Kayako Review, Pricing & Features

Kayako help desk software review covering ticketing, SingleView, live chat, knowledge base and Kay AI pricing at 1 dollar per resolved ticket, plus…

Category
Customer Support
Pricing
Subscription with pay-per-resolution AI add-on, from Custom pricing (Kay AI Agent from $1 per resolved ticket)
Verified
Not yet
Last updated
July 18, 2026
Founded
2001
Headquarters
London, United Kingdom
Web AppAPIAI

Overview

Kayako is a help desk and customer service platform founded in 2001 and now headquartered in London, with additional offices in India and Singapore. Since being acquired by ESW Capital in 2018, the company has continued serving an estimated 50,000 customers across more than 100 countries, including names like NASA and Peugeot.

The platform centers on a shared inbox and ticketing system enhanced by SingleView, a feature that consolidates a customer's full history across email, chat and self-service into one agent screen, reducing the need to jump between tools to understand context.

Key Features

Core capabilities include ticket management, live chat, a self-service knowledge base, SLA management, automated routing, custom workflows and reporting dashboards, all accessible through an API for third-party integrations.

The newest addition is Kay, an AI support agent priced per resolved ticket rather than per seat, which the company reports resolves roughly 68 percent of tickets autonomously and can be added to an existing help desk or bundled into the full Kayako One platform.

Pricing

Kayako has moved away from traditional seat-based pricing toward a resolution-based model for its AI agent: Kay costs $1 per fully resolved ticket with no setup or seat fees, and no charge for escalated or partially resolved conversations.

The full Kayako One platform, bundling ticketing, chat, knowledge base and Kay together with onboarding support, is not listed at a fixed public price and requires contacting Kayako's sales team for a custom quote based on team size and needs.

Key Features

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Unified SingleView gives agents full customer context in one screen
  • Resolution-based Kay AI pricing avoids seat-cost scaling as ticket volume grows
  • Long operating history since 2001 with enterprise references like NASA and Peugeot
  • Combines ticketing, chat and knowledge base in one platform
  • No setup or seat fees for the Kay AI add-on

Cons

  • Smaller integration marketplace than Zendesk
  • Advanced reporting and analytics are more limited than larger competitors
  • Kayako One platform pricing is not publicly listed and requires a sales call
  • Deeper AI functionality outside Kay may require add-ons
  • Smaller market share means fewer independent implementation partners

Pricing

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Kayako?

Kayako is a customer service and help desk platform offering ticketing, live chat, a knowledge base and AI-driven ticket resolution.

How much does Kayako cost?

The Kay AI agent costs $1 per resolved ticket with no seat fees; the full Kayako One platform requires a custom quote from sales.

Who owns Kayako?

Kayako has been owned by ESW Capital, a private equity firm based in Austin, Texas, since February 2018.

What is SingleView?

SingleView is Kayako's feature that unifies a customer's conversation history and profile data across channels in one agent screen.

Does Kayako offer a free trial?

Kayako's pricing page directs prospective customers toward a demo or sales quote rather than a widely advertised self-serve free trial.

Who are Kayako's main competitors?

Kayako's primary competitors include Zendesk, Freshdesk and Help Scout.

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