Front

Front starts from a different premise than traditional help desks: email works, people just need better tools to manage it together. Instead of converting emails into tickets with case numbers, Front keeps them as emails—with added collaboration.

The shared inbox lets teams manage group email addresses (support@, sales@, info@) together. Each team member sees the same inbox but can assign conversations, add internal comments, and track who's working on what. Collision detection prevents duplicate replies.

The messaging layer adds SMS, social media, live chat, and integrations with tools like Salesforce and Shopify. Everything flows into the same inbox, so teams see all customer communication in one place. Unlike ticket-based systems, the conversation format stays native to each channel.

Rules automate routing, tagging, and assignment based on sender, subject, or message content. SLAs track response times. Analytics show team performance and workload distribution.

What makes Front different is the email-native approach. Replies go out as normal emails—customers never see a ticket number or support portal link. This matters for businesses where relationships are personal: real estate, financial services, logistics, and B2B sales.

Pricing is per user: Starter at $19/user/month (basic features), Growth at $59/user/month (analytics, integrations), Scale at $99/user/month (advanced automation), and Premier at $229/user/month for enterprises.

The limitation is complexity as you scale. Front excels for teams of 5-100, but very large support operations may need the structure of traditional ticketing systems.