LiveChat vs Zendesk: What are the differences?

Introduction

In this article, we will compare LiveChat and Zendesk, two popular customer support solutions, and highlight their key differences.

1. Pricing: LiveChat offers tiered pricing plans based on the number of agents and additional features. On the other hand, Zendesk offers different pricing plans based on the functionality required, such as Support, Chat, Talk, and Sell. LiveChat's pricing structure is more straightforward, while Zendesk provides more flexibility with its modular approach.

2. Features: LiveChat primarily focuses on live chat and offers advanced features like chat greetings, canned responses, chat ratings, and file sharing. It also integrates with major social media platforms. In contrast, Zendesk provides a comprehensive customer service solution that includes ticketing, knowledge base, chat, call center software, and CRM capabilities. Zendesk is more suitable for businesses looking for a complete customer support suite.

3. Customization: LiveChat provides extensive customization options, allowing users to tailor the chat widget's appearance, behavior, and proactive engagement rules to match their website design and business requirements. On the other hand, Zendesk offers limited customization options for its chat widget, but provides more flexibility for branding and customization within its Help Center and ticketing system.

4. Platform Compatibility: LiveChat is primarily designed for websites and offers native integrations with popular CMS platforms like WordPress, Shopify, and Joomla. On the other hand, Zendesk supports various channels like web, email, social media, and voice, making it a more versatile solution for omnichannel customer support.

5. Reporting and Analytics: LiveChat provides a comprehensive set of chat and agent performance reports, including metrics like chat duration, customer satisfaction ratings, and response times. Zendesk offers similar reporting capabilities but provides more advanced analytics and reporting options, allowing businesses to gain deeper insights into customer support trends, agent performance, and customer satisfaction levels.

6. Customer Experience: LiveChat is known for its user-friendly interface and easy setup process, making it suitable for small to medium-sized businesses. On the other hand, Zendesk's interface might require some learning curve for new users, but provides a more robust and feature-rich customer support solution suitable for larger enterprises with complex support requirements.

In summary, LiveChat offers a simpler and affordable live chat solution with extensive customization options, while Zendesk provides a more comprehensive customer support suite with advanced features and capabilities for omnichannel support and reporting. The choice between the two depends on the specific needs and scale of the business.