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freescout-help-desk

freescout-help-desk/freescout

Self-hosted help desk and shared inbox built with PHP and Laravel, consolidating email and chat channels into one ticketing system.

Open-source alternative to:ZendeskHelp Scout

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What is it?

FreeScout is a free, open source help desk and shared inbox that you run on your own server. It is written in PHP on the Laravel framework and is aimed at teams that want a Zendesk or Help Scout style support tool without sending customer data to a third-party service.

It gathers conversations from email (via SMTP, IMAP, POP3 and OAuth for Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace), and through modules such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, Slack and live chat. Agents can reply, add internal notes, forward, merge or move conversations, and see when another agent is already working on the same ticket. An AI integration module is available as a separate add-on.

The application runs on Nginx, Apache or IIS with PHP 7.4 or later and MySQL, MariaDB or PostgreSQL. It ships with a web installer and updater, a REST API, Zapier and Make integrations, and Docker images. The interface is available in 33 languages and works as a progressive web app with push notifications.

Key features

  • 01Collects email, WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, Slack and live chat in one inbox.
  • 02Shared mailboxes with unlimited agents, tickets and mailboxes.
  • 03Internal notes, forwarding, merging and moving of conversations.
  • 04Email connections via SMTP, IMAP, POP3 and OAuth for Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.
  • 05Web installer, updater, REST API and Docker image.

Use cases

  • A small company replacing a paid Zendesk or Help Scout plan with a self-hosted helpdesk.
  • A support team sharing a single info@ or sales mailbox among several agents.
  • An organization that must keep customer conversations on its own infrastructure for privacy reasons.

Quick start

  1. 1

    Read the Installation Guide on the project wiki

  2. 2

    Or use the official Docker image from the project site

Things to know

  • Self-hosting is required, and it needs PHP 7.4 to 8.x plus MySQL, MariaDB or PostgreSQL.
  • Licensed under AGPL-3.0, a copyleft license that requires sharing modifications when the software is offered over a network.

Topics

#customer-support#helpdesk#ticketing#shared-inbox#laravel#php#self-hosted#help-desk#helpdesk-ticketing#helpscout

FAQ

What is freescout?
Self-hosted help desk and shared inbox built with PHP and Laravel, consolidating email and chat channels into one ticketing system. FreeScout is a free, open source help desk and shared inbox that you run on your own server. It is written in PHP on the Laravel framework and is aimed at teams that want a Zendesk or Help Scout style support tool without sending customer data to a third-party service.
Is freescout free to use? What license does it have?
freescout is open source under the AGPL-3.0 license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is freescout still maintained?
Actively maintained. The last commit to freescout was on Oct 20, 2026.
What can I use freescout for?
A small company replacing a paid Zendesk or Help Scout plan with a self-hosted helpdesk. A support team sharing a single info@ or sales mailbox among several agents. An organization that must keep customer conversations on its own infrastructure for privacy reasons.
How do I install freescout?
Read the Installation Guide on the project wiki Or use the official Docker image from the project site
Where can I get freescout?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/freescout-help-desk/freescout

Summary generated by AI from the project's README. GitHub stats refresh daily.

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