If you are searching for a Freshworks alternative, it's likely because you're seeking an IT Service Management (ITSM) solution that offers comparable or even superior features while being more budget-friendly.
While Freshworks' Freshservice is a well-known and widely used service desk software, it may not be the perfect fit for every organization due to its cost, complexity, or customization limitations. Fortunately, the market offers several alternatives, each with its unique strengths and capabilities.
In this blog post, we’ll list highlights for five popular Freshservice competitors: their standout features, user opinions, pricing structure, and more.
TL;DR
If you’re comparing Freshservice alternatives, InvGate Service Management stands out for its balance of usability, deployment flexibility, and affordability, while platforms like ServiceNow and Jira Service Management target larger or more specialized needs. Zendesk and ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus are also solid options depending on your organization’s priorities.
What is Freshworks?
Freshworks is a software company that provides a suite of cloud-based tools designed to help businesses manage customer engagement, IT services, and employee workflows. Among its offerings are Freshdesk, focused on customer support, and Freshservice, an Service Management (ITSM) platform. While both share the Freshworks brand and aim to simplify workflows, they serve different purposes: Freshdesk is centered on handling customer tickets and support channels, whereas Freshservice is tailored for IT teams managing incidents, changes, and assets.
In this article, when we refer to Freshworks as an ITSM solution, we are specifically talking about Freshservice.
Freshworks’ Freshservice is a known for its user-friendly interface and highly regarded by Gartner with a rating of 4.5 out of 5. Currently, it only supports cloud-based deployment.
Disadvantages of Freshworks' Freshservice
While Freshservice is a widely used ITSM tool, it has some limitations that organizations should consider:
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Limited advanced customization: Some complex workflows or integrations may require workarounds compared to more flexible platforms like ServiceNow or Jira Service Management.
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Pricing for larger teams: Costs can increase significantly as the number of agents grows, particularly for advanced features.
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Reporting constraints: While the tool offers dashboards and reports, larger enterprises sometimes find them less granular than needed for deep analytics.
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Integration limitations: Although Freshservice supports common integrations, organizations with specialized IT ecosystems may need additional development to connect all tools.
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Cloud-only deployment: Primarily a cloud solution, which may be a limitation for teams that require on-premise ITSM.
Top 5 Freshservice alternatives
If you’re exploring Freshservice alternatives, several ITSM tools offer similar capabilities with different strengths, deployment options, and pricing models. The following chart provides a quick overview to help you compare hosting flexibility, trial availability, and entry-level costs for each platform.
Let's see each ITSM software in detail:
1. InvGate Service Management
InvGate Service Management is a modern ITSM platform for teams that want power without complexity—or surprise add-ons. While Freshservice often pushes paid extras (AI, asset packs, orchestration, advanced analytics), InvGate ships core capabilities out-of-the-box with predictable pricing.
Why organizations choose InvGate over Freshservice
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AI included, not extra – InvGate AI Hub (article generation, response assistance, Virtual Agent) is included on Pro & Enterprise plans. Freshservice charges $29/agent/month for “Freddy Copilot.”
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Analytics for everyone – Build no-code dashboards and plug into Power BI via OLAP API. Freshservice’s lower tiers only include basic reporting; advanced analytics require moving up tiers.
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Serious automation – Drag-and-drop workflows that handle complex, parallel paths. Freshservice sells orchestration as an add-on at $250 per 1,000 transactions.
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Support that shows up – Near-shored support aligned with U.S. hours; avg. response <15 minutes. Freshservice customers frequently report slow, offshore support and unresponsive feature requests.
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Proof-of-Concept ready – We’ll help you test with your data to de-risk migrations; Freshservice rarely offers POCs.
For a deeper look at how InvGate could be a better fit for your organization, reach out to InvGate's sales specialists.
About assets / ITAM
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InvGate Asset Management is not an afterthought, it’s a core product that integrates seamlessly with InvGate Service Management. Many organizations choose to deploy them together to unify visibility across hardware, software, contracts, and cloud assets. Features like automated discovery, Smart Tags, compliance tracking, and software deployment make it a complete ITAM solution at enterprise scale.
By contrast, Jira’s Insight module, while included in Premium and Enterprise plans, lacks advanced ITAM depth. Customers often report that setup is highly manual, integrations are limited, and critical features like automated actions, Smart Tags, or deployment capabilities are missing. As a result, many Jira SM users end up relying on external asset tools to fill the gaps.
Key features
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ITIL-aligned practices; configurable self-service portal and unified catalog
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Advanced reporting & dashboards (no SQL required)
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Visual CMDB and native alignment with InvGate Asset Management (sold separately)
Pricing
Agent-based pricing for cloud or on-prem deployments, with AI and analytics included on qualifying plans—avoiding the add-on creep common with Freshservice.
InvGate Service Management user reviews and ratings
InvGate Service Management consistently earns praise from users for its usability, fast time-to-value, and responsive support. Customers highlight how quickly teams can get up and running compared to more complex ITSM tools, and how intuitive the platform is for both agents and end users.
On top of strong user reviews, InvGate was recently recognized as a 2025 Customers’ Choice in the Gartner® Peer Insights™ Voice of the Customer report for IT Service Management Platforms — a distinction based entirely on verified customer feedback. This recognition reflects InvGate’s top-tier ratings in product capabilities, ease of implementation, and customer experience.
With high ratings across review sites and industry validation from Gartner, InvGate stands out as a solution that combines enterprise-grade features with the simplicity and support IT teams actually need.
- Gartner Peer Reviews score: 4.8
- G2 score: 4.6/5
"The whole process from demo, to quoting, implementation, and launch has been great. We have a small team and was able to get this project complete ahead of deadline with the help of the great implementation team". IT in a Government organization
"The support team is knowledgeable and responsive. It has all the most common features you could expect from a cloud service ticketing system today, and they work well (knowledgebase, self-service portal, task assignments, approval flows, time management, reporting). The bang for the buck is excellent." IT in Non-Government organization
2. Jira Service Management
Developed by Atlassian, Jira Service Management is widely used for IT Service Management and DevOps-oriented teams. It’s known for strong integrations with Jira Software and Confluence, making it a natural choice for organizations already working within the Atlassian ecosystem.
Cloud is the primary deployment option, though Data Center (on-premise) is available for larger organizations.
Jira Service Management features
- Native integration with Jira Software and Confluence.
- Request portals for IT and business teams.
- Automation rules for incident and Change Management.
- SLA management tools.
Jira Service Management pros and cons
Pros:
- Ideal for organizations already using Atlassian products.
- Strong DevOps alignment.
- Marketplace with thousands of add-ons.
Cons:
- It can be complex to configure.
- Pricing may increase quickly with add-ons.
Jira Service Management pricing details
Pricing starts with a free tier for up to three agents. Paid plans start at around $21/agent/month, depending on the number of agents (has bulk discounts).
Jira Service Management user reviews and ratings
Users often praise its integration with the broader Atlassian suite but note the steep learning curve for customization.
- Gartner Peer Reviews score: 4.5
- G2 score: 4.2
"Jira Service Management works well to provide an integrated experience to users and technicians. It presents well as a whole package - ITSM tool, end user facing support site/resources (...) It can feel too busy visually, with too many fields and open spaces making it more challenging to focus in on the details that matter most when you are in the middle of working an incident with a user"
User review from Gartner, Service Desk Supervisor
3. ServiceNow
ServiceNow is the market’s leading enterprise ITSM platform, built primarily for very large and complex organizations. It goes far beyond service desk capabilities, offering an extensive suite that covers IT operations, workflows, and broader business process management. Highly scalable and feature-rich, ServiceNow is best suited for enterprises with global reach and complex requirements. While it is primarily delivered as a cloud solution, some hybrid deployment options are also available.
For a detailed head-to-head comparison, see our ServiceNow vs. Freshservice article
ServiceNow Features
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Full ITSM suite with extensive automation and workflow orchestration
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Service catalog and request management for enterprise-scale operations
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Robust CMDB and Asset Management modules
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Wide integration capabilities with enterprise and third-party tools
ServiceNow Pros and Cons
Pros
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Unmatched scalability for complex, global environments
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Extensive marketplace and ecosystem of apps and integrations
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Advanced analytics and reporting dashboards
Cons
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Very high total cost of ownership compared to mid-market alternatives
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Steep learning curve, requiring specialized expertise and configuration time
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Longer implementation cycles before value is realized
ServiceNow Pricing Details
ServiceNow does not publish standard pricing. In practice, costs are significantly higher than Freshservice and most other competitors, often making it viable only for large enterprises with substantial IT budgets.
For a deeper breakdown of ServiceNow’s costs, check out our in-depth ServiceNow Alternatives guide
ServiceNow user reviews and ratings
Reviews consistently recognize ServiceNow as a market leader but note complexity in setup and ongoing administration. Its ratings are strong for functionality, though lower for ease of use compared to smaller tools.
- G2 score: 4.4/5.
- Gartner Peer Reviews score: 4.3/5.
"ServiceNow provides user friendly interface due to which we can easily get out work done. It also seamlessly integrates with many enterprise applications. Initial setup might cost higher also for some advanced customizations specialized skills are required."
User review from G2
4. Zendesk
Zendesk is primarily known as a customer service platform, but it also offers IT service desk capabilities. It’s a cloud-based tool with a simple interface, widely adopted in industries focused on customer experience.
Zendesk features
- Ticketing system with multichannel support.
- Knowledge base and self-service portal.
- Automation for ticket routing and workflows.
- Marketplace with integrations.
Zendesk pros and cons
Pros:
- Easy to set up and use.
- Strong customer service features.
- Wide variety of integrations.
Cons:
- Limited ITIL support compared to ITSM-focused tools.
- Reporting features are less robust than enterprise platforms.
Zendesk pricing details
Zendesk provides tiered pricing based on the number of agents and features included. Starts at $55 per agent/month for the Suite Team plan. A 14-day trial is available.
Zendesk user reviews and ratings
Users appreciate its simplicity and omnichannel support but often mention limitations for ITSM compared to tools like ServiceNow or InvGate. Ratings are strong in customer experience use cases.
- Gartner Peer Reviews score: 4.4/5
- G2 score: 4.3/5
"Quick, code-free configuration: Triggers, automations, macros let us adjust the platform without engineering. Proven scale and stability: Handles hundreds of agents, tens of thousands of tickets with solid uptime and no noticeable issues. Costly feature packaging: New capabilities are increasingly locked behind pricey add-on bundles. Tight API limits: The default API rate cap is lower than some competitors. This forces workarounds or paid limit increases."
User review from Gartner, Engineering Manager
5. ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is an ITSM solution developed by Zoho Corporation. It supports ITIL-aligned processes and offers flexibility with cloud and on-premise deployments. It’s popular among mid-sized organizations seeking IT service desk functionality without the higher costs of enterprise tools.
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus features
- Incident, problem, and Change Management.
- Asset Management capabilities.
- Knowledge base for self-service.
- Integrations with Zoho and third-party apps.
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus pros and cons
Pros:
- Affordable compared to enterprise competitors.
- ITIL-aligned out of the box.
- Flexible deployment options.
Cons:
- Interface can feel dated compared to newer tools.
- Some users report scalability issues with large environments.
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus pricing details
Pricing is tiered based on edition and number of agents. There’s a free edition for up to 5 technicians. The Standard edition starts at $10 per technician per month (on-premise) or $13 per technician per month (cloud).
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus user reviews and ratings
Reviews highlight its value for money and alignment with ITIL practices, though larger enterprises sometimes find it less suitable for complex setups.
- Gartner Peer Reviews score: 4.3/5
- G2 score: 4.2/5
"Overall, the software is OK for a service desk or helpdesk tool. It can be very flexible, but requires some coding to really get it working right. Their support team will assist with the coding often times, but they can be difficult to work with. The tool does work fine as a helpdesk software, it is definitely better than some I have used."
User review from Gartner, IT Manager
In conclusion
Choosing the right ITSM solution is crucial for businesses looking to optimize their operations while staying within their budgetary constraints. Although Freshworks' Freshservice is a reputable platform, it may not suit every organization's unique requirements.
One notable Freshworks alternative that stands out is InvGate Service Management. With its flexible customization options, intuitive workflow automation, robust reporting capabilities, and affordable pricing structure, InvGate Service Management presents a compelling option for businesses seeking to elevate their IT operations.
To gain deeper insights into InvGate Service Management, request a 30-day free trial or schedule a meeting with our experts if you have any questions or concerns!
