Intercom vs. Sugar Market

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Intercom
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Intercom creates modern Customer Service software that aims to redefine how businesses support their customers. The platform connects businesses directly to customers using powerful messaging and automation. According to the vendor, Intercom enables teams to scale support without investing more resources - leading to happier customers and more efficient support teams.
$39
per month per seat
Sugar Market
Score 2.2 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
Sugar Market (formerly Salesfusion) is a marketing automation solution built to work for the user. With a curated toolset that includes intuitive campaign builders, automations and reporting, the vendor says they focus on what matters most to marketers -- streamlining campaign creation, understanding engagement, improving conversion, and driving more revenue. Salesfusion was acquired by SugarCRM May 2019.
$750
per month
Pricing
IntercomSugar Market
Editions & Modules
Essential
$39
per month per seat
Advanced
$99
per month per seat
Expert
$139
per month per seat
The Early Stage program
From $65 for 5 support seats
per month
Proactive Support Plus add-on
from $99
per month
Core
$1,000
Database size
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
IntercomSugar Market
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeRequired
Additional DetailsAI customer service features included in every plan. Intercom integrates Help desk, AI Chat bot, and Proactive support.Prices listed are monthly subscription rates. Our packages include live support and training. Additional charges apply for contact databases above 10k, dedicated IPs, CRM integration and sandboxes. Please complete the form on our site to request a quote based on your specific needs.
More Pricing Information
Features
IntercomSugar Market
Incident and problem management
Comparison of Incident and problem management features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
8.1
111 Ratings
3% above category average
Sugar Market
-
Ratings
Organize and prioritize service tickets8.4101 Ratings00 Ratings
Expert directory8.068 Ratings00 Ratings
Subscription-based notifications7.767 Ratings00 Ratings
ITSM collaboration and documentation8.275 Ratings00 Ratings
Ticket creation and submission8.3104 Ratings00 Ratings
Ticket response7.8109 Ratings00 Ratings
Self Help Community
Comparison of Self Help Community features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
7.3
115 Ratings
6% below category average
Sugar Market
-
Ratings
External knowledge base7.4114 Ratings00 Ratings
Internal knowledge base7.299 Ratings00 Ratings
Multi-Channel Help
Comparison of Multi-Channel Help features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
8.2
111 Ratings
7% above category average
Sugar Market
-
Ratings
Customer portal8.589 Ratings00 Ratings
IVR7.736 Ratings00 Ratings
Social integration7.569 Ratings00 Ratings
Email support8.8105 Ratings00 Ratings
Help Desk CRM integration8.580 Ratings00 Ratings
Email & Online Marketing
Comparison of Email & Online Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
-
Ratings
Sugar Market
4.4
4 Ratings
56% below category average
WYSIWYG email editor00 Ratings3.03 Ratings
Dynamic content00 Ratings5.03 Ratings
Ability to test dynamic content00 Ratings4.02 Ratings
Landing pages00 Ratings6.03 Ratings
A/B testing00 Ratings4.03 Ratings
Mobile optimization00 Ratings1.03 Ratings
Email deliverability reporting00 Ratings7.04 Ratings
List management00 Ratings4.04 Ratings
Triggered drip sequences00 Ratings6.03 Ratings
Lead Management
Comparison of Lead Management features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
-
Ratings
Sugar Market
5.3
4 Ratings
37% below category average
Lead nurturing automation00 Ratings6.04 Ratings
Lead scoring and grading00 Ratings4.04 Ratings
Data quality management00 Ratings5.04 Ratings
Automated sales alerts and tasks00 Ratings6.03 Ratings
Campaign Management
Comparison of Campaign Management features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
-
Ratings
Sugar Market
6.5
3 Ratings
16% below category average
Calendaring00 Ratings6.03 Ratings
Event/webinar marketing00 Ratings7.02 Ratings
Social Media Marketing
Comparison of Social Media Marketing features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
-
Ratings
Sugar Market
8.2
1 Ratings
9% above category average
Social sharing and campaigns00 Ratings8.21 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
-
Ratings
Sugar Market
2.3
4 Ratings
106% below category average
Dashboards00 Ratings5.04 Ratings
Standard reports00 Ratings1.04 Ratings
Custom reports00 Ratings1.04 Ratings
Platform & Infrastructure
Comparison of Platform & Infrastructure features of Product A and Product B
Intercom
-
Ratings
Sugar Market
4.8
4 Ratings
45% below category average
API00 Ratings5.02 Ratings
Role-based workflow & approvals00 Ratings6.02 Ratings
Customizability00 Ratings3.02 Ratings
Integration with Salesforce.com00 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Integration with Microsoft Dynamics CRM00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Best Alternatives
IntercomSugar Market
Small Businesses
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Score 9.0 out of 10
Vbout
Vbout
Score 9.5 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Agiloft Flexible Service Desk Suite
Score 9.0 out of 10
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
Enterprises
SAP Service Cloud
SAP Service Cloud
Score 8.7 out of 10
PFL Direct Mail Platform
PFL Direct Mail Platform
Score 9.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
IntercomSugar Market
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(260 ratings)
3.0
(7 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.9
(19 ratings)
10.0
(3 ratings)
Usability
8.8
(168 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.1
(10 ratings)
8.2
(1 ratings)
Online Training
8.1
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
7.5
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
IntercomSugar Market
Likelihood to Recommend
Intercom
Well suited for real time customer support needs - that's where it really shines. Well suited for proactive outreach and the ability to gather feedback from customers + surveys. Less appropriate for a non techie company to set it up, basically any sort of changes in integration have to be done by an engineer.
Read full review
SugarCRM
Salesfusion is a marketing automation platform more appropriate for small companies considering the limited functionalities are limited. The email builder tool is easy to use and ideal for someone with no coding knowledge
Read full review
Pros
Intercom
  • Intercom's ability to centralize customer communication is a game-changer.
  • Intercom's automation features have saved us time and streamlined workflows.
  • Help desk for users.
  • Intercom seamlessly integrates with a variety of other tools and platforms, enhancing its functionality and making it a central part of our tech stack.
Read full review
SugarCRM
  • It was easy to navigate.
  • I liked that I could click on a link to email a potential client and that it would track/link that email back to the Salesfusion profile.
  • I liked the reporting features so that I could see exactly how many cold calls resulted in appointments, with whom I last left voicemail or need to follow up with.
Read full review
Cons
Intercom
  • The AI tools should have a make shorter option
  • The research is difficult compared to other platforms such as Zendesk where it is easier to find stuff (accounts, emails, messages...)
  • I know that you could integrate better AI tools! The chatbot is amazing, so I'm just missing more AI tools to increase productivity
Read full review
SugarCRM
  • The user interface is somewhat cumbersome and not intuitive at times.
  • Additional user education available through downloads for existing customers rather than scheduled webinars would be helpful.
  • Custom reporting is complicated to set up.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Intercom
We have been and will be continuing our journey with Intercom and nothing too concerning has happened that I have experienced or heard of that has us on the edge yet. If it ever happens it will be something along the lines of "Outgrowing" the use of need of the platform.
Read full review
SugarCRM
We've been very happy with SalesFusion since day 1. We've also created a new website during the time period that we've had SF and everything carried over great to our new website!
Read full review
Usability
Intercom
Everything is very straightforward and easy to see, explore, and use. Intercom provides walkthroughs and helps guides in case something is not apparent to the user and has their agents available to help. I always feel confident when exploring new features or making changes that I can have it accomplished due to the service they provide.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Reliability and Availability
Intercom
always there
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Performance
Intercom
works perfect
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Intercom
Intercom is the premier customer support/engagement model and it definitely has one of the top tier customer support teams as well. I don't think I have ever waited more than 5 minutes to get the information I need or get help with an issue. They are incredible and I aim to model our customer service department after them.
Read full review
SugarCRM
The support team has always been helpful, friendly, prompt and knowledgeable. They follow-up on all my tickets promptly and when needed are available for screen sharing to illustrate solutions for more complex problems. The support department at Salesfusion is one of my favorite things about the platform.
Read full review
Online Training
Intercom
Easy to know the learning path
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Intercom
The implementation was surprisingly easy but we are having to adapt from our old process to work well with Intercom.
Read full review
SugarCRM
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Intercom
We've used both Drift and Salesforce chat at Owl Labs in the past, and I didn't find them to meet our needs or customer needs the way Intercom has been able to. Intercom ranks higher for us regarding Integrations offered, customization, AI functionality, and user-friendliness. In the past, if chat visitors would click around our website, they'd have to start their chat over again from the start and lose their communication history with us. We also found that Salesforce chat did not have enough customization that we needed. One small example is that in Intercom, you can see when another teammate is looking at a chat and tag them in notes to collaborate. We didn't have access to anything like that when using Salesforce chat. Intercom has made it easy to work alongside one another to be more efficient.
Read full review
SugarCRM
I was using Net-Results and it seemed more geared for an experienced marketer who was familiar with HTML and didn't need as much training. I found the system frustrating and didn't have much success when I called in for training. I was brand new to automation marketing and needed more hand-holding than Net-Results was able to provide
Read full review
Return on Investment
Intercom
  • I like how easy it is to spot the user data needed to assist our members.
  • Love how easy it is to link articles on the chat that will help both us and the customers.
  • I like that the sales force or the tickets is already connected on the chat
Read full review
SugarCRM
  • Increased employee efficiency
  • Better customer service
  • The ability to send email campaigns from a specific user and not "from" the organization title. We use this funcationality a lot and it was not available with other software so this is huge.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Intercom Screenshots

Screenshot of AI Agent - The agent resolves 50% of support volume.Screenshot of AI Copilot - A personal AI assistant for every support agent.Screenshot of Omnichannel inbox - AI-enhanced to increase productivity.Screenshot of Tickets - Intercom tickets are designed for collaboration so complex issues are resolved faster.Screenshot of Help Center -  The help center powers AI and self-serve support.Screenshot of Workflows - Automations are built using the Intercom no code visual builder.