# Crisp vs Intercom (2026)

By Noah — last updated & pricing verified September 14, 2026.

> **Verdict:** Choose Crisp if you want a genuinely free tier and flat, predictable per-workspace pricing for a small support team. Choose Intercom if you want Fin, an AI agent already proven at scale by named customers like Anthropic, and can budget for usage-based AI cost layered on top of seats. The deciding factor is pricing model: Crisp's flat per-workspace fee is easier to budget for a growing team, while Intercom has no free tier and adds a $0.99-per-resolved-conversation fee on top of per-seat pricing.

**Choose Crisp if:** You want a genuinely free tier — 2 seats and unlimited conversations, with no time limit; You want flat, predictable per-workspace pricing instead of per-seat fees plus a separate usage charge; Your team is under 20 agents and price-sensitive; Crisp's flat tiers can undercut per-seat pricing at that scale; You want native desktop apps for Windows and macOS in addition to web and mobile; You want white labeling and unlimited task automation without a per-resolved-conversation AI fee

**Choose Intercom if:** You want Fin AI Agent, an AI agent already proven at scale by named customers including Anthropic, Clay, and Rocket Money; You can budget for usage-based AI cost ($0.99 per resolved conversation) layered on top of per-seat pricing; You need SSO and HIPAA support, available at Intercom's Expert tier; You want to run AI resolution on top of an existing helpdesk, like Salesforce, without a full platform migration; You weight a much larger third-party review base — 1,135 Capterra reviews versus Crisp's 148

## At a glance

|  | Crisp | Intercom |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pricing | Free tier · paid from $45/mo | From $29/mo |
| License | Freemium | Paid |
| Best for | small support and sales teams that want a shared omnichannel inbox, live chat, and no-code AI automation billed as a flat per-workspace rate instead of per-agent | growing support teams that want an AI agent embedded directly in the inbox to resolve routine conversations, and can budget for usage-based AI costs on top of per-seat fees |
| Ratings | Capterra 4.6/5 (148 reviews) · Product Hunt 4.8/5 (32 reviews) | Capterra 4.5/5 (1,135 reviews) |

## Feature comparison

| Feature | Crisp | Intercom |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Starting price | Yes (free (2 seats)) | No (from $29/seat/mo (Essential), no free tier) |
| Free tier | Yes (2 seats, unlimited conversations, no time limit) | No |
| Platforms | Yes (web, iOS, Android, Windows, macOS) | Partial (web, iOS, Android (no desktop app)) |
| License | Partial (freemium) | No (paid only) |
| Pricing model | Yes (flat per-workspace rate covering a fixed seat count) | No (per-seat pricing plus a separate per-resolution AI fee) |
| AI agent for autonomous resolution | Yes (no-code AI agent workflows, metered credits included on paid tiers) | Yes (Fin AI Agent, billed separately at $0.99 per resolved conversation) |
| AI cost predictability | Partial (AI credits are metered but bundled into a flat plan price) | No (the $0.99-per-outcome fee scales with ticket volume on top of seat price) |
| Entry paid tier | Yes ($45/mo flat (Mini, 4 seats)) | Yes ($29/seat/mo (Essential)) |
| Top-tier seat allowance | Yes (Plus at $295/mo for 20+ seats) | Yes (Expert at $132/seat/mo, includes 50 free Lite seats) |
| SSO / HIPAA support | Unknown | Yes (at Expert tier ($132/seat/mo)) |
| White labeling | Yes (included at Plus ($295/mo)) | Unknown |
| Named enterprise customers cited | Unknown | Yes (Anthropic, Clay, Rocket Money) |
| External rating (Capterra) | Yes (4.6/5 from 148 reviews) | Yes (4.5/5 from 1,135 reviews) |
| External rating (Product Hunt) | Yes (4.8/5 from 32 reviews) | Unknown |

## Crisp vs Intercom pricing: which costs less?

Crisp costs less for small-to-mid-size teams, since it charges a flat per-workspace fee rather than per seat plus usage.

At 10 agents, Crisp's Essentials plan is $95/month flat, versus Intercom Essential at $29/seat/month, which comes to $290/month for the same headcount before Fin's $0.99-per-resolved-conversation fee is added. Intercom has no free tier at all, while Crisp's Free plan covers 2 seats and unlimited conversations indefinitely at no cost.

## Which has a free tier, Crisp or Intercom?

Crisp has a free tier — 2 seats and unlimited conversations with no time limit — while Intercom has no free plan; every tier starts at $29/seat/month.

## Which AI agent is easier to budget for, Crisp or Intercom?

Crisp is easier to budget for, since its AI credits are bundled into a flat monthly plan price, while Intercom's Fin AI Agent bills $0.99 per resolved conversation separately from seats, so cost scales with support volume.

Crisp includes a set dollar amount of AI credits at each paid tier (roughly $5 at Mini, $25 at Essentials, $75 at Plus), which caps the predictable portion of the bill even though heavy AI usage can still add cost beyond that allowance. Intercom's Fin fee has no equivalent cap; the more conversations Fin resolves, the higher the bill climbs, which the data flags as the most common budgeting complaint from Intercom customers.

## Which has more third-party reviews, Crisp or Intercom?

Intercom has far more reviews — 1,135 on Capterra versus Crisp's 148 — though Crisp's average score is slightly higher (4.6/5 versus 4.5/5).

## Strengths and weaknesses

### Crisp

- Pro: The Free plan supports 2 seats and unlimited conversations with no time limit, not just a trial.
- Pro: Flat per-workspace pricing can be cheaper than per-seat competitors once a team has more than a couple of agents.
- Pro: Consolidates chat, email, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, and SMS into one inbox.
- Pro: A no-code builder for AI agent workflows, with 4.6/5 on Capterra (148 reviews) and 4.8/5 on Product Hunt (32 reviews).
- Con: White labeling, unlimited task automation, and 100+ integrations require the $295/month Plus plan.
- Con: AI automation is metered by credits on every paid tier, so heavy usage adds cost beyond the base subscription.
- Con: Workspace seat caps (4 on Mini, 10 on Essentials) mean growing teams hit forced upgrades.

### Intercom

- Pro: Fin AI Agent resolves routine support conversations autonomously, reducing human-agent load.
- Pro: Omnichannel inbox unifies email, chat, phone, WhatsApp, and social messages in one queue.
- Pro: Copilot drafts replies and surfaces knowledge-base articles directly inside the agent's inbox view.
- Pro: Fin can run standalone on top of an existing helpdesk like Salesforce, without a full Intercom migration.
- Con: Fin's $0.99-per-outcome fee is billed separately from seats and scales with ticket volume, making monthly costs hard to predict.
- Con: SSO and HIPAA support are gated behind the $132/seat/month Expert tier.
- Con: No permanently free tier; every plan is per-seat from $29/month plus usage-based AI cost.
- Con: Combined seat-plus-usage pricing runs more expensive than flat-fee competitors like Zendesk or Freshdesk at high support volume.

## Which fits your use case?

| Use case | Pick | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Small support team that wants free or flat, predictable pricing | Crisp | Crisp's Free plan covers 2 seats indefinitely, and paid tiers are flat per-workspace rather than per-seat plus usage. |
| Growing support team that wants a proven AI agent handling resolution at scale | Intercom | Fin AI Agent is used by named customers including Anthropic, Clay, and Rocket Money; Crisp's AI agent has no equivalent scale evidence in the data. |
| Team of around 10 agents comparing total monthly cost | Crisp | Crisp Essentials is $95/month flat for 10 seats versus Intercom Essential at $29/seat/month, or $290/month for the same headcount. |
| Regulated business needing HIPAA support and SSO | Intercom | Intercom's Expert tier includes SSO and HIPAA support; Crisp's data doesn't mention either. |
| Team that wants to bolt an AI agent onto an existing helpdesk like Salesforce | Intercom | Intercom's Fin can run standalone on top of an existing helpdesk for the same per-outcome fee; Crisp's AI agent isn't described as running outside its own inbox. |

## Migration FAQ

### Should I use Crisp or Intercom?

Use Crisp if you want a free tier and flat, predictable per-workspace pricing for a small support team; use Intercom if you want Fin's proven AI resolution and can budget for usage-based AI cost on top of seats.

### Is Crisp cheaper than Intercom?

Yes for most team sizes — Crisp charges a flat per-workspace fee (for example $95/month for 10 seats on Essentials) versus Intercom's $29/seat/month, which totals $290/month for the same headcount before Fin's usage fee.

### Can Crisp replace Intercom?

For a shared inbox, live chat, and basic AI automation, yes, but Crisp's data doesn't show SSO or HIPAA support, or named enterprise customers at Intercom's scale.

### Does Intercom have a free tier?

No — every Intercom plan starts at $29/seat/month for Essential; Crisp offers a free plan covering 2 seats and unlimited conversations.

### Which AI agent handles more support volume, Crisp or Intercom?

Intercom's Fin AI Agent has documented scale with named customers like Anthropic, Clay, and Rocket Money; Crisp's no-code AI agent workflows have no equivalent scale evidence in the data, though both meter AI usage by credits or per-outcome fees.

## Neither a match?

- 4 alternatives to Crisp: https://findalternative.to/crisp
- 6 alternatives to Intercom: https://findalternative.to/intercom

---

Markdown mirror of https://findalternative.to/compare/crisp-vs-intercom — findalternative.to, honestly ranked software alternatives. AI info: https://findalternative.to/ai