13 Best Help Desk Ticketing System Software + Tools in 2024 [With Pros & Cons]

Modern support teams know that customer complaints or requests cannot be managed on sticky notes or spreadsheets. 

This is where I feel a help desk ticketing system has become the backbone of effective customer service operations, helping agents centralize issues, track tickets, and automate repetitive tasks. 

Whether you are a support manager or an agent searching for the best ticketing systems for your team, I’ll try to make the job easier by comparing the top 13 options available in the market. Here, have a first glance – 

What Is a Help Desk Ticketing System?

A help desk ticketing system is a software solution to manage and track customer service requests, complaints, and queries. With the help of this software, support agents can use a shared dashboard to view all tickets in one place, prioritize urgent issues, publish knowledge-base articles, and share faster responses with customers.

In simpler terms, it’s a system that helps you –

• Receive requests from customers through various channels like email, live chat, or even a website.
• Organize those requests into individual tickets, which are basically files for each specific issue.
• Assign tickets to the right support person based on their expertise.
• Track the progress of each request, update the customer, and keep everything organized.
• Analyze the data to see what kinds of issues are common and improve your service.

A help desk software can be a great addition to your arsenal of customer support tools like live chat, knowledge base, etc.

List of the 13 Best Help Desk Ticketing System in 2024

Finding the right set of tools from scratch is a painstaking process (based on personal experience, haha). 

That’s why I chose to connect with industry experts (managers, directors, support teams, HR managers, etc.) who use these platforms in their day-to-day lives. I asked for recommendations and reasons why they’d choose a particular tool over the other.

With a bit of self-research and browsing through user feedback from software review sites, I compiled an exhaustive comparison of the 13 best ticketing support systems. 

Let’s get started.

1. ProProfs Help Desk – Best for Help Desk & Support Ticketing for Customer Delight

ProProfs Help Desk offers a well-rounded ticketing system to streamline customer support operations. I think you’ll like how it captures requests via multiple channels like email, live chat, web forms, chatbot, etc., allowing customers to conveniently submit their issues. 

With this free help desk software, my agents can prioritize urgent issues, see who is working on what, find past tickets with an advanced search functionality, and share faster replies using canned responses. 

When it comes to ticketing automation, the tool has done a great job. You can automatically assign tickets to team members, notify them with automated alerts, and measure customer satisfaction with automated email surveys. 

Also, I found that using ProProfs Help Desk, you can empower customers to self-serve – thanks to its knowledge base integration. You can significantly reduce the number of support tickets submitted by storing solutions to FAQs and other common issues.

What you’ll like: 

• Includes a shared inbox for team collaboration
• Enables ticket prioritization and categorization
• Provides multi-channel support, including email, chat, and web forms
• A forever-free plan makes ProProfs Help Desk the best help desk software for small businesses
• Integrates seamlessly with ProProfs’ suite of customer support tools like Live Chat, Knowledge Base, etc.

What you may not like: 

• It’s a cloud-based platform that may not be the best option for on-premise requirements
• The freemium plan is limited to only a single user. 

Pricing:

A freemium plan is available for a single user. Paid options start from $19.99/operator/month. 

2. Zendesk – Best for Large Businesses & Enterprises

Zendesk is a powerful ticketing system software built to scale with large businesses. I’ve heard that the platform goes beyond basic ticketing by automating repetitive tasks and intelligently routing tickets to the most qualified agents based on pre-defined rules (skills, workload, or even previous interactions with the customer). But that’s not all. 

Using the software, I could see insights into customer support performance. It can also automatically route incoming tickets to an agent familiar with billing processes while simultaneously pulling up the customer’s account information within the CRM. 

One major drawback of this tool is that it’s quite expensive, making it unsuitable for small businesses. 

What you’ll like: 

• Provides a multichannel customer support platform
• Features AI-powered automation and suggestions
• Supports live chat and messaging services
• Customizable through an extensive app marketplace
• Facilitates advanced workflow capabilities

What you may not like: 

• Most help desk features are capped in the starter plan, which makes it less useful for small businesses
• Customizations can complicate the initial setup

Pricing:

Starts at $55/user/month.

3. Help Scout – Best for Customer Conversations & Unified Platform

Help Scout provides one of the best ticketing system examples. It clears the sting out of managing tickets for your agents. Like other tools in the list, I found it also has a shared inbox where everyone can see all customer conversations in one place.

Something that caught my attention was the email delegation feature. Using it, you can strategically assign tickets to specific agents based on their expertise or current workload.

The software lets you route a ticket to an agent experienced in navigating the intricacies of the ticket subject matter. This ensures that the right agent tackles the right issue every single time, leading to faster resolutions and happier customers.

What you’ll like: 

• Tags to categorize tickets or trigger automation
• Provides a shared inbox to improve team collaboration
• Offers ‘Beacon’ for in-app messaging and support
• Lets you add custom data for tickets using custom fields
• Detailed reporting on team performance and customer satisfaction

What you may not like: 

• Only 2 shared inboxes are available in the starting plan
• Limited customization options compared to its leading competitors

Pricing:

Starts at $20/user/month.

4. Freshdesk – Best for Multichannel Communications

Freshdesk is a strong pick if you handle customer support across multiple channels like email, phone, and social media. It lets you manage all these inquiries in one place, saving you from switching between different platforms. 

While these are nothing extraordinary as far as help desk ticketing systems are concerned, you may still like the platform’s built-in automation to handle routine tasks and a self-service portal with helpful resources. This means less time spent on repetitive tasks and happier customers who can find answers on their own.

What you’ll like: 

• A unified ticketing system for all communication channels
• Advanced automation capabilities to streamline processes
• Strong SLA management to ensure timely responses
• Customizable ticket views for different team needs
• Multi-language support to cater to global customers

What you may not like:

• No automation capabilities in the free plan
• Can become expensive as add-ons accumulate

Pricing:

A free plan is available for up to 10 agents. Paid options start from $15/user/month.

5. HubSpot Service Hub – Best for HubSpot Users

In the list of ticketing tools, HubSpot’s Service Hub holds special significance. I think it’s a perfect fit, especially if you’re already using HubSpot’s CRM. The software integrates seamlessly with your existing customer data, giving a complete picture of customer interactions.

On top of that, it lets you set up automatic ticketing based on information in the CRM. 

Imagine a VIP client contacting you via email about a billing issue. HubSpot can automatically create a ticket, assign it to the most appropriate agent based on their expertise, and pull up the customer’s past interactions and billing history.

What you’ll like: 

• Features customer feedback tools to gather insights
• Offers knowledge base functionality for self-service
• Live chat and conversational bots are included
• Reporting dashboard fully integrated with HubSpot’s suite
• Supports ticket creation via email, chat, or website forms

What you may not like: 

• No ticket automation feature in the free plan
• Primarily beneficial for existing HubSpot users due to integration depth

Pricing:

A free plan is available for up to 5 users. Paid options start from $15/month/seat. 

6. Salesforce Service Cloud – Best for AI-Powered Customer Service

Salesforce Service Cloud uses artificial intelligence (AI) to boost your customer service significantly. I like how it lets you analyze customer data and predict their needs before they even contact you. 

This lets your agents be proactive instead of reactive. They can anticipate customer issues and reach out with solutions before problems arise, leaving customers feeling impressed with your attentiveness.

Plus, Service Cloud automates repetitive tasks like sending follow-up emails or resetting passwords. This frees up your agents’ time to focus on the high-value interactions that build strong customer relationships.

What you’ll like: 

• Extensive CRM integration within the Salesforce ecosystem
• AI-powered suggestions for customer service
• Extensive customization via Salesforce AppExchange
• Provides omnichannel routing for customer inquiries
• Includes telephony integration and callback feature

What you may not like: 

• No omnichannel routing in the starting plan
• Integration with non-Salesforce products can be challenging

Pricing:

Starts at $24/user/month.

7. LiveAgent – Best for Chat-Based Support

If your business prefers live chat’s convenience and immediacy for customer support, you may try LiveAgent. 

The software seamlessly converts incoming customer chats into tickets, creating a record of the conversation and ensuring nothing gets lost in the shuffle. This is especially helpful for complex issues requiring multiple touchpoints or agent handoffs.

In my limited time with it, I also found it goes beyond just chat ticketing. Using the tool, you can combine this functionality with features for managing email and social media inquiries as well.  So, you can ditch the need to switch between different apps or inboxes to answer customer questions.

What you’ll like: 

• Real-time chat capabilities for instant communication
• Ticketing system integrates emails, chats, and calls into a unified platform
• Video chat support for face-to-face communication
• Automation of routine tasks to save time and improve efficiency
• Built-in call center support with advanced call routing

What you may not like: 

• No call routing and transfer feature in the starting plan
• Email ticketing features are less developed than chat

Pricing:

Starts at $9/agent/month.

8. ServiceNow – Best for IT Service Management

I found that ServiceNow is more than just a IT ticketing support system. It’s an all-in-one IT service management (ITSM) platform. Means?

Well, it can tackle everything from the nitty-gritty of everyday IT support to fulfilling requests for new software. I’ll give you an example to help you understand it better.

Imagine your IT department gets a ticket about a malfunctioning printer. 

The software can track that ticket through the entire resolution process, from assigning it to the most qualified technician to tracking the repair progress and logging the solution used to fix the printer. Imagine how convenient that is for the support team!

What you’ll like: 

• Specializes in ITSM and IT operations management
• Features strong automation capabilities for IT processes
• Customizable to a high degree for specific workflows
• Includes incident, problem, and change management features
• Facilitates virtual agent and chatbot functionality

What you may not like: 

• Pricing is not transparent
• Primarily suited for larger enterprises due to complexity and cost

Pricing:

Starts at $100/user/month (custom pricing).

9. Zoho Desk – Best for Contextual Support

If you browsed a bit about help desk ticketing systems, you must have come across Zoho Desk. It’s one of the few tools on the list that solves problems faster with its context-aware features. I’ll tell you what that means.

Say you have a customer emailing about a billing issue. The software can automatically scan your system and pull up the customer’s account details, past billing history, and any relevant communication history (like previous support tickets or sales calls).

This immediately gives your agents a complete picture of the customer’s situation, saving time. Plus, the software integrates with other Zoho apps, like CRM or accounting software, which is great for existing users.

What you’ll like: 

• Context-aware help desk software for smooth customer interaction
• Advanced analytics and reporting tools for deep insight into operations
• Automation capabilities to streamline ticket resolution processes
• Artificial intelligence to assist agents with suggestions
• Self-service capabilities with a customizable customer portal

What you may not like: 

• No round-robin ticket assignment for load balancing in the starting plan
• Users have reported issues with mobile app bugs

Pricing:

Starts at $7/user/month.

10. HappyFox – Best for Insightful Reports & Analytics

If you’re looking for ticketing system software that shows how your support team is performing, try HappyFox. I watched a demo video, and the transparency really impressed me. I could see which issues take the longest to resolve or which agents consistently get high customer satisfaction ratings.

In one line, you will see detailed reports with easy-to-understand charts and graphs. 

For example, if you see a spike in unresolved billing ticket volume, the software can help you pinpoint the root cause, whether it’s a knowledge base gap or a complex billing process. With this data, you can then take action as needed.

What you’ll like: 

• Powerful analytics dashboard for tracking key support metrics
• Knowledge base integration for easy access to information
• Multi-channel support to handle emails, chats, and social media
• SLA management ensures timely adherence to service commitments
• Customizable workflows to tailor operations to business needs

What you may not like: 

• No load-balanced ticket assignment in the starting plan
• Limited integration capabilities without middleware

Pricing:

Starts at $29/agent/month.

11. Front – Best for Email Automation & Collaboration Platform

Front isn’t just for email automation. It excels at handling customer support inquiries through email ticketing. It works wonders, especially when your team gets flooded with customer emails. 

So, what the software does here is organize them into a shared inbox so that everyone can see all messages. Plus, it lets you set up automatic rules to streamline workflows. 

For instance, you can create a rule that automatically tags emails based on keywords (e.g., “billing” or “shipping”) and assigns them to the most appropriate agent. This ensures emails get routed to the right person quickly, avoiding delays and confusion.

What you’ll like: 

• Shared inboxes for better team transparency and response efficiency
• Advanced analytics track team performance and customer interactions
• Mobile application extends the collaborative features on the go
• Customizable tags and folders to organize conversations and tasks
• Real-time alerts to keep the team updated on critical issues

What you may not like: 

• No load-balancing feature in the starting plan
• Interface can seem complex for users accustomed to traditional email

Pricing:

Starts at $19/seat/month.

12. Jira Service Management – Best for Boosting Collaboration Between Dev & Ops Teams

In my experience, Jira Service Management is the best option, especially for development and operations teams (DevOps). Built for teams that use Jira for project management, this ticketing system for helpdesk uses Kanban boards to visualize workflows.

The software lets developers and support teams track issues visually, from initial report to fix and deployment. This improves collaboration and keeps everyone updated. 

Plus, it offers features for managing different types of IT requests, like incidents (urgent issues) and changes (planned modifications) – perfect for keeping IT operations organized.

What you’ll like:

• Deep integration with Jira Software and Confluence
• Features advanced incident management capabilities
• Supports change management processes integrated with development work
• Extensive reporting and metrics for continuous improvement
• Supports agile methodologies for IT service management

What you may not like: 

• Only 2 GB file storage allowance in the free plan
• Setup and integration can be complex and require technical expertise

Pricing:

A free plan is available for 3 agents. Paid options start from $17.65/agent/month.

13. BMC Helix – Best for Service Management

BMC Helix is an advanced system with AI smarts that supercharge ticketing. I heard about this help desk software ticketing system a few days ago from a past colleague. Initial impressions are something like – 

Imagine this scenario: A customer contacts support with a vague description of an issue. Helix can analyze past tickets and customer data to predict the problem and even suggest solutions to your agents. 

This streamlines troubleshooting and gets customers back on track faster. Plus, the tool also automates repetitive tasks like sending status updates or resetting passwords. This frees up agents for complex issues and lets them focus on personalized customer interactions.

What you’ll like: 

• Incorporates AI and machine learning for predictive service management
• Incident and problem management to streamline IT service resolutions
• Comprehensive dashboards for monitoring and analytics
• Virtual agents and chatbots for automated customer interactions
• Multi-cloud management supports diverse IT environments

What you may not like: 

• Pricing plan is not transparent
• Integration with non-BMC products requires additional configuration

Pricing:

Custom pricing.

Evaluation Criteria

The evaluation of products or tools chosen for this article follows an unbiased, systematic approach that ensures a fair, insightful, and well-rounded review. This method employs six key factors:

1. User Reviews / Ratings: Direct experiences from users, including ratings and feedback from reputable sites, provide a ground-level perspective. This feedback is critical in understanding overall satisfaction and potential problems.
2. Essential Features & Functionality: The value of a product is ascertained by its core features and overall functionality. Through an in-depth exploration of these aspects, the practical usefulness and effectiveness of the tools are carefully evaluated.
3. Ease of Use: The user-friendliness of a product or service is assessed, focusing on the design, interface, and navigation. This ensures a positive experience for users of all levels of expertise.
4. Customer Support: The quality of customer support is examined, taking into account its efficiency and how well it supports users in different phases – setting up, addressing concerns, and resolving operational issues.
5. Value for Money: Value for money is evaluated by comparing the quality, performance, and features. The goal is to help the reader understand whether they would be getting their money’s worth. 
6. Personal Experience / Expert’s Opinion: This part of the evaluation criteria draws insightful observations from the personal experience of the writer and the opinions of industry experts.

What Are the Benefits of a Help Desk Ticketing System?

A help desk ticketing system offers numerous benefits that can transform the way your company handles support requests. There are quite a lot of benefits leading to improved efficiency and customer satisfaction. 

Let’s check some of them below –

1. Improved Efficiency: Ticketing systems streamline workflow by consolidating all customer inquiries into a central platform. This eliminates the need to bounce between emails, phone calls, and social media messages, allowing your agents to focus on resolving issues instead of chasing them down.
2. Enhanced Organization: Tickets keep track of the entire customer interaction history, including communication threads, attached documents, and resolution notes. This ensures everyone can access the context to provide consistent support, even if different agents handle the same issue.
3. Prioritization and Automation: Using a ticketing system, you can set up rules for prioritizing inquiries based on urgency, customer type, or specific keywords. You can also automate repetitive tasks like sending out initial welcome emails, assigning tickets to the most qualified agents, or generating canned responses for frequently asked questions.
4. Data-Driven Insights: Ticketing systems provide valuable reports and analytics that help you identify trends, track agent performance, and measure customer satisfaction. This data can be used to optimize support operations by identifying knowledge base gaps or streamlining workflows for faster resolution times.
5. Improved Collaboration: Ticketing systems often include features like shared inboxes and internal notes, facilitating seamless collaboration between agents. This ensures everyone stays on the same page and can contribute to resolving complex issues efficiently.
6. Customer Self-Service: Many ticketing systems integrate with Knowledge Base solutions to empower customers to find answers to common questions on their own. This reduces the burden on your support team and improves the overall customer experience.
7. Increased Customer Satisfaction: By resolving issues more efficiently, offering self-service options, and providing consistent communication, ticketing systems can significantly improve customer satisfaction.

Read more: 10 Benefits of Help Desk Software & Ticketing System

What Are the Top Features of a Help Desk Ticketing Software?

Answering this can get tricky, considering that there are so many unique features offered by different software vendors. 

But then, having used different tools and spending time with customer support and IT teams, I’ve gathered a bit of understanding of some of must-have features. 

1. Multi-Channel Ticketing: Look for a system that lets you capture inquiries from various channels like email, phone calls, social media, and even live chat.
2. Automated Ticketing: Repetitive tasks like routing tickets based on keywords, sending initial welcome emails, or generating canned responses for FAQs should be automated.
3. Knowledge Base Management: A built-in knowledge base allows you to store solutions to FAQs and other helpful resources to help customers access this information if needed.
4. Ticketing Workflows and Prioritization: The ability to set up workflows and define prioritization rules ensures tickets are routed to the most qualified agents and addressed based on urgency or customer type.
5. Reporting and Analytics: Robust reporting features provide valuable insights into your support operations. It lets you track agent performance, identify trends in customer inquiries, and measure customer satisfaction.
6. Collaboration Tools: Shared inboxes, internal notes, and agent mentions within tickets facilitate seamless collaboration between agents, ensuring complex issues are resolved efficiently.
7. Integrations: Consider a system that integrates with other business tools you already use, like CRM software, marketing automation platforms, or accounting software. This streamlines workflows and eliminates the need to switch between multiple applications.
8. Security and Compliance: Ensure the ticketing system offers robust security features to safeguard customer data and comply with relevant industry regulations.
9. SLA Management: For businesses with strict service level agreements (SLAs), look for a system that allows you to set up SLA rules, track progress toward resolution, and generate reports to ensure compliance.

Which Is the Best Ticketing System? 

When you have to deal with endless customer complaints and requests, the idea of using a help desk ticketing system reigns supreme. 

And why wouldn’t when a single software solution can connect all your IT support and customer service dots in one go? Having used ProProfs Help Desk for quite some time, I figured out why it’s essential to have a ticketing system in place along with a live chat or knowledge base platform. It can be a great option for modern customer support teams that want powerful ticket automation features without breaking the bank.  

You don’t need to invest thousands of dollars to get your hands on the best help desk ticketing system. Some software vendors like ProProfs offer a freemium plan, where just signing up lets you test every feature for free. Give it a spin today!

Learn More About Help Desk Ticketing Systems

How does a help desk ticketing system work?

A help desk ticketing system streamlines how users report issues, and IT resolves them. Here’s how it works –

• Request Submitted: Users submit support requests via email, chat, phone, or a self-service portal.
• Ticket Creation: The system automatically creates a ticket with details about the request.
• Ticket Assignment: The ticket gets routed to the appropriate support agent based on skillset or category.
• Communication & Resolution: Agent communicates with the user to resolve the issue, all documented within the ticket.
• Ticket Closure: Once the issue is fixed, the agent and user close the ticket.

How does ticket prioritization work?

Ticket prioritization assigns urgency levels to support tickets. Here’s the core idea:

• High urgency: Critical issues impacting core functionality get top priority (think system outages).
• Medium urgency: Disruptive issues affecting core workflows are addressed next (e.g., major software bugs).
• Low urgency: Less disruptive issues or questions get handled when possible (e.g., feature requests).

This ensures critical problems get resolved first, keeping users productive and minimizing business disruptions.

How do I implement ticketing system software?

Here’s a step-by-step solution on how you can implement ticketing system software –

1. Define Goals & Needs: Identify your key objectives (e.g., improve resolution times, track customer satisfaction).
2. Evaluate Software Options: Research features, pricing, and integrations with existing tools.
3. User Setup & Training: Onboard agents and train them on the new ticketing system.
4. Customize Workflows: Set up automated routing rules and workflows for efficient ticket handling.
5. Knowledge Base Creation: Build a self-service knowledge base to empower users to find solutions themselves.
6. Test & Launch: Pilot the system with a small group before full deployment.
7. Monitor & Refine: Regularly track usage data and adjust workflows to optimize performance.

What are the best practices for help desk ticketing software?

Here are some best practices for help desk ticketing software –

• Organize & Categorize: Keep tickets tidy with clear categories and statuses for easy tracking.
• Automate Repetitive Tasks: Use auto-replies, routing rules, and canned responses to save time.
• Prioritize Effectively: Set up a system to address critical issues impacting users most.
• Agent Communication: Foster clear and timely communication between agents and users for smooth issue resolution.
• Track & Measure: Monitor key metrics like resolution times and customer satisfaction to identify areas for improvement.
• Knowledge is Power: Build a robust knowledge base to empower users to solve common issues.
• Feedback Matters: Regularly gather feedback from agents and users to improve the ticketing system and overall support experience.