Top 10 Free Alternatives to HubSpot Service Hub in 2025: Detailed Insights

As the demand for efficient customer service solutions grows, 2025 has brought a plethora of free alternatives to HubSpot Service Hub. This article outlines the top 10 free options, each with its unique features and capabilities, catering to different business needs.

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1. Zoho Desk

Free Plan: Offers email ticketing, knowledge management, and canned email templates. Limited to 3 agents.
Ideal For: Small to mid-sized businesses needing a customizable helpdesk.
Key Features (Free): Email ticketing, Knowledge base, Multilingual support, Canned responses.
Scalability: Can scale with your business growth to paid plans with advanced features.
User Feedback: Generally positive reviews for its customizability and integrations.
Learn more about Zoho Desk

2. Freshdesk

Free Plan: Offers basic ticketing, knowledge base, and social media integrations.
Key Features (Free): Email ticketing, Knowledge base, Social media integration, Self-service portal.
Omnichannel Support: Paid plans offer comprehensive support across email, chat, phone, and social.
AI-Powered Chatbot (Freddy): Paid plans offer an AI chatbot for automating responses.
Customizable Dashboards: Paid plans include tools to track metrics and provide detailed analytics.
Explore Freshdesk

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3. Spiceworks

Completely Free: No paid tiers.
Key Features: Ticket management, team collaboration tools, automation capabilities, user portal, knowledge base.
Ideal For: Small businesses needing a basic ticketing system.
Mobile App: Provides real-time ticket updates and push notifications.
User Feedback: User-friendly for those with basic needs.
Discover Spiceworks

4. Hiver

Free Plan: Provides email management, live chat, WhatsApp, and voice support channels, internal collaboration, and Slack integration.
Ideal for: Teams using Gmail and Outlook who want integrated customer support features within their inbox.
Key Features: Email management, Live chat, Internal collaboration, Slack integration, Knowledge Base.
Channel Support: Supports various communication channels such as email, live chat, WhatsApp, and Voice.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with Gmail and Outlook.
Learn more about Hiver

5. Jira Service Management

Free Plan: Includes unlimited goals, projects, tasks, and forms, along with basic reporting and dashboards.
Ideal for: IT teams needing deep integrations with development workflows.
Key Features (Free): Unlimited projects, tasks, forms, reports, and dashboards.
Community Support: Access to Atlassian Community support.
Scalability: Paid plans offer advanced features and enterprise-level support.
Discover Jira Service Management

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6. osTicket

Free: Open-source and self-hosted; no subscription fees.
Key Features: Customizable ticket fields, email integration, and user-friendly interface.
Ideal for: Businesses seeking a free, highly customizable, and self-hosted solution.
Self-Hosted: Requires technical expertise to set up and maintain.
Customization: Offers significant flexibility in customization via extensions.
Explore osTicket

7. HubSpot CRM (with Service Hub Free)

Free Plan: Includes ticketing, live chat, and basic automation.
User Limit: The free plan has limitations on the number of users depending on the service.
Key Features: Ticketing, live chat, basic reporting, CRM integrations.
CRM Integration: Seamlessly integrates with HubSpot's other marketing and sales tools.
Scalability: Paid versions offer more advanced features and greater user allowances.
Discover HubSpot CRM

8. tawk.to

Completely Free: No paid tiers.
Key Features: Live chat, group messaging, screen sharing, file uploads.
Unlimited Users: Can be used by an unlimited number of users at no cost.
Group Messaging: Allows for team communication with multiple people at once.
Ideal For: Teams needing robust live chat capabilities without a fee.
Learn more about tawk.to

9. SolarWinds Service Desk

Free: Offers a free version, with no obligation.
Key Features: Self-service portal, automated routing, Active Directory and LDAP authentication.
Platform Compatibility: Available for Windows, Linux, and Mac.
Ideal For: Businesses looking for a free, straightforward helpdesk with automated routing and Active Directory.
Automation: Includes automated ticket routing and assignment features.
Discover SolarWinds Service Desk

10. Zammad

Free (Self-Hosted): The self-hosted version is completely free.
Key Features: Ticket management, reporting, knowledge base, multi-channel support.
Open Source: Highly customizable and extendable.
Paid (Hosted) Option: Hosted plans available with additional support.
Scalability: Can be scaled up with additional features on hosted plans.
Learn more about Zammad

These alternatives offer a range of functionalities to suit different business needs, from basic ticketing systems to more comprehensive customer service platforms.

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FAQ

What are the primary features of Zoho Desk's free plan?

Zoho Desk's free plan offers email ticketing, knowledge management, canned email templates, and is limited to 3 agents. It is ideal for small to mid-sized businesses needing a customizable help desk. Explore more about Zoho Desk

Can you describe Freshdesk's free plan?

Freshdesk's free plan includes basic ticketing, a knowledge base, social media integration, and a self-service portal. It's a robust option for teams needing omnichannel support. Learn more about Freshdesk

Is Spiceworks completely free?

Yes, Spiceworks is completely free with no paid tiers. It includes ticket management, team collaboration tools, automation capabilities, a user portal, and a knowledge base, making it suitable for small businesses. Find more about Spiceworks

How does Hiver integrate with email platforms?

Hiver integrates directly with Gmail and Outlook, providing email management, live chat, internal collaboration tools, and Slack integration, making it perfect for teams primarily using email for support. Discover more about Hiver

What does the free plan of Jira Service Management include?

Jira Service Management's free plan includes unlimited goals, projects, tasks, forms, basic reporting, and dashboards, making it ideal for IT teams looking for deep integration with development workflows. Explore Jira Service Management

What makes osTicket a good choice?

osTicket is an open-source, self-hosted ticketing system that is customizable with features like customizable ticket fields, email integration, and a user-friendly interface. It requires technical expertise for setup. Learn more about osTicket

What free features does HubSpot Service Hub offer?

HubSpot Service Hub's free plan includes ticketing, live chat, basic reporting, and integrates seamlessly with HubSpot's CRM and other marketing tools. Discover HubSpot Service Hub

What are the free features of tawk.to?

tawk.to offers live chat, group messaging, screen sharing, and file uploads, all at no cost. It is ideal for teams needing robust live chat capabilities. Explore tawk.to

What functionalities does SolarWinds Service Desk offer for free?

SolarWinds Service Desk's free version includes a self-service portal, automated ticket routing, and Active Directory and LDAP authentication, and is compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac. Learn more about SolarWinds Service Desk

What are the main features of Zammad's free self-hosted option?

Zammad's free self-hosted version includes ticket management, reporting, a knowledge base, and multi-channel support. It is open-source and highly customizable. Discover more about Zammad

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.

Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).

She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond and launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks.

For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.

About the Publication

Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.

Mission and Purpose

Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.

Key Features

The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:

Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials

Impact and Growth

Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:

3,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
100+ startup tools built
5,000+ pieces of articles and news written

Partnerships

Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.

Recognition

Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.