Softwr

Customer Support · head to head

Help Scout vs Outreach

Help Scout logo

Help Scout

Customer Support

Customer service software that people love

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Outreach logo

Outreach

CRM

Sales execution platform for revenue teams

From
$100/month
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Help Scout has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Help Scout the free plan caps contacts at 100 a month, so it is a volume trial rather than a standing free tier; Outreach pricing not transparent, requiring custom quotes for most implementations
  • They diverge on capability: Help Scout covers Shared inbox, Outreach covers Sales engagement.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Help Scout and Outreach actually diverge.

Attributes where Help Scout and Outreach differ
AttributeHelp ScoutOutreach
Starting priceFree$100/month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb
CategoryCustomer SupportCRM
Founded20112014

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), 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 Help Scout

  • Shared inbox
  • Knowledge base
  • Live chat
  • Customer profiles
  • Workflows
  • Reporting
  • HubSpot
  • Jira

Only in Outreach

  • Sales engagement
  • Conversation intelligence
  • Revenue intelligence
  • Pipeline management
  • Analytics & reporting
  • Microsoft Dynamics
  • LinkedIn
  • Zoom

Both cover

  • Slack
  • Salesforce
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Help Scout

  • Shared inbox and help desk for customer support teamsnot Outreach
  • Publishing a knowledge base alongside email and chat supportnot Outreach

Outreach

  • Sales outreachnot Help Scout
  • Pipeline managementnot Help Scout
  • Revenue forecastingnot Help Scout
  • Team performancenot Help Scout

Where each one falls short

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

Help Scout

  • The free plan caps contacts at 100 a month, so it is a volume trial rather than a standing free tier
  • Inboxes are rationed by plan, at 1 on free, 5 on Plus and 10 on Pro
  • Each plan also caps users, at 25 on Standard and 50 on Plus
  • The Pro plan at $75 per user per month carries a 10 user minimum, so the entry cost is $750 a month
  • SSO, SAML and HIPAA compliance are Pro only
  • AI Answers is billed separately at $0.75 per resolution on top of the seat price

Outreach

  • Pricing not transparent, requiring custom quotes for most implementations
  • Complex setup requiring deep Salesforce configuration and customization
  • Primarily designed for enterprise SDR and sales teams, less suitable for small businesses

Pricing, plan by plan

Help Scout

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 5 users
    • 1 Inbox
    • 1 Docs site
  • Standard$25/month
    • Multiple inboxes
    • Live chat, SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger
    • Multiple knowledge bases
  • Plus$45/month
    • Standard features plus advanced workflows
    • Two advanced SLAs
    • Secure portal
  • Pro$75/month
    • Plus features plus unlimited workflows
    • Unlimited SLAs
    • SSO/SAML

Outreach

$100/month
  • Standard$100/month
    • Email sequencing
    • Task management
    • Basic analytics
  • ProfessionalFree
    • All Standard features
    • Conversation intelligence
    • Advanced analytics
  • EnterpriseFree
    • All Professional features
    • Revenue intelligence
    • Custom integrations

Which should you pick?

Choose Help Scout if

  • You need shared inbox.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want knowledge base.
Help Scout review

Choose Outreach if

  • You need sales engagement.
  • You also want conversation intelligence.
Outreach review

Questions people ask

Is Help Scout or Outreach better?
Neither clearly leads. Help Scout starts at Free and Outreach at $100/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Help Scout or Outreach?
Help Scout has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Help Scout and $100/month for Outreach.
Does Help Scout or Outreach run on more platforms?
Help Scout runs on Web, Ios, Android. Outreach runs on Web.
Can I use Help Scout for free?
Yes. Help Scout has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Outreach starts at $100/month.
What is Help Scout best used for?
Help Scout is most often used for shared inbox and help desk for customer support teams, publishing a knowledge base alongside email and chat support. Of those, shared inbox and help desk for customer support teams and publishing a knowledge base alongside email and chat support are not what Outreach is typically brought in for.
What can Help Scout do that Outreach cannot?
Help Scout covers Shared inbox, Knowledge base, Live chat, Customer profiles. Outreach covers Sales engagement, Conversation intelligence, Revenue intelligence, Pipeline management. Both handle Slack, Salesforce, Web support, Ios support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Help Scout: How much does Help Scout cost?

Help Scout offers a free plan for up to 5 users. Paid plans start at $25/user/month (Standard), $45/user/month (Plus), and $75/user/month (Pro).

Source
Outreach: What channels does Outreach support for sales engagement?

Outreach enables outreach across email, phone calls, SMS, and social media with multi-channel sequencing and automated cadences.

Source
Help Scout: What is included in the Pro plan?

Help Scout Pro at $75/user/month includes unlimited workflows, unlimited SLAs, SSO/SAML, HIPAA compliance, up to 50 light users, dedicated onboarding, and a strategic account manager.

Source
Outreach: Does Outreach integrate with Salesforce?

Yes, Outreach deeply integrates with Salesforce to automatically log emails, calls, and tasks back to CRM records, keeping both platforms synchronized.

Source
Help Scout: Does Help Scout offer a free trial?

Yes, Help Scout offers a 15-day free trial for Standard and Plus plans with no credit card required. Pro plan requires booking a demo.

Source
Outreach: Can Outreach sync with calendar systems?

Yes, Outreach syncs calendar events to Salesforce as Events records, supporting two-way synchronization between Outreach meetings and Salesforce Events.

Source
Help Scout: What is the cost of Help Scout's AI Answers add-on?

Help Scout's AI Answers add-on costs $0.75 per resolution with a 3-month free trial included.

Source
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