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Choose among Front, Zendesk, Freshdesk and Help Scout when customer support email currently lives in Microsoft 365 and Outlook.
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4 of 4 publish a price · 1 offer a free plan · 4 offer a free trial
Why it ranks here: The Office 365 sync channel synchronizes sent and received messages with Front.
Not a fit if: you need agents to work inside Outlook; Front uses a connected support workspace.
Why it ranks here: The Exchange connector brings mailbox email into tickets, and the Outlook add-in captures selected mail.
Not a fit if: you need to keep a shared Exchange mailbox shared; Zendesk requires converting it to a regular user mailbox.
Why it ranks here: Microsoft mail enters Freshdesk as tickets for a team using ticket workflows and a customer portal.
Not a fit if: you need mail outside the primary mailbox folder captured as tickets; Freshdesk converts the primary folder.
Why it ranks here: Administrator-managed forwarding brings Outlook support mail into Help Scout assignment and collision workflows.
Not a fit if: you need replies sent from Outlook to sync into the support record; replies must be sent in Help Scout.
Choose Front when keeping sent and received messages synchronized with Microsoft 365 is central to the move. Choose Zendesk for Exchange Online ticketing plus Outlook ticket capture and a Teams ticket workflow, if the shared mailbox can be converted to a regular mailbox. Choose Freshdesk when Microsoft email should feed a structured ticketing system with a customer portal and knowledge base. Choose Help Scout when the team can move all customer replies into one shared support workspace.
These are three ways to keep the Microsoft 365 email address while changing how support is handled. Agents work in the selected help desk. Zendesk also offers an Outlook add-in for copying selected messages into tickets; it does not make the full support workspace Outlook-native.
| Product | Strongest fit | Mail connection | Important boundary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Front | Teams retaining Microsoft message visibility | Office 365 sync channel | Message sync does not mean every read/archive/tag action mirrors |
| Zendesk | Exchange Online ticketing with Outlook capture and Teams ticket work | Exchange connector; Outlook add-in captures selected mail | Shared mailbox must be converted to a regular mailbox |
| Freshdesk | Email-to-ticket service operations | Microsoft/custom email-server configuration | Only the mailbox primary folder is converted to tickets |
| Help Scout | Moving all support replies to one queue | Administrator-managed forwarding | Outlook-sent replies do not sync back |
Front's current Office 365 sync guide covers individual and shared inboxes. It can import the most recent 50,000 messages when the channel is connected, then synchronize incoming and sent email. This is a material advantage when the team needs copies in Microsoft 365 as well as the support workspace. It is not full ongoing mailbox-state mirroring: read, archive and tag changes have different behavior, and drafts are not imported.
Within Front, named assignment and shared drafting handle collaboration. Starter is a single-channel-type plan; Professional is the relevant comparison when combining email with other channel types. See Front pricing and keep the sync-channel setup distinct from ordinary SMTP forwarding.
Zendesk’s Exchange connector guide says it fetches Exchange Online email into tickets and uses the API for outbound email from Zendesk to the Exchange mailbox. An administrator authorizes the connection. Convert the shared mailbox to a regular user mailbox; on-premises Exchange Server is unsupported.
The separate Outlook add-in copies selected email into a new Zendesk ticket. It requires Microsoft 365 plus Microsoft and Zendesk administrator setup. Zendesk documents its Teams ticket integration for Customer Service Suite accounts; agents can update tickets and add notes or public replies there. Compare Zendesk plans for the required configuration.
Freshdesk is the appropriate shortlist option when the desired outcome is a ticket queue, self-service portal and workflow automation. Its support-email guide documents Microsoft Office 365, custom servers and shared-mailbox configuration. Sender verification and the primary-folder capture rule matter: include messages moved by mailbox rules in the setup test.
Growth provides standalone ticketing and self-service. Advanced live chat and AI chat belong to Freshdesk Omni, so compare the correct edition in the Freshdesk pricing guide.
Help Scout is a clear choice for a team willing to stop answering support messages from Outlook. The shared-mailbox setup guide explicitly says Outlook replies do not synchronize back. An administrator forwards the address into Help Scout and can retain a local Microsoft copy. Named ownership, conversation notes and collision protection then operate in Help Scout. This model simplifies responsibility when everyone follows it; allowing agents to keep replying in Outlook splits the record.
Microsoft's external-forwarding policies must permit the selected support mailbox. Use the vendor's forwarding guidance and involve the Microsoft administrator before scheduling the switch. Compare Help Scout plans for workflows and capacity.
A four-person team uses an Exchange shared mailbox. Before switching, decide where agents will send every support reply. For Front, connect the native Office 365 channel and test inbound and sent-message visibility. For Help Scout, forward the mailbox and have the team reply only there. For Freshdesk, test incoming mail, attachments and sender identity, including messages affected by existing folder rules. In every setup, give agents named ownership and agree on how colleagues hand over a waiting customer.
Teams using Google should start with the Gmail shared-inbox comparison. For the wider market, compare small-business help desk software and all customer support software.
We compare current official product, pricing and setup documentation for this buying situation. The shortlist is editorial: choose the workflow that matches the team, then compare the named plan boundaries. Cells preserve source links and qualification; no numeric quality score or invented hands-on test is used.
| Product | Where agents work | Microsoft 365 mailbox connection | Replies and mail history | Team workflow after connection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Front | Agents collaborate in Front, connected to Office 365 email; this is not an Outlook-native shared-inbox add-in.[1] | Connect an Office 365 individual or shared inbox as a native sync channel. Optional initial import covers the 50,000 most recent messages; SMTP forwarding lacks this import/sync.[1] | Sent and received email sync between Office 365 and Front. Do not read two-way email sync as full ongoing read/archive/tag synchronization; drafts are not imported.[1] | Front shared inboxes have a single assignee and team comments/shared drafts. Starter is limited to one channel type; Professional combines channels.[2] [3] [4] |
| Zendesk | Current Zendesk Suite plans provide a unified agent workspace. The Outlook add-in creates Zendesk tickets from Outlook.[5] [6] | Zendesk Support / current Suite email ticketing: Exchange Online connector, authorized by an administrator. Shared mailboxes must first be converted to regular user mailboxes; on-premises Exchange Server is unsupported. The separate Outlook add-in requires Microsoft 365 and Microsoft/Zendesk administrator setup.[7] [6] [8] | Zendesk Support Exchange connector: inbound email becomes tickets and outbound email is delivered from Zendesk to Exchange. The Outlook add-in separately copies selected mail into a ticket.[7] [6] | Support Team is the named email-ticketing entry plan; current Suite plans include a unified agent workspace. Zendesk for Microsoft Teams is documented for Customer Service Suite accounts and supports ticket work, internal notes and public replies in Teams.[8] [5] [9] |
| Freshdesk | Microsoft 365 support email becomes tickets in the Freshdesk agent workspace.[10] | Microsoft Office 365/custom-server configuration supports inbound/outbound mail; shared mailbox setup uses documented IMAP/SMTP credentials and sender verification. Administrator and mailbox access are required.[10] | Incoming messages in the support mailbox primary folder become tickets. Agents handle tickets in Freshdesk.[10] | Growth provides a ticketed shared inbox, automation, a customer portal and knowledge base; advanced chat belongs to the separately priced Omni edition.[11] [12] [13] |
| Help Scout | Microsoft 365 mail is forwarded into the Help Scout agent workspace.[14] | An M365 administrator forwards a shared mailbox to the Help Scout inbox and allows automatic external forwarding; keeping a copy in Microsoft 365 is optional.[14] [15] | Reply from Help Scout only. The current shared-mailbox guide explicitly says Outlook-sent replies do not sync back to Help Scout.[14] | Individual users receive inbox access and named assignments. Help Scout documents a send-time pause if the conversation changes while an agent drafts. Standard adds conditional workflows.[16] [17] [18] [19] |
Current guide: individual and shared Office 365 channels can import up to 50,000 recent messages. Received/sent email continues syncing; ongoing read/archive/tag actions are not full state mirroring. SMTP-forwarding channels lack history import and sync.
A conversation can only be assigned to one user at a time.
Draft content is automatically shared and updated immediately.
$25/seat/mo, up to 10 seats
“All plans include these fundamental features:” “a unified agent workspace”
“The Outlook integration allows Outlook users with or without a Zendesk account to copy email contents to a new ticket in Zendesk without leaving the Outlook application.” “Have Microsoft 365”; “Have permissions to install Outlook add-ins”; “Be a Zendesk administrator.”
“The Zendesk Exchange connector is compatible with Microsoft Exchange Online only.” “Once connected, the connector uses an Exchange API to fetch email from your Exchange inbox and automatically convert email messages to tickets. The API is also leveraged to deliver outbound email from Zendesk to your Exchange mailbox.” “To connect the Microsoft Exchange Connector to a shared mailbox, you must first convert the shared mailbox into a regular user mailbox.”
Support Team: $19 agent/month paid yearly. Suite Team: $55 agent/month paid yearly.
“This article is for Customer Service Suite accounts.” “Create, view, and update Support tickets and keep up to date with any changes within Teams.” “Add internal notes and public replies to tickets within Teams.”
Microsoft Office 365/custom email can be connected for inbound/outbound ticket email. Shared mailboxes are supported in documented IMAP/SMTP configuration; administrator/mailbox access and sender verification matter. Only the support-mailbox primary folder is converted to tickets.
Ticketing & shared inbox
Basic Web Chat channel with knowledge base integration and ticket forms.
Reassign agent or group
An M365 administrator configures forwarding to the Help Scout inbox; a local copy is optional. Agents must reply from Help Scout: replies sent in Outlook do not sync back. This guide applies to shared mailboxes without a full user login.
Microsoft 365 may block automatic external forwarding through outbound spam policy. An administrator must allow the intended support mailbox; other tenant/reseller policies can also affect delivery.
Enter the user's Name and Email Address.
it will appear in the Unassigned folder
It stops the reply from being sent
Workflows can be either manual or automatic, and condition values are not case-sensitive.
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