HubSpot vs Intercom. Pricing, AI and which to pick.

Both are customer platforms priced per seat, with an AI agent billed by results: HubSpot per AI resolution, Intercom per Fin outcome. HubSpot is free for up to 2 users; Intercom has a 14-day trial and no free plan.

Every price and feature here comes from HubSpot's and Intercom's own websites, with links. ChatBento, our product, appears as a third column so you can see where a simpler website chatbot fits.

Live chat and help desks

HubSpot

HubSpot's Service Hub is a CRM-based customer service platform with a help desk, ticketing, live chat, a knowledge base and calling. Its chatbot builder is free, and the AI Customer Agent comes with Professional and Enterprise.

Starts at: Freeup to 2 users. Paid seats: see their pricing page
Billing: Per seat, plus $0.50 per AI resolution
Free option: Yes, up to 2 users

Live chat and help desks

Intercom

Intercom is an AI-first customer service help desk with a shared inbox, ticketing, a help center and Messenger live chat, priced per seat, with its Fin AI Agent charged per outcome.

Starts at: $19per seat / mo billed yearly, new-customer price; plus $0.99 per Fin outcome
Billing: Per seat, plus $0.99 per Fin outcome
Free option: No (14-day trial)

HubSpot vs Intercom, side by side

"Not confirmed" means we couldn't verify it on that company's site, not that it's missing.

HubSpot, Intercom and ChatBento compared on price and features
Feature	HubSpot	Intercom	ChatBentoOur product
Free plan	Yes, up to 2 users	No (14-day trial)	Yes, 50 AI messages/mo
Lowest paid plan	Not confirmed	$19/seat/mo billed yearly, plus Fin	$14/mo (2,000 AI messages)
How the AI is billed	Per seat, plus $0.50 per AI resolution	Per seat, plus $0.99 per Fin outcome	Flat monthly price, no seats
AI answers trained on your website	Customer Agent, Professional and up	Yes	Yes
Install with one script tag	Yes	Yes	Yes
Hand-off to a human	Yes	Yes, to agents in the inbox	Yes, by email
Live chat inbox for your team	Yes	Yes	No
WhatsApp, Messenger and other channels	Yes	Yes	Not yet
Native integrations (CRM, Slack and others)	2,000+ apps	Hundreds, incl. Slack, Jira, Salesforce	Not yet
Help desk ticketing	Yes	Yes	No

HubSpot details checked October 30, 2026; Intercom details checked October 23, 2026. Prices change, so check each company's pricing page before you decide.

Where each one is stronger

HubSpot's strengths

From HubSpot's own site. Check Intercom's column in the table above for the same rows.

A CRM underneath
Every chat, ticket and call sits on HubSpot's CRM, next to your contacts and deals. ChatBento sends leads to your email.
hubspot.com/pricing/service
A full service platform
Help desk, ticketing, SLAs, skill-based routing, a knowledge base, calling and feedback surveys, beyond the chat widget.
hubspot.com/pricing/service
AI that knows the customer
Customer Agent learns from your knowledge base, website, CRM data and past conversations, works across chat, email, WhatsApp and Messenger, and transfers to your team with full context.
hubspot.com/products/artificial-intelligence/ai-customer-service-agent
Over 2,000 integrations
HubSpot's marketplace lists more than 2,000 apps, from Jira to Microsoft Teams.
hubspot.com/pricing/service

Intercom's strengths

From Intercom's own site. Check HubSpot's column in the table above for the same rows.

A full help desk
Shared inbox, ticketing system, public help center, reports and automation, with workflow builders and SLAs on higher plans.
intercom.com/pricing
Fin works everywhere
Fin answers across channels including email, live chat, phone, WhatsApp and SMS, transfers to agents in the inbox, and can run on top of Zendesk, Salesforce, HubSpot or Freshdesk.
fin.ai
Hundreds of integrations
Intercom says Fin connects to hundreds of integrations out of the box, including Slack, Jira, Linear, Salesforce and HubSpot, with Shopify and Stripe data in the inbox.
intercom.com/pricing
Mobile apps for your team
Intercom Conversations for iOS and Android lets teammates reply, add notes, and tag and assign conversations.
intercom.com/help/en/articles/447-respond-to-users-and-visitors-on-the-go-with-the-intercom-conversations-app

HubSpot and Intercom pricing

Each plan as the company lists it, with the fees that come on top.

HubSpot pricing

Freeup to 2 users, live chat with HubSpot branding$0
Service Hub Professionalper seat / mo committed annually ($100 otherwise), plus a one-time $1,500 onboarding fee$90
Customer Agent (AI)per resolution; needs Professional or Enterprise$0.50

Free for up to 2 users, no credit card required. Checked October 30, 2026 on hubspot.com/pricing/service.

We couldn't confirm the per-seat prices HubSpot shows for Starter, Professional and Enterprise in every region, so check its pricing page. Professional and Enterprise also carry a required one-time onboarding fee ($1,500 and $3,500). Source
HubSpot counts a Customer Agent resolution when the AI helped and the conversation wasn't handed to a human for 72 hours. Source

HubSpot pricing, worked out

Intercom pricing

Essentialper seat / mo billed yearly, new-customer price (list $29)$19
Advancedper seat / mo billed yearly$85
Expertper seat / mo billed yearly$132
Fin AI Agentper outcome, on any plan$0.99

No free plan; a 14-day free trial, no card required. Checked October 23, 2026 on intercom.com/pricing.

Intercom counts a Fin outcome when a customer confirms their issue is resolved or doesn't ask for more help after Fin responds. Fin can also run on another help desk at $0.99 per outcome with a minimum monthly commitment. Source

Intercom pricing, worked out

Which to choose

It comes down to who answers your chats and how you'd rather be billed.

Choose HubSpot if

You already run sales or marketing in HubSpot and want every chat on the contact's CRM record.
You need ticketing, SLAs and a knowledge base alongside chat.
Two people answering live chat for free is all you need, and you don't need AI answers.
You want the AI agent on email, WhatsApp and Messenger too, and per-resolution pricing suits your volume.

Choose Intercom if

You run a support team that needs a shared inbox, ticketing and a help center in one place.
You want one AI agent across chat, email, phone and WhatsApp.
Paying per seat plus $0.99 per resolved outcome fits your volume.
You need SSO, HIPAA support or SLAs (Expert plan).

Choose ChatBento if

Our product

You want an AI chatbot on your website that answers from your own pages, Q&As and text, not a full support suite.
You'd rather pay a flat $14, $30 or $100 a month than per seat or per resolution, or start on the free plan with 50 AI messages a month.
An email hand-off is enough when a visitor needs a person.

Only need AI answers on your website?

ChatBento reads your site in about a minute and answers visitors from it. Free plan forever, paid plans from $14 a month.

ChatBento vs HubSpot ChatBento vs Intercom

HubSpot vs Intercom. Questions, answered.

Which is cheaper, HubSpot or Intercom?

It depends on how you'd use them, because they bill differently. HubSpot is free to start (up to 2 users. Paid seats: see their pricing page), billed as: per seat, plus $0.50 per AI resolution. Intercom starts at $19 (per seat / mo billed yearly, new-customer price; plus $0.99 per Fin outcome), billed as: per seat, plus $0.99 per Fin outcome. Price your own monthly volume on both before you decide.

Do HubSpot and Intercom have free plans?

HubSpot: Free for up to 2 users, no credit card required. Intercom: No free plan; a 14-day free trial, no card required.

What is the main difference between HubSpot and Intercom?

Which should I choose, HubSpot or Intercom?

Choose HubSpot if you already run sales or marketing in HubSpot and want every chat on the contact's CRM record. Choose Intercom if you run a support team that needs a shared inbox, ticketing and a help center in one place.

Do I need a live chat inbox at all?

Only if someone on your team will answer chats in real time. HubSpot and Intercom both include one. If you mostly want visitors' questions answered from your website, an AI chatbot with an email hand-off does that without a seat for each person.

Is there a simpler, flat-priced alternative to HubSpot and Intercom?

ChatBento is an AI chatbot for your website that learns from your pages and Q&As, captures leads and hands off to you by email. It has a free plan with 50 AI messages a month, then $14, $30 or $100 a month, with AI answers included and no seats. It has no live chat inbox, ticketing or messaging channels, so it fits when the website chatbot is the job.

Keep comparing

All comparisons AI chatbot pricing guide

HubSpot and Intercom are trademarks of their owners; ChatBento is not affiliated with or endorsed by either.

Sources: hubspot.com/pricing/service, hubspot.com/products/artificial-intelligence/ai-customer-service-agent, intercom.com/pricing, fin.ai, intercom.com/help/en/articles/447-respond-to-users-and-visitors-on-the-go-with-the-intercom-conversations-app

Put AI answers on your site. Free to start, then $14 a month.

Start free See pricing

Free plan forever. No card required.