The pitch is compelling. You only pay when AI successfully resolves a customer conversation. No resolution, no charge. It sounds like the ultimate alignment between vendor and customer. You pay for value delivered.
Except it is not alignment. It is a trap.
How Per-Resolution Pricing Works in Practice
Here is how it works in practice. Intercom charges $0.99 per AI resolution. Zendesk charges $1.50 to $2.00. Help Scout charges $0.75. These fees sit on top of your existing per-seat subscription. They are additive costs, not replacements.
Now do the math. A SaaS company with 2,000 customer conversations per month, where AI handles 75% of them, faces:
- Intercom: 1,500 resolutions x $0.99 = $1,485/month in AI fees alone
- Zendesk: 1,500 resolutions x $1.50 = $2,250/month in AI fees alone
- Help Scout: 1,500 resolutions x $0.75 = $1,125/month in AI fees alone
These numbers are on top of your seat costs, your add-ons, and your base subscription.
The Trap: Operational Excellence Is Penalized
Here is the trap: the better your AI performs, the more it costs. Improve your knowledge base, and AI resolves more conversations. You pay more. Grow your customer base, and conversation volume increases. You pay more. Launch a new feature that generates questions, and volume spikes. You pay more.
Per-resolution pricing creates a world where operational excellence is penalized. The companies that invest in clear documentation, intuitive products, and well-trained AI models are rewarded with higher bills.
The "Resolution" Question Nobody Wants to Ask
There is also the question nobody wants to ask: what qualifies as a "resolution"? Intercom users have publicly debated this on community forums. Customers who abandon a chat in frustration can be logged as "resolved." AI that gives a partial or unhelpful answer can still trigger the fee. You are paying for outcomes that may not have actually occurred.
The Alternative: Flat-Rate Pricing
The alternative is almost absurdly simple: flat-rate pricing. One price. Unlimited conversations. Unlimited AI resolutions. The cost stays the same whether you handle 500 conversations or 50,000.
The question every SaaS operator should ask their support vendor: "If I double my customers next quarter, will my support bill double too?"
If the answer is yes, you are in the trap.
If you are evaluating your support costs, Corebee offers flat-rate AI support at $99/month with unlimited conversations. No per-resolution fees. See the pricing.
Ready to put this into practice? Start your free trial and see results in your first week.