Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Zendesk vs Zoho CRM comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 19, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.7
Zendesk enhances organizational efficiency and productivity, reducing costs despite licensing fees, with varied but significant financial benefits.
Sentiment score
6.5
Zoho CRM enhances sales and efficiency with automation, reducing costs and boosting productivity through real-time reporting and streamlined operations.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.3
Zendesk excels in responsiveness and issue resolution, though reliance on documentation may delay human support replies.
Sentiment score
6.7
Zoho CRM support varies in quality and availability, with mixed reviews on communication and resolution efficiency across regions.
Their support team from Zendesk is excellent, similar to what you have in Freshdesk.
The technical support provided by Zendesk has been very satisfactory.
Sometimes, they don't understand what my actual needs are.
There are multiple blogs and articles available online for self-help.
The 1.5 deduction from 10 is due to cultural communication differences based on where we're getting the support, as sometimes it takes a couple of times to communicate clearly enough for them to understand the issue.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.4
Zendesk scales well for various team sizes; praised for customization, integration, though challenges include data backup and departmental customization.
Sentiment score
7.8
Zoho CRM is scalable and integrates well for SMEs, though additional investments may be needed for full customization.
Zendesk can scale from very small companies to very large ones.
The scalability of Zendesk is still in the same range as Freshdesk.
The system is easy to understand, implement coding, and conduct training.
Zoho CRM is quite scalable; I have worked with clients who started with ten companies and have scaled up to managing 500 employees effectively within Zoho CRM.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Zendesk is stable and reliable, despite occasional outages, making it ideal for small businesses and startups globally.
Sentiment score
7.7
Zoho CRM is praised for stability and reliability, with minor speed issues, earning high user satisfaction ratings overall.
The stability has been quite reliable.
I find Zoho CRM to be 100% stable and reliable as far as I know.
I would rate the stability of Zoho CRM as a nine.
 

Room For Improvement

Zendesk users face challenges with interface clumsiness, slow performance, customization, integration, and pricing, affecting overall usability and efficiency.
Zoho CRM needs better integration, user interface, pricing, scalability, automation, and improved customer support and documentation.
There could be improvements in integration, which can be achieved with APIs or tools like Zapier.
The platform does not save code versions similar to GitHub, where you can compare new versions with previous ones.
Some organizations may prefer not to have their data on the internet since Zoho CRM runs as a cloud service.
The main improvement needed for Zoho CRM is introducing SQL code for reports, similar to what's in Zoho Analytics.
 

Setup Cost

Zendesk pricing varies, perceived as high, but offers value and flexibility; negotiation advised for larger teams to optimize costs.
Zoho CRM provides flexible and competitive pricing, starting at $12 per user, with comprehensive plans like Zoho One available.
It is not the cheapest solution nor the most expensive, but it provides value for money.
Zoho CRM and all of Zoho's software are quite affordable because they are specifically designed for small and medium businesses.
 

Valuable Features

Zendesk offers user-friendly integration, robust features, and valuable tools, enhancing efficiency and streamlining customer support processes effectively.
Zoho CRM offers customization, integration, analytics, and affordability, making it ideal for startups and businesses needing robust tools.
It allows us to handle more support cases with fewer people due to its advanced artificial intelligence capabilities.
The benefits I have seen from using Zendesk include faster response times.
The most valuable aspect of CRMs, including Zoho CRM, Salesforce, and Microsoft Dynamics, is automation capabilities.
The most valuable features of Zoho CRM so far include Deluge script, which are custom functions, workflows which are mostly used while creating flows, and custom layouts which are used when adding extra fields or validations.
Zoho CRM has many valuable automation features such as auto-reply, auto-mail, and reminders for customers about last offers and upcoming processes.
 

Categories and Ranking

Zendesk
Ranking in CRM
24th
Ranking in Sales Force Automation
11th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
CRM Customer Engagement Centers (7th), Help Desk Software (11th), IT Service Management (ITSM) (11th), Reporting (19th), Knowledge Management Software (4th), Community Platforms (3rd)
Zoho CRM
Ranking in CRM
6th
Ranking in Sales Force Automation
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
Opportunity Management (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the CRM category, the mindshare of Zendesk is 1.5%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zoho CRM is 3.1%, down from 4.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
CRM
 

Featured Reviews

JohanSkibdahl - PeerSpot reviewer
Automating customer support with advanced AI capabilities and seamless communication
Zendesk has been invaluable in automating communications such as email and phone calls. It allows us to handle more support cases with fewer people due to its advanced artificial intelligence capabilities. This intelligent tool can manage complex queries before users even realize they are interacting with a non-human. Additionally, we have integrated Zendesk with Datto and Klaviyo, enhancing our workflows.
Romani Labib - PeerSpot reviewer
Customization options empower workflow management, though support understanding can be enhanced
Currently, I am still working with Azure and I use the Azure products for my current work. I use Azure Active Directory. I don't use products like App Service from Azure or Azure Logic Apps, Front Door, but I think it's very straightforward. Once I take the first step to use Azure, I can track myself to use another application, program, or module in Azure. I use Office 365 because we actually have Exchange mail server 2019 on premises. In the last few months, I upgraded from Exchange on premise to use Office 365, which is faster, easier to troubleshoot, and more secure. I use Remote Desktop Services (RDS) as the best solution because I make a private server in my data center room. I have many users that need to access the internet, so I don't join the server to my domain because if I have any malware or other attacks, I can resolve it easily without any damage to my internal network. Microsoft RDS is more user-friendly and easier to use compared to RDS from Azure Microsoft or another provider. I purchase Microsoft Remote Desktop Services directly from Microsoft. I have had an MCSE and Microsoft account for 15 years. I work with SharePoint and Exchange, which are famous applications through Microsoft and Office 365. For daily tasks, I use Microsoft tools and Linux tools because I have applications like CRM, ERP, and HRM running over CentOS, an operating system by Linux. Regarding CentOS, in Egypt, we have issues paying for things from the internet, especially due to the large margin between US dollars and Egyptian pounds. CentOS is totally free from the internet, so I create ISO and install it on the server to use all features, policies, and security modules. Currently, I use 3CX as voice solutions, and Asterisk is the Linux platform I use, along with firewalls by Linux called pfSense. All data centers in my company have products between Microsoft and Linux systems. For DNS, I use deDNS to make remote access or subdomains from deDNS organization. Sometimes, I pay for a main domain from HostGator and re-route the domain to my data centers. Based on other competitors, I would rate Zoho CRM's price as a five, as it has a middle-range price compared to others. Overall, I rate Zoho CRM a seven out of ten.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which CRM solutions are best for your needs.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
22%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
6%
Performing Arts
6%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
University
8%
Educational Organization
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Zendesk Support?
I found the user experience with vendors on Zendesk to be straightforward, especially when it comes to understanding and searching for specific tickets. The search and navigation tools are easy to ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zendesk Support?
Zendesk's pricing is reasonable. It is not the cheapest solution nor the most expensive, but it provides value for money.
What needs improvement with Zendesk Support?
There could be improvements in integration, which can be achieved with APIs or tools like Zapier ( /products/zapier-reviews ). However, easier integration could enhance the usability. Multilingual ...
What do you like most about Zoho CRM?
Zoho CRM integrates easily with customer service workflows.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zoho CRM?
I rate the pricing as a five out of ten, as it offers good value for money.
What needs improvement with Zoho CRM?
The UX for the product in general is probably below standard compared to some of the other CRMs.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Zendesk Support, Zendesk Guide, Zendesk Sell
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mailchimp, Tesco, Vimeo, Instacart, Mediaocean, Slack, Uber
JetHub, Anderson Sales Advantage, ActionCoach, Milagro Advisory Group, TECO Pneumatic, Proteomics Consult
Find out what your peers are saying about Zendesk vs. Zoho CRM and other solutions. Updated: August 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.