Customer Support · head to head
SupportBee vs Hiver
SupportBee
Customer Support
Simple email ticketing for small teams
- From
- $13/month
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Hiver has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: SupportBee email-only ticketing, no live chat, phone support, chatbots, or AI features; Hiver hiver tiers as captured 28 December 2023: Lite at $15/user/month capped at 2 shared inboxes (up to 10 users each), Pro at $39/user/month capped at 5 shared inboxes and 50 shared labels, Elite at $59/user/month, all annual pricing with higher month-to-month rates of $19/$49/$69
- They diverge on capability: SupportBee covers Email ticketing, Hiver covers Email assignment.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which SupportBee and Hiver actually diverge.
| Attribute | SupportBee | Hiver |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $13/month | Free |
| Pricing model | Unknown | subscription |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Web, Mobile Browser | Web, Chrome-extension |
| Founded | 2010 | 2011 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Customer Support).
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 SupportBee
- Email ticketing
- Snippets
- Customer portal
- Knowledge base
- Reports
- Trello
- Pipedrive
- Zapier
Only in Hiver
- Email assignment
- Collision detection
- Email notes
- Templates
- Analytics
- Gmail
- Google Workspace
- Jira
Both cover
- Shared inbox
- Slack
- Asana
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
SupportBee
- Email supportnot Hiver
- Ticket managementnot Hiver
- Team collaborationnot Hiver
Hiver
- Shared inbox managementnot SupportBee
- Customer support via Gmailnot SupportBee
- Team email collaborationnot SupportBee
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
SupportBee
- Email-only ticketing, no live chat, phone support, chatbots, or AI features
- Basic reporting and analytics, lacking advanced dashboards and customizable metrics
- No SLA management capabilities
- Limited workflow customization compared to enterprise platforms
- No dedicated mobile app (web interface only)
- Confusing navigation and UI issues reported by some users
- Cannot select and snooze multiple emails at once
- Occasional performance delays
Hiver
- Hiver tiers as captured 28 December 2023: Lite at $15/user/month capped at 2 shared inboxes (up to 10 users each), Pro at $39/user/month capped at 5 shared inboxes and 50 shared labels, Elite at $59/user/month, all annual pricing with higher month-to-month rates of $19/$49/$69
Pricing, plan by plan
SupportBee
$13/month- Startup$13/month
- Unlimited tickets and inboxes
- Team inbox with ticket assignment
- Knowledge base integration (KBee)
- Enterprise$17/month
- All Startup features
- Advanced integrations
- Custom roles and permissions
Hiver
Free- FreeFree
- 2 users
- Email management
- Basic analytics
- Lite$19/month
- Unlimited users
- Email templates
- Notes & @mentions
- Pro$49/month
- CSAT surveys
- SLA management
- Custom reports
- Elite$69/month
- Round-robin
- Skill-based routing
- Okta SSO
Which should you pick?
Choose SupportBee if
- You need email ticketing.
- You work on Web, Mobile Browser.
- You also want snippets.
Choose Hiver if
- You need email assignment.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Chrome-extension.
- You also want collision detection.
Questions people ask
- Is SupportBee or Hiver better?
- Neither clearly leads. SupportBee starts at $13/month and Hiver at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, SupportBee or Hiver?
- Hiver has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $13/month for SupportBee and Free for Hiver.
- Does SupportBee or Hiver run on more platforms?
- SupportBee runs on Web, Mobile Browser. Hiver runs on Web, Chrome-extension.
- Can I use Hiver for free?
- Yes. Hiver has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. SupportBee starts at $13/month.
- What is SupportBee best used for?
- SupportBee is most often used for email support, ticket management, team collaboration. Of those, email support and ticket management are not what Hiver is typically brought in for.
- What can SupportBee do that Hiver cannot?
- SupportBee covers Email ticketing, Snippets, Customer portal, Knowledge base. Hiver covers Email assignment, Collision detection, Email notes, Templates. Both handle Shared inbox, Slack, Asana, Web support.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
SupportBee: How much does SupportBee cost?
SupportBee offers Startup plan at $13/user/month and Enterprise at $17/user/month, both with unlimited tickets and inboxes. No per-ticket charges. A 14-day free trial is available with no credit card required.
SourceSupportBee: Does SupportBee offer live chat or phone support?
No. SupportBee focuses on email ticketing and does not include native live chat, phone support, chatbots, or AI features. It is designed for email-based customer support.
SourceSupportBee: What platforms can SupportBee run on?
SupportBee is a web-based platform accessible on desktop and mobile browsers. It does not offer a dedicated desktop or mobile app, but the web interface is responsive and works on phones. Integration with email clients is available.
SourceSupportBee: Does SupportBee integrate with Slack?
Yes. SupportBee integrates with Slack to send real-time notifications for new tickets, replies, assignments, and internal comments. Teams can configure which events trigger alerts and organize notifications into dedicated channels.
Source