Moving from Zendesk

Migrating from Zendesk to Crisp? You're in the right place.

For many support teams, Zendesk is not just a tool. It is the system that organizes queues, statuses, assignments, and the overall way work gets distributed. It is also widely used by ecommerce teams to manage customer requests, order-related issues, and post-purchase support at scale.

That is why moving away from it can feel risky.

If you're considering Crisp as an alternative, the real question is not whether support will stay structured. It is whether that structure can become simpler, more flexible, and easier to manage day to day.

This guide is here to make that transition easier. It will show you how Crisp organizes support differently, how your current Zendesk habits translate, and how to migrate step by step without losing control of your workflow.

You'll find:

You keep the structure your team depends on, but in a more flexible, conversation-first system.

Moving from tickets to conversations

Zendesk is built around tickets. Each request becomes a separate unit that needs to be assigned, tracked, and resolved.

At Crisp, we centralize every conversation into one unique thread. We think it's much easier for agents to look at previous conversations and search for the right information without the hassle to look for the right conversation.

If you are used to ticket-based workflows, this means Crisp does not offer classic ticket merging or ticket linking capabilities. Instead, conversations are kept in a continuous thread per session, and you can use session continuity to restore an existing conversation for a known user across visits and devices. Session merging is planned for a future update.

Crisp has an open platform policy

As you know, Zendesk only offers a small part of it's own API. At Crisp, you can enjoy an exhaustive API that contains every route that we use to serve Crisp to our customers. Therefore, you'll be able to build powerful integrations and go even further thanks to our JS SDK for front-end interactions.

The full relationship with the customer stays visible in one place.

Multi-thread when you need a fresh context

At the same time, Crisp is not limited to one endless conversation.

With multi-thread, new requests can start in a separate thread when needed. This is especially useful when a new topic appears, or when you want to avoid mixing unrelated issues in the same context. It also improves how AI works in practice.

By starting from a cleaner context, Hugo, our AI Agent, can respond with more precision and less confusion, instead of relying on a long and noisy conversation history.

Ticketing still exists, but it is not the foundation

Crisp does include a ticketing system, but it is not the core of how support is structured.

In Zendesk, ticketing is the foundation. In Crisp, ticketing is an additional layer built on top of conversations.

This gives you more flexibility:

you keep a structured workflow when needed
you preserve context across time
you avoid fragmenting the customer relationship into disconnected cases

In short: you are not losing structure, you are reorganizing it around conversations.

How Zendesk maps to Crisp

The goal here is simple: help you quickly understand how your current Zendesk habits translate inside Crisp.

If you're coming from Zendesk, the structure will still feel familiar. What changes is not the need for organization, but the way that organization is built inside the product.

The five elements below are the ones that matter most when moving from a ticket-first workflow to a conversation-first one.

1. Conversation (vs Ticket)

Zendesk is built around tickets. In Crisp, the main unit is the conversation.

Instead of creating isolated tickets by default, support is organized around the contact and their conversation history.

How to use the Crisp Inbox for the first time

2. Inboxes (vs Views)

Zendesk agents often work through Views, which organize tickets based on filters and conditions.

In Crisp, this logic is handled through inboxes, sub-inboxes, and filters. Conversations can be routed into different inboxes such as your main inbox, the automated inbox, or inboxes assigned to specific teams.

The structure is different, but the goal is the same: make sure the right conversations reach the right people, without requiring agents to constantly move across ticket queues.

How can I create sub-inboxes in my Crisp Workspace?

How does Routing / Assign work?

3. Message shortcuts (vs Macros)

Zendesk macros are called message shortcuts in Crisp.

They serve the same purpose: helping your team send consistent, ready-to-use replies without rewriting the same answers every time.

Shortcuts can also be imported directly into Crisp, which makes the transition easier for teams with an existing macro library.

How can I use Shortcut replies / Canned messages?

Keyboard shortcuts for your Crisp Inbox

4. Conversation context / User data (vs Ticket fields / Custom fields)

Zendesk often relies on ticket fields and custom fields to give agents the context they need while handling a request.

In Crisp, this context is displayed directly in the right sidebar, where agents can access conversation details, user data, segments, and other contextual information in one place.

This makes it easier to understand who the customer is, what the conversation is about, and what extra context is available, without relying on a separate ticket object.

What is a segment and how can it help your team?

5. AI Agent (vs Zendesk AI agent)

Zendesk combines AI agents with a ticket-first workflow, where automation is often tied to ticket rules, statuses, fields, and predefined business logic.

In Crisp, the AI agent is managed directly from the inbox environment through Hugo and related workflows. Instead of acting around a ticket, Hugo is connected to the conversation flow itself.

This means AI can be used to answer, route, and escalate conversations before they are handled manually, while staying inside the same support environment.

Navigating the Hugo interface and features

How AI fits into this new support model

In Crisp, Hugo handles conversations before they reach your team. It is integrated directly into the support workflow and works at the conversation level.

AI acts at the beginning of the conversation

When a user sends a message, Hugo can analyze the request and generate a response using the available context.

Depending on how your workspace is configured, it can answer the conversation, route it, or escalate it to a human operator.

This means the AI acts at the entry point of support, before the conversation is handled manually.

Getting started with Hugo AI Agent

Conversations can first go through the Automated inbox

In many setups, incoming conversations are first processed inside the Automated inbox. This is the space where Hugo handles requests automatically.

If the request requires human input, the conversation is then routed to the appropriate inbox so your team can take over.

How Hugo handles conversations automatically?

AI and human agents stay in the same workflow

When a conversation is escalated, it remains inside the same inbox environment.

Operators can review what Hugo did, access the conversation context, and continue the exchange from there.

This keeps AI handling and human handling inside the same support flow.

How to configure Escalation with Hugo AI Agent

How to start Workflows situationally with Hugo AI routing

In Crisp, AI is part of the conversation workflow from the moment a message is received.

Migration: step by step

Once you understand how Crisp works, the next step is simple: migrating your existing setup.

The goal is not to rebuild everything from scratch, but to move your data and recreate your workflow progressively, while keeping the context your team relies on.

Here is the recommended order to ensure a smooth transition.

Step 1: Import your contacts

Start by importing your users so you can immediately recognize who you're talking to.

You can do this in two ways:

Option A — CSV import (recommended)

Export your contacts from Zendesk as a .csv file
Go to Contacts → Import in Crisp
Upload your file and map the fields
Validate the import

This is the fastest way to get started.

How to import my user data?

Option B — REST API (advanced)

If you want to automate or sync data continuously, you can use the Crisp REST API.

Typical use cases:

sync users from your database
update user properties in real time
push events or custom data

How to use the Crisp REST API

Step 2: Reconnect your business and customer data

If your Zendesk setup relies on external data (CRM, ecommerce platform, or internal tools), you should reconnect that context inside Crisp.

This is especially important for ecommerce teams, where support depends on order data, customer lifecycle, and purchase history.

Depending on your setup, this can include:

ecommerce platforms (Shopify, Magento, etc.)
CRM or backend systems
custom customer properties

This allows your team to keep the same level of context when handling conversations.

Step 3: Import your ticket and conversation history

If you need to keep historical support data, you can import your Zendesk tickets and conversations into Crisp.

This is particularly useful if your team relies on past interactions, long-term customer relationships, or order-related conversations.

This helps you:

preserve customer history
keep context across interactions
avoid losing visibility during the transition

Crisp provides an import script for this migration flow.

Once imported, conversations remain attached to the relevant contact profile inside your workspace.

Note: imported history remains visible to your team in the Crisp inbox, but users will not automatically see past imported exchanges in the chatbox.

Conversation import script

Step 4: Import your knowledge base

Your Zendesk help center can be migrated in just a few steps.

Go to Knowledge Base settings
Select Import from another provider
Enter your existing Help Center URL
Review and validate the import

Crisp will automatically recreate your structure and flag any content that needs attention.

How to import your Knowledge Base

Step 5: Import your reply templates

If your team relies on Zendesk macros, the Crisp equivalent is message shortcuts.

These allow you to:

reuse predefined replies
standardize communication
speed up repetitive conversations

You can either recreate your most important templates or import them directly.

How to import / export message shortcuts

Step 6: Set up your inbox and AI agent

Once your data is in place, configure how conversations will be handled.

Start with:

setting up your chatbox widget
enabling your knowledge base
configuring Hugo (AI Agent)
defining basic routing rules

If your workflow depends on customer or ecommerce data, make sure this context is available before configuring your AI Agent. This ensures Hugo can rely on the same information your team uses when answering customers.

This step is where your new workflow takes shape.

Getting started with Crisp

Getting started with Hugo AI Agent

Step 7: Test your workflow

Before going live, simulate real conversations.

Check that:

Hugo answers correctly
conversations are routed as expected
shortcuts are working
your team is comfortable with the inbox

This ensures a smooth transition without impacting your users.

Recommendation

You don’t need to migrate everything at once.

Most teams start with:

contacts
business or ecommerce data
knowledge base
basic AI setup

Then progressively refine:

automation
routing logic
advanced workflows

This approach allows you to go live quickly, while improving your setup over time.

Ready to make the switch?

Switching from Zendesk to Crisp doesn’t mean giving up the structure your team depends on.

Your support can remain organized, contextual, and operationally clear, but in a model built around conversations instead of isolated tickets.

That shift keeps your support structured, while making it more contextual, more flexible, and easier to operate over time.

If you’re considering the switch, the best way to understand the difference is to try it with your own setup.

→ Compare Crisp vs Zendesk

→ Ask ChatGPT

→ Ask Claude

→ Ask Perplexity

Need help with your migration?

Our team is here to guide you. Don’t hesitate to reach out directly from your workspace or through our website.

Updated on: 07/04/2026

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