Empower customers with the best client portal software

A client portal is the landing pad for your customers’ entire service experience. It’s a digital gateway where clients can access all the information they need during their customer journey.

With so much riding on your customer portal, you want to choose software that can provide positive external and internal customer experiences. To help make your decision easier, we put together a guide to client portals and some of the best software on the market.

• What is client portal software?

• Comparison chart of 15 best client portal software

• Overview of the 15 best customer portal software

• Client portal software benefits

• How to build a customer portal

• What should a customer portal include?

• How to choose the right customer support portal for your business

• Try client portal software for free

Client portal software—also called a customer portal—is a secure, personalized hub for customers to submit and manage their support requests, contribute to your community forum, and access up-to-date knowledge base articles.

It connects your company’s self-service functions in a single, organized place that can live on your website and/or mobile app. When integrated with other systems, a client portal also allows clients to view and change their account information. For example, customers can update their shipping address or cancel an appointment.

Your client portal software should help you build the exact customer experience you want to provide. We’ve rounded up some client portal examples for you to review below.

1. Zendesk

Zendesk offers customer portal software for small businesses, enterprises, and everyone in between. Our portal solution gives customers and agents everything they need in one place, allowing customers to find what they’re looking for at their own convenience. The client portal can help customers with tasks like:

• Creating new support requests

• Checking the status of open support requests

• Reviewing updates to their knowledge base and community contributions

• Subscribing to specific content

Our self-service portal is handy for agents, too, enabling them to update the knowledge base to keep information fresh. AI-powered article recommendations can also be shared inside the support ticket and better assist the customer. This results in quicker response times, transparent communication, and easily accessible information so businesses can build strong customer relationships.

In the Zendesk Customer Experience Trends Report, 37 percent of agents said that a lack of self-service options results in angry customers. Client portal software allows the customer to handle simple tasks and solve straightforward issues using self-service support. This reduces ticket volume so agents can focus on bigger issues and offer more meaningful service, lowering your support costs and boosting your total cost of ownership.

Features:

• Separate help centers for each of your brands

• Theme customization

• Reporting

• Single sign-on options

• Article view permissions

• Knowledge base

• Community forum

• Ticketing system

• AI-powered suggestions to improve your knowledge base health

• AI-powered bots to send automated answers via portal ticket forms, email, and more

Pricing:

• Suite Team: $55 per agent/month

• Suite Growth: $89 per agent/month

• Suite Professional: $115 per agent/month

• Suite Enterprise: Contact sales

Free trial: 14 days

2. Huddle

Huddle offers a client portal that’s designed to improve collaboration between customers and businesses through a “document-centric” experience. Its simple and secure cloud-based portal allows companies that handle highly sensitive personal information to collaborate in a safe, secure environment.

With Huddle, you can organize people, files, documents, tasks, and conversations associated with a project in a single space. Huddle updates document changes and conversation threads in real time while storing the document history. This prevents confusing situations that result from outdated documents. In this way, Huddle is both a client portal and a task management tool.

Features:

• Custom branding

• File management

• Controlled online document collaboration

• Secure file sharing

• Government-grade security

Pricing:

• Contact sales

Free trial: 30 days

3. Zoho Creator

​​Zoho Creator provides a flexible collaboration platform that anyone can use to build a variety of portals. It’s versatile enough to create portals for client help desks, customer support, project management, HR, and even order fulfillment. Additionally, you can customize your portal to fit your brand with personalized logos, colors, and visuals.

Zoho Creator is intuitive and provides a low-code platform to develop all kinds of applications, not just portals. So, you don’t need to be an expert in web development to start creating a customized customer portal for your business.

Features:

• Brand customization

• File management

• Collaboration tools

• SDKs, APIs, and widgets

• Billing

• Self-service portal

• Knowledge content management

• Email ticketing

• Discussion forums

Pricing:

• Professional: $37 per user/month

• Ultimate: $400 per month for 10 users, billed annually

Free plan: Available (1 user)

Free trial: 15 days

4. Copilot

Copilot—formerly Portal—is a “one-stop shop” customer portal software that provides modules for messaging, billing, files, e-signatures, forms, and knowledge bases. It also offers a module for embedded dashboards, allowing you to connect analytics software to your portal. It’s simple to set up and use but doesn’t include vital customer support functions like ticket routing.

Copilot’s customizable design options for online customer portals enable your business to provide a branded experience—from appearance to messaging. It’s flexible enough for you to start with a single client portal app, then connect more products and apps to the customer experience as needed.

Features:

• Custom branding

• File management

• Online document collaboration

• Secure file sharing

• Customizable forms

Pricing:

• Starter: $39 per internal user/month

• Professional: $89 per internal user/month

• Advanced: $139 per internal user/month (minimum 5 users)

Free trial: 14 days

5. HappyFox

HappyFox’s client portal software offers a wide range of 24/7 self-service options for customers, including support for ticket tracking, community forums, and knowledge bases. The community forum offers a place for customers to help each other while support experts can engage, add advice, and contribute solutions to the conversations.

HappyFox allows customization options using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to help you deliver a uniform, branded experience. In addition, you can add a support center, knowledge base, and FAQ system to a widget on the side of your webpage.

Features:

• Brand customization

• Secure file sharing

• Customer billing

• Self-service knowledge base

• Content management

• Ticket routing, categorization, and tagging

• Community forums

Pricing:

• Mighty: $39 per agent/month

• Fantastic: $59 per agent/month

• Enterprise: $79 per agent/month

• Enterprise Plus: $99 per agent/month

Free trial: 14 days

Learn more about Zendesk for HappyFox.

6. MyDocSafe

A basic program for onboarding clients and sharing files, MyDocSafe provides secure customer service portals that include document management, billing, e-forms, ID verification, and automation. Using MyDocSafe, you can share files and documents and collect customer data with forms.

MyDocSafe’s customizable workflows also enable you to automate the onboarding process. Within the customer web portal, you can create an easy-to-follow process that guides the client through the entire onboarding journey for a great first experience. You can grant permissions for specific documents (or the entire portal) so the right people have access.

Features:

• Customizable workflows

• Fully customizable portals

• Full audit trails

• Secure document management

• Data security

• Customer payments

• Self-service options

• Multi-party signing

Pricing:

• Starter: $25 per company user/month

• Small: $87 per month (3 company users + $29 per additional user)

• Business: $198 per month (6 company users + $33 per additional user)

Free trial: 7 days

7. SupportBee

In addition to its simple, intuitive ticketing system, SupportBee provides customer portal solutions for small teams. The company’s customer portal allows clients to submit new support requests and check in on past ones. Because customers have a view of their conversation history, they can reference previous problems, inquiries, and resolutions, so they can resolve any repeat issues.

SupportBee’s secure client portal software is also unique in how it handles customer logins. Rather than requiring customers to remember usernames and passwords, agents can send private links that customers can use to access the portal. This forward-thinking login method eliminates the need to remember another set of credentials and adds an extra layer of security.

Features:

• Portal customization

• Domain mapping

• Shareable private portal links

• Secure file sharing

• Billing

• Self-service knowledge base

• Ticket management

Pricing:

• Startup: $15 per user/month

• Enterprise: $20 per user/month

Free trial: 14 days

8. Clinked

Designed for many industries, Clinked offers a secure portal for clients that helps consolidate communication between customers and internal teams. Although Clinked doesn’t natively offer ticket tracking, customers can open service requests in the portal—and it’s fully customizable.

Clinked is a good fit if you’re looking for a portal that’s focused on project collaboration. With real-time chat and document collaboration tools, it’s a great option for centralized task management.

Features:

• Branded portals

• Real-time file sharing

• Document collaboration tools

• Secure document management

• Live chat

• Mobile app

Pricing:

• Lite: $99 per month

• Standard: $249 per month

• Premium: $495 per month

• Enterprise: $995 per month

Free trial: 10 days

9. AzureDesk

AzureDesk is a robust help desk software solution that includes self-service customer portals, ticket routing, knowledge base management, and email-to-ticket conversion. Once you register with AzureDesk, you’ll have an admin portal where you can add FAQs, knowledge base articles, and more to your customer support portal.

Using an AzureDesk portal, your customers can easily search your knowledge base and look up and make new requests. It’s customizable, too, so you can give your online client portal the look and feel of your brand.

Features:

• Domain mapping

• Branding customization

• FAQs

• API

• Secure file management

• Payments

• Knowledge base management

• Ticket routing

• Community forums

Pricing:

• Plus: $50 per agent/month

Free trial: 14 days

10. Kahootz

The online client portal from Kahootz is a centralized, secure communication hub that allows customers to manage their account and collaborate with businesses. This intuitive, powerful customer portal software provides a high level of security for sensitive data and offers transparency to customers about their account activity.

Kahootz’s client portal software includes forums, document management, surveys, content creation, and much more. Businesses can also upload rich media content, like videos and blog articles, to help customers with common questions. The discussion forum allows you to connect with customers and provide solutions or helpful insights.

Features:

• Portal customization

• Customer surveys

• Forums

• Secure data sharing and file management

• Content management

• Document collaboration tools

• Billing

Pricing:

• Starter: £5.5 per user/month

• Professional: £11.55 per user/month

• Enterprise: £10.97 per user/month

Free trial: 30 days

11. Onehub

Onehub is a virtual data room that improves how businesses interact with clients and facilitates collaboration between coworkers. With secure online data sharing, teams can exchange even the most sensitive information and set access permissions by labeling users with different roles (such as administrator, creator, and viewer).

You can also customize the client portal to suit your company’s branding. With cloud storage capabilities and drag-and-drop uploading, moving information around is a fast and easy process that can be done securely from anywhere. Bank-level encryption—along with role-based permissions, session timeouts, and two-factor authentication—keeps data safe.

Features:

• Communication management

• Employment activity monitoring

• Secure file viewer

• Version control

• Discussions/forums

• Offline access

• Document classification

• Full-text search

Pricing:

• Standard: $15 per user/month

• Advanced: $25 per user/month

• Data Room Edition: $300 per month

• Unlimited Edition: $500 per month

Free trial: 14 days

12. Nimbus Portals

Nimbus Portals enables customers and agents to keep information organized and to collaborate in one place. It allows you to create a trustworthy branded experience with customizable, built-in chats that help improve communication. It also collects data and processes feedback so you can gather valuable insights to offer more personalized support.

There are several integration options, too, so you can embed productivity tools into your client portal solutions. These options include Nimbus Clipper for organization, Nimbus Clarity for optimizing communication, and Nimbus Note for creating databases, lists, and more. You can invite customers into your portal, send videos or screenshots, create guest accounts, and set workplace access in just a few clicks. There are also free customer portal options with limited features.

Features:

• Access controls and permissions

• Document management

• Meeting notes

• Mobile access

• Real-time editing

• To-do list

• Version control

• Notes management

Pricing:

• Free: $0 per user/month

• Pro: $8 per user/month

• Business: $10 per user/month

Free plan: Available (1–20 users)

Free trial: 14 days

13. Accelo

Accelo is a cloud-based client work management platform with a high-quality client portal feature. Encourage customer self-sufficiency by inviting clients to your portal and granting them online access to all their relevant data, including account information, requests, quotes, invoices, retainers, and more.

With 24/7, on-demand access to key information, clients and other stakeholders can track projects in real-time, submit requests, and review documents. Clients can also view and manage their own documents and support services at their own convenience.

Features:

• Sign-off module

• Portal permissions

• Customization

• Online invoicing

• 24/7 client portal access

Pricing:

• Plus: $30 per product/user/month

• Premium: $49 per product/user/month

Free trial: 14 days

14. MangoApps

MangoApps is a digital hub for communication and collaboration. The customer service portal helps ensure employees can always access the information they need to see projects through to completion and provide top-notch support to clients. With enterprise-level security, MangoApps promises that even the most sensitive information can make the rounds without risk.

Customize the widget-based dashboard of your client web portal to match your brand’s look and feel. Thanks to a modern interface modeled after the most-used social media platforms, users can interact through emojis, comments, and groups. Plus, by using unified reporting and analytics, you can track and monitor activity to get full visibility into how people use the platform.

Features:

• Learning management system

• Interactive forms and tracker spreadsheets

• Custom workflows

• Surveys and polls

• Employee directory

Pricing:

• Contact sales

Free trial: 14 days

Learn more about the MangoApps integration with Zendesk.

15. Moxo

Moxo is a client interaction hub that helps you streamline how you communicate and share information with your customers. From securing purchase orders to opening accounts, Moxo facilitates seamless interactions that boost customer satisfaction.

Embed your client portal directly into your website, or configure your private label app for mobile devices. Integrated workflow capabilities include secure messaging, virtual data rooms, video meetings, digital signatures, and more. Moxo also uses Webhooks to ensure your client portal integrates with your existing tech stack.

Features:

• Customizable activity dashboard

• Reporting/analytics

• Template management

• Client-centric workflows

• Spotlight and visual annotations

Pricing:

• Starter: $100 per month (up to 10 users)

• Business: $480 per month (up to 40 users)

• Advanced: Custom packages available

Free trial: Not available

While email has long been an effective outreach tool, it doesn’t provide all the support options customers now prefer. They want quick access to things like status updates on open customer service tickets, and they want the ability to create a new ticket or update account information. Customers needing this information are forced to reach out to the company, ultimately filling the support queue with unnecessary tickets and taking account executives and customer service representatives away from more complex issues.

Many companies now use client portals to put the power in customers’ hands. With a customer portal, customers can log in anytime they want and get access to things they need without having to contact the company.

Let’s break down some key benefits of client portal solutions.

Provide 24/7, on-demand support

Customers expect high-quality customer service the moment they request it—especially if they’re experiencing an issue with your product or service. In our CX Trends Report, 64 percent of consumers said they would spend more with businesses that allow them to resolve issues on the channel they’re already using.

With a well-implemented customer portal, you save customers from waiting on one of your agents to respond. Instead, you can offer them on-demand information so they can find what they need when they need it, including after-hours or on the weekends when agents aren’t available.

Example: A customer lost their password after hours and doesn't know how to recover it. When they submit a ticket via the ticket form in the portal, a chatbot suggests a relevant help center article. They follow the steps to recover their password on their own, right away. No need to wait until the next day for a response.

Increase efficiency and lower costs by deflecting FAQs and simple tasks

The best customer portals empower customers to complete simple tasks on their own, like viewing ticket statuses, updating personal information, or finding help articles. These self-service options eliminate the need for the customer to reach out to an agent for help, deflecting tickets from the queue.

Deflecting these common inquiries means fewer tickets in the queue. This frees up agents to tackle more complex issues, rather than focusing on repetitive, time-consuming tasks that decrease their efficiency.

This helps lower costs in three ways:

1. Prevents staffing extra agents to help manage the bloated ticket queue

2. Reduces the risk of costly employee turnover from agent burnout

3. Provides off-hours support, saving the business from paying teams to be available around the clock

Example: A customer wants to know when they can expect their package to arrive after accidentally deleting a shipping confirmation email. When they log in to their customer portal, they can quickly find their purchases and tracking numbers—no need to contact customer support.

Enhance collaboration options with rich media content

The best client portals create a comprehensive online support experience. Rather than relying on email or messaging data limits, with a customer portal, you can collaborate with more valuable media types.

Uploading streaming videos or albums containing high-resolution photos allow for a more interactive experience. Plus, you can centralize other customer engagements like ticket tracking, billing, messaging, and more.

Example: A customer receives a meal-kit delivery and notices one of the food containers is damaged. On the client portal, they submit a ticket reporting the issue and upload multiple videos and pictures that detail the damage.

Create a more personalized service experience

A client portal allows businesses to deliver more personalized support experiences. Personalized content streamlines the experience, allowing customers to find what they’re looking for or resolve an issue faster. With personalized messaging and content, you can:

• Provide help center articles relevant to a specific product within your brand

• Allow customers to like, follow, and comment on help center posts

• Display the customer’s support request history and their statuses

Since you’re already collecting customer data about their needs, preferences, and buying habits, you can use these insights to make suggestions or recommendations for other products they might be interested in.

Example: A customer has a history of buying the latest smartphone on its release date. When the customer logs in to their customer portal, they’re greeted with help center articles about tips and tricks for the product and how-to videos to help resolve common issues other customers may be experiencing.

Building customer service portals requires having the right software. Many customer service software platforms include features for building a customer portal, and each one will have its own process for creating one that fits your brand.

Your first step will be to customize your customer portal with your company’s logo and branding style. Whichever software program you decide to use will walk you through the steps of configuring and customizing your portal. But keep it simple—overloading your customer portal with images and branding materials will overwhelm your customers. First and foremost, your client portal should be easy to search and navigate.

Once you’ve customized your client portal and enabled ticket submission and live chat options, the final step will be to integrate the portal with your website so it’s easy to find. You can do this by placing a link or a widget on your website that directs customers to the portal.

There are several high-level features you’ll find in most modern customer portals. Here are six common features to look for and evaluate.

Theme customization

Your client portal software should let you map the portal to your domain and control the design of the portal itself so it aligns with the look and feel of your company’s branding. Customizable portal software enables you to offer self-service options without sacrificing your brand aesthetic.

Theme customization allows you to use your brand colors and insert your logo to make it clear to clients that your company manages the portal. Plus, it creates a more cohesive customer experience.

Reporting and analytics

Reporting and analytics provide valuable insights from inside the client portal to help you understand your customers better. The best reporting solution should integrate data from across all channels, including data gathered from your client portal, so you can:

• Learn how customers interact with your brand

• Understand customer pain points surrounding your products and services

• Identify areas of improvement

• Recognize what customers like about your brand

• Monitor team performance

Built-in reporting can provide a customer feedback loop that identifies gaps in your content based on what customers are searching for. This allows you to continuously update your content to better serve your customers.

Single sign-on options and article view permissions

Single sign-on options allow you to seamlessly—and securely—authenticate users with one set of credentials across multiple resources on your site. This authentication process gives users access to their customer portal website and permission to view restricted articles or internal documents that may contain personal data.

You can set view permissions with the following options:

• Visible to everyone: Anyone can view content, and it does not require sign-in verification to your client portal website.

• Signed-in users: Internal and external users who have an account and sign in to your help center can view content.

• Agents and admins: Only internal staff members can view content.

• Custom user segment: Custom user segments determine the viewing access based on tags, organizations, or groups.

Knowledge base and community forum

Client portals for customer support should guide users to the information they need without much effort. Self-service options like knowledge bases and community forums can be baked into your portal and provide a wealth of information for customers. These options reduce support ticket volume and help agents manage support requests better.

A knowledge base lets your team of experts continuously update information for help center articles and chatbot responses. A community forum creates a collaborative space for customers and agents to connect through conversations, questions, hacks, and more.

Ticketing system

When customers can’t solve the issue with self-help options, they may need to create a ticket for your support team to handle. A ticketing system that’s connected to your client portal allows customers to:

• Track an existing ticket

• Update the status of an existing ticket

• Submit a new ticket request

AI

AI and automation options can help you resolve issues within the client portal by offering self-service options. Integrating conversational AI and chatbots with your customer portal ticket form, email, or other communication channels enable you to:

• Provide answers to FAQs

• Surface help center articles

• Suggest relevant community forums

This can help to deflect customers with common questions and reduce the number of support tickets.

Support portals vary widely—you must choose the right one for your particular needs. For example, the client portal for a B2B tech provider will differ greatly from the portal needed by an ecommerce company.

When evaluating any customer portal software, consider the following:

Your customer portal is the launchpad for your customer journey. So, your client portal software plays a key role in delivering memorable customer experiences throughout that journey. A scalable, easy-to-use customer service software solution can help you build and manage your portal, so you consistently provide stellar support.