Hiver
Kayako
| Feature | Hiver | Kayako |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $19/mo | From $30/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 3.9 / 5 |
| Best For | small-teams, gmail-users, support-teams, startups | ecommerce, saas-companies, support-teams, mid-size-companies |
| Founded | 2011 | 2001 |
| Shared Inboxes | ✓ | ✗ |
| Email Assignment | ✓ | ✗ |
| Collision Detection | ✓ | ✗ |
| Analytics | ✓ | ✗ |
| Automations | ✓ | ✗ |
| Sla Management | ✓ | ✓ |
| Live Chat | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ticketing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Customer Journey | ✗ | ✓ |
| Self Service | ✗ | ✓ |
| Collaboration | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Hiver Pros
- Works inside Gmail
- Easy adoption
- Shared inboxes
- Good for email teams
✗ Hiver Cons
- Gmail-only
- Limited outside email
- Fewer features than full helpdesks
✓ Kayako Pros
- Unified customer view
- Good live chat
- Journey tracking
- Multichannel
✗ Kayako Cons
- Dated interface
- Limited integrations
- Slow development pace
The Verdict
Hiver is built for small teams and gmail users, with a focus on shared-inboxes and email-assignment. Kayako targets ecommerce and saas companies and leads with live-chat and ticketing.
On pricing, Hiver is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $19/mo compared to $30/mo for Kayako. That $11/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Hiver has a free plan, which gives it a meaningful edge for individuals and small teams exploring their options. Kayako requires a paid subscription from day one.
Hiver edges out on user ratings (4.4 vs 3.9). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Both tools are a solid fit for support teams — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
Bottom line: Hiver has a slight overall edge — but if unified customer view matters most to you, Kayako may still be the right call.