ServiceNow is a SaaS solution that provides various problem-solving services that are specially tailored for the IT sector. It’s one of the top players in the ITSM market and aids organizations with incident management, service requests, customer support, and more.
Great as it may be, however, ServiceNow is far from being the only viable solution for this category. Other solutions can even surpass it in terms of help desk, service desk, and ITSM functions. Some also offer better pricing models. To show you that, here are 10 ServiceNow alternatives that you should check out.
What is ServiceNow?
ServiceNow is an IT management solution fit for small businesses as well as large enterprises. It handles all issues related to IT operations and processes. It’s a PaaS (Platform-as-a-Service) software that offers infrastructures where you can run, implement, and manage a series of applications. The platform is also capable of automating business workflows and processes.
ServiceNow centers on ITIL-best practices for supporting the IT teams of large-scale organizations. It also utilizes a modular approach which limits the access of various users to the features they only need. It’s an accessible system thanks to its availability for use in browsers and mobile apps.
The cloud-based software integrates with a plethora of business systems including SAP, SharePoint, MS Outlook, and Google Maps. However, ServiceNow is not available through fixed pricing. This means that you’ll have to contact the vendor to inquire about their pricing.
ServiceNow offers ITSM functionalities for small to large businesses. With this, it is easier to handle IT operations and automate workflows.
Drawbacks of ServiceNow
While ServiceNow is a good ITSM solution, it also sports various limitations that you might find particularly problematic. For instance, you can only implement it as a SaaS platform. Therefore, if you’re looking for perpetual licensing, it’s no dice.
The system is also pricey. Compared to other competitors including the products on this list, it’s a tad expensive. While it does provide a robust set of features, some mid-sized companies might still find it’s out of their budget range.
There are other potential issues to be observed from this software. If they are major problems for you, no worries. We’ve got a list of top-notch ServiceNow alternatives for you to check out.
ServiceNow Alternatives
1. Jira Service Desk
Jira Service Desk is an all-in-one platform that houses the functionalities of the ticketing system, service desk, and ITSM under one solution. This results in a software that offers IT teams with various ways to deliver comprehensive support to your providers, customers, and employees. Additionally, it can act as a self-service portal for clients. The system will handle their queries as a service request and send it to the most qualified personnel. It’s also ITIL-compliant.
Jira Service Desk offers three flexible pricing plans which start at $20 per agent/month. There’s a free edition of the product as well which is good for 3 agents.
2. Freshservice
Freshservice is a cloud-hosted ITSM service desk that features an end-to-end ticketing system. Its core functionalities are ITIL-ready and are helpful in change, configuration, asset, and incident management for your IT teams.
One of the most notable modules that the system has is its incident management. That’s because it allows support agents to manage all operations throughout the entire incident. This includes creating, delegating, working, and resolving. There are also different channels available for creating tickets such as phone, chat, and self-service portals.
Freshservice has native and third-party integrations within its arsenal. This includes Shopify, Google Drive, Box, OneSky, WooThemes, and Magento. The system has four monthly plans, all of which are billed annually. It starts at $29 per agent/month. There’s a free package as well.
3. BMC Helix ITSM
BMC Helix ITSM is a complete SaaS ITSM software known for its 3 C’s – Cloud, Container, and Cognitive. The system can deliver all of its services to its users through the cloud. You can even run it in any public cloud so long as you have containers. And as for the cognitive component, it refers to the system’s capabilities including AI/ML, virtual agents, and chatbots.
The chatbots and virtual agents are useful in solving level one tickets. This way, the admins can focus on the more pressing level two tickets. There’s a self-service feature as well where users can directly submit their tickets through social media, email, etc.
You can contact the BMC sales team to inquire about its pricing.
4. Ivanti Service Manager
Ivanti Service Manager is a help desk and ITSM solution that’s optimized for the cloud. With that said, however, the software can also run on your server. Furthermore, it’s completely in adherence to ITIL best processes and practices.
It has an optimized service request ticketing system for solving IT problems and incidents. There are also multiple channels available for end-users to submit their tickets at. This includes in-person, social media, phone, a self-service portal, chat, web, and email.
Ivanti Service Manager is not available through a fixed price. Therefore, you must contact the vendor to get a quotation fit for your needs.
5. SysAid
SysAid is a comprehensive, ITIL-aligned SaaS ITSM, service desk, and help desk solution. It also features tools for analyzing as well as improving the performance of your IT teams. SysAid’s main target users are large scale enterprises. However, it also works perfectly with small and mid-sized organizations.
Furthermore, the app consists of varying modules which lets you scale up or down depending on your current situation and needs. There are modules for ITIL CMDB, service request management, advance monitoring, and more.
The system comes in three different editions including Basic and Full. There’s also an A-La-Carte plan where each feature is separately priced. They’re all available by quote.
SysAid is an ITSM tool, help desk platform, and service desk solution in one. With it, SMBs can streamline all IT-related processes and optimize workflows.
6. ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is a powerful help desk and ITSM solution. It’s a complete platform with features such as knowledgebase, a self-service portal, ticket management, and various points of contact. You can either deploy it on your server or host it on the cloud. Moreover, the system sports ITIL foundations which are helpful in IT help desk-related tasks.
Some of its most noteworthy features include asset, problem, and incident management. These features help streamline the workflows of your IT support agents. There are also multiple channels where your customers can submit their tickets such as phone and email.
ServiceDesk Plus is available in three editions – Standard, Professional, and Enterprise. You can contact the vendor to request a quote.
7. SolarWinds Service Desk
SolarWinds Service Desk is a SaaS ITSM help desk and ITSM software. The system connects the customers with the company and its employees by providing a single point of contact. This way, users can receive timely IT support. There are features for helping with incident management through ticket platform where all tickets are collected and organized. The system also helps support agents to align their IT services with ITIL processes.
There are three available editions for SolarWinds Service Desk. The cheapest is available at $20/agent/month, making it ideal for smaller teams. Meanwhile, the business edition starts at $40 per agent/month.
8. Spiceworks Help Desk
Spiceworks Help Desk is a free cloud-based IT help desk. It comes with robust features for ticket management and user request tracking, making it one of the best help desk software today. With this at your disposal, you can accept tickets, reply to queries, send messages, and resolve IT incidents from a single platform.
Furthermore, end-users can help themselves with the customizable self-service online portal. They can submit a ticket for their issues and track their progress. Your customers can even browse your FAQs and knowledgebase first and see if there’s already an available fix for their problem.
Additionally, you can host and install Spiceworks Help Desk yourself as long as you have a supported hypervisor like Virtual Box or VMWare. This way, you are in full control of all the data in your Help Desk.
The best thing about this product is that all its features, future upgrades, and support are 100% free.
9. RescueAssist
RescueAssist by LogMein is a top remote support software with an online agent console for IT support teams. It can help with your IT-related issues using remote assistant technology like audio/video conference and screen sharing. By using a plugin, you gain a remote connection that generates a connection or a URL. IT admins can then give the link to the user who needs their assistance. After connecting successfully, the IT admins can monitor all incidents, generate notifications, prioritize tickets, etc.
RescueAssist has monthly and annual plans which begin at $55 per agent/month if you pay yearly. If you plan to pay monthly, the plan starts at $69 per agent/month.
10. Cherwell ITSM
Cherwell ITSM is a customizable IT service management solution that can automate and streamline your service desk workflows. It complies with a wide variety of ITIL processes that help improve the environment of IT teams in your organization. The system can also be deployed through an on-premise or cloud-hosted environment.
Moreover, Cherwell ITSM’s incident and request management features connect every service request into the system. This way, the requests and issues submitted by end-users are on the same page where IT support agents fix them. This method significantly decreases the chance of your support agents missing some tickets.
Cherwell ITSM is only available by quote. You can contact the vendor to request one.
Cherwell ITSM is built for professionals who want flexible and fully customizable tools for their IT efforts. With this, you get access to a slew of robust service desk tools that you can configure according to your process.
Try these ITSM Software First
The thing about IT service management software is that it’s pretty hard to gauge the extent of their efficiency by theory alone. You’ll be dealing with issues in real-time that might turn into something completely unexpected. That’s why it’s important to first try the ITSM software before fully investing in one. Thankfully, most of the ServiceNow alternatives mentioned here offer either free trial or free plan. Be sure to take advantage of that.