Missive vs Help Scout: which shared inbox should you choose in 2026?
Missive is a team email client; Help Scout is a help desk with a free plan. Pricing, email accounts, WhatsApp, AI drafts and CRM links compared.
Published 20 October 2026. Prices and features from each vendor's own pages.
The short answer
MissivePaid from $14/seatChoose it if you want the lowest price, from $14 a user a month.
Help ScoutPaid from $25/seatChoose it if you want a free plan for up to 5 users to start.
PromptLabIn the CRM from $11.99/seatChoose it if your shared inbox is for sales, and every thread belongs to a contact and a deal.
Missive and Help Scout both give a team one place to answer email. Missive is a collaborative email client with internal threads and chat. Help Scout is a help desk for support teams, with a free plan, live chat and a knowledge base.
Below, the two are compared on price, email setup, WhatsApp, AI and CRM links. Every figure comes from the vendors' own pricing and product pages; prices are per user a month, billed annually, unless we say otherwise.
Missive vs Help Scout at a glance
With PromptLab in the third column: the same job done inside a CRM.
| Checked on 20 October 2026 | Missive | Help Scout | PromptLab |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | |||
| Free plan | 5 users, 1 inbox | ||
| Paid plans, a month | $14 – $36per seat | $25 – $75per seat | $11.99per seat on Basic |
| Free trial | 30 days | 15 days | |
| Billing | Billed annually | Billed annually | Billed monthly |
| Shared inbox | |||
| Gmail and Outlook accounts | Via forwarding | ||
| Assign conversations | |||
| Internal comments | |||
| WhatsApp in the same inbox | |||
| AI reply drafts | From$24/month | From$45/month | |
| CRM integrations | From$24/month | From$45/month | Built in |
Pricing: $14 to $36 against $25 to $75
Missive is cheaper at each rung. Starter is $14, Productive is $24 and Business is $36. Help Scout's Standard is $25, Plus is $45 and Pro is $75.
Help Scout has a Free plan with 5 users, 1 inbox and 100 contacts a month, and a 15-day trial of Standard or Plus. Missive has no free plan, but gives a 30-day trial of Productive with no credit card. Missive's Starter allows up to 5 users.
Gmail and Outlook
Missive connects Gmail, Google Workspace, Outlook, Office 365, Exchange, iCloud and IMAP accounts directly. Each user can add up to 5 shared accounts.
Help Scout connects Gmail and Microsoft 365 by auto-forwarding or a redirect rule to a Help Scout inbox, and can send through Google OAuth or SMTP. Once forwarding is on, the team should stop replying in Gmail.
Assignment, comments and WhatsApp
Both support assignment and internal comments. Missive has internal threads, collaborative drafting and internal chat. Help Scout uses notes with @mentions to alert a user or team without assigning the conversation.
WhatsApp works in both. Missive lists it among connectable accounts, and Help Scout includes it on all paid plans, with a WhatsApp Business Platform account required. Missive also lists Messenger and Instagram, and Help Scout adds live chat and SMS from Standard.
AI reply drafts
Missive's AI assistant starts on Productive at $24. It drafts replies and searches your emails and calendar. Credits cost the provider's price plus 25%, with $5 free once, or you can bring your own API key.
Help Scout includes unlimited AI Drafts on Plus at $45 and Pro at $75. Its AI Answers chatbot is $0.75 a resolution.
CRM integrations
Missive lists HubSpot, Pipedrive, Salesforce, Close and Daylite. Integrations start on Productive at $24, and Starter has none.
Help Scout lists Salesforce, HubSpot and Jira on Plus at $45, with Standard limited to one integration. So the main CRM links cost $45 a user here, against $24 on Missive.
We make PromptLab, so here is where it fits.
Or share an inbox inside your CRM
PromptLab's inbox connects Gmail, Outlook, Exchange and other IMAP mailboxes, next to WhatsApp and Telegram. Each thread is linked to the contact and deal it belongs to.
Assign a thread to a teammate and talk it over in internal notes before you reply. There are no AI reply drafts, and it's built for sales conversations rather than a support desk.
Which should you choose?
Choose Missive if…
- You want the lowest price, from $14 a user a month.
- Your team wants a direct Gmail and Outlook connection rather than forwarding.
- You want internal threads and chat beside email.
Choose Help Scout if…
- You want a free plan for up to 5 users to start.
- You run a support team and want live chat and a knowledge base alongside the inbox.
- You want AI Drafts included on Plus and WhatsApp on every paid plan.
Choose PromptLab if…
- Your shared inbox is for sales, and every thread belongs to a contact and a deal.
- Buyers write on WhatsApp and Telegram as well as email.
- You want one tool and one price for the CRM and the inbox.
Frequently asked questions
Is Missive cheaper than Help Scout?
Yes, on paid plans. Missive runs from $14 to $36 a user a month and Help Scout from $25 to $75, both billed annually. Help Scout does have a free plan for 5 users.
Does Help Scout or Missive have a free plan?
Help Scout does, with 5 users, 1 inbox and 100 contacts a month. Missive has no free plan, only a 30-day trial of Productive.
Which connects Gmail and Outlook more directly?
Missive connects Gmail and Outlook accounts directly, along with Exchange, iCloud and IMAP. Help Scout uses auto-forwarding or a redirect rule to bring email into an inbox.
Do both have AI reply drafts?
Yes. Missive's assistant drafts replies from Productive at $24, with credits at the provider's price plus 25%. Help Scout includes unlimited AI Drafts on Plus at $45 and Pro at $75.
Which has better CRM integrations?
Missive lists HubSpot, Pipedrive, Salesforce, Close and Daylite from the $24 plan. Help Scout lists Salesforce, HubSpot and Jira on Plus at $45.
Is there a CRM with a shared inbox built in?
Yes. PromptLab connects Gmail, Outlook and IMAP mailboxes alongside WhatsApp and Telegram, with assignment and internal notes, on every plan from $11.99 a user a month with a 14-day free trial.
Sources
- Missive, checked on 20 October 2026: Missive pricing, Missive billing and plans, Missive connected accounts, Missive AI overview, Missive WhatsApp, Missive integrations
- Help Scout, checked on 20 October 2026: Help Scout pricing, Help Scout shared inbox, Help Scout WhatsApp docs, Help Scout AI Drafts docs, Help Scout Gmail forwarding docs, Help Scout @mentions docs
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