Freshdesk by Freshworks vs Hive
Features, use cases, pros and cons, and pricing side by side — and which one to pick.
Best for: Small businesses and startups that need a capable ticketing system without upfront cost, thanks to the free plan, Growing support teams that want to consolidate email, chat, phone, and social conversations into one queue
Read the full Freshdesk by Freshworks reviewBest for: Marketing teams that plan campaigns, coordinate content, and need approval workflows in one place., Agencies and studios that manage multiple client projects and bill by the hour.
Read the full Hive reviewCommission may apply at no extra cost
Freshdesk by Freshworks vs Hive: features compared
Compare key features side by side
Feature Comparison Summary
Which should you choose?
Choose Freshdesk by Freshworks if
- You prefer usage-based billing that scales with volume.
- You want a free trial before committing to paid plans.
Choose Hive if
- You want to test everything through a free trial.
Freshdesk by Freshworks vs Hive: pros and cons
Freshdesk by Freshworks
Freshdesk bundles omnichannel ticketing, solid automation, and 150-plus integrations into an approachable platform, and its free plan makes starting easy. The trade-off is that key features sit on higher tiers and costs climb as your team grows. Overall, it's a dependable, recommendable help desk for growing support teams that can budget for the plans they'll actually need.
Pros
- Generous free plan supports basic ticketing and a knowledge base for small teams with no seat cost
- Omnichannel support consolidates email, chat, phone, and social messages into one ticket queue
- Strong automation engine handles routing, escalations, and repetitive follow-ups with minimal setup
Cons
- Several valuable features, such as advanced automation, custom roles, and audit logs, are locked behind mid and upper tiers, so the lowest paid plans feel limited
- Costs rise quickly for larger teams, and the top of the pricing range reaches enterprise-level figures that may exceed small business budgets
- Reporting on lower plans is basic, with custom report builders reserved for higher tiers
Hive bundles project views, native time tracking, proofing, and chat into one workspace, which can replace several separate subscriptions for agencies and creative teams. Setup takes real effort, though, and the most valuable features sit behind paid tiers with pricing that isn't fully published. Overall, it's a solid pick for teams that bill time or manage client approvals.
Pros
- Kanban, Gantt, calendar, and table views are available for the same project, so team members can work in the layout that suits them.
- Time tracking, proofing, chat, and email come built in, potentially replacing several standalone subscriptions.
- A free plan and free trial let teams evaluate the platform with a small group before paying.
Cons
- The most useful capabilities — advanced automations, deeper analytics, and full proofing — sit behind paid tiers, so the free plan works best as an evaluation tier.
- The breadth of features creates a real learning curve; teams must invest in setup and conventions to avoid a cluttered workspace.
- Notification volume can become noisy on busy projects without deliberate configuration.
Freshdesk by Freshworks and Hive in detail
Freshdesk by Freshworks
Freshdesk is a help desk and ticketing system that converts incoming customer messages from multiple channels into organized tickets. Agents can assign, prioritize, collaborate on, and resolve those tickets using workflows, canned responses, SLA policies, and automation rules. The platform also includes a self-service knowledge base, customer portals, reporting dashboards, and a marketplace of 150+ third-party integrations covering CRM, e-commerce, messaging, and productivity tools.
Standout features
- Omnichannel Ticketing
- Automation and Workflows
- Self-Service Knowledge Base
- Reporting and Analytics
- Integrations and Apps Marketplace
Use cases
- Small Teams Starting a Support Function
- E-commerce Customer Service
- Multi-Channel Support Operations
- Scaled Enterprise Support with Compliance Needs
Hive
Hive is a cloud-based project management and productivity platform. Teams plan work in flexible layouts — Kanban boards, Gantt charts, calendars, and table views — and manage tasks, files, conversations, and approvals from a single workspace. It runs in the browser and offers desktop and mobile apps for working across devices.
Standout features
- Flexible Project Views
- Built-In Time Tracking
- Proofing and Approvals
- Automations
- Dashboards and Reporting
Use cases
- Marketing Campaign Management
- Agency and Client Project Delivery
- Creative Production and Design Reviews
- Cross-Functional Project Coordination
Pricing compared
List prices from each vendor's pricing page, before taxes and add-ons. Costs are per month.
| Pricing compared | Freshdesk by Freshworks | Hive |
|---|---|---|
| From (cheapest paid plan) | $23/mo Growth · per user | $5/mo Starter · per user |
| Free plan | No | No |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| Money-back guarantee | Not stated | Not stated |
| Annual billing savings | Up to 17% | — |
| Pricing model | Per user | Per user |
| Cost for 1 user | $23/mo Growth plan, billed monthly | $5/moCheaper Starter plan, billed monthly |
| Cost for 5 users | $115/mo Growth plan, billed monthly | $25/moCheaper Starter plan, billed monthly |
| Cost for 10 users | $230/mo Growth plan, billed monthly | $50/moCheaper Starter plan, billed monthly |
| Cost for 25 users | $575/mo Growth plan, billed monthly | $125/moCheaper Starter plan, billed monthly |
| Plans | 3 | 2 |
| Prices checked | Checked Oct 13, 2026 | Checked Oct 13, 2026 |
| Price history | Tracking prices since Sep 30, 2026. No price change detected yet. | Tracking prices since Oct 1, 2026. No price change detected yet. |
- Cheapest plan that fits each team size. Per-user plans are multiplied by the number of users (respecting stated minimums and seat packs). Plans that include some users cost their base price plus the extra-user price for each user beyond those included. Flat-priced plans with no stated user limit are counted as one licence per user.
Cheaper for your team size
For 5 users (billed monthly), Hive costs $25/mo vs Freshdesk by Freshworks at $115/mo.
- Hive is cheaper at every team size we checked (1 to 25 users).
- For 1 user (billed monthly), Hive costs $5/mo vs Freshdesk by Freshworks at $23/mo.
- For 10 users (billed monthly), Hive costs $50/mo vs Freshdesk by Freshworks at $230/mo.
- For 25 users (billed monthly), Hive costs $125/mo vs Freshdesk by Freshworks at $575/mo.
Computed from published list prices on the dates shown. Excludes taxes, add-ons and promotions.