Unlike many "open-core" alternatives that lock essential features behind enterprise plans, Libredesk is fully open-source and will always stay that way.
Last year I posted v0.1.0 here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43158166
A year later, it's omni-channel. Alongside email, you can drop a live chat widget (beta) onto your website and handle both channels in the same agent UI. The chat widget, CSAT pages, and email templates are all customizable, and self-hosters can swap out the bundled HTML/JS/CSS assets for full white-labeling.
Genuinely, if you're paying per-agent SaaS pricing for a helpdesk today, I really think Libredesk can replace it. It covers most of what mainstream helpdesks do, and more lands with each release. I'd love to hear what would stop you from switching.
I originally built Libredesk for what we needed at work, we were on osTicket and wanted something cleaner. These days I work on Libredesk in evenings and weekends alongside a full-time job, so response times on issues aren't instant, but I read every one. Docs are a bit behind the code too, but catching up.
Agent dashboard demo: https://demo.libredesk.io/
Live chat widget demo: https://libredesk.io/ (bottom-right corner)