A complete guide to the Freshdesk web widget in 2025
Kenneth Pangan
Amogh Sarda
Last edited October 23, 2025
Expert Verified
Let's be honest, offering instant, 24/7 support on your website is tough. Customers want answers now, but you can't have your support team glued to their screens around the clock without them burning out. This is where tools like the Freshdesk web widget pop up. It’s a common way to put a little help button right on your site, giving customers a quick way to find what they need.
But is it the best tool for you? In this guide, we’ll get into what the Freshdesk web widget is, what it actually does (and what it doesn’t), how much it costs when you add it all up, and how newer AI tools can offer a much smarter way to handle customer support.
What is the Freshdesk web widget?
The Freshdesk web widget is a tool you can embed on your website or inside your app. Think of it as a small window that sits in the corner of the page. It gives customers two main choices: they can search your knowledge base for an answer, or they can fill out a contact form to open a support ticket.
The idea is simple: let people find answers to common questions on their own with help articles, and give them an easy way to get in touch when they’re really stuck.
It's also important to know what it isn't. The Freshdesk web widget isn't a conversational chatbot like Freshchat, nor is it a more advanced AI assistant. It's really just a search bar for your help center and a form for submitting tickets. It's a solid first step, but it won't chat back and forth with a customer or figure out complex problems by itself.
A look at the Freshdesk web widget's features and settings
Let’s dig into what the widget can do and how you can make it your own.
Self-service with solution articles
The widget’s main self-service trick is pulling from your Freshdesk Knowledge Base. Someone types in a question, and the widget suggests articles they can read right then and there. If you’re on one of Freshdesk's pricier plans (Pro and up), you get a feature called "contextual support." This suggests articles based on the page the person is on. For example, it can show articles about billing when they're on your pricing page.
This is pretty helpful, but here's the catch: it only works if you have a perfectly updated knowledge base. If the answer isn't written down in a help article, the widget can't find it. That’s a very different approach from a platform like eesel AI, which connects to all of your company's knowledge. It learns from your help center, sure, but also from past ticket conversations, internal notes in Confluence, and documents in Google Docs to give a complete answer, without you having to write a new article for every single question that comes up.
A look at the Freshdesk knowledge base interface, where solution articles for the web widget are created and managed.Embedded contact forms
When self-service doesn't cut it, the widget provides a contact form. Customers can pop in their name, email, and problem to create a ticket that goes straight into your Freshdesk queue. You can also add custom fields to the form to make sure you're getting all the info your agents need from the get-go.
A form is handy, but it doesn't actually solve anything on the spot, it just logs the problem for someone else to deal with. This is where a real AI assistant can completely change the game. An eesel AI Agent, for example, can have a real conversation with the user. It can ask follow-up questions to understand the issue and often provide a fix right away. It turns a potential ticket into a solved problem before it ever lands in your team's lap.
Appearance and branding customization
Freshdesk lets you tweak the widget's look to match your website. You can change the colors, add a background pattern to the banner, and decide if it lives on the bottom-left or bottom-right of the screen. It's a nice touch for keeping your branding consistent, but just a heads-up, most of these options are only available on Freshdesk's paid plans (Growth and above).
Advanced customization with the widget API
If you have developers on hand, Freshdesk offers a widget API to unlock some extra functionality. A developer could use it to programmatically show or hide the widget, pre-fill form fields with a logged-in user's info, or disable certain fields.
This is definitely useful, but it all hinges on having a developer to write and look after the code. That can be a big ask for many support teams who just want to manage their own tools. We built eesel AI to be something you can manage entirely on your own, with a simple, no-code interface. Support leads can build custom workflows, tell the AI what actions to take, and connect to other systems without ever having to write code.
| Feature | Freshdesk Widget API | eesel AI Workflow Engine |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | Needs a developer and custom code | Set up yourself, no code needed |
| Custom Actions | Can pre-fill and hide form fields | Can look up orders, escalate tickets, or call other tools |
| Workflow Control | Basic commands (open, close, pre-fill) | Detailed, rule-based automation |
| Maintenance | Requires code changes for updates | Managed through a simple dashboard |
Where the Freshdesk web widget's AI falls short
This is where things can get a little confusing. Freshdesk does have AI features (they call it "Freddy AI"), but the standard web widget itself doesn't act like what most of us picture when we think of AI. Let's break down the limitations.
Freshdesk's Freddy AI Copilot assisting an agent inside the helpdesk interface.The Freshdesk web widget is not a conversational AI
At the end of the day, the widget is a search bar and a form. It doesn't really understand what a user is trying to do, ask questions to get more clarity, or walk someone through troubleshooting steps. It just tries to match keywords from a user's question to the titles of your help articles. If someone types "my login isn't working," it looks for articles with "login" in the title. It can't ask, "Are you getting a specific error message?" or "Did you try resetting your password first?" The widget is not a conversational AI.
Knowledge silos and the Freshdesk web widget
The widget is built to work with one thing: the Freshdesk Knowledge Base. This is a big deal because, let's face it, important information is usually scattered all over a company. Your latest troubleshooting guides might live in Confluence, your return policy in a Google Doc, and the best solutions to tricky problems are often buried in old support tickets. The widget can't touch any of that.
This is where eesel AI works differently. It was built to connect all your knowledge sources in a snap. It can link to over 100 different apps, creating a single source of truth for your support team. This means the AI can give accurate answers using info from anywhere, not just from one help center.
A diagram comparing a siloed knowledge base like the one used by the Freshdesk web widget to a connected knowledge system that pulls from multiple sources.Basic automation capabilities
The widget’s job is done as soon as a ticket is created. It can't do anything to actually solve the problem itself. It can't look up an order status in Shopify, check a customer's subscription plan, or automatically tag and send a ticket to the right person. All of that has to be done by your team after the ticket is already in the queue, which just adds to their workload. Automation in the Freshdesk web widget is handled differently by AI.
An eesel AI Agent works more like an automated team member. It can perform custom actions, connect to your other systems in real time, and resolve common issues before they become tickets. It helps keep your queue clean by handling the repetitive stuff, so your agents can focus on the conversations that really need a human touch.
Pricing for the Freshdesk web widget and AI features
Figuring out the costs for the Freshdesk web widget and its AI add-ons can be a bit of a maze. The basic widget is available on Freshdesk's free plan, but to get the really useful features, you'll need to open your wallet.
Changing the widget's appearance starts on the Growth plan ($15/agent/month), and the contextual article suggestions require the Pro plan ($49/agent/month).
But the real costs pile up when you get into Freshdesk's AI add-ons, "Freddy AI."
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Freddy AI Copilot: This is a tool to help your agents. It costs an extra $29/agent/month on top of your Pro or Enterprise plan.
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Freddy AI Agent: This is the automated bot. It has a usage-based fee of $100 for every 1,000 sessions. A "session" is any unique interaction, and these can add up fast, making your bill unpredictable.
This pricing can get expensive and hard to budget for. As a comparison, eesel AI has simple, predictable pricing based on a flat monthly interaction limit. There are no per-resolution fees, so you don't get punished for being busy. Plus, all of eesel AI's products, including the AI Agent, Copilot, and Triage, are rolled into one subscription, which gives you a lot more for your money.
| Feature | Freshdesk Plan Required | Associated AI Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Help Widget | Free | N/A |
| Appearance Customization | Growth ($15/agent/mo) | N/A |
| Contextual Articles | Pro ($49/agent/mo) | N/A |
| Agent Assist (Freddy) | Pro or Enterprise Plan | +$29/agent/mo (Copilot) |
| Automated Agent (Freddy) | Pro or Enterprise Plan | +$100 per 1,000 sessions |
A different approach to the Freshdesk web widget: Powering Freshdesk with eesel AI
The Freshdesk web widget is a decent starting place, but its limits become clear pretty quickly: it isn't truly conversational, it relies on a single knowledge source, and any real customization requires a developer.
The good news is you don't have to ditch the tools you already use. eesel AI works like a smart layer that integrates right into your existing Freshdesk account, giving you the best of both worlds.
Here’s what makes it a different experience:
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Get it running in minutes: You can actually set it up yourself. Connect your knowledge sources, configure your AI agent, and get it live without having to talk to a salesperson.
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You're in control: A no-code workflow engine lets you customize how the AI behaves, define its personality, and create custom actions that connect to your other tools.
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Test it with your own data: Before you go live, you can use eesel AI’s simulation mode to test the AI on thousands of your past tickets. This shows you exactly what your deflection rate and ROI will be before a single customer ever chats with it.
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Bring all your knowledge together: Instantly connect eesel AI to your help center, past tickets, Confluence, Google Docs, Slack, and more. Your AI will finally have all the information it needs to give the right answer.
An example of eesel AI Copilot drafting a reply to a refund policy question directly within the Freshdesk interface.Wrapping up our Freshdesk web widget review
The Freshdesk web widget is a solid tool for offering basic self-service and giving customers an easy way to submit tickets. If you're already using Freshdesk, it's a great feature to have.
But for teams who want to offer support that’s truly automated, smart, and happens in real-time, its limitations can be a roadblock. It's more of a window to a help center than an AI that solves problems. For smarter support, you might need an alternative.
By adding a dedicated AI platform like eesel AI, you can keep the helpdesk you like while getting automation that actually works. You get a smarter assistant that resolves issues instantly, learns from all of your company's scattered knowledge, and lets you build custom workflows without needing a team of developers.
Ready to see what that looks like? Try eesel AI for free and you can set up your first AI agent in just a few minutes.
Frequently asked questions
The Freshdesk web widget primarily serves two functions: allowing customers to search your knowledge base for self-service answers and providing a contact form for them to submit support tickets directly. It acts as a quick access point for basic help right on your website or app.
Yes, you can customize the appearance of the Freshdesk web widget. You can change colors, add a background pattern, and choose its position on the screen, though many of these branding options are available on Freshdesk's paid plans (Growth and above).
No, the Freshdesk web widget is not a conversational AI or chatbot. It functions more as a search interface for your help articles and a form for ticket submission, rather than engaging in a back-and-forth dialogue or understanding complex queries.
Key limitations include its non-conversational nature, its reliance solely on the Freshdesk Knowledge Base (siloing your information), and its basic automation capabilities. It logs problems but doesn't actively solve them in real-time or connect with other systems like an AI agent would.
The basic Freshdesk web widget is available on the free plan, but customization options require Growth ($15/agent/month) and contextual articles need Pro ($49/agent/month). Freshdesk's "Freddy AI" features, like an automated agent, incur additional usage-based fees on top of your plan.
No, the standard Freshdesk web widget is designed to pull information exclusively from your Freshdesk Knowledge Base. It cannot access or leverage knowledge scattered across other company documents like Confluence, Google Docs, or past support tickets.
You can enhance the Freshdesk web widget by integrating it with a dedicated AI platform like eesel AI. This allows for conversational AI, access to all your company's knowledge sources, and advanced automation to resolve issues directly before they become tickets.
