Imagine trying to buy something you need, but the instructions are in a language you barely understand—frustrating, right? Now, imagine that frustration multiplied across cultures and languages. When customers can’t communicate in their language, misunderstandings skyrocket, satisfaction plummets and trust becomes a distant dream.
But what if these barriers could be broken? Offering information in a customer’s native language doesn’t just smooth communication—it builds bridges across cultures, fostering trust and boosting satisfaction. Multilingual support creates a smooth customer experience, eliminating any obstacles caused by language barriers.
In this blog, we dive into the top multilingual support software options on the market, offering insights into which solution could be the perfect fit for your business.
What Are Must-Have Features for Multilingual Software
The right multilingual customer support software must offer broad language coverage, including support for less common languages, to serve a diverse customer base and enter new markets.
AI-enhanced capabilities
AI is transforming multilingual support, marking a clear departure from legacy tools that relied heavily on Google Translate and similar third-party integrations. These older systems often fell short in delivering the accuracy and contextual understanding needed for seamless customer communication.
With AI, real-time translation becomes not just possible, but efficient and context-aware, allowing for accurate interactions across languages. Advanced AI-driven features detect customer intent, ensuring that queries are routed to the right team members without delay. AI-powered chatbots and knowledge bases automate routine tasks, making it easier for companies to scale their multilingual support effortlessly. This shift to AI-driven solutions empowers businesses to offer high-quality, consistent support to their global customers without the usual barriers.
Advanced real-time translation
Look for software that not only translates but also:
- Enables accurate and effective communication in customers’ native languages.
- Allows customization for industry-specific terms.
- Should integrate seamlessly with existing systems like CRM and helpdesk tools.
Intent detection and routing
Intent detection capabilities can automatically identify what your customers need and route their inquiries to the most qualified agent or department. Look for software that:
- Automatically identifies customer intent to route queries to the appropriate department or agent.
- Enhances efficiency by ensuring issues are addressed by the most qualified team members.
- Reduces response times and improves overall customer satisfaction.
User friendly interface
Your support agents need tools that are as intuitive as they are powerful. A user-friendly interface ensures that both your team and your customers can navigate the system effortlessly, leading to quicker issue resolution and a more positive overall experience.
Automation features
Streamlining repetitive tasks is essential for maintaining a high level of service. Automation features, such as ticket routing and automated responses, reduce manual workload and free up your agents to focus on more complex customer inquiries.
Quick Overview: Top Multilingual Support Softwares
| Product | Notable Multilingual features | Translation Capabilities | G2 rating |
| HelpShift | -Automated language detection-In-app multilingual support-Intent Recognition | uses proprietary Language AI to support 150 Languages | 4.3 |
| Zoho Desk | -Multilingual knowledge base -Real-time translation for tickets | Uses Unbabel and Google Translate to support 52+ languages | 4.5 |
| Zendesk | -Dynamic content for multilingual support-AI language detection | Google Translate and DeepL to support 40 languages | 4.4 |
| Freshdesk | -Multilingual portals-Automatic ticket translation | Google Translate and Freshdesk API – Crowdin to support 40 languages | 4.5 |
| Happyfox | -Multilingual knowledge base-Manual language selection | Google Translate to support 35 languages | 4.4 |
| Gorgias | -Multilingual macros -Automatic language detection | Gorgias API – Lingpad and Lokalise to support 11 Languages | 4.6 |
6 Multilingual Softwares for Your Global Business
1. Helpshift
Helpshift is the only software built for global companies, offering support in over 150 languages. Its “Language AI” enables real-time multilingual messaging between agents and customers, breaking down language barriers. The “Smart Intent” feature detects multilingual intents, enhancing support experience by quickly classifying requests and directing them to the right workflow or agent, balancing workloads and speeding up response times.
Helpshift offers advanced AI-powered features that automate in-app support with self-service options, chatbots, and smart knowledge repositories, making it ideal for enhancing customer support. It provides efficient knowledge base management and an AI-driven omnichannel assistant for seamless customer interactions across platforms like Facebook, Discord, and WhatsApp. Admins can monitor real-time agent performance, track availability, and optimize resources. Supervisors can track metrics like Time to Resolve and Time to First Response (TTFR), enabling quick identification and resolution of delays.
Helpshift also enables live and async messaging, allowing agents to prioritize high-value interactions and manage less urgent cases efficiently. Its chatbots use natural language processing (NLP) for personalized service, with a visual bot builder for easy creation of custom workflows and automated task management.
Pros:
- Helpshift’s proprietary Language AI enables real-time multilingual messaging between agents and customers, breaking down language barriers.
- Smart Intent feature detects multilingual intents
- Supports 150 languages
Cons:
- The initial setup and integration can be challenging, however you will have ample support from Helpshift’s team to get started quickly
Rating:
G2 : 4.3/ 5 ; Capterra: 4.0 / 5
Pricing:
- Starter plan: $150 per month. It comes with a 30-day free trial
- Growth plan: Customized based on your team’s needs
- Enterprise plan: Customized based on your team’s needs
2. Zoho Desk
Zoho Desk is an intuitive and easy-to-use customer support platform with multiple support channels, integrations with other services, ticket automation capabilities, and advanced knowledge Base options. Zoho Desk’s AI Zia has powerful tools to help resolve tickets while maintaining customer satisfaction. Zia analyzes customer sentiment, identifies products, and assigns or escalates tickets. Zia can even learn to perform common tasks to help agents save time for more complex tasks.
Zoho Translate is Zoho’s extension that empowers support agents by translating tickets and responses directly within the ticket screen, bridging language gaps. Its knowledge base can be translated into over 52 languages, supporting manual and automatic methods using Google Translate, Unbable, and Zia.
Pros:
- Real-time translation enhances communication.
- Extensive language support (52+ languages).
- Flexible translation methods (manual and automatic).
Cons:
- Multilingual Knowledge Base is limited to higher-tier plans.
- When it comes to manual translation, the article needs to be pre-translated for it to be available in another language
- Automatic translations may require manual adjustments for accuracy
Ratings:
G2: 4.5/5 and Capterra: 4.5/5
Pricing:
- Standard: $12 per user/month
- Professional: $20 per user/month
- Enterprise: $35 per user/month
- Zoho Desk offers a free trial of 15 days
3. Zendesk
Zendesk is a cloud-based customer support software that transforms how organizations manage customer interactions, streamline support operations, and enhance satisfaction. It offers a ticketing system for prioritization, multi-language support, and a self-service help center.
Automation tools, macros, and shortcuts boost efficiency and agent productivity, while integration with various apps and customizable ticket forms optimize support processes. With proactive customer engagement and flexible subscription plans, Zendesk delivers a comprehensive solution for exceptional customer service.
With Zendesk’s built-in dynamic content feature, you can offer content in multiple languages. It enables easy text import and export for translation, with the option to automatically detect users’ language preferences and respond in their native languages.
Pros:
- Feature-rich and customizable platform
- Suitable for teams of bigger sizes offering global support
- Supports 40 Languages
Cons:
- Zendesk does not offer automatic translations for any user-provided text, such as macros and help center articles. It is complex to configure macros for multiple languages.
- Integration is required with tools like Unbabel or Lokalise which comes at an additional cost
- Multilingual support is possible only in the Zen Desk suite – Growth, Professional, Enterprise, and Enterprise Plus plans
Rating:
G2: 4.4 / 5 Capterra: 4.4 / 5
Pricing:
- Zendesk Support Team: $19/agent/month (annual) or $25 (monthly)
- Zendesk Suite Team: $55/agent/month (annual) or $69 (monthly)
- Zendesk Suite Growth: $89/agent/month (annual) or $115 (monthly)
- Zendesk Suite Professional: $115/agent/month (annual) or $149 (monthly)
- Zendesk Suite Enterprise: $169/agent/month (annual) or $219 (monthly)
4. Freshdesk
Freshdesk is a cloud-based customer support software designed to help businesses streamline help desk operations with advanced automation tools. It has a range of powerful features, including an omnichannel help desk that centralizes interactions, team collaboration tools, AI-driven chatbots, and multi-channel communication management.
It provides a self-service support portal, making it easier for both agents and customers to access the resources they need. Freshdesk offers comprehensive support across multiple channels, including chat, email, phone, Twitter, Facebook, and website integrations, all of which seamlessly convert interactions into support tickets.
Freshdesk offers multilingual support on its customer portal and its knowledge base. It supports 40 languages. Freshdesk offers Crowdin in its marketplace that can be integrated to translate the knowledge base articles.
Pros:
- Has most features of Zendesk and a direct alternative
- Offers auto-detection and language-specific tags for knowledge base
- Offers multilingual features across omnichannel, freshdesk suite, and customer service suite of apps.
Cons:
- Portal customization for languages is a bit complex when it comes to dynamic content
- The multilingual feature would be visible only to accounts that have at least one supported secondary language besides the primary language.
- It uses a third-party translation engine like Crowdin and Google Translate
Ratings:
G2 Reviews: 4.5 / 5 Capterra: 4.5 / 5
Pricing:
- Sprout: Free with unlimited agents and basic features.
- Blossom: $15/month (billed annually). Includes everything in Sprout, plus automation, agent collision detection, SLA management, business hours, and more.
- Garden: $35/month (billed annually). Adds time tracking, CSAT surveys, performance reports, custom apps, and a multilingual knowledge base to Blossom’s features.
- Estate: $49/month (billed annually). Includes all Garden features, plus round-robin routing, dynamic ticket forms, portal customization, and more.
- Forest: $99/month (billed annually). Offers everything in Estate, plus sandbox, audit logs, agent shifts, IP whitelisting, and additional advanced features.
5. HappyFox
HappyFox Live Chat offers real-time support to enhance customer interactions and satisfaction. With a customizable chat widget, businesses can instantly engage customers, deflect common queries, and reduce support tickets, allowing teams to focus on complex issues.
The platform integrates seamlessly with existing help desk systems, streamlining customer inquiry management for higher satisfaction and efficiency. Key features include visitor tracking, chat routing, multi-language support, and robust analytics, providing insights into customer behavior and agent performance.
HappyFox is a global help desk that enables you to offer support in 35 languages offering a complete package of multilingual support and it extends its multilingual setup to knowledge base articles. The live chat is powered by Google Translate.
Pros:
- Easy to set up
- Exceptional customer support
Cons:
- HappyFox currently supports adding a maximum of 5 languages excluding the primary language.
- Some users feel that it can be expensive, especially for small businesses as the pricing is per agent model which can add up as they grow.
- The Google translation needs to be verified for accuracy in terms of context
Rating:
G2 Review: 4.5/5 ; Capterra: 4.6/ 5
Pricing:
- Mighty plan starts at $39 per staff/month
- Fantastic plan starts at $59 per staff/month
- Enterprise plan starts at $79 per staff/month
- Enterprise Plus starts at $99 per staff/month
6. Gorgias
Gorgias is a powerful customer support software designed for eCommerce and DTC brands, using AI to streamline support and enhance the customer experience. It automates routine tasks and quickly handles common inquiries, freeing agents to focus on complex issues. Seamlessly integrating with platforms like Shopify, Gorgias consolidates customer data for personalized interactions and recommendations. In short, Gorgias combines AI automation, user-friendly design, and robust integrations to elevate eCommerce customer support. Gorgias offers multilingual chat support which is available in 11 languages only. For further translation paid integration tools like Lingpad, and Lokalise can add more power to this form of support.
Pros:
- Gorgias only offers direct multilingual support in 11 languages, including Spanish and English
- Omnichannel support and Intelligent AI usage
- 30-day free trial and reasonable pricing
Cons:
- Translating other languages requires integrating a paid software called Lokalise Messages.
- In terms of live chat service in some cases, manual translation through an agent is needed.
- The translations may be inaccurate due to the absence of a dedicated multilingual feature.
Rating:
G2 review: 4.6/5; Capterra: 4.7/5
Pricing:
- Starter: $10 monthly (Max 50 tickets)
- Basic: $60/month (up to 300 tickets) or $600/year
- Pro: $360/month (up to 2000 tickets) or $3600/year
- Advanced: $900/month (up to 5000 tickets) or $9000/year
- Enterprise – Custom
Selecting the Right Multilingual Support Software for your Global Business
Finding the right multilingual support software can make a world of difference in how you connect with your customers globally. Whether it’s real-time translation, seamless integration, or comprehensive analytics, the right multilingual support solution can significantly improve customer satisfaction and drive business growth.
To make the best choice, think of the languages you need support for, how well the software translates in real-time, and how easily it fits your current systems. Look for options that are easy to use, help automate tasks, and provide valuable insights to improve your service.
With a focus on key features, you will be able to choose a solution that not only meets your needs today but also grows with your business, helping you create better experiences and stronger relationships with your international customers.
Want to see how Helpshift can elevate your customer support? Book a demo today.
