Zendesk AI Agents vs Gorgias (2026)
The biggest general helpdesk against the Shopify specialist, compared on published pricing, AI billing, order actions, channels and security, as of October 2026.
By , research by the BestBots team · Updated Oct 19, 2026
Fact checked against each company's published pricing, documentation and verified user ratings. How we score
Pick Gorgias if you are a Shopify brand: its AI Agent acts on orders, the helpdesk shows store data in every ticket, and pricing is by ticket with 500 seats included from Basic up. Pick Zendesk if you sell across many channels and storefronts, run phone support at scale or need its long compliance list. For most DTC stores with five or more agents, Gorgias costs less.
Zendesk AI agents4.4From $25 per agent per month (per seat plus per resolution)
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Gorgias AI Agent4.2From $10 per month (per ticket plus per automated interaction)
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| Spec | Zendesk AI agents | Gorgias AI Agent |
|---|---|---|
| BestBots Score | 4.4 | 4.2 |
| Starting price | $25 per agent per month | $10 per month |
| Pricing model | per seat plus per resolution | per ticket plus per automated interaction |
| Free trial | 14 days | 7 days, no card |
| Price per resolution | $1.50 committed, $2.00 pay as you go | $0.85 to $1.00 per automated interaction, plus a helpdesk ticket |
| Channels | Web and in-app messaging, social, email, voice | Email, chat, SMS, Instagram DMs, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp; voice as an add on |
| Human handoff | Yes, routes to Zendesk agents with context | Yes, on low confidence, sensitive topics or frustration, plus your own handover rules |
| Knowledge sources | Zendesk help center plus external sources such as Google Drive and PDFs | Help center, website, documents, URLs, guidance and Shopify order data |
| Languages | 80 languages | 80+ languages for AI Agent replies |
| Seats included | Priced per agent; 5 to 10 automated resolutions per agent per month included | 3 on Starter, 500 on Basic and up |
The short answer
- Choose Gorgias if most tickets are order status, returns, exchanges and subscription changes on Shopify, and you have more than a handful of agents.
- Choose Zendesk if you support several brands or non Shopify storefronts, run voice and contact center operations, or need certifications such as ISO 42001, FedRAMP or HDS.
Pricing
| Item | Zendesk | Gorgias |
|---|---|---|
| Billing basis | Per agent seat | Per billable ticket |
| Entry plan | Support Team $19 annual, $25 monthly per agent | Starter $10 a month, 50 tickets, 3 seats |
| Mid plan | Suite Team $55 annual, $69 monthly per agent | Pro $300 annual, $360 monthly, 2,000 tickets |
| Upper plan | Suite Professional $115 annual, $149 monthly per agent | Advanced $750 annual, $900 monthly, 5,000 tickets |
| Seats | Every agent pays | 500 seats on Basic and up |
| Included AI | 5 resolutions per agent per month (10 on Professional) | 30 to 530 automated interactions with AI Agent bundles |
| Extra AI | $1.50 committed, $2.00 pay as you go | $1.00 monthly, $0.90 annual, $0.85 Advanced |
| What is billed | LLM verified resolutions only | Resolved without a human within 72 hours, plus a ticket fee |
| Voice | Zendesk voice, Contact Center $83 per agent | Add on, priced by volume, not published |
| Trial | 14 days | 7 days |
Worked example: 8 agents, 1,500 tickets, 500 AI resolutions a month
- Zendesk Suite Team annual: $440 in seats. 40 included, 460 at $1.50 = $690. Total about $1,130.
- Gorgias Pro with AI Agent annual: $471 covers 2,000 tickets and 190 interactions. 310 extra at $0.90 = $279. Total about $750.
Gorgias saves about $380 a month, almost all of it from not paying for seats.
Worked example: 2 agents, 250 tickets, 60 AI resolutions a month
- Zendesk Suite Team annual: $110 in seats. 10 included, 50 at $1.50 = $75. Total $185.
- Gorgias Basic with AI Agent annual: $77 covers 300 tickets and 30 interactions. 30 extra at $0.90 = $27. Total $104.
Gorgias wins again at this size. Zendesk Support Team at $38 for two seats is cheaper only if you need email ticketing without messaging. Compare every tracked price on the AI Price Index.
Models and features
| Feature | Zendesk AI agents | Gorgias AI Agent |
|---|---|---|
| AI channels | Messaging, email, voice | Email, chat, SMS, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp |
| Languages | 80+ | 80+ |
| Ecommerce data | Through Shopify and other integrations | Native Shopify order and customer data in every ticket |
| Actions | Action Builder, credits $200 per 100,000 beyond allowance | Built in order actions: cancel, edit, return, address change, subscription changes |
| Sales role | Not positioned as a shopping assistant | Shopping assistant with product recommendations and discount codes |
| Controls | Reasoning controls, AI agent builder from procedures | Skills, guidance, handover and exclusion topics, AI reasoning |
| QA and analytics | Advanced reporting, QA add on | Automation statistics, revenue attribution on Pro and up |
| Marketplace | Large Zendesk Marketplace | 100+ apps, ecommerce focused |
Zendesk's AI is the more general platform: it handles voice, works for any industry and plugs into enterprise systems. Gorgias's AI is narrower but deeper for stores: Gorgias says it is pre trained on 18+ ecommerce verticals, and it can change orders without an agent touching Shopify.
Head to head scenarios
Shopify brand with heavy WISMO and returns
Winner: Gorgias. Order status, cancellations and returns are exactly what its AI Agent actions cover, using live Shopify data. Zendesk can do this through integrations and Action Builder, but you build it yourself.
Multi brand retailer on several platforms
Winner: Zendesk. Multiple brands, help centers and storefronts beyond Shopify are standard Zendesk territory. Gorgias's AI Agent setup requires a Shopify store.
Pre sale chat that drives revenue
Winner: Gorgias. Its shopping assistant tracks pages viewed and cart contents, recommends products and can generate discount codes, with revenue attribution on Pro and up. Zendesk does not sell a comparable shopping role.
Phone heavy support
Winner: Zendesk. AI agents for voice, IVR, Contact Center and published per agent pricing beat Gorgias Voice, which has no public price and a reported spam voicemail billing issue in one Shopify App Store review.
Fast growing team with seasonal staff
Winner: Gorgias. Adding 20 holiday agents costs nothing in seats from Basic up. On Zendesk each one is a paid seat or a light agent.
Enterprise compliance review
Winner: Zendesk. Its trust center lists SOC 2 Type II, five ISO certifications including 42001, FedRAMP LI-SaaS, PCI DSS, HIPAA with a BAA and HDS. Gorgias lists SOC 2 Type II and a HIPAA report on request.
Privacy
Zendesk holds ISO 42001, an audited standard for how a company manages AI, plus CSA STAR AI Levels 1 and 2. It supports HIPAA with a BAA and credit card redaction for PCI.
Gorgias lists SOC 2 Type II since 2020, a HIPAA report on request, GDPR and CCPA compliance and Google Cloud hosting with EU data in the EU. Its AI FAQ says AI Agent uses OpenAI, Anthropic and in house models, that your data does not train third party models, and that AI Agent does learn from interactions across brands with safeguards. Audit logs on Gorgias start on Pro and SAML SSO on Enterprise.
Verdict
Gorgias wins for Shopify brands. Ticket based pricing with 500 seats, native order actions and a built in shopping assistant make it cheaper and more useful for a DTC support team in both worked examples. Zendesk wins for multi brand and multi platform retailers, phone heavy support and enterprise compliance, and its verified only AI billing is fairer than Gorgias's ticket plus automation model. Read the Gorgias review and the Zendesk AI agents review for the details.
Frequently asked questions
Is Gorgias better than Zendesk for Shopify?
For most Shopify brands, yes. Gorgias shows Shopify orders in every ticket, its AI Agent can cancel and edit orders, process returns and recommend products, and it bills by ticket instead of by agent. Zendesk is the better choice when you sell across many channels and storefronts or run a large contact center.
Is Gorgias cheaper than Zendesk?
Usually, once you have more than a few agents. Gorgias Basic and up include 500 seats, so a 10 agent team pays the same as a 2 agent team. Zendesk charges every agent, from $19 a month billed annually. For a two person team with low volume, Zendesk Support Team can be cheaper.
How do Zendesk and Gorgias bill for AI?
Zendesk bills $1.50 committed or $2.00 pay as you go per automated resolution that an LLM verifies as resolved. Gorgias bills $1.00 monthly, $0.90 annual or $0.85 on Advanced per automated interaction, and the resolved ticket also counts as a helpdesk ticket.
Can I migrate from Zendesk to Gorgias?
Yes. Gorgias's help center has an article on importing Zendesk data into Gorgias, covering tickets and customers.
Which has better AI for ecommerce?
Gorgias, on published features: its AI Agent is pre trained on 18+ ecommerce verticals, reads live Shopify order data, takes order actions and doubles as a shopping assistant that recommends products and offers discount codes.
Which is more secure, Zendesk or Gorgias?
Both list SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA support. Zendesk lists far more: ISO 27001, 27017, 27018, 27701 and 42001, FedRAMP LI-SaaS, PCI DSS and HDS. Gorgias's AI FAQ says your data does not train third party LLMs.