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Side-by-side comparison · Sales & Customer Support

Hiver vs Salesforce Agentforce vs Sierra

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Hiver

3.9

From $25/user/mo

Salesforce Agentforce

3.3

From $500 per 100

Sierra

3.9

Free to start

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Best valueEasiest to use

Pick it if: Small and mid-sized teams who answer customers or suppliers from a shared Gmail address and want structure without leaving Gmail.

Pick it if: Mid-size and larger businesses already on Salesforce that want AI agents handling customer questions and routine sales work.

Pick it if: Large consumer brands that want an AI agent to handle a big share of their customer conversations end to end.

Overview

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
In one lineShared inbox and helpdesk that runs inside Gmail, with AI that drafts and answers replies.Salesforce's AI agents that answer customers and help sales reps inside Salesforce CRM.Builds and runs AI customer service agents for big brands, across chat, email and phone.
Pricing modelPaidPaidPaid
Starting price$25/user/mo$500 per 100See website
Free plan No Yes No
Works with Claude Code Yes Yes No

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
Overall rating3.93.33.9
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.5
2.5
3.0
FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together.
4.0
4.5
4.5
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
3.5
3.5
4.5
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
2.5
3.0
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
3.5
3.5
4.5

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
Access & platform
Free plan No Yes No
Mobile app Yes Yes–
Desktop app–––
Browser extension Yes––
API access Yes Yes–
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes Yes Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO Yes Yes Yes
Connects to other apps Yes Yes Yes
Open source or self-hosted No No No
AI abilities
Works with your files– Yes Yes
Understands images–––
Makes images No No No
Makes video No No No
Writes code No––
Runs agents or automations Yes Yes Yes
Learns your brand or style– Yes Yes
Works in many languages– Yes Yes
Capabilities score7/ 1710/ 177/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
Plans

Growth

$25/user/mo billed yearly, or $35 monthly

Small teams running one or two shared inboxes.

Salesforce Foundations

Free

Existing Salesforce customers who want to try agents.

EnterpriseOur pick

Custom

Large companies with high conversation volumes.

ProOur pick

$55/user/mo billed yearly, or $65 monthly

Support teams that need targets and connected tools.

Flex CreditsOur pick

$500 per 100,000 credits

Businesses paying per action an agent takes.

Elite

$85/user/mo billed yearly, or $95 monthly

Larger teams wanting AI quality checks and tighter security.

Conversations

$2 per conversation

Customer-facing agents where you want a simple per-chat price.

Agentforce add-ons

From $125/user/mo

Teams wanting AI help for every rep or agent seat.

Agentforce 1 editions

From $550/user/mo

Large Salesforce customers buying the full bundle.

Which plan to pickGrowth is enough for a small team that just needs a tidy shared inbox with AI help. Choose Pro if you need response-time targets, CRM or Shopify data next to each email, or the API. Voice is an add-on at $30 per seat.Start with the free Foundations tier to prove one agent works, then move to Flex Credits so you pay only for what agents actually do. Per-user add-ons and Agentforce 1 editions are for large teams that have already proven the value.There is one route: talk to Sierra's sales team. Agree clearly what counts as an outcome you pay for, and what setup and services cost, before you sign.

Key features

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
Standout features
  • Shared inbox in Gmail
  • AI agents
  • AI copilot
  • Collaboration
  • Hiver Omni
  • Ready-made agents
  • Agent builder
  • Works on your CRM data
  • Many channels
  • Hand-off to people
  • Testing and monitoring
  • Agent Studio
  • Ghostwriter
  • One agent, every channel
  • Connected to your systems
  • Insights and testing

Pros and cons

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
Pros
  • Almost no training: the team keeps working in Gmail
  • AI agents and copilot included from the cheapest plan
  • Good for non-support teams like finance and HR
  • Cheaper than Zendesk or Intercom for small teams
  • 24/7 support on every plan
  • Works directly on your Salesforce records and permissions
  • Ready-made agents for common service and sales jobs
  • Runs across chat, email, Slack and Salesforce screens
  • Enterprise security and admin controls built in
  • Agents take real actions, not just answer questions
  • Covers voice as well as chat, SMS, WhatsApp and email
  • Outcome-based pricing means you pay for results, not seats
  • Proven at very large brands
Cons
  • Gmail add-on can be slow, lose connection or log users out
  • Search and formatting are weaker than in a full helpdesk
  • Key integrations and the API only start on Pro
  • Seats sold in blocks, with a two-seat minimum
  • Confusing pricing that is hard to forecast and can climb quickly with usage
  • Setup usually needs a Salesforce admin or paid partner
  • Agents are only as good as your data and knowledge articles
  • Little reason to use it if you are not already on Salesforce
  • No public pricing; estimates put it out of reach for most small and mid-sized businesses
  • No trial or self-serve option, so you are committing to a sales process and a project
  • Few independent reviews to check claims against
  • You depend on Sierra's team for much of the build

Who each one is for

AttributeHiverSalesforce AgentforceSierra
Best for
  • Running support@ or info@ as a team
  • Assigning and tracking customer emails
  • Finance and HR shared mailboxes
  • AI-drafted email replies
  • Teams that want to stay in Gmail
  • Salesforce customers adding AI to support
  • Answering common customer questions 24/7
  • Following up and qualifying inbound leads
  • Giving reps AI help inside Salesforce
  • High-volume customer service at large brands
  • AI phone agents that take real actions
  • Returns, bookings and account changes
  • Saving cancellations and handling retention calls
You'll find it used by
  • Customer support teams
  • Finance and accounts teams
  • Operations teams
  • Logistics companies
  • Agencies
  • Customer service teams
  • Sales teams
  • Salesforce admins
  • Enterprises
  • Enterprise support teams
  • Contact centres
  • Retail brands
  • Banks and insurers
  • Telcos

Questions people ask

Which is better, Hiver, Salesforce Agentforce or Sierra?

They tie on our overall rating (Hiver 3.9/5, Salesforce Agentforce 3.3/5 and Sierra 3.9/5). Hiver is best for running support@ or info@ as a team and assigning and tracking customer emails. Salesforce Agentforce is best for salesforce customers adding AI to support and answering common customer questions 24/7. Sierra is best for high-volume customer service at large brands and AI phone agents that take real actions.

Which is cheaper, Hiver, Salesforce Agentforce or Sierra?

Hiver: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $25/user/mo. Salesforce Agentforce: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $500 per 100. Sierra: Pricing isn't published; check the vendor's site for a quote.

Which is easier to use, Hiver, Salesforce Agentforce or Sierra?

Hiver rates highest for ease of use in our scores. Small and mid-sized teams who answer customers or suppliers from a shared Gmail address and want structure without leaving Gmail.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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