What counts as a conversation?

One customer’s thread on any channel, however many messages go back and forth. Imported history and spam don’t count.

What happens if I go over my plan?

Hobson tells the owner at 80% and 100% of the plan’s conversations. At the limit it stops drafting replies to new conversations until you upgrade or the next period starts. Messages still arrive and your team can still reply. There are no overage charges.

Can Hobson issue Shopify refunds?

Yes. Hobson can propose a refund, cancellation, address change, replacement order or discount code with its reply. Nothing runs until a person approves it, and agents have a money limit above which an owner or admin must approve.

Does Hobson have a help centre?

No. Hobson has no public help centre or self-service portal. Your documents and policies are used as knowledge for drafting.

Where is my data stored?

Email and files are stored in AWS in Ireland (eu-west-1) and the app runs in the EU. AI drafting uses providers in the US under standard contractual clauses. OAuth tokens and API keys are encrypted at rest with AES-256-GCM, each with its own key, wrapped by a master key held outside the database.

Hobson vs Help Scout: when you need Shopify actions

Help Scout is a simple, well-liked shared inbox with a free plan for up to 5 users and a Docs knowledge base. AI Answers costs $0.75 per resolution.

Hobson is built for Shopify stores, with order actions approved with the reply and auto-send earned per category, for a flat price with unlimited seats.

Choose Help Scout for a free or simple inbox with public docs. Choose Hobson if most of your questions are about orders.

14-day free trial. Hobson starts in shadow mode, so nothing reaches your customers until you choose.

Get early access Compare your costs

Updated 11 October 2026. Competitor prices checked on each vendor’s own site.

At a glance

Feature	Hobson	Help Scout
Pricing model	Flat monthly plans by conversations, every feature on every plan	Per user, plus $0.75 for each AI Answers resolution
Starting price	£49 a month for 300 conversations (£490 a year billed annually)	Free for up to 5 users. Standard $25, Plus $45 and Pro $75 per user a month
AI fee	None. Drafting and auto-send are included in the plan	$0.75 per AI Answers resolution, with an optional spending cap
Over the limit	No overage charges. At the limit Hobson stops drafting new conversations until you upgrade or the next period starts	An optional spending cap on AI Answers
Seats	Unlimited seats on every plan	Charged per user, with a free plan for up to 5
AI drafting	A draft on every conversation, included	AI Drafts and Assist included on paid plans
Shopify order actions	Refund, cancel, address change, replacement order and discount code, proposed with the reply and run only when approved	No refund or cancellation actions listed on the pricing page
Channels	Email (Gmail, forwarding), live chat, Instagram, Messenger and contact forms. Microsoft 365 direct connect coming soon. No voice, SMS or WhatsApp	Email and chat, plus a Docs knowledge base

Competitor details as listed on their own pricing pages, checked on the dates under Sources. Prices exclude VAT.

What it costs in practice

Three example stores on monthly billing at list prices. Each competitor figure counts its seats and its fee for each conversation its AI resolves, on the plan shown. Drafting add-ons are left out, which favours the competitors. US dollar prices are converted at £1 = $1.33. Hobson’s AI drafting pauses at your plan limit, and you’re never billed overage.

Small store

300 conversations, 2 agents, 30% (90) resolved by AI

Hobson Starter: £49
Help Scout Standard: ≈ £88.35

Change the numbers

Growing store

1,000 conversations, 3 agents, 40% (400) resolved by AI

Hobson Growth: £149
Help Scout Standard: ≈ £282

Change the numbers

Busy store

3,000 conversations, 8 agents, 50% (1,500) resolved by AI

Hobson Scale: £349
Help Scout Standard: ≈ £996

Change the numbers

How the AI works

Hobson drafts every conversation and a person approves it. A category, such as order status or returns, can only send on its own once it has at least 20 reviewed outcomes, a 95% confidence lower bound of 70% or more acceptable, and facts changed in no more than 10% of replies. Policy categories like refunds stay locked until your policy is in the knowledge base. Every auto-send waits a minute so you can undo it, and a category goes back to asking first if corrections rise.

Help Scout’s AI is priced per resolution or interaction, so the bill rises as it does more. Hobson’s price stays the same.

Where Help Scout is better

A free plan for up to 5 users.
Docs, a public knowledge base. Hobson has no help centre.
A simple, long-established shared inbox.
An optional spending cap on AI Answers.

Where Hobson is better

Shopify order actions (refund, cancel, address change, replacement, discount code) approved with the reply.
Triage built for ecommerce questions like order status, returns and damaged items.
Auto-send earned per category on measured accuracy.
No per-user or per-resolution fees.

Switching

Connect Gmail in two clicks or forward your support email, and Hobson starts in shadow mode: it drafts every reply and sends nothing until you choose. Your history in Help Scout stays where it is.

Questions

Sources

Help Scout pricing, checked 11 October 2026

Prices are list prices excluding VAT, voice, SMS and add-ons unless shown, and can change at any time. Check the vendor’s own page before you decide. Help Scout is a trade mark of its owner. Hobson is not affiliated with it. Spotted something out of date? Email hello@hobson.support and we’ll correct it.

Put Hobson on duty.

Connect your inbox in a few minutes. Hobson drafts, you approve, and nothing reaches a customer until you say so.