10 Best Customer Service Software Shortlist
Our one-on-one guidance will help you find the perfect fit.
The best customer service software has the capacity to transform the way your organization interacts with your customers. These cloud-based tools can enhance the efficiency and quality of customer interactions while saving time and money.
In this article, I will outline the best customer service software on the market today so you can find your perfect match.
What is Customer Service Software?
Customer service software refers to a type of computer software that helps companies streamline and manage their interactions with customers. It is designed to help businesses provide high-quality customer service by streamlining and automating the process of receiving, tracking, and responding to customer conversations, inquiries, and complaints.
Customer service software typically includes a range of features, such as ticket management, live chat, email integration, social media integration, knowledge management, analytics, and reporting.
Detailed Overviews Of The 10 Best Customer Service Software Solutions
Here are brief descriptions of my top 10 selections for the best customer service software available today. I’ve included best use cases, feature descriptions, pricing information, and even screenshots to show off the UX where possible.
Plus, I’ve included 26 additional bonus options below if you’d like a few more solid options to consider.
LiveHelpNow
Best AI-powered features
LiveHelpNow is a customer service tool that provides businesses with AI-driven support solutions, including live chat software and help desk ticketing systems.
Why I picked LiveHelpNow: This platform made it onto my list primarily for its emphasis on AI-driven customer service. With features like real-time chat capabilities and fast support ticket management, it's a leading choice for businesses aiming to improve customer interactions using artificial intelligence. It also provides omnichannel support, including live chat, chatbot, and social media support.
LiveHelpNow Standout Features and Integrations
Features include a AI-powered chatbots and knowledge base, which help alleviate the workload of your customer support agents. Additionally, the system has workforce management tools built-in, helping you manage your agents efficiently and ensure the right people get assigned the right tickets.
Integrations include BigCommerce, ConstantContact, Agile CRM, Facebook, Instagram, HubSpot, MailChimp, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Slack, WhatsApp, and more.
Pros
- User-friendly for both customers and agents
- Robust, all-inclusive CS platform
- Versatile and suitable for various types of teams
Cons
- Lacks incident and problem management
- Limited customization options
Zoho Assist
Best for remote access and troubleshooting
Zoho Assist is a cloud-based remote support and remote access software that helps you support customers from a distance through web-based, on-demand remote support sessions.
Why I picked Zoho Assist: This tool is perfect for customer support teams to troubleshoot issues in user computers that are in other locations. Besides all of the support tools you would find in other screen-sharing support tools, Zoho Assist has a bunch of features that make your life easier, like file transfer, multi-monitor navigation, and the ability to reboot and reconnect without third-party intervention.
Zoho Assist Standout Features & Integrations
Features include remote access to Raspberry Pi-powered devices running an ARMv7 or ARMv8 processor. As the popularity of these single-board computers rises, customer support teams are able to assist them using the tool. Additionally, I will highlight 'Wake on LAN' since its a feature that allows your team to turn on shutdown computers with a single click.
Integrations include Zendesk, ServiceNow, Jira, Spiceworks, Freshdesk, Slack, MS Teams, Zoho Desk, and ZohoSalesIQ. You can also build custom integrations with your current tech stack using the Zoho Assist API.
Pros
- Enterprise-grade security
- Ability to deploy bulk updates
- On-demand and unattended remote access
Cons
- Session recording only available in enterprise plan
- Some features may require coding knowledge
Salesforce Service Cloud
Best for scaling with AI-driven automation
Salesforce Service Cloud provides the tools to help businesses and customer service teams better understand their customers and efficiently resolve their issues regardless of complexity.
Why I picked Salesforce Service Cloud: The platform enables organizations and agents to support different customer contact points, from telephony (CTI systems) to email services, live chat, and messenger apps. The cloud-based customer service solution is also capable of managing a large number of service requests from multiple channels through a request distribution system known as omnichannel presence and routing.
Service Cloud can be configured to automatically route tickets/cases, leads, or other service requests to the most suitable, available customer support agent or employee. It can also be configured to distribute tasks according to personnel availability, skill set, and capacity to manage inbound work. And the system allows users to update their work status in real-time.
Salesforce Service Cloud Standout Features and Integrations
Features include workflow and approval process automation, AI-driven automation technology, and account and contact management features to help customer support agents access the data they need when handling tickets and communicating with customers, including information regarding past interactions. In addition, their case management feature is designed to help streamline the entire pipeline to ensure quality customer service.
Integrations are available with numerous prebuilt solutions through their AppExchange to help admins and service teams automate faster. Salesforce provides users with ready-to-install partner solutions so they don’t have to start with a blank slate. This includes the building blocks for workflow automation, robotic process automation, and process libraries.
Pros
- Easy to learn and use
- Includes pre-built integrations
- Uses AI for automations
Cons
- Needs better email functionality
- Can be expensive
Churn360
Best for predictive customer analytics
Churn360 is a customer service software that focuses on reducing customer churn and increasing customer retention. I've tried a bunch of customer service tools, but Churn360 caught my attention because of its unique approach to tackling customer churn.
Why I picked Churn360: As someone who's always looking for ways to improve customer satisfaction and reduce churn, I was intrigued by their data-driven approach. Churn360 uses machine learning algorithms to analyze customer behavior and predict which customers are at risk of churning. This way, you can take proactive steps to keep those customers happy and engaged. Plus, it's super easy to use, which is always a bonus.
Churn360 Standout Features and Integrations
Features include their predictive analytics engine, which is top-notch. It helps you identify at-risk customers and provides insights into why they might be churning. This is super helpful because it allows you to address the root causes of churn and take action before it's too late. Second, Churn360 offers personalized customer engagement tools, like email campaigns and in-app messaging, to help you connect with your customers and keep them engaged. And finally, their dashboard is super intuitive and easy to navigate, making it simple to track your progress and see the impact of your efforts.
Integrations include Chargebee, Stripe, Pipedrive, Intercom, Hubspot, Canny, Jira Software, Cloudtalk, Freshdesk, Recurly, Gmail, Outlook, Segment, Zoho CRM, Zendesk, and other options, plus more integrations in the works.
Pros
- Comprehensive customer database management
- Many out-of-the-box integrations
- Product usage tracking/analytics for each customer
Cons
- Learning curve for advanced features
- More in-app tutorials/guidance welcomed
LiveAgent
Best help desk and knowledge base management
LiveAgent is a call center and help desk software that also provides full knowledge base management capabilities. It can be used to manage incoming email, phone, and chat support requests and to build a self-serve portal for customers.
Why I picked LiveAgent: Teams share a collective inbox view of customer support tickets, and the software can automatically assign tickets to agents. Spam filtering and follow-up scripts can also be automated using the system, and a built-in CRM stores customer contact data and activity history. In-app notifications alert support agents to tasks and requests that require their attention.
The software's knowledge base builder allows teams to create a self-serve help center for customers. The content editor has a WYSIWYG interface, making it easy for non-technical experts to produce help articles. Forums can also be created and moderated through the software, helping to promote community engagement and facilitating exchanges among customers. A feedback button can be added to the customer portal for teams wishing to collect suggestions for product or service improvements or favourite features.
LiveAgent Standout Features & Integrations
Features include automated ticket assignment, in-app notifications, call routing, call recording, multilingual live chat, website tracking, content management, customizable themes, WYSIWYG content editor, and a reporting dashboard.
Integrations include ActiveCampaign, BigCommerce, Clockify, Cloudtalk, Gmail, Jira, Magento, Pipedrive, Shopify, Slack, Trello, Twilio, and Webflow.
Pros
- Integrates with BigCommerce
- Content editor has a WYSIWYG interface
- Great customer service
Cons
- Translation features could be better
- Needs more social media integrations
Freshdesk
Best for third-party integrations
Freshdesk is an omnichannel customer service software that can scale up or down by integrating with a suite of specialized first-party products for sales, marketing, HR, and IT. The basic plan comes with customer health scoring, proactive account alerts, goal and task management, and email campaigns. Freshdesk’s goal management module is particularly handy, as not every customer service software has these types of project management capabilities.
With it, you can tie big picture goals to detailed metrics; assign tasks with due dates, priority status, and an owner; build reusable templates for common goals and tasks; and track and measure your progress.
Why I Picked Freshdesk: Freshdesk boasts a lot of native integrations with other software you probably already use. This is vital for good customer service, as you'll want your CRM to speak to your website to speak to your ecommerce tools to speak to your ticket software. If you want no fuss, no muss integration support, Freshdesk is a great choice.
Freshdesk Standout Features & Integrations
Features include customer management, contact management, email integration, social media integration, support forms, analytics, dashboards, multi-user, scheduling, workflow management, ticket management, API access, chat tools, CRM integration, notifications, self-service portal, and knowledge base builder.
Integrations include Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Pipedrive, Oracle Netsuite, Insightly, Copper, Zoho CRM, Close, Zendesk, and a growing list of other useful apps.
Pros
- Impressive automation capabilities
- Intuitive and user-friendly
- Wide selection of integrations
Cons
- Integrating with existing processes is tedious
- Some technical issues
Custify
Best for SaaS companies
Custify is a customer success software designed primarily for SaaS businesses. It focuses on all the aspects of consumer involvement with your business, including customer lifecycles, product adoption, and upsell opportunities. Custify can automate basic customer service actions, like welcome emails, low engagement jump-starts, and personalized renewal processes.
Basic customer service solutions can be handled by their entry-level plan but upgrading will unlock project management features and workflow automations that your team may find useful.
Why I Picked Custify: Custify assigns health scores to each SaaS client, which identifies potentials for churn or profit and flags your team to intervene with context-specific messaging where appropriate. Scheduled emails can be sent to sales, management, and stakeholders to keep them informed about company performance.
Custify Standout Features & Integrations
Features include API access, customer management, click-to-dial, dashboards, lead management, and multi-user access.
Integrations include Slack, email, SMS, analytics solutions, and your CRM. You can also use Custify’s native API to connect with more tools.
Pros
- Excellent segmentation features
- Great customer support
- Well organized data
Cons
- Learning the UI takes some time
- The dashboard could use more metrics
HappyFox
Best customizable customer portal
HappyFox is an all-in-one ticketing support software that pulls all incoming customer queries from any source (email, chat, phone, and social) into one dynamic dashboard. They have the ability to outsource complex and redundant workflows to a powerful smart rules engine, meaning that even higher-difficulty queries can be handled without manual intervention.
Why I Picked HappyFox: HappyFox lets you design your own no-code, SEO-optimized customer portal. This customizable customer portal can be SEO optimized and is available on a mobile app, all with on-brand visuals and messaging. It's mobile responsive and branded to fit your website's look and feel. HappyFox also features task management tools, help desk reporting, a flexible knowledge base/FAQ solution, and asset management.
HappyFox Standout Features & Integrations
Features include customer service, email integration, live chat, CRM integration, notification, and API access.
Integrations include Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, Slack, and other collaboration apps.
Pros
- Scalable as businesses grow
- Customizable solution
- User-friendly tools
Cons
- Intensive implementation requirements
- Limited self-training tools
TeamSupport
Best for B2B companies
TeamSupport is customer support software meant for B2B companies in that it excels at lower volume, high complexity customer support items.
TeamSupport focuses on customer and ticket management but also fosters collaboration using “Water Cooler,” their internal messaging app and social network system. TeamSupport generates a customer distress index (CDI) for each client based on how many tickets they have and their average resolution time.
Why I Picked TeamSupport: TeamSupport assess which B2B clients might be getting frustrated, then prompts a customer service agent to intervene. Each client has a detailed profile of every customer interaction that shares real-time updates across your whole team. The customer and contact database is particularly useful for onboarding new agents who aren’t familiar with your customer base yet and makes team collaboration easier to achieve.
TeamSupport Standout Features & Integrations
Features include customer management, notifications, analytics, dashboards, task scheduling and tracking, API access, live chat, CRM integration, email integration, and social media integration.
Integrations include Slack, Microsoft Teams, Jira, Salesforce CRM, and other corporate applications.
Pros
- Easy to use
- Knowledge base is good for customer documentation
- Customers are able to open tickets easily
Cons
- Mobile application is limited
- There can be some lag
Kustomer
Best no-code AI chatbot
Kustomer is a CRM and customer service platform. Like most solutions on this list, they can tap into your customer base wherever they are online or offline: email, phone, chat, social, and messaging apps. They prioritize customer self-service and support multiple different written languages.
Why I Picked Kustomer: Kustomer offers plenty of AI-powered solutions for CRM and customer service, including automated triage and routing, smart self-service chatbots, and personalized customer communication suggestions. Their customizable chatbot is a standout feature, going so far as to host an image carousel of a customer’s past interactions to pull from and display at will.
Kustomer Standout Features & Integrations
Features include contact management, dashboards, task scheduling, customer service, workflow management, email integration, social media integration, customer health scoring, API access, no-code chatbots, and notification.
Integrations include Shopify, Slack, Gmail, Twitter, and other social media and commerce apps.
Pros
- Includes teammate tagging for visibility
- Reps can see the whole picture of a customer's history
- Plenty of integrations
Cons
- Can be buggy
- The interface can seem intimidating
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Best Customer Service Software: Pricing Comparison Chart
This comparison chart summarizes basic details about each of my top customer service software selections. You can view pricing details and the availability of free trials or demos side-by-side to help you find the best software for your budget and business needs.
Tool | Trial Info | Price | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | LiveHelpNow Best AI-powered features | 30-day free trial | From $9/agent/month | Website |
2 | Zoho Assist Best for remote access and troubleshooting | 15-day free trial available | From $12/month | Website |
3 | Salesforce Service Cloud Best for scaling with AI-driven automation | 14-day free trial | From $25/user/month (billed annually) | Website |
4 | Churn360 Best for predictive customer analytics | Free demo available | From $299/month | Website |
5 | LiveAgent Best help desk and knowledge base management | 30-day free trial | From $9/user/month (billed annually) | Website |
6 | Freshdesk Best for third-party integrations | 21-day free trial + free plan available | From $18/user/month | Website |
7 | Custify Best for SaaS companies | Free trial + free demo | From $199/month | Website |
8 | HappyFox Best customizable customer portal | Free demo available | From $39/agent/month (min 5 agents) | Website |
9 | TeamSupport Best for B2B companies | 14-day free trial | From $50/user/month | Website |
10 | Kustomer Best no-code AI chatbot | 14-day free trial | From $89/user/month | Website |
Other Customer Service Software Options
Here are a few more worthwhile options that didn’t make the best customer service software shortlist but are still worth considering:
- Keap
Best for entrepreneurs
- Kayako
Best for SMBs
- AzureDesk
Best customer service email automations
- Tidio
Best live visitor tracking for websites
- Zendesk
Best for startups
- Zoho CRM
Best enterprise CRM
- HelpCrunch
Best customer communication software for sales/support
- Wix Answers
Best support article solution
- Avochato
Best mobile API customer solution
- Sprinklr
Best for customer feedback insights
- SysAid
Best cloud customer solution
- Synthetix
Most accessible live help desk software
- Gladly
Best all-in-one customer service solution
- RenewiftRMA
Best RMA management solution
- Livechat
Best live chat software
- Front
Best collaborative customer support software
- Supportbench
Best analytical customer tool
- Vivantio
Best SaaS customer management solution
- Ada
Best personalized AI customer solution
- FAQ Bot
Best 24/7 fully-AI customer solution
- Hubspot Service Hub
Best internal employee support system
- Bold360
Best AI-integrated customer engagement solution
- Quiq Messaging
Best SMS/text messaging customer solution
- Gorgias
Best customer helpdesk for Shopify
- Moxtra
Best customer portal software tools
- Jira Service Management
Best fully-customizable support desk management software
Selection Criteria for the Best Customer Service Software
If you're wondering how I selected the best customer service software, here's where I'll break it all down for you. First, I started with customer service software that has high user reviews and satisfaction ratings. Then, using my experience in customer experience, I discerned what key criteria were most important for customer service software and compared how each of them stacked up against the rest.
I empathize with how much time it takes to source the right software for a job. I do this work so that you don't have to. I've been using and reviewing customer service software for years so you can trust me to do the heavy lifting and compile all the facts you need to make your final decision.
After careful consideration, I've determined that these are the most important criteria when selecting the best customer service software. Here's a brief list outlining the whats and whys of my selection.
Key Features
Software for customer service management generally includes some combination of the following core features and functionalities:
- Self-service portal: Customers should be able to help themselves to some degree for easy queries.
- Social media integration: You should be able to connect to social media to handle customer complaints and requests where they are the loudest and most harmful. Facebook Messenger, Instagram DMs, and so on.
- Automation: Simple, administrative tasks like assigning tickets or marking a date/status can be automated to speed up the workflow. There are also more robust customer service automation software options.
- Knowledge base: Being able to compile, update, and draw from a single source of truth database is important for customer and agent queries. Self-service options are great for small, by-the-book queries.
- Ticketing management: The ticketing system should be able to manage incoming support tickets and populate them with contextual, detailed data. It might also connect to an external customer service ticketing software.
- Customer relationship management: The ability to keep track of customer information, including past interactions, so conversations feel personalized. This could mean connecting a CRM software or customer database software.
- Omnichannel communication: The tool should be able to reach your customers on whatever communication channels they choose—your website, mobile app, email, phone calls, social media, SMS, and so on. Some also have call center capabilities.
- Chat support: Support agents should have access to live chat or chatbots to handle customer issues in real-time. You might also be able to connect your live chat software.
- Shared inbox: Ideally, your customer service tools will be able to funnel multichannel conversations into a single inbox, consolidating customer communications for your support reps.
Usability
I look for customer support software that’s intuitive and user-friendly. Your customer service team shouldn’t be spending all their time trying to navigate the system. Messaging and support requests should be front and center and easy to find. I also looked for additional usability features like ready-made email templates, automated routing for incoming support tickets, and the ability to speak with a live agent should you need help with the platform.
Integrations
I looked for customer service platforms that have native integrations with other important tools to help you create a positive customer service experience.
Key integrations I looked for include:
- CRM software like HubSpot and Salesforce,
- Help desk software like Intercom, Help Scout, and Zoho Desk,
- Communication tools like Slack and WhatsApp,
- e-commerce platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce, and
- Project management tools.
Many providers also have an API you can use to set up your own custom integrations.
Value for Price
The average customer service software ranges in price between $15 to $300/agent/month. I also considered the following factors when evaluating each software system's value for price:
- Do the features fit the cost?
- Are the pricing plans scalable?
- Is there a freemium plan or free trial available to start?
Since it often all comes down to price, I’ve made notes about free plans, free trials, and the basic starting price for each software in my overviews.
Customer Service Software: Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some answers to popular FAQ’s for some top-of-mind topics around customer service software:
What are the main benefits of customer service software?
How do I choose the best customer service software for my business?
What are the most important customer service metrics to track?
Is there any free customer service software?
Trends in Customer Service Software
No matter what industry you're in, CX professionals across the board are turning to software to solve their key challenges. They need software to help them provide efficient and consistent service delivery across multiple channels, and for an affordable price. They also want to be able to collect meaningful customer feedback and draw actionable insights from the data. To help them achieve all this, and more, here are several developing trends within the customer service software space:
1. AI-Enhanced Customer Support
Artificial intelligence has entered the customer service software space to help CX professionals balance the need for speed and personalization with quality service. AI has infiltrated CX software in the form of AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants that can respond to routine customer queries without needing to escalate their requests to a human agent, freeing your team up to tackle more complex issues.
If you're interested in solutions to automate your customer service, scroll through our list of the best AI chatbots for customer service for a summary of the best options out there.
2. Unified CX Platforms
With so many CX tools on the market, it's easy to become overwhelmed or struggle to make inferences from your data. To help overcome these issues, many customer experience platforms have broadened their scope and integrated more advanced functionalities into their products, including ticketing, CRM, and social media interactions, which may previously have been handled by other software. Instead, unified platforms offer a 360-degree customer profile, an increased ability to personalize based on previous interactions, and a better customer journey overall.
For more on the benefits of investing in a unified platform, pop over to our article covering omnichannel customer service and how to deliver it.
3. Advanced Feedback Analysis
Improvements in natural language processing have made it possible to interpret customer sentiment more accurately, to gain greater customer insights. Customer service software is now able to collect feedback across multiple channels, identify trends, and pinpoint areas for improvement much easier when natural language processing is integrated into the software.
If feedback analysis is an area you'd like to improve in, you'll want to check out our list of the best voice of customer (VOC) software for customer analytics, as well as numerous VOC resources by industry experts covering VOC best practices, tips & tricks, and examples.
Keep Your Eye on These Customer Service Trends
As you continue your journey to finding the best software for your needs, keep your eye on these trends. You'll want to leverage your new technology to exceed your customer expectations and help you future-proof your business, so it's important to ensure the software you choose incorporates these modern trends efficiently.
Other Types of Customer Experience Tools
To help you find the best CX tool for you, here are a few other articles summarizing different types of customer service software for different use cases too:
- Customer Service Email Management Software
- Customer Service Software For Small Businesses
- Customer Service Chat Software For Small Business
- Customer Service Tracking Software
Customer Service Equals Customer Loyalty
Ninety percent of Americans consider a company’s customer service reputation before doing business with them. Your customer service agents can only do so much. They require a comprehensive suite of customer service tools to keep up with modern demands.
The best customer service software allows your team to meet customer needs without overloading individual agents. Additionally, automatic systems and tracking databases save valuable time that you can share with clients.
The longer you spend with customers the more your business grows. Opportunities, profits, sales, and relationships all benefit from an enhanced focus on customer needs.
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