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Live Chat & Chatbots · head to head

Kayako vs Zendesk Answer Bot

Kayako logo

Kayako

Live Chat & Chatbots

Effortless customer service

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zendesk Answer Bot logo

Zendesk Answer Bot

Live Chat & Chatbots

AI-powered chatbot for automated customer support

From
$55/month per agent
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Kayako the AI agent is billed at $1 per resolved ticket, so support cost scales with ticket volume rather than being a fixed subscription; Zendesk Answer Bot limited to Help Center articles only; cannot access customer account data, billing information, or external systems
  • They diverge on capability: Kayako covers Unified inbox, Zendesk Answer Bot covers AI chatbot.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kayako and Zendesk Answer Bot actually diverge.

Attributes where Kayako and Zendesk Answer Bot differ
AttributeKayakoZendesk Answer Bot
Starting price$30/month$55/month per agent
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Email, Slack, Mobile
Founded20012007

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Live Chat & Chatbots).

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 Kayako

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

Only in Zendesk Answer Bot

  • AI chatbot
  • Knowledge base integration
  • Intent recognition
  • Multi-language support
  • Zendesk Support
  • Zendesk Chat
  • API
  • Mobile support

Both cover

  • Slack
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Kayako

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

Zendesk Answer Bot

  • Customer engagementnot Kayako
  • Lead generationnot Kayako
  • Customer supportnot Kayako
  • Sales automationnot Kayako

Where each one falls short

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

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

Zendesk Answer Bot

  • Limited to Help Center articles only; cannot access customer account data, billing information, or external systems
  • Fixed timeout limits on API calls prevent lookups to external systems from completing
  • Does not perform actions like refunds or account updates; only suggests documentation
  • Uses keyword matching rather than true natural language understanding, leading to mismatched suggestions on complex queries

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Zendesk Answer Bot

$55/month per agent
  • Suite Team$55/month per agent
    • Answer Bot included
  • Suite Growth$89/month per agent
    • Answer Bot included
  • Suite Professional$115/month per agent
    • Answer Bot included

Which should you pick?

Choose Kayako if

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

Choose Zendesk Answer Bot if

  • You need ai chatbot.
  • You work on Web, Email, Slack, Mobile.
  • You also want knowledge base integration.
Zendesk Answer Bot review

Questions people ask

Is Kayako or Zendesk Answer Bot better?
Neither clearly leads. Kayako starts at $30/month and Zendesk Answer Bot at $55/month per agent, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kayako or Zendesk Answer Bot?
Kayako starts at $30/month and Zendesk Answer Bot at $55/month per agent.
Does Kayako or Zendesk Answer Bot run on more platforms?
Kayako runs on Web, Ios, Android. Zendesk Answer Bot runs on Web, Email, Slack, Mobile.
What is Kayako best used for?
Kayako is most often used for help desk ticketing with a unified inbox and knowledge base, resolving support tickets automatically with an ai agent. Of those, help desk ticketing with a unified inbox and knowledge base and resolving support tickets automatically with an ai agent are not what Zendesk Answer Bot is typically brought in for.
What can Kayako do that Zendesk Answer Bot cannot?
Kayako covers Unified inbox, Live chat, Help center, Customer journey. Zendesk Answer Bot covers AI chatbot, Knowledge base integration, Intent recognition, Multi-language support. Both handle Slack, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Zendesk Answer Bot: Is Answer Bot included in my Zendesk plan?

Answer Bot functionality is now part of Zendesk AI agents included in Suite and Support plans, though Advanced AI features require the Advanced AI add-on. Legacy Essential tier Answer Bot was sunset on December 31, 2026.

Source
Zendesk Answer Bot: What channels does Answer Bot support?

Answer Bot works in email autoresponses, Slack channels (free feature for Guide Enterprise or Professional plans), and the web widget. For Slack, it listens to selected channels and suggests relevant Help Center articles to users.

Source
Zendesk Answer Bot: Does Answer Bot generate complete answers or just suggest articles?

Classic Answer Bot primarily suggests articles from your Help Center that might solve the issue, leaving the customer to read the article themselves. It does not generate a full response or summarize the article content.

Source
Zendesk Answer Bot: How is Answer Bot usage billed?

As of 2026, Zendesk charges for AI agent features using an automated resolutions model rather than monthly active users. The specific per-resolution pricing varies by plan and was transitioning during 2026.

Source
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