4 Alternatives to eDesk by xSellco

eDesk is an expensive ecommerce helpdesk. You can choose options like paying $89 a month for only five marketplace integrations or $199 for just 400 tickets a month. With such high costs, it has to be the best support solution for online sellers, right? Well, after carefully comparing eDesk alternatives, we found a few platforms that are better, cheaper, or both!

4 eDesk Alternatives

To count as an alternative to eDesk, a helpdesk can’t just be good for managing emails and phone calls. It has to have serious ecommerce integrations. We’re talking messaging with marketplaces like Amazon and eBay, order info displays, and tools that work with ecommerce data. A real alternative.

With that in mind, the four best options are Zendesk, Freshdesk, Gorgias and Re:amaze. Why?

1. All four support Shopify for free and have a mix of other storebuilder integrations like Magento and BigCommerce.
2. All four integrate with Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Etsy, Newegg, Back Market, and WooCommerce (plus an alternative free Shopify integration) with the help of ChannelReply.
3. Even while paying for both the helpdesk and ChannelReply, all four are usually more affordable than eDesk.
4. Each has its own unique strengths and outdoes all its competitors in at least one area of ecommerce support.

Price Comparison

Other helpdesks are almost always cheaper than eDesk. That's true even when considering the cost of add-ons and minimum plan levels needed for ecommerce support. The chart below shows the difference.

Alternative helpdesk plan levels used for calculations: Zendesk Support Team, Freshdesk Growth, Gorgias Basic, and Re:amaze Basic. *Includes cost of ChannelReply Standard for eBay, Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, Newegg, Back Market WooCommerce and/or Shopify integration. **Includes cost of ChannelReply Standard and Gorgias' automation add-on for 0 to 30 interactions per month.

Costs vary for everyone. In speaking to former eDesk customers who have switched to one of the other helpdesks above, though, we have found that most of them have saved money. This usually amounts to hundreds of dollars per month for large teams.

Quick Comparisons

Ground Rules

There are a million different business cases, and all are different. We can’t cover them all here. So, we’ll cover one common scenario:

1. The hypothetical “you” sells on Shopify, eBay, Amazon, and Walmart.
2. You plan to use at least some automations, such as an autoresponder or automatic ticket assignment rule.
3. You want the most affordable plan possible.

We’ll therefore look at each helpdesk’s cheapest ecommerce-compatible plan with automations + ChannelReply Standard. We’ll compare that combination against eDesk Performance Plus.

Remember, each helpdesk has several ecommerce integrations beside Shopify. ChannelReply supports WooCommerce for all four, and Magento, BigCommerce, 3dcart, PrestaShop, etc. all connect with at least one of the helpdesks below. Plus, ChannelReply supports Etsy, Back Market and Newegg as well.

Alternative 1: Zendesk

A Walmart escalation ticket in Zendesk, with buyer and order data from ChannelReply.

Zendesk is perhaps the best-known, best-trusted helpdesk in the world. When people hear the word “helpdesk,” Zendesk is what they think of.

There’s a good reason for Zendesk’s popularity. It combines power, reliability, and usability to create one of the most versatile solutions available. When someone has looked at all the options available and can’t make up their mind, we tell them to give Zendesk a try.

Why Is Zendesk Better than eDesk?

Amazon tickets in eDesk vs. Zendesk. The eDesk screenshot comes from this video.

• Save up to 51% on annual costs when you choose Zendesk over eDesk.
• Make fewer trips to your eBay, Amazon, and Walmart accounts with 9.8% more data available right next to each buyer message.
• Use over 38% more data than eDesk to auto-personalize your canned replies and autoresponses to eBay, Amazon and Walmart customers.
• Manage eBay Resolution Center cases, approve or decline cancellations, issue refunds on returns, haggle on best offers, and send public or private replies on feedback. 
• Simplify Walmart order management with the ability to cancel orders, issue refunds and update order statuses.
• Answer buyer messages from your mobile device.

Get a quick overview of Zendesk in this demo video:

For a detailed exploration of how Zendesk works with ChannelReply for ecommerce support, check out our Zendesk integration infographic!

Alternative 2: Freshdesk

An Amazon message in Freshdesk.

Freshdesk is the most affordable ecommerce helpdesk here, but it’s also one of the most powerful. It absolutely rocks for anyone who likes tinkering with advanced workflows and autoreplies. With piles of customizable features and optional add-ons, Freshdesk can do almost anything.

What Makes Freshdesk Better than eDesk?

eDesk’s snippets vs. ChannelReply custom fields in Freshdesk. eDesk screenshot from this video.

• Save up to 58% on annual costs when you choose Freshdesk over eDesk.
• Make fewer trips to your eBay, Amazon, and Walmart accounts with 9.8% more data available right next to each buyer message.
• Use advanced rules to detect nearly 26% more eBay, Amazon and Walmart data than eDesk and choose from nearly twice as many automated actions.
• Build more advanced ecommerce autoresponders than even premium eDesk plans support.
• Manage eBay Resolution Center cases, approve or decline cancellations, issue refunds on returns, haggle on best offers, and send public or private replies on feedback. 
• Simplify Walmart order management with the ability to cancel orders, issue refunds and update order statuses.
• Answer buyer messages and view your most important buyer and order info from your mobile device.
• Take advantage of Shopify support actions like refunding individual items or whole orders.

Check out our Freshdesk integration infographic to explore our ecommerce integrations for Freshdesk. Or, watch this video below for a quick look at Freshdesk’s free Shopify app:

Alternative 3: Gorgias

Using a macro with ChannelReply variables to send an email reply to an Etsy customer. Note that Etsy is the only integrated marketplace that does not allow developers like eDesk or ChannelReply to send replies directly into its messaging system through its API.

Gorgias is the best Shopify helpdesk. If we had to rate each helpdesk by its native Shopify features, we’d say Zendesk, Freshdesk and eDesk are only decent. Re:amaze is really good. Gorgias, though, is the greatest there ever was. Nothing else compares.

Why Is Gorgias Better than eDesk?

Shopify tickets in eDesk vs. Gorgias. Unlike eDesk, Gorgias lets you choose exactly which data you want shown for Shopify, so you can have it as simple or as detailed as you like. eDesk screenshot from eDesk's demo video "eDesk Intro," no longer publicly available.

• Save up to 41% on annual costs when you choose Gorgias over eDesk.
• Make fewer trips to your eBay, Amazon, and Walmart accounts with 9.8% more data available right next to each buyer message.
• Use over 26% more data than eDesk to auto-personalize your canned replies to eBay, Amazon and Walmart customers. That includes more buyer and order data than any other helpdesk on this list.
• View order details and answer buyer messages from the Gorgias mobile app.
• Take more Shopify actions from inside Gorgias than from inside any other helpdesk. Edit, cancel, create or duplicate orders, issue full or partial refunds, restock, and more!
• Get more Shopify data from Gorgias than from any competitor, and even customize which Shopify data is shown next to tickets.

Learn more about Gorgias's Shopify integration here. Or, to see how Amazon, eBay and Walmart support work in Gorgias, watch this video:

More info and screenshots are available in our Gorgias integration infographic.

Alternative 4: Re:amaze

Resolving an eBay cancellation request on an iPhone with Re:amaze. On the left is the notification; in the center and on the right are the ChannelReply app, which can easily be expanded or hidden as needed.

Re:amaze has a world-class Shopify integration. It also has powerful support for eBay, Amazon and Walmart with ChannelReply, and the best mobile app we’ve seen from any ecommerce helpdesk. It is probably the most well-rounded alternative to eDesk.

What Makes Re:amaze Better than eDesk?

eBay messages in eDesk and in Re:amaze’s desktop interface; Re:amaze’s data keeps going in both directions! eDesk screenshot from this video.

• Save up to 37% on annual costs when you choose Re:amaze over eDesk.
• Speed up Shopify support with better order management.
• Refund, cancel, duplicate, and create orders without leaving Re:amaze.
• Make fewer trips to your eBay, Amazon, and Walmart accounts with 9.8% more data available right next to each buyer message.
• Manage eBay Resolution Center cases, approve or decline cancellations, issue refunds on returns, haggle on best offers, and send public or private replies on feedback. 
• Simplify Walmart order management with the ability to cancel orders, issue refunds and update order statuses.
• Use all features on your mobile device. Answer messages, view buyer and order data, and take all advanced actions mentioned in this list.

This intro video shows some of their powerful features for Shopify in action:

And here you can see how ChannelReply allows you to support ecommerce marketplaces in Re:amaze:

Learn more about how ChannelReply and Re:amaze work together in our Re:amaze integration infographic.

In-Depth Comparison: eDesk vs. Zendesk, Freshdesk, Gorgias and Re:amaze

Which helpdesk has the best Amazon autoresponder? Which ones provide the most helpful info? How do the mobile apps stack up? We spent weeks in research and comparison, and here’s what we found.

Buyer & Order Data Displayed with Tickets

An eBay message in Zendesk with buyer and order data displayed by ChannelReply on the right.

Your agents need detailed buyer, order and shipping data to be able to answer customer questions. More info means faster service and lower support costs. Less info means opening more tabs and signing in to more services to look things up.

Here are two charts showing the amount of ecommerce data displayed by each helpdesk:

eBay, Amazon & Walmart Data

Both eDesk and ChannelReply provide plenty of basic order info for eBay, Amazon and Walmart support. Either one will tell you what the buyer ordered. Either one will provide the customer's shipping address and their order's tracking ID whenever they can be pulled via API. Both have plenty of details on shipping time, amount paid, etc.

But ChannelReply gives you more.

Here is a quick list of the data available in ChannelReply that isn’t available in eDesk (based on the best info available to us):

ChannelReply's Extra Amazon Data

• Merchant Order ID
• Shipping Address Country Code
• Fulfillment Center ID
• Shipment ID
• Shipment Item ID
• Amazon Language Preference
• Item ID / Amazon Order Item ID
• Requested Cancel
• Cancel Reason
• ASIN
• Variation SKU
• Quantity Shipped
• Coupon
• Item Price with Discount
• Item Tax
• Discount
• Discount Tax
• Shipping Tax
• Shipping Discount Tax
• Shipping Discount
• Is Gift

ChannelReply's Extra eBay Data

• Amount Saved
• Shipping Tax
• Buyer Checkout Message
• Payment Method
• Is International Order
• Transaction ID
• Selling Manager Sales Record Number
• Shipping Address Country
• Registration Date
• Feedback Score
• Positive Feedback Percent
• Feedback
• Item ID
• Transaction ID
• Sales Record Number
• Variation SKU
• Manufacturer Part Number
• Highest Bidder User ID
• Highest Bidder Email
• Highest Bidder Registration Date
• Highest Bidder Feedback Score
• Highest Bidder Positive Feedback Percent
• Highest Bidder Postal Code
• Highest Bidder Country

ChannelReply's Extra Walmart Data

• Customer Order ID
• Order Status
• Shipping Address Country
• Shipping Address Address Type
• Fulfillment Option
• Pick Up Date Time
• Estimated Ship Date
• Line Number
• Refund Charges
• Item ID

But eDesk has some data ChannelReply doesn’t, right? Sure! Here's what they have over us, for now:

eDesk's Extra Amazon, eBay, and Walmart Data

• More convenient display of the marketplace
• More convenient display of the country where the order was placed
• Auto-Detected Language Used
• Lifetime Total Order Value
• Total Number of Orders
• "Customer Since" Date
• Item Brand
• Item Weight
• Order Status by Item
• Listing Image
• Payment Accepted Date
• Last Update Date
• Shipping Address Link to Google Maps

eDesk's Extra eBay & Walmart Data

• Previous Order ID
• Previous Order Value
• Previous Order Item SKU
• Previous Order Date
• View Older Order Option
• Walmart Listing Link
• Walmart Shipping Service Level
• eBay Store/Seller Name

eDesk's Extra Amazon Data

• Amazon Username
• Marketplace Name (e.g. Amazon UK)
• Marketplace MWS Identifier
• Seller ID

That's a total of 55 details unique to ChannelReply vs. just 25 unique to eDesk.

At ChannelReply, we're constantly adding new data and features. We have consistently stayed ahead of eDesk in number of datapoints displayed. See something you want us to add? Let us know here.

Shopify Data

eDesk does show plenty of data for Shopify, offering more than Zendesk and Freshdesk and being competitive with Re:amaze. But Gorgias, as we’ve mentioned, is king.

This list could get incredibly long if we covered everything Gorgias can show. Simply put, they can import every single order property from Shopify—60 fields at the time of writing this article. So, here are a few quick samples of differences in Shopify data displayed by each helpdesk:

Buyer & Order Data Usable in Canned Replies and Autoreplies

Being able to see data is one thing. But what about actually using it to make your job easier?

One of the most popular ways to do this is by using data placeholders in canned replies (aka macros). Here’s an example of a Gorgias macro with placeholders:

And here’s what happens when it’s entered on this eBay ticket:

This is a huge timesaver. You can provide personalized responses without typing a word—and if you use an autoresponder, without even seeing the message.

So, which helpdesk gives you the most flexibility to use this data in canned replies? Here’s how they stack up:

eDesk has the fewest options, while Zendesk has the most. The other three are nearly tied in the middle. (Note: Each snippet / custom field was worth 1 point for each marketplace it was compatible with.)

Some examples of data available in all four eDesk alternatives, but not in eDesk:

• Shipping Address Name (i.e. recipient)
• Purchase Date
• Order Status
• Shipping Service (e.g. FedEx)

Examples of data only available for use in snippets in eDesk:

• Random Sample Order Item
• Random Sample Order Item Image

For more info on what data ChannelReply provides and how you can use it in a helpdesk, see our Custom Fields FAQ and Definitions.

Autoresponders

For many sellers, getting a good autoresponder is the main reason to use a helpdesk. This is especially true for Amazon sellers who are tired of trying to keep up with the 24-hour response time SLA every day of the year.

The chart below shows the differences between the autoresponders. Note that we’re still using the same affordable plans for the eDesk alternatives:

Summary:

• Gorgias has advanced email autoresponders, and as you'd expect, they're awesome for Shopify! Gorgias can even work with ChannelReply as a marketplace autoresponder. However, it isn't possible to pull marketplace order data into Gorgias autoreplies, so they often don't count toward marketplace SLAs.
• The Re:amaze ecommerce autoresponder is one of the easiest to set up and use. It is compatible with Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, and counts toward Amazon’s response time SLA.
• eDesk has a well-rounded autoresponder that can meet most needs, but advanced users may also find its options somewhat limited.
• Zendesk has a great autoresponder that allows for more advanced setups than eDesk. However, the advanced features of the ecommerce autoresponder are trickier to use. They sometimes require advanced plans, too.
• Freshdesk is the best. Their email autoresponder is as simple as eDesk’s while being more powerful. Also, the Freshdesk ecommerce autoresponder allows for the most advanced setups possible.

Actions You Can Perform in Your Helpdesk

Selecting the reason to cancel a Walmart order from inside Zendesk.

What if you want to do more than answer messages from inside your helpdesk? What if you need to resolve a tricky eBay Resolution Center case or cancel a Walmart order?

Most of these actions are only available in Zendesk, Freshdesk and Re:amaze. If you have one of these helpdesks, ChannelReply allows you to:

• Handle just about any eBay action imaginable.
  
  • Manage eBay Resolution Center Support, solving cases, issuing refunds and more.
  • Approve or decline cancellations.
  • Haggle your way through Best Offers with accept, decline and counter offer options.
  • Manage feedback with interactive feedback notifications, posting public responses or writing private messages as needed.
• Acknowledge Walmart orders, update their shipping statuses, or cancel or refund them as needed.
• Mark Amazon messages as “No response needed” so you can close them out without writing a reply to every “thanks.”
• Manage Amazon feedback requests.
  • Trigger Amazon's Request a Review button up to 10 times per month at no additional cost.
  • Add on CR Feedback to manage automated feedback requests, rescheduling, cancelling or changing your requests from the ChannelReply app.

For Shopify sellers, there’s a lot that you can do right from your helpdesk:

• Freshdesk lets you issue refunds and cancel orders.
• Re:amaze does that and also lets you edit order details, create new orders, and duplicate existing orders.
• Gorgias does all the above. It also gives you granular control over refunds, allows you to create invoices, and empowers you to choose which data you’ll display in your sidebar.

eDesk lets you create invoices. That’s about it.

Integrated Phone & Chat

Above: Re:amaze Chat.

eDesk has a paid live chat add-on that costs $25 per agent per month. This can work with your webstore (Shopify or otherwise).

Zendesk has Zendesk Chat, which has a basic free version and paid versions that are quite competitive with eDesk for price and features.

While Freshdesk doesn’t have a live chat that can connect to your webstore, Freshcaller lets you easily link calls to your Shopify orders.

Re:amaze and Gorgias both have powerful, free, built-in live chat that’s designed to work beautifully with Shopify. You can even create specific chat popups for specific pages. Both also have phone integration options that can link with your Shopify orders.

Mobile Support Apps

An eBay ticket on Freshdesk’s mobile app.

eDesk does not offer a mobile support app. Their app only allows you to view reports.

Zendesk’s mobile app [iPhone] [Android] allows you to answer your customer messages from mobile.

Freshdesk’s app [iPhone] [Android] lets you answer messages and view data pulled into ChannelReply’s custom fields.

Gorgias [iPhone] [Android] will let you easily switch between viewing the ticket and viewing data about the related order. This works for eBay, Amazon and Walmart just as well as Shopify. That makes answering tickets on your phone almost as easy as on your computer!

Re:amaze [iPhone] [Android] takes the cake here. You can answer messages, view your ChannelReply and Shopify data, and even take actions. For example, you can issue eBay, Walmart and Shopify refunds right on your mobile device. Re:amaze is by far the most powerful mobile ecommerce helpdesk.

Final Verdict: eDesk vs. Alternatives

We’ve covered a lot! Below is a quick chart summarizing the findings we’ve discussed above.

If you’re having trouble viewing the chart, here’s the final score out of a total possible 81 points for each helpdesk:

• eDesk: 40. Worst in price and mobile support.
• Zendesk: 59. Best for data usable in canned replies; worst for Shopify support.
• Freshdesk: 66. Best for price, eBay/Amazon/Walmart support, and autoresponder power. Main drawback (not shown in chart) is cluttered interface with limited space to view ecommerce data.
• Gorgias: 63. Best for Shopify support; worst for eBay/Amazon/Walmart support and autoresponder support.
• Re:amaze: 75. Best for mobile support; most well-rounded option with no major weaknesses.

Every helpdesk has its pros and cons. But eDesk’s alternatives almost always come out on top.

The reason for this is straightforward: eDesk has to handle the full burden of developing all their features. They must maintain a helpdesk while keeping up with the ever-changing APIs of marketplaces like eBay and Amazon. This is a huge task for a niche company.

With ChannelReply and an eDesk alternative like Re:amaze or Freshdesk, all that changes.

ChannelReply is always focused on making sure your marketplace messaging is as easy as can be. At the same time, you use it with one of the world’s leading helpdesks, constantly improved by a large company with its own laser-focused team. This divide-and-conquer approach creates the best solution available for online sellers.

Try Any Alternative Free

Every eDesk alternative has a free trial. Which will you choose?

• Get Zendesk, the world’s most respected helpdesk.
• Try Freshdesk for its unbeatable customization and advanced features.
• Dive into Gorgias and get the best Shopify support system ever made.
• Start your free trial of Re:amaze for a platform that meets almost any need imaginable.

Once you’ve started using any of the helpdesks above, try ChannelReply for free to link your eBay, Amazon and Walmart accounts.

Have questions about choosing an eDesk alternative? Contact us and we’ll be happy to help you find the solution that best meets your business’s needs.

Disclaimer: eDesk is a trademark of xSellco Limited. ChannelReply is not affiliated with xSellco Limited in any way.