# Help Scout

> Help Scout is a customer support platform built around a shared inbox, a self-service knowledge base (Docs), and an embeddable messaging widget (Beacon), now paired with AI features that draft replies and answer common questions. Founded in 2011 in Boston as a pivot from a web-design firm whose own support inbox was overflowing, the company sells a lighter, less ticket-heavy alternative to enterprise help desks like Zendesk. It operates as a fully remote, certified B Corporation serving more than 10,000 businesses across over 140 countries, including Buffer, Basecamp, Trello and Reddit.

- **Founded:** 2011
- **Headquarters:** Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- **Founders:** Nick Francis (Co-founder & CEO), Jared McDaniel (Co-founder), Denny Swindle (Co-founder)
- **Team size:** ~300 employees (public sources report a range from ~100 to ~300)
- **Products:** Shared Inbox (Help Desk), Docs, Beacon, Live Chat & Messaging, AI Features
- **Notable:** Grew to serve more than 10,000 businesses in 140+ countries, Certified B Corporation committed to giving away at least 1% of its product via Help Scout for Good, Built a fully remote company from day one, spanning 80+ cities

## Products & services

- **Shared Inbox (Help Desk)** — A collaborative email inbox that lets support teams manage customer conversations together without ticket numbers or generic auto-replies.
- **Docs** — A self-service knowledge base for publishing help articles that customers and AI can search.
- **Beacon** — An embeddable website/app widget that surfaces help docs, live chat and email contact in one place.
- **Live Chat & Messaging** — Real-time and proactive messaging so teams can support customers inside their product.
- **AI Features** — GPT-4-powered AI Answers (customer chatbot), AI Drafts, AI Assist and AI Summarize to speed up and automate support.
- **Mobile Apps** — iOS and Android apps for managing support conversations on the go.

## Achievements

- Grew to serve more than 10,000 businesses in 140+ countries
- Certified B Corporation committed to giving away at least 1% of its product via Help Scout for Good
- Built a fully remote company from day one, spanning 80+ cities
- Adopted by customer-obsessed brands including Buffer, Basecamp, Trello and Reddit
- Recognized in BostInno's '16 Boston Startups to Watch' (2016) and won AppStorm's 2015 customer service award
- Launched GPT-4-powered AI support features, with AI Answers claiming to resolve up to 70% of common questions

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Help Scout returned to per-user pricing and continued to refine plans and AI usage-based add-ons.
- **2025-01** — Expanded its AI knowledge-base and AI Answers capabilities across Docs and the Beacon widget.
- **2023-01** — Rolled out GPT-4-powered AI features: AI Answers, AI Drafts, AI Assist and AI Summarize.

## Links

- Website: https://www.helpscout.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/help-scout
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/helpscout
- GitHub: https://github.com/helpscout
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/helpscout
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helpscout
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/helpscout

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/help-scout
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-14