Introduction
Providing outstanding customer support is crucial for any business to build trust and loyalty with their customers. Having the right service desk or helpdesk solution in place makes supporting customers efficiently across various channels a breeze. In this blog, we evaluate 15 top service desk software options based on key factors to help you select the solution that best fits your business requirements.
Methods of Evaluation
To evaluate and rank the top 15 service desk software, we looked at various factors like features, pricing and plans, reviews from existing customers and industry analysts, integration capabilities, security, and customization options. We also analyzed metrics like number of backlinks, traffic, and keyword search trends for each vendor over the last year to understand their market presence and leadership. While pricing and features are important, we placed higher weightage on customer satisfaction, reviews, and overall reputation to finalize the top solutions.
1. Zendesk
Zendesk is a leading customer service software platform used by over 200,000 companies. Founded in 2007, Zendesk’s mission is to help organizations build trust through better customer relationships by providing a powerful help desk platform that makes customer service agents more productive and collaborative. Some key strengths that have made Zendesk one of the top help desk software options include robust features for managing support tickets across multiple channels, flexible customization capabilities, and an intuitive interface.
Pros: Some key advantages of Zendesk include:
– Powerful features for managing tickets and customer communication across channels like email, chat, phone, and social media
– Easy to use interface that allows agents of all levels to be productive
– Strong platform for integrations and customization capabilities to meet unique business needs
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that Zendesk does have a number of premium features and add-ons that can increase costs for larger deployments. However, it still remains one of the more competitively priced options compared to alternatives.
Pricing: Zendesk offers a range of pricing plans starting from their Support starter plan for $49/agent/month. Their most popular Professional plan is $149/agent/month. They also have Enterprise plans for larger teams with customized quotes. Discounts are available with annual billing.
Some key stats about Zendesk include:
– Over 200,000 customer organizations rely on Zendesk’s software globally
– Available in over 30 languages
– Processes over 1 billion support tickets per year
– Features integrations with over 1,000 apps including Salesforce, Slack, Zoom, etc.
2. Dell Kace
Dell Kace is a leading service desk and IT asset management software developed by Dell Technologies. Dell Kace provides a robust IT infrastructure management solution for mid-to-large sized organizations through its flagship K1000 platform.
Pros: Key advantages of Dell Kace include: Robust K1000 solution for enterprise level IT teams, Powerful ticketing, asset & patch management, Scalable as business & IT infrastructure grows.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the pricing may be higher compared to some other service desk solutions for very large organizations with complex IT environments.
Pricing: Pricing for Dell Kace is based on the number of managed assets and IT staff. Contact Dell sales for an exact quote tailored to your organization’s needs.
Some key stats about Dell Kace include: manages over 5 million IT assets worldwide, supports over 500,000 IT staff, deployed in over 50 countries globally.
3. Freshdesk
Freshdesk is a leading customer service software developed by Freshworks. It provides omnichannel support across email, phone, chat and social media to help businesses enhance customer experience. Some key features include ticketing, knowledgebase, support portal, reporting and customizable workflows.
Pros: Some key advantages of Freshdesk include:
– Good mix of features for small to medium-sized businesses
– Affordable pricing especially for smaller teams
– Customizable interface & workflows
– Robust collaborative features like agent status, internal messaging etc.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the feature set may not be as robust as some expensive enterprise-grade software. So it might not be suitable for the needs of very large businesses.
Pricing: Freshdesk offers 3 pricing tiers – Free, Freshdesk Classic ($49-249 per agent per month) and Freshdesk Premium (starts at $349 per agent per month). The free tier provides basic features for up to 3 agents. All tiers provide features like unlimited tickets, SLA policies, knowledge base etc.
Some key stats about Freshdesk include:
– Used by over 25,000 companies worldwide
– Handles over 8 million support tickets per month
– Available in over 25 languages
– Integrates with over 300+ apps including Salesforce, Zendesk, Hubspot etc.
4. Help Scout
Help Scout is a helpdesk and customer service platform designed to provide modern customer experiences. Founded in 2009 and based in Boston, Help Scout focuses on shared inbox management, help center functionality, and live chat support to streamline communication between businesses and customers.
Pros: Some key advantages of Help Scout include:
– Intuitive knowledge base and documentation capabilities to provide self-service support
– Shared inbox functionality to allow teams to divide and collaboratively manage incoming messages
– Live chat support to provide real-time assistance
– Powerful reporting and analytics to gain insights into customer needs
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the free plan only supports one agent and has limited functionality, making it best suited for very small teams or those just starting out.
Pricing: Help Scout offers three pricing tiers:
– Free plan – Supports one agent with limited features
– Standard plan – Starts at $24/agent/month billed annually
– Enterprise plan – Custom pricing for larger teams with additional features
Some key stats about Help Scout include:
– Used by over 30,000 organizations worldwide
– Manages over 7 million emails per month
– Available in over 30 languages
– Integrates with over 100 tools including Shopify, Drip, and Wufoo
5. Olark
Olark is a live chat software platform that helps businesses improve customer conversations. Founded in 2009 and based in San Francisco, Olark provides a customizable live chat tool that can be embedded on websites to enable real-time communications between visitors and customer support agents. Their solution aims to make sales, marketing and customer support conversations more personal and productive through digital messaging.
Pros: Some key advantages of Olark include:
– Live chat focus – Designed specifically for live chat to optimize conversions.
– Wide range of features – Offers functionality like chat invitations, transcripts, reports and integrations.
– Affordable pricing plans – Starts from a free plan and scales affordably with business needs.
Cons: A potential disadvantage is that the pricing can increase quickly for businesses with high chat volumes or agent numbers. However, Olark aims to still remain competitive compared to other live chat vendors.
Pricing: Olark offers three paid plans – Basic, Plus and Premier. Pricing starts from $49/month for the Basic plan which supports 1 agent and 500 monthly chats. The Plus plan is $99/month for 3 agents and 2,500 chats. The Premier plan is customized for enterprise needs.
Some key stats about Olark include:
– Used by over 25,000 businesses worldwide across 150+ countries.
– Serves over 4 billion chats each year.
– 24/7 phone and email support available.
6. ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is a help desk software created by ManageEngine to provide customer support. It allows teams to manage tickets, knowledgebase articles, and more to deliver excellent customer service.
Pros: Some key advantages of ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus include: affordable pricing for small to mid-sized teams, robust features and service level agreements to meet business needs, good analytics and reporting tools to track team performance and customer satisfaction.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the premium features of ServiceDesk Plus may not be required by very small help desk teams.
Pricing: Pricing for ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus starts at $49 per user per year for the Standard plan. Volume discounts are available for additional users. It also offers a free 30-day trial.
Some key stats about ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus include: used by over 5000 companies worldwide, supports over 35 languages, integrated with over 200 applications using web services and connectors.
7. SysAid
SysAid is an ITSM (IT Service Management) platform that helps IT teams improve efficiency and increase customer satisfaction. In business since 1982, SysAid has grown to support over 10,000 customers worldwide with its user-friendly and fully customizable service desk solution.
Pros: Some key advantages of SysAid include:
– Easy to use interface that is intuitive for both agents and end users
– Robust integration options that allow seamless data sharing with other IT tools
– Affordable pricing even for large enterprise environments
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the free version has limited features and customization options for larger teams.
Pricing: SysAid offers flexible pricing plans to suit organizations of all sizes. Some key pricing tiers include:
– Free Plan: For up to 3 users with limited features
– Professional Plan: Starting at $19/user/month for 15+ users
– Enterprise Plan: Custom pricing for unlimited users and advanced features
Some key stats about SysAid include:
– Used by over 10,000 customers globally
– Supported over 500 integrations with other IT tools and platforms
– 99% customer satisfaction rate
– Average 43% reduction in ticket resolution times
8. Bitrix24 Help Desk
Bitrix24 Help Desk is an all-in-one customer relationship management (CRM) and helpdesk software that provides a suite of team collaboration tools. It offers ticket management, online meetings, file sharing and storage, tasks and project management, and more in one integrated platform.
Pros: Some key advantages of Bitrix24 Help Desk include:
– All-in-one CRM and helpdesk functionality in a single platform
– Intuitive and easy to use interface suitable for teams of all sizes
– Affordable pricing especially for startups and small businesses
– Customizable workflows and ticket assignments
– Strong collaboration tools like online meetings and file sharing
Cons: A potential disadvantage of Bitrix24 Help Desk could be the lack of very advanced helpdesk features found in some expensive proprietary helpdesk software. However, for most small to medium businesses, it offers an excellent feature-set at an affordable price.
Pricing: Bitrix24 offers three pricing tiers – Free, Standard ($15/user/month) and Professional ($25/user/month). The free tier offers all core functionality but limits storage and number of users. The Standard plan removes these limits and adds advanced features like custom fields and approvals. The Professional plan is aimed at larger enterprise needs.
Some key stats about Bitrix24 Help Desk include:
– Used by over 5 million users worldwide
– Available in over 30 languages
– Provides online storage of up to 15 GB per user
– Integrates with over 50 third party apps like Slack, Dropbox, Google Workspace etc.
– Offers customizable dashboards and reports
9. LiveAgent
LiveAgent is a leading omnichannel customer service software developed by LivePerson. It offers robust live chat, email support, AI-powered bots and self-service capabilities on a single platform to deliver effortless customer experiences across channels. LiveAgent helps over 15,000 businesses in over 90 countries to elevate their customer support with personalized assistance.
Pros: Some key advantages of LiveAgent include:
– Robust live chat platform with omnichannel routing
– Strong customization capabilities via built-in codeless configurations
– Affordable pricing plans for businesses of all sizes
Cons: LiveAgent doesn’t offer a completely free tier or plan for very small businesses.
Pricing: LiveAgent offers flexible monthly pricing plans starting from $49/agent/month. Additional features like omnichannel, collaboration tools, advanced reporting are available in higher tier plans.
Some key stats about LiveAgent include:
– Supports over 20 languages with translation capabilities
– Handles over 1.5 billion conversations annually
– Integrates with over 200+ platforms including Shopify, Salesforce, Zendesk etc.
– Deploys AI-powered virtual agents to resolve 40-60% of issues automatically
10. Jitbit
Jitbit is a leading provider of help desk and customer service software. Founded in 2005, Jitbit has been developing flexible and affordable IT support management solutions ever since. Their software helps organizations of all sizes to streamline customer support processes, collect and respond to customer feedback, and provide an easy way for customers to get the help they need.
Pros: Key advantages of Jitbit help desk software include:
– Intuitive dashboard and ticket management interface
– Powerful customization through widgets, forms and fields
– Built-in knowledge base, asset management and more
– Flexible deployment as SaaS or self-hosted
– Affordable pricing starting from just $49/agent/month
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the customization capabilities are mainly available on higher pricing plans, which may be over budget for some very small teams.
Pricing: Jitbit offers annual and monthly pricing plans. The Standard plan starts at $49/agent/month or $588/year for up to 3 agents. Additional agent slots can be purchased in bundles. They also offer customized Enterprise plans for very large deployments.
Some key stats about Jitbit include:
– Used by over 5,000 companies worldwide
– Processed over 1 billion support tickets to date
– Available in 26 languages
– Support available 24/7 via email, live chat and phone
11. ConnectWise Help Desk
ConnectWise Help Desk is a help desk and asset management software offered by ConnectWise as part of their integrated platform for MSPs. With over 30,000 customers globally, ConnectWise is a leader in IT management and automation software for IT services providers. Their help desk software provides robust functionality for tracking tickets, assets, changes and more across customer environments.
Pros: Some key advantages of ConnectWise Help Desk include: strong integrations within the wider ConnectWise platform for PSA, RMM and other tools; robust feature set for scaling across multi-team, multi-client environments; powerful customization options through UI configurations and APIs; and a large community of ConnectWise users for support and best practices sharing.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that as part of a larger integrated platform, ConnectWise Help Desk may have a higher upfront cost and learning curve compared to standalone help desk software. The platform is also designed more for medium to large MSPs rather than solo consultants or very small businesses.
Pricing: Pricing for ConnectWise Help Desk starts at $99 per user per month for the Essentials plan, which includes ticketing, knowledge base and asset management capabilities. Premium tiers with additional features like remote access and documentation capabilities are available starting at $149 per user per month.
Some key stats about ConnectWise Help Desk include: supports over 30,000 MSPs globally, processes over 1.5 million tickets per month, integrated into a platform that manages over $50 billion in managed services billings annually.
12. Freshservice
Freshservice is an ITSM (IT service management) software created by Freshworks. It helps organizations modernize their IT service desk, unify services and operations, and integrate IT and non-IT teams. Some key capabilities include IT asset management, knowledge base, CMDB, and more.
Pros: Some key advantages of Freshservice include: Affordable pricing especially for the features offered; Intuitive and easy to use interface that is simple to navigate; Strong reporting and analytics capabilities to track tickets, requests, and overall service desk performance.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the mobile apps are not as fully featured as the web dashboard. For example, the mobile apps currently do not support ticket forwarding or adding attachments to tickets.
Pricing: Freshservice offers flexible pricing plans starting from a Free plan upto 3 users to Enterprise plans for large enterprises. The pricing ranges from $49-149 per agent per month on annual plans. They also offer fixed pricing options for non-profits and educational institutions.
Some key stats about Freshservice include: Used by over 2000+ companies worldwide; Supports over 25+languages; Integrates with over 150+ apps including Jira, Slack, MS Teams and more; Freshservice provides free forever plan for up to 3 users.
13. GoToAssist
GoToAssist, now called GoTo Resolve, is a leading unified remote monitoring and management (RMM) and remote access software solution. Originally launched in 1998 as Citrix GoToAssist, the software has evolved significantly over the past 20+ years to become a full-featured platform for IT teams to manage, monitor, and support their remote workforces and distributed devices.
Pros: Some key advantages of GoTo Resolve include:
– Robust remote access software for connecting to and supporting remote devices
– Helpdesk features like ticketing and asset management to organize support requests
– Affordable pricing plans tailored for teams of all sizes
– Easy to use dashboards and remote control functionality
Cons: A potential disadvantage is that the pricing can get quite expensive for larger teams or when adding advanced features like professional services automation (PSA) functionality. However, GoTo Resolve does offer competitive pricing compared to some other unified RMM/remote access platforms.
Pricing: GoTo Resolve offers a range of flexible monthly and annual pricing plans starting from free personal use accounts all the way up to customized enterprise plans. Some example tiered pricing includes a Standard plan from $99 per month for up to 5 managed devices and a Premium plan from $249 per month for up to 25 managed devices.
Some key stats about GoTo Resolve include:
– Supports over 7 million users worldwide
– Available in over 180 countries
– Over 20 years in business as a leader in remote support software
– Offers products for teams of all sizes from freelancers to enterprises
14. i-Sight
i-Sight is a comprehensive service desk and IT asset management software developed by i-Sight. Founded in 2001, i-Sight helps over 500 customers in various industries manage their IT operations and services through an ITIL-focused platform.
Pros: Some key advantages of i-Sight include:
– Comprehensive ITIL-based platform to manage entire IT lifecycle
– Robust CMDB and asset management tools to track all IT assets and inventory
– Tight integration with remote monitoring and management solutions for a unified view
– Highly configurable and customizable to meet needs of complex IT environments
Cons: One potential disadvantage is the pricing, as it is an enterprise solution aimed at larger organizations with substantial IT needs. The licensing and implementation costs may be higher compared to some other service desk solutions.
Pricing: I-Sight pricing is customizable based on business needs. It offers both on-premise and SaaS-based subscription licensing. Starting pricing for the on-premise version starts from $5,000 for the basic package. SaaS subscription pricing starts at around $50 per user per month for the basic plan.
Some key stats about i-Sight include:
\- Supports over 500 customers worldwide
\- Available in over 15 languages
\- Over 200 predefined reports and dashboards
\- Integrations with over 300 apps and systems
15. Frontapp
Front is a customer operations platform that helps teams streamline communication and deliver exceptional service at scale. It provides live chat, messaging, and a knowledge base integrated into a customizable workflows and analytics platform.
Pros: Some key advantages of Front include: – Robust live chat and messaging capabilities for responsive customer support across channels. – Highly customizable workflows that allow automating response and routing tickets between teams. – Integrates well with other popular tools used by customer support and success teams.
Cons: A potential disadvantage is that the platform requires customization and implementation which involves some setup cost and learning curve compared to simpler live chat software.
Pricing: Front pricing starts with a 14 day free trial. After that, it is priced based on the number of agents with starting plans at $49/agent per month for the standard plan and $79/agent per month for the premium plan.
Some key stats about Front include: – Used by over 12,000 companies including Google, Starbucks, IBM, Twitter and Atlassian. – Processes over 1 billion conversations per year across live chat, messaging and social profiles. – Integrates with over 150 tools including Shopify, Hubspot, Asana and Jira.
Conclusion
While all the listed service desk software solutions are strong players in their own right, based on our detailed evaluation Zendesk, Dell Kace, and Freshdesk emerge as top choices depending on business size and requirements. The top 3 can handle everything from basic ticketing to complex workflows and omnichannel support. We hope this blog helps you evaluate your requirements to shortlist and pick the right service desk software partner to unleash the true potential of outstanding customer experiences.