The Best Software Solutions For Cobrowsing (Updated For 2023)

A brief introduction to cobrowsing

We've covered what cobrowsing is before, but as a quick refresher: 

Cobrowsing (which stands for collaborative browsing) refers to a video conferencing feature that allows two or more people to browse the same web content while on a call together.

In contrast to screen sharing, cobrowsing involves streaming code as opposed to pixels, which means a couple of things: 

• It is much less data-intensive to stream code, which means that cobrowsing is much more lightweight to implement and use on web apps.
• Because you're streaming code, all the people on a cobrowsing call can interact with web elements.
• That means they can click on hyperlinks, navigate and submit forms together.
• Because it is constrained to one specific browser window, cobrowsing is much safer to use than remote access.

Cobrowsing is ultimately designed to yield a host of benefits for your company, including a personalized experience for each user, which is in contrast to a lot of current customer support solutions that rely heavily on automation.

This sort of personalization has been shown to work exceptionally well for customer retention. In fact, recent studies have found that businesses utilizing cobrowsing, and other visual engagement apps and tools, have seen an 83% increase in year-on-year revenue growth.

Cobrowsing in action

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Just to set the scene: you're a support agent and a user writes in with a support request on your support software.

You review the request and quickly realize that it involves fairly complicated troubleshooting.

You begin a series of back-and-forth messages with the user, but it isn't going well. After trying to explain over and over again that the account settings page they're looking for can be accessed by clicking on the gear icon at the top right of the homepage, you think to yourself that there has to be a better way.

And there is!

If you had Fullview's integration for your support software, you would be able to get full context into a support ticket in seconds and could then start a cobrowsing call with a user to solve the issue twice as fast!

You could quickly and easily: 

• Review that user's latest sessions  
• Look at the console information panel to see what was happening under the hood on the user's side
• Escalate to a cobrowsing call if the issue was too complex to solve over chat
• Gain control of the user's browser window and click on the gear icon to get to the settings page yourself
• Solve the problem quickly and efficiently from there

Fullview seamlessly integrates with Zendesk, Intercom, Salesforce and other support software. You can learn more about those on our integrations page.

We've also detailed several other examples of cobrowsing in this article.

Benefits of cobrowsing software

Cobrowsing offers a number of benefits when implemented for customer support and customer success. These include:

• Improved customer satisfaction
• Increased sales
• Greater collaboration
• Seamless integrations to level up your support tech stack

Improved customer satisfaction

One of the primary benefits of cobrowsing software is improved customer satisfaction. By using collaborative browsing software, customer service representatives can quickly help customers navigate through a web app and resolve issues. This improves the overall customer experience and leads to higher satisfaction rates.

Increased sales

Another benefit of cobrowsing software is increased upsells and cross-sells. By using cobrowsing, customer service representatives can guide customers through the buying process, making recommendations and answering questions along the way. This can result in higher conversion rates and increased revenue for businesses.

Greater collaboration

Cobrowsing software also allows for greater collaboration between team members. Cobrowsing tools enable multiple agents and SMEs to work together in real-time to solve complex problems and provide better support to customers. This results in faster issue resolution and higher productivity rates.

Integration with other tools

Many cobrowsing tools — like Fullview — integrate with other tools, such as helpdesk software like Intercom, Zendesk and Salesforce. This can also improve the effectiveness of your customer support team. By integrating cobrowsing software with other tools, customer service representatives can access important customer data and provide personalized assistance. This leads to higher customer retention rates and increased loyalty.

How to choose the right cobrowsing software

With more cobrowsing vendors on the market than ever before, how do you choose the best one for you company? 

We'll give you an overview using a cobrowsing industry landscape matrix. Then, we'll take a detailed look at some of the best cobrowsing apps today. We've covered the best options across a wide range of budgets, highlighting their features and limitations along the way. We’ve also indicated what tools suit which use cases the best.

Cobrowsing industry landscape

Cobrowsing technology has been around for a while, but in the last couple of years, there has been an explosion of vendors in the market, so we thought we'd put together an industry landscape matrix to make the picture a little clearer.

As you can see, we've broken this landscape down into four different quadrants: 

• Customer support
• Sales & retail
• Banking and insurance
• Small teams

In each quadrant, we've listed up to two different platforms after evaluating them for performance and relevance. All these platforms are explored in more detail in the sections below.

• We believe Fullview comes on out on top in the customer support category because of its ease-of-use; robust integrations with other platforms like Intercom, Zendesk and Salesforce; its full suite of products including session replays and console logs; and its competitive pricing plans.
• Surfly wins the sales and retail category because of its e-signing capabilities.
• Cohere is the only solution listed for small teams, but don't discount it too quickly! It is a handy tool for small companies looking for a no-frills cobrowsing solution, even if its relative dearth of eatures makes it unsuitable for more advanced use cases.
• Glia comes out on top for banking and insurance because of its comprehensive data security policies and multichannel capabilities.

The best cobrowsing software tools in 2023

We've evaluated some of the most well-known cobrowsing solutions on the market to bring you a list of the top ones. We've broken things down by features, pros, cons, pricing and customer reviews to give you a comprehensive overview of the cobrowsing landscape.

The best cobrowsing tools on the market in 2023 are: 

• Fullview
• Upscope
• Cobrowse
• Cohere
• Surfly
• Glia

An end-to-end solution for support and product teams: Fullview

Fullview features

• Cobrowsing
• Session replays
• Console information, including user journey, network and device information 
• Annotation tools
• In-call chat function
• Automatic data blurring
• Customizable privacy and blurring options for even more control
• 100% GDPR compliant with all data stored in the EU

Fullview pros

• End-to-end solution for support and product teams 
• Fully GDPR compliant
• All data stored within the EU
• Sensitive data is automatically blurred out during cobrowsing calls
• Additional customization for unmatched data privacy
• Better, faster cobrowsing with rrWeb
• Complete overview of user interactions with cobrowsing and session replays
• Eliminates siloes between customer-facing and product teams
• No downloads or link sharing involved
• One of the only solutions that automatically pulls user data into an agent’s Fullview dashboard with a simple API integration
• Easy user lookup, with offline, online and idle status tags
• See console information like user journey, network and device info in-call for easier debugging
• Robust integrations with platforms like Intercom, Zendesk, Salesforce and more!

Fullview breakdown

Fullview is a cobrowsing application that streamlines your customer support process, eliminates communication barriers between customer-facing and product teams, and delivers actionable solutions to your end-users.

With Fullview's intuitive interface, you can easily spot everything you need in one place. The annotation tools allow you to illustrate specific scenarios, and the in-call chat feature lets you communicate with your customers in real-time.

Fullview's recent switch to rrWeb has made cobrowsing sessions even smoother. You can now start a session immediately within the tab your app is open on, which protects user privacy and simplifies the process. Fullview also eliminates the need for users to download anything, making it a hassle-free solution for both you and your customers. All a support agent has to do is lookup the user they want to start a cobrowsing call with, see if they are idle, offline or online, and then start a cobrowsing call with them directly in their app.

Fullview is one of the most secure cobrowsing tools available, fully GDPR compliant, and stores all data within the EU. With customizable privacy controls and data-blurring capabilities, Fullview ensures that your customers' sensitive information is always protected.

In addition to cobrowsing, Fullview offers session replays, console logs, and in-app calls, making it a comprehensive end-to-end platform for customer support and product teams.

Fullview offers both free and premium plans, which makes it a cost effective solution no matter your budget.

Overall, Fullview is an excellent solution for any organization looking to streamline their customer support process and deliver top-notch service to their end-users.

Fullview pricing

Fullview Live Free

4 cobrowsing calls per seat per month and 1 integration is included in our free plan.

Fullview Live Pro | €39/seat/month

Unlimited usage and integration with existing tools and unlimited cobrowsing calls. 14 day free trial.

Fullview Live Enterprise | Custom Pricing

We also offer bespoke plans for enterprise clients tailored specifically to their needs, so get in touch.

Fullview reviews

Fullview has a 4.7-star rating on G2.

"Fullview helped us navigate through replays of the customers using our product, and this only helped us discover and rectify hundreds of bugs and glitches in the product. We even found few issues which otherwise had passed our internal test suites and QA."

Upscope features

• Cobrowsing 
• User management 
• Reporting

Upscope pros

• Cobrowsing solution for sales teams 
• Reporting and audit tools 
• Personal Upscope call link 

Upscope cons

• No free plan
• Slightly on the expensive side

Upscope breakdown 

Upscope is an interactive cobrowsing solution that can help increase your closing rates and improve your sales funnel. It is designed to be used by even the least tech-savvy prospects, allowing you to control the reins on all sales calls. 

Get access to a prospects screen with one click and show them exactly what your product can do for them, which is great if you notice them getting distracted during calls and want to make remote selling more engaging and interactive. 

There are no downloads involved, so you have a good chance of convincing your prospects to hop onto a cobrowsing session. All it takes is a simple request, and you're securely connected to their browser.

Your prospects will be able to see your cursor and the steps you take within your product. To elaborate on what you're doing, you have access to annotation tools to draw and highlight on screen.

Upscope Pricing

Upscope | $30/Month | 14 Day free trial

Advanced user management, live chat support, cobrowse on third-party websites, see and draw on the user's screen, and more.

Enterprise | Custom

Everything from the Upscope tier, along with their REST API, agent and admin training, a dedicated account manager, a 24/7 emergency line, technical support, and more.

Upscope Reviews

Upscope has a 4.7-star rating on G2.

Customers love the integration of Upscope with Intercom. However, some customers have expressed concern over certain points of the integration, such as team permissions being hard to set up.

Cobrowse features

• Cobrowsing

Cobrowse pros

• Dedicated cobrowsing solution for smaller teams 
• Also supports mobile cobrowsing
• Supports self hosting

Cobrowse cons

• Relatively limited features set

Cobrowse breakdown

If you're looking for a no-frills cobrowsing solution, Cobrowse.io is a solid choice — especially if your company is small and isn’t looking for a tool with session replays and console logs just yet. With this app, you'll gain access to your customer or prospect's screen without needing to install any plugins or extensions.

Controlling a screen with Cobrowse.io is easy to initiate, requiring only a simple authorization step to request remote control. You can then begin guiding your users and speaking with them on the call. Text-based communication is also an option for more flexibility.

Cobrowse pricing

Hosted Plans

$18/ month per agent (licence cannot be shared) – Websites Only

$36/month per agent (licence cannot be shared) – All Platforms

Enterprise

Starting at $9500 + licence pricing per year 

Cobrowse Reviews

Cobrowse has a 5-star rating on G2, although it only has one review.

Customers have noted how much they love that they can control how much or how little their agents have access to. However, points of concern with this product are that it is a bit costly and the setup process can be complicated.

Cohere features

• AI-powered automation tools 
• Cobrowsing 
• Analytics

Cohere pros

• AI-powered tools to automate certain support interactions 

Cohere cons

• No user session replays
• No transparent pricing information

Cohere breakdown

Cobrowsing with Cohere is pretty simple and relatively easy to navigate. You can get things started in as little as one click and guide users over phone or chat.

In addition to cobrowsing, Cohere includes customer experience-focused features that will help with automating manual tasks during your customer interactions using AI. It’s best if your company is not focused heavily on creating personalized customer support experiences and wants to automate your CS workflows.  

Cohere pricing

No pricing information is listed on their website.

Cohere reviews

Cohere has an average rating of 4.8-star on G2.

Customers love how Cohere helps them efficiently and personally support customers. However, some reviewers did express dissatisfaction with "disorganization internally as we had to follow up and ask for pricing several times, and it's super expensive compared to other solutions out there."

Surfly features

• Cobrowsing
• E-signing 

Surfly pros

• Supports e-signing
• No implementation needed 
• Can start cobrowsing session via unique link

Surfly cons

• No transparent pricing plans
• No auto session replays
• Limited console information

Surfly breakdown

Surfly supports e-signatures, making it ideal for cobrowsing situations in which documents need to be reviewed and finalized. The app has a smooth navigation experience.

Surfly does not require any changes to your tech stack in order to be utilized. Instead, you can use it from the moment you sign up, eliminating any need for implementation or other requirements. A simple URL is all it takes, and sharing it with someone will give them the option to join you in a cobrowsing session. However, that this approach has the drawback of not pulling user data into your dashboard, meaning you cannot look users up to watch recordings on their activity in your app or see what their online status is, unlike other solutions such as Fullview.

Surfly allows you to record the events of a meeting, giving you a complete overview of what happened, including audit logs, signed documents, and a record of actions performed. 

Surfly pricing

Upon checking recently to update this article, we found that they no longer list transparent pricing information on their website.

Surfly reviews

Surfly has a 4.8-star rating on G2.

Customers have noted that they are thoroughly impressed with the level of assistance Surfly provides and the the ease of integration. However, some users noted that "since it's a web-based session management platform, slight connectivity issues can impose significant session timeout" and that the "user interface is not very friendly."

Glia features

• Cobrowsing
• AI chatbots 
• Messaging

Glia pros

• Best for video banking

Glia cons

• No session replays
• No console logs
• No transparent pricing plans

Glia breakdown

Glia is a cobrowsing solution especially suited to video banking. As more and more banking interactions move online, it is imperative for banks and other financial institutions to think of better ways in which to collaborate with clients virtually. Cobrowsing can provide context, clarity and meaningful experiences when implemented as one part of a bank’s larger digital banking strategy, which is what Glia helps with. 

Glia pricing

Glia doesn't have a standardized set of tiers for users to purchase, but it offers a live demo that can be accessed by contacting the company. 

Glia reviews

Glia has a 4.8-star rating on G2.

Customers have noted that "Glia has been very user-friendly for our team." and that "logging in and being able to quickly connect with our members daily over chat has helped enhance the member experience." However, customers have deducted points from the platform because "the ability to see, from a technical perspective, the quality of our calls is not available" and "there is a lack of communication on the status of feature integrations."

Crisp chat features

• Cobrowsing
• CRM abilities
• Shared inboxes
• Live chat

Crisp chat advantages

• Easy-to-use
• No software downloads or installation required
• Real-time assistance for customers

Crisp chat disadvantages

• Lack of project management activities
• Difficulty triggering the chat box for specific user behaviors

Crisp chat breakdown

Crisp is a customer communication platform that provides a range of features for marketing, sales, and customer service reps. It is designed to help businesses engage with customers efficiently.

Cobrowsing with Crisp does not require you to install or download the software. Agents can start a cobrowsing session with the customer in real-time, providing assistance as needed.

Crisp chat pricing

Crisp offers a forever-free plan with limited capabilities. Pricing for Crisp varies depending on the plan you choose but starts at $25/month per workspace.

Crisp chat reviews

Crisp has a 4.6 rating on G2.

Customers have raved that the product is clean, easy to use, and has all the necessary functionalities for support tickets. However, users have noted that "managing contacts could be better and with more features".

Cobrowsing FAQs

Here are answers to come common cobrowsing questions.

Can I cobrowse online for free?

If you're on a tight budget but still want to give cobrowsing a go, what options do you have? 

Unfortunately, not a lot of the apps listed here have forever free plans — except Fullview, which gives you access to five cobrowsing calls per support agent per month on its free plan. Crisp also have a forever free plan, though it doesn't include cobrowsing with audio and video calls.

Some cobrowsing tools listed here (like Upscope) do offer free trials.

How can I implement cobrowsing? 

Typically, as in the case of Fullview, cobrowsing is implemented through a few lines of code you need to copy and paste into the <head> tag of your web app.

The process takes no more than 15 minutes and, once installed, your users will not have to download or install anything on their end. All cobrowsing calls happen straight in your app and users just have to accept the call when an agent initiates one.

Once you've installed it, all your customers will be synced to Fullview and you can see who is online, idle or offline in your web app at a glance. You can then initiate cobrowsing calls with users who are online.

Some other cobrowsing tools on this list require no implementation and you only need to generate and share a cobrowsing link with users. The drawback of this is that you cannot see which users are online, offline or idle in your product to offer support proactively. You also cannot automatically record user sessions in your app to see bugs and other issues in context.

How is cobrowsing different from screen sharing? 

Screen sharing and cobrowsing share some similarities, in that two or more people can see the same browser window. However, unlike screen sharing, you can actually interact with the same web content in real-time with cobrowsing using multi-cursor screen control, meaning two or more people can click on hyperlinks, navigate on a web app or website, fill and submit forms, etc.

The technology behind cobrowsing and screen sharing is different: screen sharing involves streaming pixels while cobrowsing involves streaming code.

Is cobrowsing safe? 

Yes, in general, cobrowsing is very safe as it only gives other people control over one particular browser window rather than an entire system (as with remote control technology, for example). However, like anything else, it's important to choose a vendor with a robust and transparent security policy.

Wrapping things up

Cobrowsing is a great way to increase sales, provide customer support and improve user engagement by providing real-time help to your customers.

The best part is that there are many cobrowsing apps to choose from. We've outlined the main features, pricing plans, and what sets each app apart so you can make an informed decision about which one is right for your business.