HelpLayerCompare / Ferndesk
HelpLayer vs Ferndesk
Ferndesk is the closest to HelpLayer: an AI help center whose agent checks articles against your code and drafts fixes. HelpLayer does that too, and makes a narrated video and a click-through demo from every article.
Free plan · no card needed
CHOOSE FERNDESK IF
You want every claim in your articles checked against your code and live app, one-click migration that keeps your URLs, and five editors included.
CHOOSE HELPLAYER IF
You want narrated video tutorials and click-through demos made from your articles and kept current, a capture tool for how-tos, and a free plan to start.
FEATURE BY FEATURE
Where they differ
| Feature | HelpLayer | Ferndesk |
|---|---|---|
| Help center with AI answers | Free plan, then $29 a month flat (3 team members). AI answers included. | $149 a month flat (Pro, billed monthly; $1,490 a year), 5 editors, 1,000 AI conversations |
| Free plan | Yes: 1 help center, 25 articles | No: 7-day trial |
| Keeps articles up to date | Watches GitHub and web pages, writes the update, you approve it | Drafts updates from merged pull requests and re-checks published articles |
| Narrated video tutorials | Made from the article's steps, made again when they change | Upload a video file |
| Click-through demos | Made from the article's steps | No |
| Capturing how-tos | Chrome extension and Mac app: a screenshot on every click | No click capture; its Chrome extension is for working with its agent |
| AI answers in your app | Widget, included | Widget, included |
| AI assistants can read it | llms.txt and an MCP server, built in | llms.txt and MCP servers |
| Moving your articles | From a CSV file | One-click from Intercom, Zendesk, Help Scout, GitBook and others, keeping URLs |
WHAT IT COSTS
A team of 3, answering 1,000 questions a month
Ferndesk Pro
$149 a month
flat, billed monthly ($1,490 a year)5 editors included1,000 AI conversations included
Companies under $1M a year in revenue can apply for $75 a month for the first year.
HelpLayer Pro
$29 a month
3 team members, 3 help centersAI answers includedvideos and demos included
Free plan to start: 1 help center, 25 articles.
Ferndesk prices from ferndesk.com/pricing, October 5, 2026. Extra AI conversations are $25 per 500.
WHERE FERNDESK IS AHEAD
- Checks every claim in published articles against your code and live app, on a schedule.
- Its agent takes and re-takes screenshots of your app (beta).
- One-click migration from Intercom, Zendesk, Help Scout and GitBook that keeps your URLs.
- Five editors included, an API reference, and private docs with sign-in.
WHERE HELPLAYER IS AHEAD
- Makes a narrated video and a click-through demo from every article, and makes them again when it changes.
- A Chrome extension and a Mac app that turn a click-through into a guide.
- A free plan, and paid plans from $29 a month.
- Nine help center designs to choose from.
QUESTIONS
HelpLayer vs Ferndesk: questions
What's the difference between HelpLayer and Ferndesk?
Both keep a help center up to date from your code and ask you to approve the changes. HelpLayer also makes a narrated video and a click-through demo from each article and keeps them current, and has a capture tool for how-tos. Ferndesk checks each claim against your live app and includes five editors.
Which is cheaper?
HelpLayer has a free plan, and Pro is $29 a month for 3 team members. Ferndesk Pro is $149 a month ($1,490 a year) with 5 editors and 1,000 AI conversations; companies under $1M in revenue can apply for $75 a month for the first year.
How does HelpLayer keep articles up to date?
You connect an article to its sources: a GitHub repository or a web page, like your pricing page or changelog. When they change, HelpLayer works out which articles the change touches, writes the update to the text and the video, and waits for your approval.
More comparisons
Try it next to Ferndesk.
Free plan. Connect your code and see the first articles in minutes.
Free plan · no card needed
Sources, checked October 5, 2026: Ferndesk pricing · Plans · PR drafts · Verification · Screenshots · Chrome extension · Video uploads. Ferndesk is a trademark of its owner. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.