Unlimited Agents vs Per-Seat Pricing: Which Saves More?

The Two Models

Per-seat: You pay $X per agent per month. Common with Zendesk, Intercom, Freshdesk, HelpScout.

Unlimited agents per workspace: You pay a flat fee for the workspace; add as many agents as you want. Common with Bublly, Front (some plans), and Chatwoot.

There's also hybrid (e.g., per-seat with a "lite agent" tier for low-utilization users).

The Breakeven Formula

Let:

• P_seat = per-seat plan price (per agent/month)
• P_unlim = unlimited plan price (per workspace/month)
• N = number of agents

Breakeven: N = P_unlim / P_seat

Example:

• Intercom Pro: $39/agent → P_seat = $39
• Bublly Starter: $49/workspace → P_unlim = $49

Breakeven: 49 / 39 = 1.3 agents

So at 2+ agents, Bublly Starter wins. At 5 agents, you'd be $195 on Intercom vs $49 on Bublly. Annual: $1,752 saved.

Run this same math on your shortlist before signing.

Which Team Should Pick Which

Team profile	Better model
Solo founder doing support themselves	Per-seat (1 seat, lowest tier)
2–10 person team, growing	Unlimited
Large enterprise, 50+ dedicated agents	Per-seat (with negotiated discount) — but check usage-tier alternatives
Engineering team where everyone "occasionally" replies	Unlimited (otherwise lite-agent seats add up)
Shared support across customer success + engineering + sales	Unlimited

The non-obvious case: enterprises with 50+ dedicated agents. Per-seat sometimes wins because volume discounts kick in. Get a quote both ways.

Hidden Costs on Both Sides

Per-seat traps:

• "Lite agent" tiers that get charged at half-price but still count toward limits
• Annual contracts locking in seats you don't need by Q4
• AI add-ons priced per-seat on top

Unlimited traps:

• Conversation volume caps that trigger upgrade prompts
• Workspace limits forcing you onto a higher tier earlier
• AI usage caps with per-resolution overage fees

Read the fine print. The advertised price isn't usually the final price.

See Bublly's transparent pricing →