Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs Zoho Desk comparison

Intercom and Zoho are both solutions in the CRM Customer Engagement Centers category. Intercom is ranked #9 with an average rating of 9.5, while Zoho is ranked #7 with an average rating of 7.7. Intercom holds a 1.9% mindshare in CCEC, compared to Zoho’s 2.8% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Intercom users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Zoho users who would recommend it.

Intercom Customer Communica...

Read 2 Intercom Customer Communications Platform reviews

552 Views
66 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Zoho Desk

Read 21 Zoho Desk reviews

1,182 Views
106 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Intercom Customer Communica...

Zoho Desk

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 2025

Zoho Desk and Intercom are competing products aimed at optimizing support and communication processes. Zoho Desk appears to have the upper hand for companies requiring cost-effective solutions and efficient internal processes, while Intercom stands out in feature richness justifying its higher price.

Features: Zoho Desk offers a robust ticketing system, customizable dashboards, and automation tools to enhance workflow efficiency. Intercom presents sophisticated messaging tools, a powerful API for seamless integrations, and proactive engagement features. The products differ mainly in Zoho Desk's focus on internal process optimization versus Intercom's strength in direct customer interaction capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Zoho Desk provides a straightforward deployment with strong customer support, allowing easy integration and quick assistance access. Intercom has a more involved deployment due to advanced features, yet their comprehensive support ensures implementation success. Zoho Desk excels in simplicity, while Intercom provides extensive resources to facilitate technical setups.

Pricing and ROI: Zoho Desk offers a budget-friendly setup, presenting attractive ROI for businesses demanding efficient solutions with minimal expenditure. Intercom requires a higher initial investment but justifies it with feature richness enhancing customer engagement and offering long-term value. Zoho Desk prioritizes affordability, while Intercom focuses on maximizing detailed value through extensive features.

To learn more, read our detailed Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs. Zoho Desk Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs. Zoho Desk

September 2025

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Helped 867,821 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Intercom Customer Communica...

Ranking in CRM Customer Engagement Centers

9th

Average Rating

9.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

CRM (27th), Social CRM (6th)

Zoho Desk

Ranking in CRM Customer Engagement Centers

7th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Help Desk Software (9th)

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the CRM Customer Engagement Centers category, the mindshare of Intercom Customer Communications Platform is 1.9%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zoho Desk is 2.8%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

CRM Customer Engagement Centers Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Zoho Desk	2.8%
Intercom Customer Communications Platform	1.9%
Other	95.3%

CRM Customer Engagement Centers

Featured Reviews

Kumar Abhishek Anand

Director at Revivo Technologies

Customer support has improved significantly with seamless chat integration for quick resolutions

The feature we appreciate most about the Intercom Customer Communications Platform is the messenger functionality. We are able to integrate it into our application and provide support to customers directly through our application. The messenger works efficiently, allowing users to have conversations without entering their details repeatedly. There is conversation history available for each customer interaction, and they can access the help section within the chat itself. The Finn AI agent handles conversations both in chat and WhatsApp, which is particularly beneficial. Regarding automation tools, we have enabled the AI agent to answer customer queries instantly, reducing the need for constant staff presence. The AI agent quickly responds to customers and summarizes their issues, informing us when it cannot resolve a problem independently.

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Babatunde-Olugbode

Technical presales engineer at Avetium Consult Ltd

End-to-end solution to manage customer support tickets and consolidate all communication channels into one platform

For me, the valuable features are related to customer engagement because I want to ensure I don't miss any customer inquiries, no matter the channel. For example, I haven't seen any other platform that consolidates all channels into one console. That's a valuable feature to me. Then there's the pricing, which is better than Zendesk. Zendesk charges in USD per user, per month, whereas Zoho let us pay in Naira (Nigerian currency). Zoho can also identify user locations, letting you leverage existing reviews. These are valuable features that many organizations have adopted Zoho Desk for. We can download the mobile app to see requests and respond from anywhere. It is one of the most improved applications and widely integrated systems I've worked with. You can virtually integrate it with almost anything, like Microsoft Teams and other data applications. The marketplace lets you find native integrations. For example, we have an organization that uses multiple systems and wants to ensure agents don't log in to multiple platforms to see emails. They have a native integration system that takes care of that and works seamlessly.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The feature we appreciate most about the Intercom Customer Communications Platform is the messenger functionality, allowing users to have conversations without entering their details repeatedly."

"The live chat is pretty good because you can create a macro, which is a predefined input we can give customers."

"The ticketing feature is very easy to use, compared to other systems."

"Zoho Desk offers a wide range of features that allow integration with different systems, enhancing ease of use."

"The initial setup is easy."

"Good at capturing online inquiries has portal functionality, and is very good at managing inbound customer inquiries."

"The most valuable features are that it's user-friendly, you can customize it the way you want it, and it is very easy to use. You don't need anybody else to configure it."

"The product is quite stable."

"The product has a lot of features."

"Zoho Desk offers a wide range of features that allow integration with different systems, enhancing ease of use."

More Zoho Desk pros

Cons

"Sometimes, the solution lags and takes time to update something."

"It would be beneficial if there was a way to train the AI to better understand customer language."

"The solution could improve its stability and scalability."

"Sometimes support is available according to their time slots and they can't fulfill everything I need them to. They give us a time slot but it's not always enough."

"There is room for improvement in customer service and support. It could be more knowledgeable."

"The solution needs to have more customization on alerts and notifications."

"Zoho Desk could be improved by making it multi-tenant, as it is currently not suitable for service providers with multiple customers."

"Could have slightly better integration between additional functionalities in the Zoho desk."

"There is room for improvement in terms of integration."

"They could enhance the product’s features to customize the automated email responses."

More Zoho Desk cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"The gap is limited, but it should limit the price back bracket so that most start-ups can use it most effectively."

"The solution costs INR 8400 per user."

"The product costs $10 to $25 per user per month."

"Zoho Desk is a cost-effective solution."

"Price-wise, Zoho Desk is about 35 USD a month per user."

"Zoho Desk's cost is pretty much okay."

"The pricing is better than Zendesk. Zendesk charges in USD per user per month, whereas Zoho let us pay in Naira (Nigerian currency)."

"Zoho Desk's pricing is more flexible."

More Zoho Desk pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

16%

Manufacturing Company

14%

Government

Performing Arts

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	19
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	1

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Intercom Customer Communications Platform?

The live chat is pretty good because you can create a macro, which is a predefined input we can give customers.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Intercom Customer Communications Platform?

For the Intercom Customer Communications Platform, we are updating our knowledge base to help the AI read more proactively. It would be beneficial if there was a way to train the AI to better under...

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What is your primary use case for Intercom Customer Communications Platform?

When asked about AI tools and AI coding tools, we were using ChatGPT until recently. We switched to GitHub Copilot, which we have integrated into our IDE for software development purposes. Regardin...

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What do you like most about Zoho Desk?

The most valuable features of Zoho Desk are archiving queries and analytics.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zoho Desk?

The pricing in Brazil is complicated due to the high exchange rate, with one dollar equaling six reais. Altasnet has a favorable pricing from Zoho as an early account in Brazil, but current website...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Zoho Desk?

Zoho Desk could be improved by making it multi-tenant, as it is currently not suitable for service providers with multiple customers. Additionally, Zoho Desk's potential would be fully realized wit...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 100% of the time

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Zendesk vs Zoho Desk

Compared 6% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

CRM Customer Engagement Centers

September 2025

Intercom Customer Communications Platform report

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Buyer's Guide

Zoho Desk

August 2025

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Also Known As

Intercom

No data available

Overview

Intercom Customer Communications Platform enhances interactions by offering robust tools designed to streamline customer engagement and support, effectively catering to modern business communication needs.

Providing a comprehensive approach to customer interaction, Intercom facilitates seamless conversation management through its adaptable suite of messaging, logistical, and analytical features. Frequently utilized for customer support and marketing, its flexibility and user-friendly design encourage efficient communication. While offering valuable insights through analytics, some users note areas for improvement in customizability and pricing models, pointing towards a potential enhancement in fine-tuning its cost-effectiveness and adaptability to diverse business strategies.

What are the standout features of Intercom?

Live Chat: Immediate customer support through real-time messaging.
Automated Bot: Streamlines inquiries by handling routine questions.
Integration Capabilities: Connects seamlessly with third-party tools.
Inbox Management: Organizes conversations for efficient response.

What benefits and ROI should users look for?

Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Faster resolutions lead to happier clients.
Improved Team Efficiency: Automation reduces manual workload.
Actionable Analytics: Data-driven insights optimize strategies.
Scalable Solutions: Adapts to growing business demands.

Industries such as e-commerce, SaaS, and tech-driven businesses often implement Intercom for its ability to provide personalized customer journeys. Its messaging platform excels in maintaining customer relationships and resolving issues quickly, which is crucial in these fast-paced sectors.

Intercom

With Zoho Desk, agents become more productive, managers become more impactful, and customers become more empowered. It's customizable, convenient to use, and it doesn't cost you a fortune. Part of Zoho's 30-strong suite of business software, Zoho Desk brings you the power to put customer service at the heart of your company.

Zoho

Sample Customers

Expensift, Moz, Invision, Salesforce, Droplr, Vend, BugHerd, Ghost, Put.io, Codeship

Intel, Sears, Daimler, Essilor, Aon Hewitt, Shop Your Way, CoffeeRocket

Buyer's Guide

Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs. Zoho Desk

September 2025

Free Report: Intercom Customer Communications Platform vs. Zoho Desk

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