What AI assistants actually recommend when buyers ask about helpdesk and ticketing software — measured weekly across 5 engines, published as open data.
Updated 2026-08-04 · 70 sampled answers · rolling 4-week window · methodology
Rankings are measured from sampled AI answers — never editorial, never paid. Orbator builds AI-visibility tooling; when Orbator itself appears in any category, it is measured by the same rules as everyone else.
Sample: 70 AI answers · Window: Jul 7, 2026 – Aug 4, 2026 (4-week rolling) · trend vs prior 4 weeks (39 answers)
Across 70 sampled AI answers from 5 engines, Freshdesk is recommended most often — appearing in 84.3% of recommendations, followed by HelpDesk (78.6%) and Help Scout (74.3%).
This is a measurement of share of voice across 5 AI engines — not an editorial pick. See the full ranking below.
| # | Product | Share | Trend | Engines | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Freshdesk freshdesk.com Best for: AI recommends Freshdesk most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (100% of those answers) | 84.3% 95% CI 74–91% 59 mentions · avg pos 4.7 first pick 23.7% | — | GROK 100%GEMINI 85.7%CHATGPT 85.7%CLAUDE 85.7%PERPLEXITY 76.2% | Claim |
| 2 | HelpDesk helpdesk.com Best for: AI recommends HelpDesk most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (100% of those answers) | 78.6% 95% CI 67.6–86.6% 55 mentions · avg pos 7.4 first pick 7.3% | — | GROK 100%GEMINI 95.2%CHATGPT 57.1%CLAUDE 71.4%PERPLEXITY 66.7% | Claim |
| 3 | Help Scout helpscout.com Best for: AI recommends Help Scout most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (100% of those answers) | 74.3% 95% CI 63–83.1% 52 mentions · avg pos 5.9 first pick 11.5% | — | GROK 85.7%GEMINI 71.4%CHATGPT 85.7%CLAUDE 78.6%PERPLEXITY 66.7% | Claim |
| 4 | Zendesk zendesk.com Best for: AI recommends Zendesk most when buyers ask “what should I use to manage customer support tickets across email and chat” (100% of those answers) | 71.4% 95% CI 59.9–80.7% 50 mentions · avg pos 5.4 first pick 18% | — | GROK 100%GEMINI 57.1%CHATGPT 85.7%CLAUDE 78.6%PERPLEXITY 66.7% | Claim |
| 5 | Zoho zoho.com Best for: AI recommends Zoho most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (100% of those answers) | 54.3% 95% CI 42.7–65.4% 38 mentions · avg pos 6.7 first pick 13.2% | — | GROK 85.7%GEMINI 85.7%CHATGPT 42.9%CLAUDE 35.7%PERPLEXITY 28.6% | Claim |
| 6 | Hiver hiverhq.com Best for: AI recommends Hiver most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (83.3% of those answers) | 35.7% 95% CI 25.5–47.4% 25 mentions · avg pos 7.7 first pick 4% | — | GROK 57.1%GEMINI 33.3%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 35.7%PERPLEXITY 38.1% | Claim |
| 7 | HubSpot CRM hubspot.com Best for: AI recommends HubSpot CRM most when buyers ask “what should I use to manage customer support tickets across email and chat” (75% of those answers) | 35.7% 95% CI 25.5–47.4% 25 mentions · avg pos 8.3 first pick 4% | — | GROK 28.6%GEMINI 42.9%CHATGPT 42.9%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 33.3% | Claim |
| 8 | Intercom intercom.com Best for: AI recommends Intercom most when buyers ask “best helpdesk ticketing software for growing SaaS companies” (83.3% of those answers) | 31.4% 95% CI 21.8–43% 22 mentions · avg pos 4.1 first pick 9.1% | — | GROK 57.1%GEMINI 23.8%CHATGPT 42.9%CLAUDE 35.7%PERPLEXITY 23.8% | Claim |
| 9 | HubSpot Service Hub Best for: AI recommends HubSpot Service Hub most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (50% of those answers) | 31.4% 95% CI 21.8–43% 22 mentions · avg pos 9.1 first pick 4.5% | — | GROK 57.1%GEMINI 47.6%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 10 | Featurebase featurebase.app Best for: AI recommends Featurebase most when buyers ask “best helpdesk ticketing software for growing SaaS companies” (75% of those answers) | 30% 95% CI 20.5–41.5% 21 mentions · avg pos 5.5 first pick 19% | — | GROK 71.4%GEMINI 33.3%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 33.3% | Claim |
| 11 | Slack slack.com Best for: AI recommends Slack most when buyers ask “best helpdesk ticketing software for growing SaaS companies” (41.7% of those answers) | 27.1% 95% CI 18.1–38.5% 19 mentions · avg pos 13.5 first pick 0% | — | GROK 57.1%GEMINI 38.1%CHATGPT 71.4%CLAUDE 14.3% | Claim |
| 12 | Front frontapp.com Best for: AI recommends Front most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (50% of those answers) | 21.4% 95% CI 13.4–32.4% 15 mentions · avg pos 6 first pick 13.3% | — | GROK 42.9%GEMINI 9.5%CHATGPT 28.6%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 13 | osTicket osticket.com Best for: AI recommends osTicket most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (75% of those answers) | 21.4% 95% CI 13.4–32.4% 15 mentions · avg pos 9.4 first pick 13.3% | — | GROK 42.9%GEMINI 23.8%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 14 | HappyFox happyfox.com Best for: AI recommends HappyFox most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (58.3% of those answers) | 21.4% 95% CI 13.4–32.4% 15 mentions · avg pos 10.9 first pick 6.7% | — | GROK 42.9%GEMINI 19%CLAUDE 21.4%PERPLEXITY 23.8% | Claim |
| 15 | Spiceworks spiceworks.com Best for: AI recommends Spiceworks most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (66.7% of those answers) | 20% 95% CI 12.3–30.8% 14 mentions · avg pos 7.2 first pick 14.3% | — | GROK 42.9%GEMINI 19%CLAUDE 21.4%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 16 | Pylon usepylon.com Best for: AI recommends Pylon most when buyers ask “best helpdesk ticketing software for growing SaaS companies” (41.7% of those answers) | 15.7% 95% CI 9–26% 11 mentions · avg pos 9.6 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%GEMINI 19%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 17 | Desk365 desk365.io Best for: AI recommends Desk365 most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (58.3% of those answers) | 14.3% 95% CI 7.9–24.3% 10 mentions · avg pos 8.9 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 23.8%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 18 | Crisp crisp.chat Best for: AI recommends Crisp most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (50% of those answers) | 12.9% 95% CI 6.9–22.7% 9 mentions · avg pos 3.8 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 23.8% | Claim |
| 19 | Missive missiveapp.com Best for: AI recommends Missive most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (83.3% of those answers) | 12.9% 95% CI 6.9–22.7% 9 mentions · avg pos 5.1 first pick 11.1% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 9.5%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 20 | LiveAgent liveagent.com Best for: AI recommends LiveAgent most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (50% of those answers) | 12.9% 95% CI 6.9–22.7% 9 mentions · avg pos 7.4 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 21 | Outlook outlook.com Best for: AI recommends Outlook most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (50% of those answers) | 12.9% 95% CI 6.9–22.7% 9 mentions · avg pos 9 first pick 11.1% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 9.5%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 22 | Zammad zammad.org Best for: AI recommends Zammad most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (41.7% of those answers) | 12.9% 95% CI 6.9–22.7% 9 mentions · avg pos 12.3 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 23.8%CHATGPT 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 23 | Helply helply.com | 10% 95% CI 4.9–19.2% 7 mentions · avg pos 7.7 first pick 0% | — | GROK 42.9%GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 24 | Freshsuccess freshworks.com Best for: AI recommends Freshsuccess most when buyers ask “best customer support ticket management tools for small teams” (33.3% of those answers) | 8.6% 95% CI 4–17.5% 6 mentions · avg pos 3.5 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%CHATGPT 14.3%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 25 | FreeScout freescout.net Best for: AI recommends FreeScout most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (33.3% of those answers) | 8.6% 95% CI 4–17.5% 6 mentions · avg pos 12.7 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 19%CHATGPT 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 26 | Gorgias gorgias.com | 7.1% 95% CI 3.1–15.7% 5 mentions · avg pos 10.7 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 14.3% | Claim |
| 27 | Tidio AI tidio.com Best for: AI recommends Tidio AI most when buyers ask “which helpdesk tool is best for technical SaaS support teams” (33.3% of those answers) | 7.1% 95% CI 3.1–15.7% 5 mentions · avg pos 17 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 28 | HelpSpot helpspot.com Best for: AI recommends HelpSpot most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (41.7% of those answers) | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 29 | Freshservice freshservice.com | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 3.7 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 4.8%CLAUDE 14.3% | Claim |
| 30 | ServiceNow servicenow.com Best for: AI recommends ServiceNow most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (41.7% of those answers) | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 5 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 31 | Gmelius gmelius.com Best for: AI recommends Gmelius most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (41.7% of those answers) | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 5.3 first pick 25% | — | GROK 14.3%CHATGPT 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 32 | Capacity capacity.com | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 13.5 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 33 | SparrowDesk sparrowdesk.com Best for: AI recommends SparrowDesk most when buyers ask “best customer support ticket management tools for small teams” (41.7% of those answers) | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 17.8 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5%CHATGPT 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 34 | Service Cloud Best for: AI recommends Service Cloud most when buyers ask “affordable alternatives to the big enterprise helpdesk platforms” (41.7% of those answers) | 5.7% 95% CI 2.2–13.8% 4 mentions · avg pos 34.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 35 | Kayako kayako.com Best for: AI recommends Kayako most when buyers ask “what should I use to manage customer support tickets across email and chat” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 2.5 first pick 33.3% | — | GROK 28.6%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 36 | Groove groovehq.com | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 37 | Agentforce salesforce.com | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 7.7 first pick 0% | — | GROK 42.9% | Claim |
| 38 | Hesk | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 8 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 39 | Plain plain.com | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 9 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%CHATGPT 28.6% | Claim |
| 40 | PCMag pcmag.com | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 11 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 41 | Microsoft microsoft.com | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 17 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%CHATGPT 14.3% | Claim |
| 42 | GLPi glpi-project.org | 4.3% 95% CI 1.5–11.9% 3 mentions · avg pos 24 first pick 0% | — | GROK 28.6%CHATGPT 14.3% | Claim |
| 43 | GuideFlow guideflow.com | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 1 first pick 50% | — | CLAUDE 7.1%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 44 | Helpwise Best for: AI recommends Helpwise most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (33.3% of those answers) | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 1 first pick 50% | — | GROK 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 45 | Opsgenie atlassian.com | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1% | Claim |
| 46 | Deelo deelo.ai | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 4.5 first pick 0% | — | CHATGPT 14.3%CLAUDE 7.1% | Claim |
| 47 | Gleap gleap.io | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 48 | Supportbench supportbench.com | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 7 first pick 0% | — | CHATGPT 28.6% | Claim |
| 49 | UseResponse useresponse.com | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 7 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 50 | Frappe frappe.io | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 8.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 51 | Frappe Helpdesk | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 8.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 52 | Deskpro deskpro.com | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 11 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3%GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 53 | Znuny | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 15.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 54 | Kustomer kustomer.com | 2.9% 95% CI 0.8–9.8% 2 mentions · avg pos 17 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 55 | Software Advice softwareadvice.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 1 first pick 100% | — | GROK 14.3% | Claim |
| 56 | tawk.to tawk.to | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 2 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 57 | Jitbit Helpdesk jitbit.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 4 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3% | Claim |
| 58 | Rezolve AI rezolve.ai | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 6 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3% | Claim |
| 59 | Vision Helpdesk visionhelpdesk.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 6 first pick 0% | — | CLAUDE 7.1% | Claim |
| 60 | eesel AI eesel.ai | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 7 first pick 0% | — | GROK 14.3% | Claim |
| 61 | UVdesk | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 13 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 62 | Faveo Helpdesk faveohelpdesk.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 14 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 63 | Faveo | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 18 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 64 | Azure SQL Serverless learn.microsoft.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 65 | Crescendo.ai crescendo.ai | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 66 | Mailmodo mailmodo.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 67 | Pipedrive pipedrive.com Best for: AI recommends Pipedrive most when buyers ask “shared inbox tools vs full helpdesk platforms for early-stage startups” (33.3% of those answers) | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 68 | Thryv thryv.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 69 | Zapier AI zapier.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 70 | wpbeginner.com wpbeginner.com | 1.4% 95% CI 0.3–7.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
Reading the numbers: Share is a point estimate on 70 sampled answers, so each row also shows its 95% CI — the Wilson score interval around that share. When two products' intervals overlap, the gap between them isn't statistically meaningful at this sample size. First pick is the share of a product's recommending answers where it was named first, which separates “always mentioned” from “usually the top recommendation”. Full methodology.
Independence: Orbator customers are badged for disclosure. Customer status does not affect prompts, sampling, extraction, or ranking — see the methodology. Your product on this list? Claim it to see the prompts behind your rank and track it weekly.
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