KnowledgeOwl vs Zendesk Guide
The key difference
KnowledgeOwl is purpose-built knowledge base software — designed from the ground up for creating, organizing, and sharing documentation beautifully. That's everything we do, and we do it really well.
Zendesk Guide is a help center feature built into Zendesk's broader customer support suite — a great fit if you want everything under one roof. But for teams who want more flexibility, deeper customization, or a standalone knowledge base without the full suite price tag, there's another way.
Additionally, KnowledgeOwl integrates directly with Zendesk, so you don't have to choose. Keep your ticketing workflow exactly as it is, and bring your help center to a tool that was built for it.
Marybeth Alexander, KnowledgeOwl’s CEO
3 reasons companies choose
KnowledgeOwl over Zendesk Guide
1
A help center you can make your own
KnowledgeOwl gives you deep branding and customization control — colors, fonts, layout, CSS — right out of the box, without needing a developer or paying for a third-party theme. Your knowledge base can look and feel like an extension of your brand from day one.
Getting a truly custom look in Zendesk Guide requires editing HTML, CSS, and JavaScript — and when Zendesk releases product updates, those customizations can break and need manual fixes. Many teams end up hiring Zendesk partners just to get their help center looking the way they want.
2
Flexible structure that grows with you
KnowledgeOwl lets you organize your content however makes sense for your team and your readers — no predetermined hierarchy limiting how deep or flexible you can go.
Zendesk Guide uses a fixed three-level structure: categories, sections, and articles. It's fine when you're starting out, but many teams hit a ceiling as their content grows. On any plan, the structure stays the same — there's no way to work around it.
3
Pricing that fits your needs
KnowledgeOwl charges only for Authors — the people who write and edit your content. Readers, even those who need to log in, are always free and unlimited.
Zendesk Guide isn't available as a standalone product. To access it, you need a full Zendesk Suite plan starting at $55 per agent per month. Add-ons for AI, advanced analytics, and data privacy can push your real-world costs to 2–3x the base rate. If all you need is a great help center, you're paying for a lot you'll never use.
Already using Zendesk? KnowledgeOwl works with it.
You don't have to leave Zendesk behind. KnowledgeOwl has a native Zendesk app that lets your support agents search your KnowledgeOwl knowledge base and surface relevant articles directly inside Zendesk — no tab-switching required. Your ticketing workflow stays exactly as it is.
And moving your content over is easy: KnowledgeOwl's Zendesk import tool lets you bring your existing Zendesk Guide articles into KnowledgeOwl automatically, so you're not starting from scratch.
30-days trial, no credit card required
Using Confluence? You can import your articles instantly
It's world-class, really a software that's got it all as a single source of truth
"I totally love this knowledge base! It's world-class, really a software that's got it all as a single source of truth. It's robust, user-friendly, full of excellent knowledge management features that surprised me after implementation. Can customize content superbly, can integrate and has a search function that's really tops. A platform I frequently use for its top drawer capabilities."
Danny Green
features
pricing
See how KnowledgeOwl pricing compares to Zendesk
Pay per author, not per reader
KnowledgeOwl charges you only for Authors, the people who write and edit the content in your knowledge base. Readers — even those who need to login — are free (and unlimited).
Bundled pricing with a lot you may not need
Zendesk Guide isn't available on its own. The entry point is a Zendesk Suite plan that bills per agent. Add-ons for AI, advanced data privacy, and analytics can bring real-world costs way up.
30-days trial, no credit card required
Using Confluence? You can import your articles instantly
Support
See how KnowledgeOwl's support compares to Confluence
At KnowledgeOwl, great support isn’t a premium feature — it’s included.
Support quality and response times vary significantly by plan tier.
Access to a dedicated customer success manager requires an Enterprise plan.
Customization and implementation support are available, but cost extra.
30-days trial, no credit card required
Using Confluence? You can import your articles instantly
Which one should you choose?
A dedicated knowledge base that's easy to set up, brand, and maintain
Flexible content structure that doesn't box you in
Powerful search that helps readers find exactly what they need
Simple, transparent pricing that doesn't grow with your reader count
Both public and private documentation without extra complexity
Exceptional support included on every plan
A native Zendesk integration so you can keep what's working
An all-in-one customer support suite where everything lives in one platform
A help center tightly connected to Zendesk's ticketing and automation
AI-powered support features across chat, email, and voice alongside your knowledge base
An enterprise-scale support platform
What KnowledgeOwl customers say
This is what we asked our customers and hundreds of them responded. Here’s some of what they said.
30-days trial, no credit card required
Using Confluence? You can import your articles instantly
"Its got a lot going for it definitely! Besides being a user-friendly, easy-to-set up platform, its essentially built to empower users. I love its knowledge base, its capacity for self service, its insights and analytics, its ability to integrate tangibly.
I've come to also appreciate its search and branding functionality too from a Marketing perspective. If you've used Knowledgeowl, you know it all."
Lisa Rothrock, Director of Brand Strategy
"I totally love this knowledge base! It's world-class, really an App that's got it all as a single source of truth. It's robust, user-friendly, full of excellent knowledge management features that surprised me after implementation. Can customize content superbly, can integrate and has a search function that's really tops. A platform i frequently use for its top drawer capabilities."
Danny Green, Content Advisor
What an amazing Knowledge Base platform. Easy-to-set up, user-friendly, integrates superbly, has got brilliant user support team. I use it a lot. Its exceptional in understanding your business problems and solving them. Its highly customizable as well. If you know, you know.
Arthur McKinnon, Regional Managing Editor
It's intuitive and easy to understand, it works well, and is simple to get up and running. The team that built it clearly knew a lot about managing knowledge and I go to their website for recommendations and best practices. Their customer support is extremely knowledgeable and responsive.
Verified User in Higher Education
KnowledgeOwl has incredible customer service! Not only is their response time incredible, but their overall mentality towards service is what truly stands out. When I reach out to them I don't feel like my request is a ticket waiting to be worked - I know they have read my emails & are replying to me specifically (vs an auto reply) with knowledgeable responses. They make doing business so easy! (& enjoyable!)
Jessica Howard
Intuitive, smart, easy to use and the most positive, responsive, and caring Customer Support team on the planet!
Jennifer Alford
I've managed help centers on Zendesk, Help Scout, and KnowledgeOwl. KnowledgeOwl is the easiest and most comfortable to use by far. Even with my limited code knowledge, I've been able to evolve my info architecture without breaking links, add collapsing sections to break up long topics, and install custom headers to set certain articles apart.
Diane Gilleland
The user interface to create articles is very easy to use and straightforward. It is also very customizable with CSS. So we can brand it to match our style. Not to mention the customer service is top notch. They take it to the next level!
Jacquie Witte
Right out of the gate, let me say that if you are looking for an efficient, reliable, and intuitive knowledge base software, look no further! KnowledgeOwl changed the game for us when we switched to them 7 years ago, and it keeps making my job easier with their frequently released enhancements and exceptional support…
Sandi Olson
How teams are using KnowledgeOwl
Loved by 3,200+ knowledge base authors in software companies around the world
