Talkdesk provides cloud contact center solutions to more than 1,800 companies around the world, including well-known names such as Fujitsu, IBM, Trivago and the YMCA, among many others. The company prides itself on its innovative artificial intelligence-powered solutions that allow managers to make data-driven decisions while empowering agents to have effective communications with customers.
While Talkdesk offers a robust and well-reviewed platform it may not be best for all businesses. Let’s look at some of the top Talkdesk alternatives to help technology leaders find what works for their enterprise.
Here Are the Best Talkdesk Alternatives
1. Five9
Five9 provides solutions for inbound, outbound, blended and omnichannel contact centers to more than 2,000 businesses worldwide.
Five9 Features
- Call Recording
- Skills-based routing
- Priority routing
- Time-of-day routing
- Voicemail routing
- IVR scheduling
- IVR speech recognition
Five 9 Integrations
- Salesforce
- Netsuite Oracle
- Microsoft 365
- Zendesk
- Zoho
- Zoom
- ServiceNow
- ValidSoft
- Tethr
- Streem
- Fuze
Five9 Pricing & Plans
Like many companies, Five9 does not promote its pricing plans. However, as opposed to a one-size-fits-all approach or communication packages to choose from, our research found that Five9 offers tier-based pricing based on the number of users as well as specific products and features. These can start at $100 per month per agent and go up to $175 per agent per month for the full-featured enterprise solution.
Five9 Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Superior user training and customer support | Unclear pricing structure |
| Intuitive, high ease of use | Notifications in the center of screen interrupt workflow |
| Increased employee flexibility |
2. Aircall
Aircall offers a simple interface and a strong list of cutting-edge features that can help any organization. However, because of Aircall’s intuitiveness and low costs, it tends to be a popular choice for startups and small businesses that do not have a full-time IT staff.
Aircall Features
- Real-time notifications
- Parallel calls
- Queue callback
- Call recording
- Unlimited concurrent calls
- Time-based routing
- Pause-Resume recording
Aircall Integrations
- HubSpot
- Monday.com
- Salesforce
- Freshdesk
- Fire Tiger
- Microsoft Teams
- Zoho
Aircall Pricing
The Aircall Essentials plan costs $30 per user per month if billed annually and includes standard call center features, unlimited inbound calls, multiple integrations, smart queuing and phone support. The Profession plan costs $50 per user per month if billed annually and includes all the Essentials features along with Power Dialer, advanced analytics, live call monitoring, unlimited concurrent calls, a dedicated account manager and premium support.
Aircall Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Economical options for many organizations | No free version |
| Intuitive design | May not be suitable for larger enterprises |
| Easy to set up |
3. Dialpad
Dialpad has established itself as a leading business VoIP provider for customers of all sizes. The company features an innovative cloud contact center solution that presents multiple features for organizations that want to provide customers with a true omnichannel experience.
Dialpad Features
- Phone, Messaging, Video
- App Integration
- Unlimited Calls
- International Calls
- Call Routing
- Desk Phone Integration
- Voicemail
Dialpad Integrations
- Salesforce
- Zendesk
- Slack
- Hubspot
- Zapier
- G Suite
- Office 365
Dialpad Pricing
Dialpad offers two pricing options for its contact center solution. The company does not publicize prices for either option, but does list the capabilities.
The Pro plan is aimed at smaller organizations and requires a minimum of just three seats. It allows for unlimited SMS and MMS, along with help desk integrations and around-the-clock support. The Enterprise plan has a 100-license minimum and adds customer business rules, a 100% uptime SLA, custom dashboards and 24/7 phone support. Dialpad provides prices for both only by request.
Dialpad Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Voice Intelligence feature uses artificial intelligence to highlight actionable call content | Product aimed at small and medium-sized businesses without strong options for enterprise users |
| Well-reviewed call center and customer service | Limited ability create customized reports |
| Syncs easily with popular platforms such as Google and Microsoft |
4. Twilio
This company provides Lego-like software connectors that make it easy to build upon and add functionality. Companies can add the features they want without sacrificing security or compatibility.
Twilio Features
- Voice calling
- SMS and MMS messaging
- WhatsApp messaging
- Video communication
Twilio Integrations
- Microsoft Dynamics 365
- ServiceNow
- Zendesk
- Bullhorn
- NetSuite
- SAP
- SugarCRM
- NICE CXexchange
Twilio Pricing
The Twilio platform costs $1 per user per hour. For companies that expect higher usage, they can go to a $150 per month plan. Twilio also typically offers thousands of free hours upon sign up through customizable plans.
Twilio Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Integrates well with other platforms | Certain pages take long to load |
| Strong security history | While straightforward, some customers prefer more traditional pricing options |
| Omnichannel marketing functionality |
5. NICE CXone
NICE inContact’s platform and solutions combine contact center software with a national connectivity network of phone and Internet. With their current portfolio of solutions, NICE inContact offers an impressive number of features in one package that would normally require multiple alternative vendors to fully recreate.
NICE CXOne Features
- ACD
- IVR
- Proactive Outbound
- Interaction Channels
- Workforce Intelligence
- Omnichannel Analytics
- CRM Integrations
NICE CXone Integrations
- Salesforce
- Microsoft Teams
- Zoom
- Fuse
- ServiceNow
NICE CXOne Pricing and Plans
The company offers a core package that starts between $90 and $100 per month per user with prices changing based on user numbers and features. The company’s core package includes:
- User license and access to system login
- Live reporting dashboard
- Basic historical reporting and analytics
- 5 GB of call recording space per license
- Call scripting
- IVR
- Three voice queuing ports per agent
NICE CXone Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Dynamic interface | No free trial |
| Provides visibility into workforce dasks | Limited settings and display options |
| Robust user metrics |
6. Genesys
Genesys provides a solution packed with features and regular updates, making it an excellent choice for large companies with plenty of needs. Companies like PayPal use Genesys to power their contact center, so the company has plenty of experience in high-volume operations.
Genesys Features
- Inbound and Outbound
- Email, Social, and Messaging/SMS
- Co-browse and Screen Share
- Chatbots
- Voicebots
- Customer journey management
- Reporting and Analytics
Genesys Integrations
- Salesforce
- ServiceNow
- Zendesk
- Geofluent
- Google Analytics
Genesys Pricing
Genesys officers three different products for VoIP: CLoud CX1, CX2, CX3, Choice and DX. Cloud CX1 starts at $75 per month while Cloud CX2 costs $110 per month per user. Genesys Cloud CX3 goes for $140 per month while the other choices require direct quotes.
Genesys Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Build with large enterprises in mind | Higher price point |
| Highly personable | System administration can be overly complex |
| Agents have many feature options |
7. 8×8
One of the most popular contact center solution providers, 8×8 works with more than 1 million companies across 160 countries. The company is known for offering a very affordable solution that is attractive to smaller businesses just getting started.
8×8 Features
- Unlimited calling on all plans
- Paging
- Public and private chat rooms
- Conference bridges
- Virtual Office recording
8×8 Integrations
- Salesforce
- HubSpot
- Pipedrive
- SugarCRM
- Zoho
8×8 Pricing
The company’s X6 plan costs $95 per agent per month and includes skills-based routing, IVR, call recording, reporting analytics, and CX journey map. The X7 costs $105 per agent and includes additional social media, chat, email and SMS functionality. Finally, the X8 plan comes in at $133 per user per month and adds quality management, speech analytics and screen recording capabilities.
8×8 Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Very affordable base-level plan | Video conferencing is limited to 100 users |
| Easy system to use with robust features, especially for the cost | 24/7 support only available at higher tiers and can be difficult to connect with a live operator |
| Many plans feature unlimited international calling depending on the country |
8. Freshdesk
Freshdesk’s cloud-based contact center software aims to help agents improve customer engagement. It leverages automation tools and even a gamification system to create a more streamlined and efficient system.
Freshdesk Features
- Activity tracking
- Assignment management
- Automated routing
- Knowledge base management
- Third party integrations
- Reporting and analytics
Freshdesk Integrations
- Hubspot
- Zoho
- Zapier
- Pipedrive
- Nimble
- Freshsales
Freshdesk Pricing
Freshdesk offers three primary plans: Basic, Growth and Enterprise.
- The Basic plan costs $15 per user per month when billed annually and includes up to 2,000 incoming call minutes per month.
- The Growth plan costs $39 per user per month with up to 3,000 minutes per month.
- The Enterprise plan costs $69 per user per month and offers 5,000 incoming minutes per month.
Freshdesk Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Gamification features help improve employee engagement | Reporting tools are either very weak or very strong based on tier without much flexibility in the middle |
| Other tools to improve agency efficiency | Some key features only available at highest pricing tiers |
| Free tier |
9. Nextiva
Nextiva offers a contact center solution to handle higher call volumes than typical inbound call centers. Its system allows for easy automation of multichannel customer support and self-service options to streamline agent time.
Nextiva Features
- IVR
- Call recording
- ACD
- VoIP phone numbers
- Call routing
- Dashboards
Nextiva Integrations
- Google Contacts
- Microsoft Teams
- Microsoft Dynamics
- Microsoft Outlook
- HubSpot
- Salesforce
- Zendesk
- ServiceNow
- ConnectWise
Nextiva Pricing
Nextiva does not openly advertise its contact center solution pricing.
Nextiva Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Built to integrate easily with existing Nextiva services | Inconsistent call quality |
| Strong analytics | List of lower-tier price options may block out smaller businesses |
| Popular among large enterprises |
10. RingCentral
RingCentral remains one of the most popular names in call center solutions. Founded in 1999, the company offers products for customers with fewer than 10 employees to those with more than 1,000.
RingCentral Features
- Activity Dashboard
- Activity Tracking
- Calendar Management
- IVR / Voice Recognition
- Inbound Call Center
- Manual Dialer
- Mobile Access
- Monitoring
- Reporting & Statistics
- Reporting/Analytics
RingCentral Integrations
- Box
- Zendesk
- Hubspot
- Okta
- Slack
- Microsoft
- Salesforce
RingCentral Pricing
RingCental offers four separate plans: Essentials, Standard, Premium and Ultimate. The company does not give prices for these plans, but does outline some of the features.
- Essentials offers ACD, IVR with three ports and 5 GB active recording storage.
- Standard provides everything in Essentials plus digital channels and AVR.
- Premium provides everything in Standards along with quality management and screen reporting.
- Ultimate provides everything in Premium along with workforce and performance management tools.
RingCentral Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Very fluid solution that can work with employees in an office or remote | Essentials plan limited to 10 users and 100 toll-free minutes |
| Unlimited number of users can be added without rebuilding the database | No video conferencing capabilities |
| Offers secure global PBX services in more than 40 countries |
Which Talkdesk Alternative is the Best for Your Business?
Talkdesk undeniably offers customers a great product but it may not be for everyone. Many small and mid-sized customers see Talkdesk’s simplicity and ease of use as a gigantic benefit but it may not be adequate for larger enterprises. Some smaller companies might also balk at the company’s price tag and want a more affordable option. The call center software market is filled with excellent companies offering competitive solutions, so ensure that the provider you select matches with your immediate needs.
Why Talkdesk?
The word most associated with Talkdesk is simplicity. Talkdesk has become the choice for businesses that want a straightforward system that is easy to install, manage and use. That’s not to say Talkdesk does not offer robust functionality, but its ease of use and general affordability make it a popular choice for those looking for a cloud-based contact center solution.
While Talkdesk does not publish its prices, they do state that base plans with artificial intelligence start at $65 per month per agent. Let’s look further into some of these plans.
- Professional Plan. A fully-featured solution for small and mid-sized contact centers, the Professional Plan offers access to a deep Salesforce integration and real-time dashboards.
- Professional Plus Plan. Adds on to the 60+ features available with the Professional Plan, adding a mobile agent for Google Android and Apple iOS, among other tools. This plan also includes real-time and historical reporting APIs and SDKs that your team incorporates into any reporting system. It’s important to note that this will take a development staff.
- Enterprise Plan. Talkdesk offers 100% uptime service, a rarity in cloud services as most competitors cap out at 99.99% or even 99.999%. Enterprise also includes some features that reduce the need for dedicated IT departments. With the Enterprise plan, studio functions are added that include a low-code editor for editing your call routing for a more streamlined experience for callers.
Talkdesk Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Makes it easy to focus on customer experience | Limited omnichannel functionality |
| Strong user interface that makes managing and transferring calls simple | Customers sometimes do not understand all the features they qualify to use |
| Easily collects customer data |
