Zendesk voice AI: An overview of features, pricing, and alternatives

It looks like voice support is making a comeback. Even with all the focus on digital channels, a huge 80 percent of consumers still prefer to just pick up the phone for customer service. It’s direct, it's quick, and it's often the simplest way to sort out a tricky problem. Zendesk has noticed this trend and is putting a lot of effort into updating its phone support with a bunch of AI tools.

But what exactly is Zendesk voice AI? Is it one single feature you can switch on, or is there more to it? We’re going to break it all down for you. We'll get into what it is, its main features, the surprisingly tricky pricing, and its downsides. We'll also look at why a more flexible, connected AI tool might actually be a better move for your team.

What is Zendesk voice AI?

Let's clear one thing up right away: Zendesk voice AI isn't a single product you can just buy off the shelf. It’s more of an umbrella term for several AI features built on top of Zendesk’s voice platform (you might remember it as Zendesk Talk). The whole idea is to use AI to make the entire phone call process smoother, from the moment a customer dials your number to the wrap-up analysis after they hang up.

Basically, it's Zendesk's way of bringing its phone support up to speed with modern AI. The whole system is built on a few key pieces:

• AI-powered agents to greet callers and handle the first part of the conversation.

• A copilot feature that gives human agents real-time help during calls.

• Automatic transcripts and summaries to reduce the amount of manual work after a call.

• Quality assurance (QA) tools to keep an eye on call performance and help with agent coaching.

It all sounds pretty good, but as you'll see, getting access to all these tools means you have to piece together a few different products and add-ons, which can get complicated and pricey in a hurry.

Key features and components of Zendesk voice AI

To really get what Zendesk voice AI is all about, you need to see how it works at every step of a support call. Zendesk has sprinkled AI throughout the process, but each feature often comes from a different part of their product lineup.

Pre-call automation with Zendesk voice AI

When a customer calls, the first voice they'll hear is often an AI agent. For this, Zendesk has teamed up with a third-party company, PolyAI. The goal is to get rid of those clunky, old-school Interactive Voice Response (IVR) menus. You know the ones: "Press 1 for sales, press 2 for support..."

Instead, a customer can just say what they need in plain English. The AI agent can then answer common questions by pulling info from your knowledge base, handle simple tasks through integrations (like checking on an order), or collect important details before handing the call off to a person. It’s a neat feature, but relying on a third-party tool can add a layer of complexity compared to a system where everything is truly built-in.

In-call assistance with the Zendesk voice AI Copilot

Once a call gets to a human agent, the Zendesk voice AI Copilot jumps in to assist. It listens to the conversation as it happens and acts like a helpful sidekick. It can pull up relevant help center articles, suggest answers, and provide extra context right inside the agent's workspace.

The aim is to help agents work faster and provide more consistent answers. With all that information right there, they spend less time digging around and more time actually solving the customer's problem. It’s a genuinely useful feature, but it’s part of an expensive add-on, not something that comes standard.

This video shows how Copilot for Voice gives agents real-time coaching and after-call guidance with an AI-powered assistant to help resolve customer issues.

Post-call efficiency with Zendesk voice AI transcripts and summaries

After the call is over, the paperwork usually begins. Or at least, it used to. Zendesk’s AI automatically creates a full transcript and a short summary of the conversation. This saves agents from having to type up notes and wrap-up reports, which means they can get to the next call much faster.

This is a huge time-saver, but there’s a big catch. This feature isn't included in the basic plans. You have to buy either the Zendesk Advanced AI or Zendesk QA add-on. And on top of that, Zendesk charges you an extra fee for every single minute of audio it transcribes. This can lead to some unexpectedly high and unpredictable bills, especially if your team handles a lot of calls.

Performance analysis with Zendesk voice AI quality assurance (QA) for voice

Finally, Zendesk uses AI to help you check on call quality. The Voice QA feature scans call transcripts to score them against your company's standards. It can automatically flag calls where a customer might be unhappy, spot compliance problems, or point out moments that are perfect for coaching an agent. This is a great tool for managers, but once again, it’s part of a separate product, Zendesk QA, that you have to purchase on top of everything else.

Navigating the setup and pricing of Zendesk voice AI

Getting started with Zendesk voice AI isn't as easy as flipping a switch. Since it’s not a single product, you have to find your way through a maze of different plans, add-ons, and integrations that can be confusing and expensive.

The fragmented Zendesk voice AI ecosystem requires multiple add-ons

To get the full Zendesk voice AI experience, you aren't just buying one thing; you're basically building a toolkit from different parts of the Zendesk shop. Here’s what you’ll likely need:

• Zendesk Suite: This is your starting point. You need one of the Suite plans just to get the basic voice channel.

• Advanced AI Add-on: This is where you get key features like the agent Copilot and the automatic call summaries.

• Zendesk QA Add-on: If you want the AI-powered quality checks for your calls, that’s another separate purchase.

• PolyAI Integration: The conversational AI that first answers the phone is from a partner company, which might mean a separate setup and contract to manage.

Trying to keep track of multiple subscriptions and add-ons can be a real headache. In comparison, tools like eesel AI are designed to plug right into your existing Zendesk setup with one simple, clear plan, giving you powerful automation without all the clutter.

Zendesk voice AI pricing explained

The price you see for Zendesk Suite is just the tip of the iceberg. That per-agent-per-month fee doesn't really tell the full story.

Plan	Price (per agent/month, billed annually)	Key Features Included
Support Team	$19	Basic email support
Suite Team	$55	AI Included, omnichannel support
Suite Professional	$115	AI, advanced reporting, customizations
Suite Enterprise	$169	Advanced AI, change management, premium security

Even though the more expensive plans say "AI Included," many of the advanced voice features we’ve talked about are still locked behind those costly add-ons. For instance, the automated call summaries come with an extra usage-based fee on top of the add-on price. This can create unpredictable costs that add up fast. It's a big difference from eesel AI's straightforward plans, where you know exactly what you're paying each month without having to watch the clock.

Limitations and a more flexible alternative to Zendesk voice AI

While Zendesk’s own tools are certainly capable, their closed-off approach has some pretty big downsides. For a lot of businesses, a more nimble and connected AI layer is a much better way to go.

The challenges of the Zendesk voice AI closed-ecosystem approach

Putting all your eggs in the Zendesk AI basket can lead to a few problems you should think about:

• Vendor Lock-In: When you build your entire AI strategy inside Zendesk, you’re stuck. If you ever decide Zendesk isn't the right fit anymore or you want to switch helpdesks, you have to start all over again. All the time and money you spent setting up and training your AI is gone.

• Siloed Knowledge: A support AI is only as smart as the information it can access. Zendesk’s AI mostly learns from stuff inside Zendesk, like tickets and help articles. This makes it tough to use important information that lives in other places, like your internal wikis on Confluence, project plans in Google Docs, or product details in Shopify.

• Complex Setup: As we’ve covered, the multi-product setup is anything but simple. It takes a lot of time and technical know-how to get all the different parts configured and to manage the relationship with third parties like PolyAI.

The better way: An agile AI layer with eesel AI

This is where a dedicated AI platform like eesel AI really shines. Instead of locking you into one system, eesel AI acts as a smart layer that connects to all your tools, which gives you way more power and flexibility.

• Go live in minutes: eesel AI is designed to be incredibly easy to set up yourself. You can connect your helpdesk with a single click and start building your AI agent right away. No long sales calls or mandatory demos needed to get going.

• Unify all your knowledge: This is a huge one. eesel AI can learn from everything, your past Zendesk tickets, your help center, internal docs in Notion or Confluence, and even conversations in Slack. This helps create a much smarter AI that can answer more questions correctly.

• Test with confidence: Nervous about letting an AI loose on your customers? eesel AI has a powerful simulation mode that lets you test it on thousands of your past tickets. You can see exactly how it would have answered, predict your automation rate, and adjust its behavior before it ever talks to a real customer.

• Transparent pricing: With eesel AI, you get simple, predictable plans that fit your needs. There are no confusing add-ons or per-minute fees that penalize you for being busy.

Move beyond the bundled Zendesk voice AI with a flexible solution

Zendesk is clearly taking AI-powered voice support seriously. The new features offer a peek at a future where call centers are more automated and efficient. However, the current setup is piecemeal, tying you to a complicated and expensive system of different products and add-ons. For businesses that need to be flexible, fast, and simple, a dedicated AI layer is the smarter long-term choice.

An AI platform that works with the tools you already use, brings all your knowledge together, and has clear pricing gives you the freedom to build an amazing customer experience without being locked in.

Before you commit to a single platform's ecosystem, try out a flexible AI tool that connects with what you already have. You can often see the benefits in minutes, not months.

Ready to see how a truly connected AI can transform your customer support without the headache? Try eesel AI for free and see how quickly you can automate your support.