Softwr

Customer Support · head to head

Front vs Kayako

Front logo

Front

Customer Support

Where teams collaborate on customer communication

From
$25/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Kayako logo

Kayako

Live Chat

Effortless customer service

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Front starter tier limited to single-channel support; omnichannel support requires Professional tier; Kayako the AI agent is billed at $1 per resolved ticket, so support cost scales with ticket volume rather than being a fixed subscription
  • They diverge on capability: Front covers Shared inbox, Kayako covers Unified inbox.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Front and Kayako actually diverge.

Attributes where Front and Kayako differ
AttributeFrontKayako
Starting price$25/month$30/month
PlatformsCloud-based SaaSWeb, Ios, Android
CategoryCustomer SupportLive Chat
Founded20132001

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), 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 Front

  • Shared inbox
  • Email collaboration
  • Omnichannel messaging
  • Analytics
  • Workflows
  • Integrations
  • HubSpot
  • Asana

Only in Kayako

  • Unified inbox
  • Live chat
  • Help center
  • Customer journey
  • Automation
  • Reporting
  • Zapier
  • Stripe

Both cover

  • Salesforce
  • Slack
  • SOC2
  • GDPR
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Front

  • Omnichannel customer supportnot Kayako
  • AI-powered helpdesk automationnot Kayako
  • Team collaboration on support ticketsnot Kayako

Kayako

  • Help desk ticketing with a unified inbox and knowledge basenot Front
  • Resolving support tickets automatically with an AI agentnot Front

Where each one falls short

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

Front

  • Starter tier limited to single-channel support; omnichannel support requires Professional tier
  • AI Copilot, Smart QA, and Smart CSAT are included only in Enterprise tier ($105/seat/month); available as add-ons at higher cost in lower tiers
  • Starter tier limited to 10 automation rules; Professional tier allows 20; unlimited rules only in Enterprise
  • Advanced analytics excluded from Starter tier

Kayako

  • The AI agent is billed at $1 per resolved ticket, so support cost scales with ticket volume rather than being a fixed subscription
  • A resolution counts when the AI solves the issue without human involvement, so the definition of a billable event is set by the vendor's own system
  • No per agent monthly price is published for the full Kayako One platform
  • Full platform pricing requires talking to an expert

Pricing, plan by plan

Front

$25/month
  • Starter$25/month
    • Up to 10 seats
    • Shared inbox and ticketing
    • AI Topics and up to 10 automation rules
  • Professional$65/month
    • Up to 50 seats
    • Omnichannel support (email, SMS, social)
    • Macros and up to 20 automation rules
  • Enterprise$105/month
    • Unlimited seats
    • Smart rules and unlimited macros
    • Multi-language knowledge base

Kayako

$30/month
  • Inbox$30/month
    • Email & live chat
    • Help center
    • Basic automation
  • Growth$60/month
    • Everything in Inbox
    • Customer journey
    • SLA management
  • Scale$100/month
    • Everything in Growth
    • Advanced reporting
    • Custom roles

Which should you pick?

Choose Front if

  • You need shared inbox.
  • You work on Cloud-based SaaS.
  • You also want email collaboration.
Front review

Choose Kayako if

  • You need unified inbox.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want live chat.
Kayako review

Questions people ask

Is Front or Kayako better?
Neither clearly leads. Front starts at $25/month and Kayako at $30/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Front or Kayako?
Front starts at $25/month and Kayako at $30/month.
Does Front or Kayako run on more platforms?
Front runs on Cloud-based SaaS. Kayako runs on Web, Ios, Android.
What is Front best used for?
Front is most often used for omnichannel customer support, ai-powered helpdesk automation, team collaboration on support tickets. Of those, omnichannel customer support and ai-powered helpdesk automation are not what Kayako is typically brought in for.
What can Front do that Kayako cannot?
Front covers Shared inbox, Email collaboration, Omnichannel messaging, Analytics. Kayako covers Unified inbox, Live chat, Help center, Customer journey. Both handle Salesforce, Slack, SOC2, GDPR.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Front: How much does Front's Starter plan cost per seat?

Starter plan is $25 per seat per month for up to 10 seats, with 14-day free trial and no credit card required.

Source
Kayako: How much does Kayako charge?

Kayako uses results-based pricing where customers pay $1 per resolved ticket when Kay AI Agent solves the issue without human intervention. There are no seat fees or setup fees. Kayako One helpdesk platform pricing requires contacting sales.

Source
Front: Does Enterprise include AI features?

Yes, Enterprise at $105 per seat per month includes AI Copilot, Smart QA, and Smart CSAT at no additional cost.

Source
Kayako: What counts as a resolved ticket for Kayako pricing?

A resolution occurs when Kay solves the customer's issue without human agent involvement, whether by taking action or providing an answer the customer confirms solves their problem. Escalations to humans and simple deflections do not count.

Source
Front: What is the seat limit for Professional?

Professional plan supports up to 50 seats at $65 per seat per month.

Source
Kayako: What is Kayako's AI resolution rate?

Kayako reports a 68 percent AI resolution rate for Kay AI Agent. The platform claims a cost advantage of $1 per resolution versus $4.60 for competitors, with reported CSAT improvement of 14 points.

Source
Front: Are there additional AI add-ons available?

Yes, Autopilot starts at $0.05 per conversation; Copilot, Smart QA, and other AI features range from $10-$20 per seat per month on lower tiers.

Source
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