HELP SCOUT PRICING
Help Scout pricing plans and Help Scout cost per user, with the AI Answers meter and every seat limit
We read the Help Scout rate card on helpscout.com/pricing on 8 October 2026, on both billing cycles: three paid plans per user, the AI Answers meter, the seat caps and minimums, and the add-ons that sit under the plan cards.
Tap a customer message above. The same AI agent replies on , in your brand's voice.
- Intent
- Action
- CRM
Handed to a human teammate
They pick up with the full conversation and context carried over. No dead ends, no repeating.
Help Scout pricing is $25 per user a month for Standard, $45 for Plus and $75 for Pro when you pay yearly, or $30, $54 and $90 month to month. The autonomous AI agent, AI Answers, is billed on top at $0.75 for each conversation it resolves without a human. A Free plan covers 5 users, 1 inbox and 1 Docs site.
Three numbers decide your real bill: how many people need a full seat, which seat cap you will hit (Standard stops at 25 users, Plus at 50, and Pro requires at least 10), and how many conversations the AI closes on its own each month. The table below prices typical US support teams on the yearly rates, and shows where a flat AI agent with the AI included costs less.
Side by side
Help Scout cost per month for US support teams of 3 to 25 people
Every rate below was shown on helpscout.com/pricing on 8 October 2026 in US dollars. Team totals use the yearly per-user rates ($25, $45, $75), with the month-to-month total in brackets. Pro bills at least 10 users, so small teams pay the 10-seat floor.
| Team size | Standard | Plus | Pro (10-user minimum) | AI Answers at 500 resolutions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 users | $75 ($90) | $135 ($162) | $750 ($900), the 10-seat floor | +$375 on any plan |
| 5 users | $125 ($150) | $225 ($270) | $750 ($900), the 10-seat floor | +$375 on any plan |
| 10 users | $250 ($300) | $450 ($540) | $750 ($900) | +$375 on any plan |
| 25 users | $625 ($750), the Standard cap | $1,125 ($1,350) | $1,875 ($2,250) | +$375 on any plan |
| 26 users | Not allowed, Standard stops at 25 | $1,170 ($1,404) | $1,950 ($2,340) | +$375 on any plan |
| 51 users | Not allowed | Not allowed, Plus stops at 50 | $3,825 ($4,590) | +$375 on any plan |
| Extra inbox or Docs site | $10 or $20 a month yearly | $10 or $20 a month yearly | $10 or $20 a month yearly | $12 or $24 month to month |
| MessageAgent, any team size | Starter $39 yearly or $79 monthly, 1,000 AI conversations, 3 seats | Growth $99 yearly or $199 monthly, 5,000 AI conversations, 10 seats | Scale $249 yearly or $499 monthly, 20,000 AI conversations, 25 seats | AI included, no per-resolution meter |
Help Scout counts an AI resolution once per conversation, and only when the customer gets an AI reply and does not escalate, search the knowledge base, ask more questions or say they still need help. MessageAgent counts AI conversations, which is a wider unit, so compare the two on your own volume rather than one for one. Carrier and Meta message fees are passed through at cost on MessageAgent.
What you get
Everything one AI agent handles
Three paid plans, all priced per user
Standard is $25 per user a month billed yearly, Plus $45 and Pro $75. Month to month they are $30, $54 and $90. Standard and Plus each have a Try for Free button with a 15-day trial and no card. Pro routes to Book a Demo, so the cheapest plan with HIPAA compliance and SSO is a sales conversation.
Yearly billing is ten months for twelve
The toggle badge says 16 percent. Measured on every tier it is exactly 16.7 percent: $25 against $30, $45 against $54, $75 against $90. Per user per year that is $300, $540 and $900 paid yearly against $360, $648 and $1,080 paid monthly, so a 10-person Plus team saves $1,080 a year by committing.
The 26th user costs $545 a month
Standard allows up to 25 users and Plus up to 50. A 25-person Standard team pays $625 a month on yearly billing. Hire one more and the whole team moves to Plus at $45, which is $1,170, so the 26th seat adds $545. The 51st user on Plus forces Pro and adds $1,575. Plan your hiring around those two cliffs.
Pro starts at $750 a month
Pro shows unlimited users with a minimum of 10. At $75 that is a $750 monthly floor, or $9,000 a year, and $900 a month on monthly billing. A five-person clinic that needs HIPAA compliance therefore pays for ten seats. Pro adds unlimited workflows and SLA policies, SSO, 15 light users, an onboarding specialist and an account manager.
AI Answers is a separate $0.75 meter
AI Answers, the agent that replies to customers in the Beacon widget, costs $0.75 per resolution on any plan, billed monthly. New accounts get 3 months of unlimited resolutions free, counted from the day the account is created. You can set a monthly cap; when you hit it, AI Answers switches off for the rest of the cycle. Prepaid discounts exist but are not priced on the page.
At 266 resolutions the meter passes a flat plan
AI Answers costs $150 at 200 resolutions, $375 at 500, $750 at 1,000 and $1,500 at 2,000, before any seats. It passes MessageAgent Growth at $199 a month on the 266th resolution, and Growth billed yearly at $99 on the 133rd. Help Scout puts the average resolution rate at 73 percent, so 1,000 AI-handled chats would be about $547.50.
Channels depend on the tier
Free covers email only. Live chat, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger start on Standard. In the plan comparison table, SMS is marked via integration on Standard and included on Plus and Pro, and phone calls are via integration on every paid plan, with Aircall as an add-on and preferred Aircall pricing on Pro. Salesforce, Jira and HubSpot start on Plus.
When a flat AI agent is the better buy
Help Scout is a strong, human-feeling email help desk with a good knowledge base, and if your agents work mainly in email it is hard to beat at $25 a seat. If the job is an AI that answers, qualifies and books across SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, web chat and email, with the AI included and no per-resolution bill, a flat plan usually costs less once volume grows.
Conversation Console
Try it on every channel
Pick a channel and a sample customer message, and watch the same AI agent reply on brand, take the action, log it to the CRM, and hand off to a human in one tap.
Tap a customer message above. The same AI agent replies on , in your brand's voice.
- Intent
- Action
- CRM
Handed to a human teammate
They pick up with the full conversation and context carried over. No dead ends, no repeating.
Common questions
Help Scout pricing questions
How much does Help Scout cost per month?
Help Scout costs $25 per user a month for Standard, $45 for Plus and $75 for Pro billed yearly, or $30, $54 and $90 month to month, as shown on helpscout.com/pricing on 8 October 2026. AI Answers adds $0.75 per resolution. A five-person team on Plus pays $225 a month yearly, before AI.
What are the Help Scout pricing plans?
There are four: Free, Standard, Plus and Pro. Free gives 5 users, 1 inbox, 1 Docs site and 100 contacts a month. Standard adds live chat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger and 150 basic workflows for up to 25 users. Plus adds advanced workflows, Salesforce, Jira and HubSpot for up to 50. Pro is unlimited users with a 10-user minimum.
How much does Help Scout AI cost?
AI Answers, the autonomous agent, costs $0.75 per resolution on any plan, billed monthly, after a 3-month free trial with unlimited resolutions. AI Assist, AI Drafts and AI Summarize, which help your own agents write and read faster, are not metered per use; unlimited AI Drafts is listed as a Plus feature.
What counts as an AI resolution in Help Scout?
A resolution is one conversation that AI Answers resolves without human help. It only counts if the customer receives an AI response and does not escalate, search the knowledge base, ask more questions or say they need more help, including the I still need help button. Help Scout charges one resolution per conversation, however many questions it answers.
Is Help Scout cheaper billed annually?
Yes, by exactly 16.7 percent on every plan, which works out to ten months for twelve. Per user per year that is $300 instead of $360 on Standard, $540 instead of $648 on Plus and $900 instead of $1,080 on Pro. The badge on the page rounds it to 16 percent.
Does Help Scout have a minimum number of users?
Only on Pro, which lists unlimited users with a minimum of 10, so Pro never costs less than $750 a month yearly or $900 monthly. Standard and Plus have caps rather than minimums: up to 25 users on Standard and up to 50 on Plus. Free allows up to 5 users.
Does Help Scout have a free trial?
Yes. Standard and Plus come with a 15-day trial with every plan feature and no credit card. Pro trials go through the sales team. Separately, every new account gets 3 months of free, unlimited AI Answers resolutions, starting the day the account is created, not the day you switch the AI on.
Can I cap Help Scout AI spending?
Yes. You can set a monthly cap on AI Answers resolutions, and Help Scout emails you as you approach it. Once the cap is reached, AI Answers is switched off automatically for the rest of that monthly cycle, so customers who arrive after that point reach your team or the knowledge base instead.
Does Help Scout charge for extra inboxes?
Yes, past the number in your plan. Standard includes 2 inboxes, Plus 5 and Pro 10. Each extra inbox is $10 a month paid yearly or $12 monthly. Docs sites follow the same pattern: 2, 3 and 5 included, then $20 a month yearly or $24 monthly each. Free is limited to 1 inbox and 1 Docs site.
Does Help Scout support SMS and phone calls?
SMS, yes from Plus. The plan comparison table marks SMS as included on Plus and Pro and via integration on Standard. Phone calls are via integration on every paid plan, typically Aircall, which is an add-on, with preferred Aircall pricing listed on Pro. Calls are logged in Help Scout rather than handled by a native phone system.
We are a 6-person SaaS support team. Which Help Scout plan do we need?
Standard at $150 a month yearly covers email, live chat and the Meta channels. If you need native SMS, Salesforce or HubSpot in the sidebar, or round robin routing, Plus at $270 a month yearly is the fit. Add $0.75 for every AI resolution after the 3-month trial; at 400 a month that is another $300.
What is a Help Scout alternative with flat pricing?
MessageAgent Growth is $199 a month, or $99 billed yearly, with 5,000 AI conversations and 10 handoff seats across SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, web chat and email, and no per-resolution meter. Help Scout stays the better fit for an email-first team that wants a deep knowledge base, custom reporting and Pro-level HIPAA.
Put one AI on every channel today
One agent that answers, qualifies, books, and upsells across every channel, in one inbox.
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