Importing ServiceNow data to Jira Service Management with Help Desk Migration

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ServiceNow is a popular help desk solution that has been on the market for a long time now. Still, there might be situations where you need to look for ServiceNow alternatives to ensure the frictionlessness of the processes. Why? We all agree that smooth IT processes are key to ensuring non-stop, friction-free workflows of any team in the company. Imagine that there is a breakdown in your accounting software, and the whole accounting department has to wait until it is being fixed. The whole team’s work is on pause, new tasks keep piling up, and the pressure poisons the working atmosphere.

IT service management (ITSM) tools have become a go-to choice for those looking to improve the internal IT service provision and optimize and automate their ticketing systems, user data management, and other help desk workflows. ServiceNow is one of such tools. In this article, we’ll describe what’s so special about it and what to pay attention to when choosing a reliable ServiceNow alternative.

ServiceNow Alternative List

When choosing a viable alternative to ServiceNow, it’s best to view other options on the market first, keeping your business needs in focus. Especially so, if you are planning to scale within a tight schedule, make sure that your ITSM tool will be able to support the changes and integrate with other systems promptly and easily. Otherwise, you might need to switch to yet another service platform, which means transferring data and re-learning.

ServiceNow Alternative List

So who are ServiceNow’s competitors? The table below covers the features of the best ServiceNow alternatives to help you make an informed decision when choosing one.

What Is ServiceNow?

ServiceNow is a cloud-based software platform for ITSM. Designed according to ITIL guidelines, a library of best practices for managing IT services and improving IT support at scale, it provides service orientation for tasks, activities, and processes. Named a leader by Gartner for eight years in a row, the company offers a single platform connecting ITSM with other business operations supported by IT operations management tools and AI/ML capabilities.

Ease of deployment and supported platforms

ServiceNow is a platform-as-a-service tool functioning as a web-based application. It’s available for desktop (Windows, macOS) and mobile devices (Android, iOS).

Basic features

ServiceNow’s ITSM solution is packed with everything you need to support your internal clients and improve operational efficiency. It includes incident, problem, request, and change management functionalities, as well as the Mobile Agent app, Agent Workspace, and Employee Service Center. AI-powered modules allow companies to quickly identify IT issues before they are reported. Automated workflows make it possible to check the progress of processes or services any time one needs it.

Unique features

ServiceNow was the first ITSM platform that adopted the AI and ML approaches to predict issues based on past interactions. The tool shows what apps and services are used in the system. It also tracks their statuses to improve visibility within the system and between the applications. The company introduced native process mining—data mining and process analytics to discover, validate, and improve workflows.

Pricing

ServiceNow prefers to provide each user with a custom quote upon request. They use a subscription-based model with a license fee starting at $100 user/month.

Customer support

In addition to standard email, phone, and chat support, ServiceNow offers developer documentation, user guides, video lessons, and webinars. The company provides training and certification programs to make sure its clients get the most value out of its services.

Typical customers

Their typical clients are mid to large-sized businesses that want to manage all IT business processes in one platform.

API and extensibility

ServiceNow comes with a well-documented REST API to interact with its platform's service instances.

Security measures

The platform supports SSL (SHA-256 encryption), requires redirection from HTTP to HTTPS, and uses Sender Policy Framework for email addresses to avoid spamming. ServiceNow has been certified according to international standards, including ISO/IEC 27701, ISO/IEC 27018, ISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27001, SSAE18 SOC1 and SOC2, and others.

Pros

• ServiceNow is a cloud-based PaaS with a strong market presence around the globe.
• Thanks to its AI/ML components, it allows users to improve their automation processes based on the previous interactions and predictive analysis.
• Plus, the company has plenty of support options.
• Its help desk solution is fully customizable and can be used on mobile devices.

Cons

• Its fully-packed navigation panel may confuse those intending to use only a part of their service package.
• The upfront cost is relatively high, which makes ServiceNow a second option for startups.
• Plugins and solutions are quite complex and might need professional assistance.

The help desk solution by ServiceNow will be a great fit for the companies automating all IT support processes and ready for sweeping changes that entail significant investments. But what if you want to automate only part of your IT services and achieve great value for your money without breaking the bank? You can choose a ServiceNow alternative.

Why Look for ServiceNow Alternatives

Despite ServiceNow being a great solution for your business needs, it has got its flaws. These flaws are what makes its potential or existing clients seek for an alternative. Namely, the reasons to move from ServiceNow and look for an alternative are as follows:

-High cost. Indeed the price one has to pay for ServiceNow’s assistance may feel overbearing. There are a lot of hidden fees which pop up like traps on the way of your client journey. For example, the price can get unpredictably rocket-high with:

• AI automation’s add-ons;
• minimum usage requirements are obligatory regardless of the actual share you use;
• implementation and consulting fees increase with time.

-Profusing complexity. The learning process in ServiceNow can be overwhelmingly difficult and even tiresome. More specifically, the initial setup can inconveniently take a long time. Additionally, the abundance of features require a certain adaptation period and can present an arduous climb for inexperienced users.

ServiceNow VS Competitors - Feature & Pricing Comparison

ServiceNow Alternatives & Competitors in 2025: Full Reviews

1.Zendesk

Maybe the strongest ServiceNow competitor. Founded in 2007, Zendesk sought to make support services affordable, easy, and effective. The company offers help and service desk options based on the business size and the expected functionality. Zendesk is a go-to tool for working with both internal and external clients. If your target is the latter make no mistake: Zendesk is perfect for businesses that handle upselling and try to provide exceptional customer support.

It has plenty of features to streamline ticket processing and organize agent work based on analytics. When comparing ServiceNow vs. Zendesk, the latter would be a good match for companies eager to automate the handling of customer requests rather than the whole ITSM workflow.

1. Software-as-a-service that functions as a web-based application
2. Available for desktop (Windows, macOS) and mobile devices (Android, iOS)

Basic features

1. Ticket-based service system (call, email, chat, or voice message automatically converts into a new ticket)
2. Feature-packed dashboard
3. On-demand reporting tools
4. High integration potential (700+ available options, including email, phone, Twitter, Facebook, FreshChat Sprout, Zendesk Chat Lite, Shopify, and MailChimp)

Unique features

1. Tickets shareable among users
2. Multi-brand support that enables different types of analytics
3. Benchmark tool to assess the performance of your customer service against the competition
4. Essential Card and Interaction History providing additional context for every client/ticket

Customer support

Help center, answer bot, help desk community forum, chatbot, phone, and email support for users and developers.

Typical customers

Small to medium businesses.

API and extensibility

REST API to create tickets with custom ticket forms, users, migrating ticket data, and more.

Security measures

1. ISO 27001:2013
2. ISO 27018:2014
3. SOC 2 Type II
4. EU-US & Swiss-US Privacy Shield Certification
5. TRUSTe Enterprise Privacy Certification
6. SSL and TLS encryption
7. Can be configured to meet PCI and HIPAA/HITECH standards

Pricing (if billed annually)

Source: Zendesk