automated ticket at $0.75 to $2.00:** Help Scout, Re:amaze, Siena, Intercom and Zendesk.
- **AI per fully resolved ticket at a quoted rate:** Yuma.
Then check three things on your own tickets during the trial:
- **Order actions.** Test refunds, cancellations and address changes on real orders. Intercom cannot cancel from the inbox, Zendesk and Freshdesk cancel only unfulfilled orders, and Gorgias's AI refunds only through cancel and item changes.
- **Contract terms.** Richpanel's plan cards say all subscriptions are yearly. Gorgias, Commslayer, Re:amaze, Zendesk, Intercom and Chatbase sell monthly plans, and Gorgias annual plans are paid up front.
- **Seats.** A seat-priced tool gets more expensive each time you hire.
## Switching from Gorgias
For most brands, the migration is the biggest risk in a switch. Your ticket history, open conversations and integrations all have to come across, ideally away from your busiest season. Import your history while Gorgias keeps handling tickets, then move new tickets over in one cutover, and cancel Gorgias after the new tool has handled real tickets.
Commslayer imports Gorgias ticket history, contacts, tags, agents and response templates for free, in the background, while your team keeps working.
## Frequently asked questions
### What is the best Gorgias alternative for Shopify?
Commslayer is the best Gorgias alternative for most Shopify brands: AI agent included, $199 a month at 2,000 conversations vs $1,380 on Gorgias. Commslayer is our product. Richpanel is the closest seat-priced option, and Siena or Yuma suit brands that want to keep Gorgias and add AI on top.
### Is there a cheaper Gorgias alternative?
Yes. At 2,000 conversations a month with the AI resolving 60%, Commslayer costs $199, Chatbase from $305 and Richpanel from $516, against Gorgias from $1,380 on annual billing. Freshdesk, Help Scout, Re:amaze and Intercom also cost less than Gorgias at that volume.
### How much does Gorgias cost in 2026?
Gorgias costs $10 a month for 50 tickets on Starter, $60 for 300 on Basic, $360 for 2,000 on Pro and $900 for 5,000 on Advanced on monthly billing, or $50, $300 and $750 a month for Basic, Pro and Advanced billed annually. Extra tickets cost $0.40 on Starter and Basic and $0.36 on Pro and Advanced, and the AI Agent is billed on its own line. At 2,000 conversations with the AI resolving 60%, the Gorgias bill starts at $1,380 a month on annual billing. Above 5,000 tickets a month, Gorgias points you to a custom Enterprise plan.
### How much does the Gorgias AI Agent cost?
The Gorgias AI Agent costs $1.00 per automated interaction on a monthly contract and $0.90 on annual, and $1.50 for each interaction past the plan's allowance. Each automated interaction also counts as one helpdesk ticket. At 2,000 conversations with 60% resolved by AI, that is 1,200 interactions, or $1,080 a month at the annual rate on top of the $300 Pro plan.
### Is Gorgias worth it?
Gorgias is worth it if you sell on more than Shopify, use its revenue attribution or Auto QA, build AI actions on its visual canvas, or depend on one of its 254 app integrations. At low volume its price is close to other helpdesks: at 300 conversations it costs from $212 a month on annual billing. The AI meter is what grows the bill: at 2,000 conversations with 60% resolved by AI, it starts at $1,380 against $199 for Commslayer.
### Can I keep Gorgias and add AI?
Yes. Siena lists Gorgias among the helpdesks it runs on, at a $750 a month platform fee plus $0.90 per automated ticket. Yuma also runs on Gorgias and bills per fully resolved ticket at a quoted rate. Intercom's Fin also runs on top of other helpdesks at $0.99 per outcome with a monthly minimum, so ask Intercom whether it supports Gorgias. Gorgias keeps billing its tickets underneath.
### Which Gorgias alternatives have a free plan?
Commslayer has a free plan with 300 billable conversations and 300 AI agent messages a month. Help Scout has a free plan for up to 5 users and 100 contacts a month. Shopify Inbox is free for storefront chat.
### Which Gorgias alternative has no annual contract?
Commslayer is month to month only. Re:amaze offers month-to-month billing with no cancellation fees, and Intercom's self-serve plans need no contract. Richpanel's plan cards say all subscriptions are on yearly contracts.
### Which Gorgias alternatives have Voice AI that answers phone calls?
Commslayer, Zendesk, Chatbase and Yuma have an AI agent that answers phone calls, and Intercom offers [Fin Voice](https://fin.ai/pricing) to select customers through sales, with no public price. Commslayer's AI agent answers inbound calls on current paid plans with Commslayer AI, at $0.20 a minute on top of the regular call rate. Zendesk's [voice AI agents](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/11183058023450-Announcing-the-general-availability-of-voice-AI-agents) became generally available in September 2026 for Zendesk Voice customers, billed per automated resolution plus telephony and AI connection time. Chatbase includes voice on its Basic plan and above, and Yuma prices its [voice agent](https://yuma.ai/blogs/yuma-ai-launches-yuma-voice-ai) by quote.
[Gorgias Voice](https://www.gorgias.com/products/voice) is a phone channel for your team with AI call summaries and transcripts, and an AI phone agent needs a third-party app. Freshdesk's phone product connects to [third-party voice AI](https://crmsupport.freshworks.com/support/solutions/articles/50000011867-voice-ai-agent-integration-in-freshcaller) billed by those vendors. We found no AI voice agent for Help Scout or Re:amaze. We could not verify Richpanel or Siena: Richpanel's own pages disagree, and Siena's [funding announcement](https://www.siena.cx/blog/siena-raises-17m-series-a) puts voice on its roadmap.
### Which Gorgias alternatives have a self-service portal for shoppers?
Gorgias and Richpanel have a shopper-facing portal with order tracking and returns, and Commslayer has one for tracking and changing orders, without self-serve returns. The Gorgias [order management flows](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/help-center-order-management-248409) let shoppers track an order and request a return or a cancellation from chat, the help center or a contact form. Richpanel's [self-service portal](https://www.richpanel.com/self-service) covers order tracking, eligible order changes, connected subscriptions and a guided return flow, with [returns and exchanges](https://richpanel.com/self-service/returns-exchanges) sold as a paid add-on.
Commslayer's customer portal runs on the store's own domain. Shoppers sign in with their Shopify account or look up an order by number and email, then see tracking, change the shipping address, contact details, quantity or variant, cancel within the store's order-editing rules, and search the help center. Self-serve returns and subscription changes are not part of it.
Re:amaze, Zendesk and Intercom offer a help center, Freshdesk a help center and a ticket portal, and Help Scout a help center and a [customer portal](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1777-set-up-and-manage-customer-portal) for past conversations, and we found no shopper portal for order tracking or returns. Intercom's Fin, like Chatbase's AI agent, tracks orders in chat, and Chatbase has no portal. We could not verify a portal for Siena or Yuma, which run on a helpdesk you buy separately.
### Which Gorgias alternatives have built-in phone support?
Commslayer, Zendesk and Intercom have a phone system of their own, Gorgias sells Voice as an add-on, and Freshdesk sells one separately as Freshdesk Contact Center. Commslayer's phone runs in the inbox on numbers you buy or port in, with an IVR menu that routes callers to teams, voicemail, call recordings, transcripts and AI call summaries, billed per minute plus a monthly fee per number on current paid plans. [Gorgias Voice](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/voice-add-on-101-190713) is an add-on for any plan with IVR menus, queues, voicemail, recordings and transcripts. [Zendesk Voice](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408846483482) adds numbers, recording, voicemail and transcription billed by usage, [Intercom Phone](https://www.intercom.com/help/en/articles/8488907-intercom-phone-explained) has IVR, voicemail and recordings on pay-as-you-go rates, and [Freshdesk Contact Center](https://www.freshworks.com/freshcaller-cloud-pbx/) adds IVR, call routing, recordings and transcripts.
Richpanel connects phone through [Aircall](https://www.richpanel.com/integrations/aircall), and its own [Richpanel Voice](https://updates.richpanel.com/richpanel-voice-phone-calls-built-into-your-helpdesk-347406) is described as a beta. Help Scout connects [Aircall](https://helpscout.com/help-desk-integration/aircall), and Re:amaze connects [Aircall, RingCentral, JustCall and others](https://reamaze.godaddy.com/kb/channel-settings/voice-channels-aircall-ringcentral-justcall). [Yuma Voice](https://yuma.ai/voice-ai-agent) is an AI agent that answers calls rather than a phone system for your team. We could not verify a phone channel for your team on Chatbase or Siena.
### Can I move my ticket history out of Gorgias?
Yes. Commslayer imports Gorgias ticket history, contacts, tags, agents and response templates for free. Other vendors have their own importers, so ask each one what carries over and whether open tickets stay open.
## Methodology
This list compares helpdesks and AI agents that Shopify brands evaluate as a Gorgias replacement. Commslayer is first because it is our product and because it is the cheapest full helpdesk in the cost table at all three volumes. No vendor paid to be listed, and Commslayer facts come from our pricing page and production code. The rest are ordered by how close each one is to a like-for-like Gorgias replacement for a Shopify brand. Full helpdesks with native Shopify order actions and an AI agent come first, general-purpose helpdesks next, then Chatbase, a general-purpose AI agent builder with a helpdesk inbox whose Shopify actions do not include refunds or cancellations, and the AI layers that need a separate helpdesk last. In the cost table, which assumes the AI resolves 60% of conversations, Commslayer is lowest at 300, 2,000 and 5,000 conversations among the tools we could price. Where it falls short is coverage: it works with Shopify only, its integration catalog is smaller than Gorgias's, it has no revenue attribution, Auto QA or SMS, and custom actions have no visual builder with branching.
Where a vendor's own pages disagreed, we used the lower price and said so. Each tool's section opens with its homepage as it looked on October 30, 2026, captured at 1440 by 900 pixels in US English after closing any cookie banner. The Gorgias pricing capture shows the page's default view on the same day.
For the reviewer quotes, we opened each tool's Shopify App Store listing on October 30, 2026, recorded its rating and review count, and quoted the newest English review with readable text rated 4 or 5 stars and the newest rated 1 or 2 stars, falling back to 3 stars when there was none. Excerpts are verbatim and may be cut short. The Zendesk listing is its Shopify integration app and the Intercom listing is Fin AI Agent & Intercom. Freshdesk has no app of its own on the Shopify App Store, and we found none for Siena.
For the posts on X, we gathered posts that name each tool, checked every one against the live post on October 30, 2026, and kept at most one positive and one critical post per tool: the newest dated 2024 or later that gives a reason, from a merchant where one exists and, on a rival's card, not written in answer to a Commslayer post. Gorgias gets up to three critical and two positive posts, picked by hand, and every excerpt is verbatim and may be cut short.
Quotes from our sales and demo calls are anonymized to a role and type of brand.
### Sources
- [Gorgias pricing](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias terms of service](https://www.gorgias.com/terms-of-service), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on Shopify actions in the ticket sidebar](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/shopify-actions-461552), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on AI Agent actions that change Shopify orders](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/ai-agent-actions-make-changes-to-shopify-orders-757792), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on creating an action for AI Agent](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/create-an-action-for-ai-agent-567325), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on revenue statistics](https://helpcenter.gorgias.com/en-US/revenue-statistics-81744), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on the Auto QA report](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/review-ticket-quality-in-the-auto-qa-report-861072), checked 2026-10-30
- [Commslayer pricing](https://www.commslayer.com/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel pricing](https://www.richpanel.com/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel AI agents](https://www.richpanel.com/ai-agents), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel terms of service](https://www.richpanel.com/terms-of-service), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/customer-support), checked 2026-10-30
- [Re:amaze homepage](https://www.reamaze.com/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Re:amaze pricing](https://www.reamaze.com/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Re:amaze Shopify integration](https://www.reamaze.com/integrations/shopify), checked 2026-10-30
- [Re:amaze blog post on Shopify refund and return permissions](https://www.reamaze.com/blog/new-shopify-and-reamaze-permissions-for-returns-and-refunds/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk pricing](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk help article on using the Shopify integration in Support and Chat](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408837984026-Using-the-Shopify-integration-in-Support-and-Chat), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk help article on setting up the Shopify integration for Support and Chat](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408820093850-Setting-up-the-Shopify-integration-for-Support-and-Chat), checked 2026-10-30
- [Freshdesk pricing](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Freshworks help article on the Shopify app](https://crmsupport.freshworks.com/support/solutions/articles/195382-the-shopify-app), checked 2026-10-30
- [Freshworks terms](https://www.freshworks.com/terms/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout documentation on the Shopify integration](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/294-shopify), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout terms of service](https://www.helpscout.com/terms-of-service/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Intercom pricing](https://www.intercom.com/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Intercom help article on managing Shopify orders from the inbox](https://www.intercom.com/help/en/articles/14738005-manage-shopify-orders-from-the-intercom-inbox), checked 2026-10-30
- [Intercom terms](https://www.intercom.com/legal/terms-and-policies), checked 2026-10-30
- [Intercom on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/intercom), checked 2026-10-30
- [Siena pricing](https://www.siena.cx/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Siena integrations](https://www.siena.cx/integrations), checked 2026-10-30
- [Siena Shopify integration](https://www.siena.cx/integrations/shopify), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase homepage](https://www.chatbase.co/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase helpdesk](https://www.chatbase.co/features/helpdesk), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase pricing](https://www.chatbase.co/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase documentation on the Shopify integration](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/user-guides/integrations/shopify), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase documentation on the Zendesk integration](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/user-guides/integrations/zendesk), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase FAQ on how message credits work](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/faq/faq#how-do-message-credits-work), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase documentation on workspace settings and add-ons](https://www.chatbase.co/docs/user-guides/workspace/settings), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase terms of service](https://www.chatbase.co/legal/terms), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma homepage](https://yuma.ai/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma pricing](https://yuma.ai/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma FAQ](https://yuma.ai/faq), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma Shopify integration](https://yuma.ai/integrations/shopify), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel homepage](https://www.richpanel.com/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk homepage](https://www.zendesk.com/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Freshdesk homepage](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout homepage](https://www.helpscout.com/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Intercom homepage](https://www.intercom.com/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Siena homepage](https://www.siena.cx/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Commslayer reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/commslayer/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/customer-support/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Re:amaze reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/reamaze/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/zendesk/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/help-scout/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Fin AI Agent & Intercom reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/fin/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/chatbase), checked 2026-10-30
- [Chatbase reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/chatbase/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma reviews on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/yuma/reviews), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias Voice](https://www.gorgias.com/products/voice), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on Voice](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/articles/voice-57524), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel update on Richpanel Voice](https://updates.richpanel.com/richpanel-voice-phone-calls-built-into-your-helpdesk-347406), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk announcement of voice AI agents](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/11183058023450-Announcing-the-general-availability-of-voice-AI-agents), checked 2026-10-30
- [Freshworks help article on voice AI agent integration in Freshcaller](https://crmsupport.freshworks.com/support/solutions/articles/50000011867-voice-ai-agent-integration-in-freshcaller), checked 2026-10-30
- [Fin pricing](https://fin.ai/pricing), checked 2026-10-30
- [Siena Series A announcement](https://www.siena.cx/blog/siena-raises-17m-series-a), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma Voice AI launch post](https://yuma.ai/blogs/yuma-ai-launches-yuma-voice-ai), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on order management in the help center](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/help-center-order-management-248409), checked 2026-10-30
- [Gorgias documentation on the Voice add-on](https://docs.gorgias.com/en-US/voice-add-on-101-190713), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel self-service portal](https://www.richpanel.com/self-service), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel returns and exchanges](https://richpanel.com/self-service/returns-exchanges), checked 2026-10-30
- [Richpanel Aircall integration](https://www.richpanel.com/integrations/aircall), checked 2026-10-30
- [Re:amaze help article on voice channels](https://reamaze.godaddy.com/kb/channel-settings/voice-channels-aircall-ringcentral-justcall), checked 2026-10-30
- [Zendesk help article on Zendesk Voice](https://support.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4408846483482), checked 2026-10-30
- [Freshdesk Contact Center](https://www.freshworks.com/freshcaller-cloud-pbx/), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout documentation on the customer portal](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1777-set-up-and-manage-customer-portal), checked 2026-10-30
- [Help Scout Aircall integration](https://helpscout.com/help-desk-integration/aircall), checked 2026-10-30
- [Intercom help article on Intercom Phone](https://www.intercom.com/help/en/articles/8488907-intercom-phone-explained), checked 2026-10-30
- [Yuma voice AI agent](https://yuma.ai/voice-ai-agent), checked 2026-10-30
- [Shopify Inbox on the Shopify App Store](https://apps.shopify.com/inbox), checked 2026-10-30
- [Shopify Inbox help page](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/inbox), checked 2026-10-30