Softwr

Telecommunications · head to head

Five9 vs Telegram

Five9 logo

Five9

Telecommunications

Intelligent cloud contact center

From
$149/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Telegram logo

Telegram

All industries

Pure instant messaging — simple, fast, secure, and synced across all your devices

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Telegram has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Five9 a 50 seat minimum applies to the published rates, so the entry cost on the $119 Digital plan is $5,950 a month; Telegram end-to-end encryption applies only to Secret Chats; private and group Cloud Chats use server-client encryption, so Telegram holds the data
  • They diverge on capability: Five9 covers Intelligent routing, Telegram covers Cloud-based messaging.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Five9 and Telegram actually diverge.

Attributes where Five9 and Telegram differ
AttributeFive9Telegram
Starting price$149/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, DesktopWeb, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android
CategoryTelecommunicationsAll industries
Founded20012013

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Five9

  • Intelligent routing
  • IVR
  • ACD
  • Dialer
  • WFM
  • Quality management
  • Analytics
  • Salesforce

Only in Telegram

  • Cloud-based messaging
  • End-to-end encryption
  • Self-destructing messages
  • Large group chats
  • Voice and video calls
  • Bot platform
  • Channels and broadcasts
  • Cross-platform sync

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Five9

  • Cloud contact centre across voice, chat, email and social messagingnot Telegram
  • Routing and managing high volume customer interactionsnot Telegram

Telegram

  • Group messaging and large channels with files of any type and sizenot Five9
  • Private device-bound conversations with self-destructing messagesnot Five9
  • Running bots and broadcast channels for an audiencenot Five9

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Five9

  • A 50 seat minimum applies to the published rates, so the entry cost on the $119 Digital plan is $5,950 a month
  • Prices are per concurrent user rather than per named agent, which changes what a seat means when shifts overlap
  • Voice is excluded from the Digital plan and requires a quote
  • Usage based charges apply on top of the per seat rate
  • Three of the five tiers publish no price at all

Telegram

  • End-to-end encryption applies only to Secret Chats; private and group Cloud Chats use server-client encryption, so Telegram holds the data
  • Secret Chats are device-specific and are not part of the Telegram cloud, so they can only be read on the device they started on
  • Logging out destroys all of your Secret Chats
  • The Secret Chat self-destruct timer applies only to messages sent after the timer is set and has no effect on earlier messages
  • Telegram states screenshot detection cannot be guaranteed on some Android and Windows Phone devices, so screenshots of Secret Chats can be taken silently
  • Messages cannot be forwarded out of Secret Chats
  • The self-destruct timer in cloud chats covers media only, not text

Pricing, plan by plan

Five9

$149/month
  • Core$149/month
    • Inbound/outbound
    • IVR
    • Basic CTI
  • Premium$169/month
    • Core + Chat/email
    • Quality management
  • Optimum$199/month
    • Premium + WFM
    • Proactive chat
  • Ultimate$229/month
    • Full suite
    • Advanced analytics

Telegram

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited messages
    • 2GB file sharing
    • Group chats up to 200K members
  • Telegram Premium$4.99/month
    • Everything in Free
    • 4GB file uploads
    • Faster downloads

Which should you pick?

Choose Five9 if

  • You need intelligent routing.
  • You work on Web, Desktop.
  • You also want ivr.
Five9 review

Choose Telegram if

  • You need cloud-based messaging.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
  • You also want end-to-end encryption.
Telegram review

Questions people ask

Is Five9 or Telegram better?
Neither clearly leads. Five9 starts at $149/month and Telegram at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Five9 or Telegram?
Telegram has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $149/month for Five9 and Free for Telegram.
Does Five9 or Telegram run on more platforms?
Five9 runs on Web, Desktop. Telegram runs on Web, Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android.
Can I use Telegram for free?
Yes. Telegram has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Five9 starts at $149/month.
What is Five9 best used for?
Five9 is most often used for cloud contact centre across voice, chat, email and social messaging, routing and managing high volume customer interactions. Of those, cloud contact centre across voice, chat, email and social messaging and routing and managing high volume customer interactions are not what Telegram is typically brought in for.
What can Five9 do that Telegram cannot?
Five9 covers Intelligent routing, IVR, ACD, Dialer. Telegram covers Cloud-based messaging, End-to-end encryption, Self-destructing messages, Large group chats. Both handle Web support.
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Related pages

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