Skip to content
Zendesk and Jira are both widely used, but they solve different problems. Zendesk is built for customer support teams that need a multichannel helpdesk with AI and automation.
Jira is built for technical teams that handle project tracking, issue resolution, and sprint planning.
In this comparison, you will learn:
- How Zendesk and Jira differ in usability, customization, and integrations
- Which pricing model works better for your team
- Where each platform performs well and where they struggle
TL; DR
- What is Zendesk? Customer support platform that centralizes email, chat, phone, and social conversations. Built for fast setup, multichannel routing, AI-assisted replies, and performance tracking.
- Best for: Support teams that want an easy-to-use helpdesk with strong automation
- Pricing: Starts at $55 per agent per month; higher tiers at $115 and $169 add advanced routing, reporting, and multiple help centers.
- Key strengths: Clean UI, quick onboarding, large app marketplace, reliable automation.
- Main drawbacks: Add-ons increase cost and deeper customization can require more admin effort.
- What is Jira? Project and issue tracking platform built for IT, engineering, and internal operations. Supports agile boards, detailed workflows, and integrations across the Atlassian ecosystem.
- Best for: Technical teams that need configurable workflows and sprint or project tracking.
- Pricing: Free for up to 3 users; paid plans at $19 and $47.82 per agent per month; Enterprise is custom.
- Key strengths: Strong customization, advanced reporting, extensive integrations.
- Main drawbacks: Steeper learning curve and longer setup for non-technical teams.
Table of Contents
- What is Zendesk?
- What is Jira?
- Feature Comparison: Zendesk vs Jira
- Zendesk vs Jira vs Hiver: Pricing and Plans
- Real User Reviews
- Which Platform Fits Your Business?
- Final Verdict: Zendesk vs Jira vs Hiver
- Frequently Asked Questions
What is Zendesk?
Zendesk is a customer support platform that brings conversations from email, chat, phone, and social media into one workspace. AI and automation help agents route tickets, apply macros, and respond faster.
Zendesk scales with growing teams, making it popular among ecommerce, SaaS, and B2C support teams.
What is Jira?
Jira is a project and issue tracking platform from Atlassian. Teams use it to plan sprints, manage tasks, and track bugs or incidents. Boards, backlogs, and customizable workflows help teams structure work clearly.
With thousands of integrations available in the Atlassian Marketplace, Jira connects to collaboration tools, version control systems, documentation platforms, and CI/CD pipelines. It is ideal for IT and engineering environments.
Feature Comparison: Zendesk vs Jira
A side-by-side look makes it easier to compare.
| Category | Zendesk | Jira |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | Clean, simple UI with quick setup | Needs more configuration; admin effort required |
| Ticket Management | Unified inbox, routing rules, macros, priority filters | Detailed workflows, issue types, sprints, epics, custom fields |
| Omnichannel Support | Email, chat, social, voice | Best for internal requests; customer-facing channels need setup or add-ons |
| Automation & AI | Triggers, macros, AI agents (Suite) | Advanced workflow automation for projects and IT |
| Reporting | Prebuilt dashboards, CSAT tracking, basic custom reports | Custom dashboards, gadgets, sprint reports, forecasting |
| Customization | Moderate; focused on support workflows | High; custom fields, screens, workflows, layouts |
| Integrations | 1,200+ apps | 3,000+ apps in Atlassian Marketplace |
| Pricing | From $55/agent/month (Suite Team) | Free tier + paid plans from $19/agent/month |
| Best For | Customer-facing support teams | IT, engineering, and project teams |
1. Ticket Management
Zendesk: Zendesk turns emails, chats, web forms, and social messages into tickets. Routing rules assign work to the right agents. Automations reduce manual sorting, and filters help teams track priorities and SLAs.
“The interface is clean and user-friendly, making it easy to train new team members. – G2 user
Jira: Jira is ideal for detailed ticket tracking in IT and engineering teams. Teams define issue types (bug, task, story), set priorities, attach sprint data, and build custom workflows.
“Jira allows us to assign tickets and send automatic notifications, which removes a lot of manual follow-up.” –G2 user
What to choose:
- Zendesk: For teams prioritizing speed, simplicity, and scalability.
- Jira: For teams needing detailed customization and integration for complex project tracking.
2. Automation and Workflow
Zendesk: Zendesk automates tasks like routing, notifications, status updates, and macro behaviors. Automation helps agents focus on customer conversations rather than operational busywork.
“I especially appreciate its powerful automation features, customizable ticket workflows, and multi-channel support, which help streamline communication across email, chat, and social media. The integration with other tools and detailed reporting also make it easy to track performance and improve customer satisfaction.”- G2 user
Jira: Jira offers deeper automation suited for complex workflows. Teams automate transitions, issue creation, approvals, and cross-tool updates with triggers linked to GitHub, Confluence, and other tools.
“We have automations set up to move tickets to In Progress or Done based on GitHub pull requests.” –G2 user
What to choose:
- Zendesk: For teams looking to automate customer service workflows and simplify ticket management.
- Jira: For teams needing advanced automation and workflow customization for complex project tracking.
3. Reporting and Analytics
Zendesk: Zendesk Explore offers dashboards for ticket volume, CSAT, agent activity, and SLAs. Reports can be shared across teams for visibility.
“The analytics and reporting features give a clear view of performance and customer satisfaction trends.” –G2 user
Jira: Jira’s reporting caters to sprints, releases, and incidents. Gadgets provide real-time visibility into bottlenecks, team velocity, and overall sprint health.
“Dashboards give real-time visibility into project status and performance.” –G2 user
What to choose:
- Zendesk: For teams wanting straightforward, actionable insights into support performance and customer experience.
- Jira: For teams needing in-depth reporting on project progress, team velocity, and cross-project tracking.
4. Zendesk and Jira Integrations
Both Zendesk and Jira offer extensive marketplaces and integration options to expand platform capabilities for support and project management teams.
Here’s how they compare:
| Category | Zendesk | Jira |
|---|---|---|
| CRM | Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho | Salesforce, HubSpot, MS Dynamics |
| Ecommerce | Shopify, WooCommerce | Shopify (via marketplace apps) |
| Collaboration | Slack, MS Teams, WhatsApp Connector | Slack, Teams, Zoom, Confluence |
| Developer Tools | GitHub, APIs | GitHub, GitLab, CI/CD, Appy Pie Automate |
“Zendesk provides a unified platform where we can manage all customer interactions like email, social media, chat, and phone without switching tools.” –G2 user
“Jira allows us to integrate with Confluence, Slack, GitHub, and Google Sheets, keeping everything in one place and saving significant time on manual updates.” –G2 user
What to choose:
- Zendesk: For teams needing prebuilt, curated integrations and a wide marketplace for customer service apps.
- Jira: For teams seeking flexible, workflow-driven integrations across project management, developer, and productivity tools.
Zendesk vs Jira vs Hiver: Pricing and Plans
Before comparing pricing, it helps to understand where each platform fits. Hiver is a modern, AI-powered customer service platform that brings email, live chat, WhatsApp, voice, and other support channels into one interface.
It offers quick setup, a familiar workspace for agents, and simple per-user pricing that includes essential features without hidden add-ons.
Zendesk follows a tiered per-agent model with higher costs at advanced levels, while Jira uses a mix of free, fixed-tier, and enterprise pricing depending on the workflows you need.
Here’s how all three structure their plans:
| Plan Tier | Zendesk | Jira Service Management | Hiver |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free / Trial | 14-day trial | Free for up to 3 agents | Free plan |
| Entry | Suite Team: $55/agent/month | Standard: $19.04/agent/month | Growth: $25/user/month |
| Mid | Suite Professional: $115/agent/month | Premium: $47.82/agent/month | Pro: $45/user/month |
| Top Tier | Suite Enterprise: $169/agent/month | Enterprise: Custom pricing | Elite: $75/user/month |
Pricing Breakdown
Zendesk: Zendesk’s Support Team plan starts at $19 per agent per month billed annually for email and basic ticketing.
Most customer service teams evaluate the Suite plans, which start at $55 per agent per month (Suite Team) with AI, messaging, voice, and a help center included.
Jira: Jira offers a Free plan for up to 10 users, which works for very small teams. Paid cloud plans start at about $7.91 per user per month (Standard) and go up to $14.54 (Premium), with Enterprise on custom annual pricing.
Hiver
Hiver uses simple, transparent per-user pricing.
- The Free plan covers core ticketing and shared inbox for teams just getting started.
- Growth is $25 per user per month and adds SLAs, custom fields, approvals, automation, a customer portal, and deeper analytics.
- Pro at $45 per user per month adds chatbots, more advanced workflows, CSAT, dashboards, and richer reporting.
- Elite at $75 per user per month layers on skill-based routing, custom objects, advanced security, and compliance features.
Because Hiver has no hidden fees, teams can plan budgets confidently.
What to choose:
- Zendesk: For teams needing built-in support tools with AI and multichannel capabilities, scalable for medium to large teams.
- Jira: For IT teams and service operations requiring detailed workflows, automation, and integration with Atlassian tools.
- Hiver: For teams prioritizing affordability, simplicity, and predictable costs without sacrificing essential features.
Real User Reviews
User feedback gives a clearer picture of how each platform performs once teams begin using it daily.
Zendesk
Teams value Zendesk for its flexibility and ability to centralize customer interactions.
“What we like most about Zendesk Support Suite is its flexibility and scalability. It allows us to adapt the platform to the unique needs of each customer, regardless of their size or industry. The omnichannel capabilities and the ease of centralizing all customer interactions in one place make a real difference for support teams.” –G2 user
Jira
Jira users appreciate how well it supports detailed processes across technical teams.
“We use Jira Software Cloud daily across security operations and engineering. The biggest win is how closely we can mirror our process: custom workflows, fields, and components for incident response, detection engineering, and platform hardening.” –G2 user
Some mention that the mobile experience could be smoother, but overall Jira earns praise for depth and configurability.
Overall, Zendesk stands out for its scalability and unified agent workspace, while Jira earns praise for deep customization and process control.
Which Platform Fits Your Business?
At this point, the differences are clear, but the best choice depends on your business profile.
| Factor | Zendesk | Jira | Hiver |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team Size | 10–500 agents | 10+ users | 5–500+ users |
| Budget Range | $55–$169 per agent/month | $7.91–$14.54 per user/month (higher for Enterprise) | $25–$75 per user/month (Free plan available) |
| Technical Skills | Basic | Moderate to advanced | Low |
| Primary Use Case | Customer support and multichannel ticketing | IT, engineering, and internal workflows | Multichannel customer service with AI and automation |
| Industry Focus | SaaS, ecommerce, B2C support teams | IT, DevOps, engineering | SaaS, ecommerce, services, support-heavy teams |
Final Verdict: Zendesk vs Jira vs Hiver
Zendesk is ideal for customer-facing teams that want a full multichannel helpdesk with AI.
Jira is the best choice for IT and engineering teams that need detailed workflows, sprint tracking, and integrations.
Hiver brings together the most useful parts of both tools in a simpler, more affordable platform.
Hiver offers email, live chat, WhatsApp, voice, AI-powered chatbots, a knowledge base, workflows, and analytics in a clean interface that teams can start using within hours.
Ready to simplify your team’s workflow? Book your free demo with Hiver today and see how quickly your team can deliver efficient, organized support.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Which is easier to set up, Zendesk or Jira?
Zendesk is easier to set up for customer support teams. Jira takes longer but offers deeper customization.
2. Is Jira good for customer-facing support?
Not usually. It works better for internal IT, engineering, and project teams.
3. Which platform has stronger automation, Jira or Zendesk?
Jira offers deeper automation for engineering workflows. Zendesk automates support tasks. Hiver combines both with simple, intuitive automation.
4. How does pricing compare between Jira and Zendesk?
Zendesk and Jira charge per agent with add-on costs. Hiver has transparent, predictable per-user pricing.
5. Why choose Hiver over Jira and Zendesk?
Hiver offers modern customer service features, AI automation, multichannel support, workflows, and analytics without enterprise complexity or unpredictable pricing.
