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AI support agent

“Build an AI customer support agent”
1 of 2

An AI support agent answers from the content you give it and needs a clear handover to your team. Chatbase builds an agent from your website, help articles and files, adds it as a chat widget and can take actions such as a booking or an order lookup. Intercom's Fin answers inside a full help desk and passes unsolved cases to your team, from $29 a month. Crisp and Help Scout suit small teams that want the bot and the human inbox in one place.

Chatbase: AI support agent trained on your own content.
Chatbase

AI support agent trained on your own content.

From $40/moTry
Lovable: Builds web apps from a plain-language description.
Lovable

Builds web apps from a plain-language description.

Free planTry
Bolt: Web apps built, run and deployed from a prompt.
Bolt28%

Web apps built, run and deployed from a prompt.

Free planTry
Replit: Build and host apps with AI in the browser.
Replit

Build and host apps with AI in the browser.

Free planTry

Side by side

Price, free plan, ease of use and the team size each one suits.
ZendeskFrom $19/moSix months free for startupsGrowing team, Large team
IntercomFrom $29/moEarly-stage programme discountSmall team, Growing team, Large team
Help ScoutSix months free for startupsSolo, Small team, Growing team
Crisp50% off for nonprofits and studentsSolo, Small team, Growing team
ChatbaseFrom $40/moSolo, Small team, Growing team

Why these picks

Independent reviews, facts checked at the source, and our own use.
  • Ranked from independent reviews

    We score how often and how high each tool appears in independent best-of reviews.

    Reviews read 2 Oct 2026
  • Facts checked at the source

    Prices, free plans and offers come from each provider's own website, checked every week by our software and reviewed by us.

    Prices last checked 12 Oct 2026
  • Nobody pays for a place

    The order comes from the reviews and the facts. Offers are only the providers' own.

     

Head to head

Pairs people weigh up that include one of these picks.
FreshdeskvsZendeskHelp ScoutvsZendeskZendeskvsIntercom

Rules that apply

The rules, the dates, and which of these tools support them.
EU AI Act: chatbot and AI content labelsUsing a chatbot or AI images on your site in the EU? See what Article 50 of the AI Act asks of you, who must label what, and the dates that apply.

Questions

What people ask about AI support agent.

Should I add a standalone chatbot or use my help desk's AI?

A standalone agent such as Chatbase is quick to add to any site and has a free plan to start. Help desk AI, such as Intercom's Fin, sits inside the inbox your team already uses, so handovers keep the full conversation. Crisp and Help Scout also pair AI with a shared inbox for small teams. Pick standalone if you have no help desk yet, and built-in if you do.

What content should I train the agent on first?

Start with your twenty most common questions and write a clear help article for each. Chatbase learns from your website, help articles and files, and Help Scout's AI drafts answers from your own articles. Leave out old pricing pages and outdated policies, since the agent will quote them. Review the questions it fails on each week and add an article for each gap.

Can the bot do things, or only answer questions?

Chatbase agents can take actions, such as making a booking or looking up an order. Intercom's Fin answers from your support content and hands over to a person when it cannot help. Start with read-only lookups before you let a bot change anything for a customer. Refunds and account changes are safer with a human approving them.

How much does an AI support agent cost for a small shop?

Chatbase, Crisp and Help Scout each list a free plan, so you can test an agent at no cost. Intercom has no free tier, and its cheapest seat is $29 a month. Crisp prices per workspace, which keeps costs flat as you add people. Compare the price against the hours your team spends on repeat questions each month.

How do I stop the AI from making things up?

Keep the agent tied to your own content, which is how Chatbase and Fin are built to work. Tell it to hand over when it is unsure, and make the route to a person visible in the chat. Test it with awkward questions before launch, including ones about prices and refunds. Under the EU AI Act, tell customers they are chatting with an AI.