Help desk software with AI agents

Frequently asked questions

What is LiveAgent help desk software?

LiveAgent is web-based help desk software for small and growing support teams. It turns email, live chat, phone calls, social media messages and contact forms into tickets in one shared inbox, and adds a knowledge base, automation, reports and AI agents. It runs in the browser, with nothing to install. Regular prices start at $15 per agent per month billed annually, and more than 7,000 businesses use it.

What is the difference between a help desk and a ticketing system?

A ticketing system is the core of a help desk: it turns each request into a ticket with an owner, a status and a history, and tracks it until it is solved. Help desk software adds what surrounds it: live chat, phone and social media in the same inbox, a knowledge base for self-service, automation rules, reports and AI. LiveAgent includes the whole ticketing system.

Can I use LiveAgent as a service desk?

Yes, for customer service and internal support. The same tools run a service desk: tickets from email, chat, phone and a customer portal, departments for each team, SLA rules for response and resolution times, an audit log and a knowledge base for self-service. LiveAgent is built for support, not for IT asset or change management, so IT teams that need those use an IT service management tool such as Jira Service Management next to it.

How do the AI agents in LiveAgent work?

Once you connect your AI provider, AI agents work on each incoming ticket: they tag and categorize it, filter spam, route it to the right department and draft a reply from the ticket and your knowledge base. An agent checks the draft and sends it, or an AI autoresponder answers routine emails on its own. On live chat, an AI chatbot answers routine questions 24/7. The visitor can ask for a person, agents see every chatbot chat and can step in, and the chat moves to an agent with the whole conversation.

How does LiveAgent route tickets and manage SLAs?

Rules route each new ticket by conditions such as its source (email, chat, call or social media), the sender or words in the message: they assign it to a department or an agent, tag it and set its SLA level. SLA levels define how fast your team must respond. Tickets with an overdue SLA move up the agents' queue, time rules send reminders on tickets that wait, and the SLA compliance report shows how often you meet your targets. SLA rules come with the Team plan and up.

How does LiveAgent keep two agents from answering the same email?

Each ticket has one owner, and agents see who else is viewing a ticket or typing a reply to it, so they know when a colleague is already answering. Internal notes let colleagues add context without the customer seeing it.

How much does LiveAgent cost?

LiveAgent is priced per agent per month, and regular prices start at $15 billed annually or $19 billed monthly, on the Starter plan for up to 5 agents. Team adds the call center, social media and SLA rules, and Business is for any team size. There are no AI fees from LiveAgent and no setup fee. Every plan, add-on and running offer is on the pricing page.

Does LiveAgent charge for AI?

No. LiveAgent's AI features are included in every plan without AI fees from LiveAgent: you connect your own OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini or FlowHunt account and pay that provider for what you use. Some help desks charge for every question their AI resolves instead.

How long does it take to set up LiveAgent?

You can connect your support email and website chat on the first day of the trial: connect a Google, Microsoft or IMAP mailbox or forward your support address, then paste the chat widget code into your website. If you move from Zendesk, Freshdesk, Help Scout or another help desk, LiveAgent's team moves your tickets, contacts and knowledge base articles for free; fewer than 10,000 tickets usually take one or two days.

Can one LiveAgent account serve several brands or stores?

Yes. Connect a support address and a chat widget for each brand and route each to its own department, so every team sees its own tickets in the same help desk. Business includes two knowledge bases; more, or one on another plan, is an add-on.

Where does LiveAgent store my data?

In the region you choose when you sign up: the EU (Frankfurt), the US or Singapore. LiveAgent signs a data processing agreement on request.

What communication channels does LiveAgent support?

Email, live chat, phone calls (incoming and outgoing, through the built-in call center), Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram, posts on X and contact forms. All of them arrive as tickets in the same inbox, with the same rules and reports.

Can I try LiveAgent free and cancel any time?

Yes. The 30-day free trial needs no credit card. After it, you pay monthly or annually, with no long contract and no setup fee, and you can upgrade, downgrade or cancel at any time.

How does LiveAgent compare to Zendesk, Help Scout, or other help desk software?

LiveAgent combines ticketing, live chat, call center, social media, and an AI chatbot in one product, where many competitors charge extra per channel or for AI add-ons. Regular prices start at $15 per agent per month billed annually, with call center and social media from the Team plan. Our comparison of help desk software for small businesses puts LiveAgent next to Zendesk, Freshdesk, Help Scout and other tools, including how each bills for AI, and LiveAgent moves your tickets and contacts from those tools for free.