Want to jump straight to the answer? The best remote support software for most people is Zoho Assist or TeamViewer.
Remote support software lets you provide an excellent customer service experience without the costs associated with sending technicians out on the road. Your reps can diagnose and solve problems at scale without leaving the office.
This guide will help you find the best remote support software that fits your customer service workflow.
The Top 5 Best Remote Support Software
- Zoho Assist — Best for unattended remote access
- TeamViewer – Best for efficient remote support
- BeyondTrust – Best for extra security enforcement
- AnyDesk — Best for fast, user-friendly remote desktop support
- Pulseway — Best for personal use
There are the five remote support software tools we recommend. In this guide, we dive into the pricing, tools, and standout features of each system to help you make the best decision to strengthen your business’s customer support efforts.
Zoho Assist — Best For Unattended Remote Access
Zoho Assist makes it easy for you to administer unattended remote access support from anywhere.
Once you install Zoho Assist’s unattended remote agent onto your devices, you can use its bulk deployment feature to maintain and update any device without the presence of anyone on the other end.
The diagnostic tools give you an overview of the status of hardware, software, printers, and task management on your devices. This helps with performing native system diagnostic operations when necessary.
With Zoho Assist, you can easily stay organized by grouping and sorting each computer according to any criteria. You can remotely shut down your devices, hibernate them, log off, or set them on standby.
As an added security feature, you’re able to assign permissions to particular teams or technicians to avoid confusion and keep your systems operations organized. Features like these make Zoho Assist an excellent software option for affordable unattended remote access for device support.
Zoho’s prices break down by either monthly or annual plans. Here is how the two unattended access plan breaks down when paying annually:
- Free – One technician and five unattended computers
- Standard – $10 per month for 25 unattended computers, with computer grouping, bulk deployment, and mobile apps
- Professional – $15 per month for 25 unattended computers, with session recording, diagnostic tools, and bulk deployment
All tiers, including the free plan, come with instant chat, a desktop app, clipboard sharing, user management, Zoho Desk and Zoho SalesIQ integrations, and organization roles. Each tier comes with more features.
To ensure you get all the remote tools you need, we recommend checking out the pricing page to see what each specific tier offers before making a final decision. You can also do a 15-day free trial to test it out.
TeamViewer — Best For Efficient Remote Support
You can support your workforce on the job, equip IT for PC customer support from any device, and onboard new employees easily with TeamViewer and all its remote software support tools.
Their popularity speaks for itself as they have had 2.5 billion downloads.
As a powerful and dynamic remote support system, TeamViewer offers augmented reality support, IT management, fast file transfer between remote devices, and even online meetings.
These features aid in efficient remote support, especially being able to have and record meetings across devices to ensure quality and have a record of the assistance.
TeamViewer helps you improve first call resolution rates with remote support tools that don’t require a VPN and diminish firewall accessibility issues.
If you need to show a customer where to click on their screen or walk them through configuring their computers or routers, you can do so once you send a TeamViewer quick support link that gives you access to their device instantly.
They make it easy to manage security with the ability to create groups, assign permissions, and set the appropriate policies. Their extensive cross-platform compatibility makes it easy to connect from PC to PC, mobile to mobile, PC to mobile, or mobile to PC.
Their prices are straightforward, and they breakdown into three tiers:
- Remote Access Lite – $24.90 per user per month
- Remote Access Pro – $29.90 per user per month
- Tensor Access – Custom pricing
Each tier offers features that include:
- Remote access and control of computers
- Secure unattended access
- Remote printing for Mac and Windows regardless of printer type
- File sharing
Once you get into how many managed devices are permissible for each tier, it starts to differ. You can request a free 14-day trial or speak to the sales team on the TeamViewer website.
BeyondTrust — Best For Extra Security Enforcement
If extra security features are what you’re looking for, BeyondTrust ensures every step of your remote support workflow is secure by enabling the right level of access for any given device.
This means highly secure access to compatible systems like Windows, Linux, Mac, iOS, and Android. BeyondTrust offers you powerful tools for effective remote support, whether you want to administer unattended access to any device or help customers fix technical issues.
It provides plenty of integrations with password tools to ensure granular team and permissions management, so every step of the remote support cycle is accounted for and logged. This can be useful for reference in the event of compliance issues and auditing.
Their real-time reporting tools allow you to monitor IT support KPIs and security issues. Because of their innate ability to handle access point protection and enforced security features, BeyondTrust is the optimal solution for technical support that deals with sensible data.
You can try BeyondTrust before you commit with a free trial. To learn the full scope of their prices, contact their sales team.
AnyDesk — Best For Fast, User-Friendly Remote Desktop Support
App developers and software businesses can highly benefit from a robust remote support system that prioritizes speed without forgoing quality with desktop support software like AnyDesk. Users rave about the user-friendly interface and management screen.
AnyDesk makes it easy for IT professionals onsite or anywhere else in the world to connect to any computer remotely and quickly. This enables you to fix customer support issues from one operating location at scale.
For instance, if you need to access your computer on the go, AnyDesk allows you to do it once you set up a secure password. Its banking-standard TLS 1.2 technology ensures your computer is protected from unauthorized access.
AnyDesk also uses RSA 2048 asymmetric key exchange encryption to make sure every connection is verified and secure.
To use AnyDesk, you’ll have to download their software. But at just 3 MB in size, it’s designed for lightweight and convenience. As if that wasn’t enough, AnyDesk is compatible with the works, including Windows, Linux, Mac OS, free BSD, iOS, and Android.
Here’s how their pricing tiers break down:
- Free – Three devices
- Solo – $14.90 a month (up to 100 devices)
- Standard – $29.90 a month (up to 500 devices)
- Advanced – $79.90 a month (up to 1,000 devices)
- Ultimate – Custom pricing (up to 2,000 devices)
Each tier offers the basics, which include:
- Remote printing
- File transfer
- On-screen whiteboard
- Auto disconnect
From there, each tier starts getting a bit more personalized with access to additional features.
Pulseway — Best For Personal Use
If you’re looking for remote support software best for personal use, look no further than Pulseway.
With Pulseway, you can capitalize on device control with tools that enable you to run windows updates, quit processes, or even hibernate your machine from your smartphone.
Not only that, you can schedule IT-related tasks on a recurring basis. With this feature, you can save time, as maintenance tasks you once had to do manually to fulfill your remote support needs will automatically be done in the background.
Pulseway’s price calculator offers simple and transparent pricing based on the number of devices and any additional security features. You can also try a free trial before committing to a paid plan.
How to Find The Best Remote Support Software For You
The first step is identifying what industry your business operates in. This helps narrow down your search by getting specific about the non-negotiable remote support tools you’ll need for your niche.
This can mean features like unattended access, screen sharing, text chat, or even remote training tools for onboarding new technicians.
Here are a few key factors to consider. Use this list for choosing reliable software with the most supportive customer experience at a distance.
Type of Remote Access
When you’re administering remote support, you can usually do so in one of two ways:
- Attended
- Unattended
Attended support is support fixing a customers’ technical issue in real-time. With the right remote support software, you can easily connect to their device and help them troubleshoot a problem within minutes.
This doesn’t require any software preinstallation and can be done at a moment’s notice.
Unattended remote support requires preinstallation of software. A designated IT technician can tap a device from one access point to troubleshoot issues, install updates, or do routine maintenance without anyone needing to be present on the other end.
This works well for in-house routine device maintenance. These features should be a deciding factor in the type of remote support software you need for your support team to operate successfully.
Cross-Platform Compatibility
Your remote support software should be compatible with a wide array of systems. This means functionality with the most popular ones, including Windows, Linux, Mac, and Android devices.
The more compatible your software is with different software, browsers, and devices, the more versatile and robust your support representatives can be. That means saving time and money in the long run while boosting customer support productivity.
Reach and Scale
As your business scales, you’ll need remote support software that can grow along with you. For example, features like collaborative tools that enable your IT technicians to work together can come in handy.
Onboarding features like augmented reality training offered by software like TeamViewer can ensure your in-house technicians are readily equipped for the job. Unattended support features can streamline your routine device updates.
Security
A monolithic customer concern when administering remote support is security. Understandably, customers might want reassurance that the remote support software you’re employing is safe.
Check prospective software to see if it offers any extra security features whether you’re using cloud-based software or go the self-hosted route. This can also provide your customers with extra peace of mind as you access their devices from afar.
The Top Remote Support Software in Summary
Zoho Assist and TeamViewer are the best remote support solutions on the market today. They’re powerful, and easy for your support techs and customers alike.
As you’re evaluating different options in this category, make sure you select a tool that fits within your existing support workflow. If you’re on the fence, we recommend signing up for some free trials to compare different tools.