Are you on the hunt for an enterprise service management system? You and everyone else. As many as one in five US executives are looking for an ESM of their own, and it’s clear ESM is getting significantly more popular.
Of course, there are lots of different platforms on the market today, so finding the right ESM can feel extremely overwhelming. That’s why we’ve done the heavy lifting for you: we’ve compiled the 10 best enterprise service management platforms (plus prices and features) so you can find the perfect fit.
Let’s dive in.
Top ESM platforms at a glance
Curious to see how the best ESM platforms line up?
Here’s a quick comparison chart so you can see the details at a glance:
With this in mind, let’s start with the first ESM on the list:
1. Freshservice: best for IT support teams
Along with its other enterprise offerings, Freshworks offers a scalable ITSM/ESM. Freshservice was designed to put all parts of your IT infrastructure — from service health to customer tickets — behind a single pane of glass.
You can access high-quality ESM features with Freshservice, including knowledge bases, incident management, analytics, and workflow automations. Just keep in mind more scalable features require expensive upgrades. These aren’t necessarily displayed online, so you’ll need to contact Freshservice for a quote.
Freshservice features
- Service catalog
- Change management
- Knowledge base
- Automations
- Problem management
Freshservice pricing
- Starter: $19 per agent per month for 1,000 automation transactions per month per account, knowledge bases, self-service portals, analytics starter, and more
- Growth: $49 per agent per month for 2,000 automation transactions per month per account, business hours, approval workflows, service catalogs, asset management, and more
- Pro: $95 per agent per month for project management tools, status pages, team dashboards, 5,000 automation transactions per month per account, and more
- Enterprise: $119 per agent per month for audit logs, sandbox mode, and Freddy AI for Microsoft Teams and Slack, and 20,000 automation transactions per month per account
2. ServiceNow IT Service Management: best for AI workflows
ServiceNow is a legacy ITSM provider specifically designed to streamline enterprise tasks with AI. For example, you could tap into its tools for Now Assist, which creates self-service opportunities for teammates and customers.
But while ServiceNow makes sense in large or complex workflows, it might be overwhelming to those just starting out. If your business isn’t ready for AI tools yet, or if you don’t have time to learn the complex details, you may want to start with a ServiceNow alternative.
ServiceNow features
- Incident reporting
- Ticketing systems
- AI service agents
- In-app team chat
- DevOps Change Velocity
ServiceNow IT service management pricing
ServiceNow no longer lists its ITSM prices online. You’ll have to contact the company for a quote. Keep in mind there are three tiers: Standard, Professional, and Enterprise.
You’ll also need to consider additional costs like:
- Consultation fees
- Installation and setup fees
- Annual maintenance fees
- And more
3. Jira Service Management: best for free software
Not to be confused with its project management arm, Jira Service Management was designed specifically for IT workflows. You can easily set up IT workflows and automate repetitive tasks. There’s also a free version so you can try before you buy.
Jira’s ESM comes with all the basics for getting started, including workflow templates, automations, alerts, and intake forms. However, keep in mind some industry-standard features (like incident/problem management) require upgrades. If you need round-the-clock customer support, you also need to upgrade to the most expensive tier.
Jira Service Management features
- Service desk support
- Embeddable knowledge base
- Customer portal, email, and chat
- Email notifications (unlimited requires upgrade)
- Access to Atlassian Community support
Jira Service Management pricing
Jira’s ESM prices depend on the size of your team. The more users you have, the less you pay.
Here’s how much you’ll pay for a team of 15 agents or less:
- Free: $0 per user per month for service templates, alerts, multi-channel support, customizable forms, and 2 GB of storage (three agents max)
- Standard: $23.80 per user per month for audit logs, unlimited email notifications, 9/5 support, and more
- Premium: $53.30 per user per month for change management, incident and problem management, AI-powered service operations, CI/CD tools, 24/7 support for critical issues, 99.9% uptime SLA, and more
- Enterprise: Custom quote for advanced admin controls, unlimited automations, support for 150 sites, 24/7 support for all issues, and more
4. SysAid: best for high volume
Sysaid is one of the world’s biggest providers of ESM, with more than 10,000 customers in dozens of industries. It also works for a variety of non-IT use cases, including HR, finance, onboarding, and more.
There are several strong case studies showing how effective Sysaid’s ESM can be, especially when it comes to high-volume businesses like hospitals, airports, and credit unions. However, some users report missing or limited features unless you’re willing to upgrade to a premium tier.
SysAid features
- AI chatbots
- Asset management
- Incident management
- Knowledge bases
- Self-service portals
SysAid pricing
Like ServiceNow, SysAid doesn’t publicly disclose its pricing. Instead, you need to visit the SysAid website, tap the ‘pricing’ button, then submit your email for a quote.
5. Clickup: best for tight budgets
There’s a good chance you’ve already heard of Clickup: it’s one of the most popular TOPdesk alternatives on the US market. It also offers unlimited tasks on the free plan, plus 24/7 customer support (which not all ESM providers do).
Since Clickup is one of the cheapest options on this list, and since it comes with a money-back guarantee, it’s a no-brainer for businesses needing a low-cost ESM. Just keep in mind its flexibility can be a double-edged sword: there are so many possible use cases that your users might get overwhelmed.
Clickup features
- Collaborative docs
- Kanban boards
- In-app video recording
- 2FA for users
- Advanced automations (requires upgrade)
Clickup pricing
- Free Forever: $0 per agent per month for
- Unlimited: $7 per agent per month for
- Business: $12 per agent per month for
- Enterprise: Custom price per agent per month for
6. SolarWinds Service Desk: best for ITAM & CMDB
Most people know SolarWinds as a service desk tool, although it also offers an ESM solution. This is an all-in-one platform that comes with ITAM and CMDB tools such as purchase order management software and CI / Relationship mapping.
According to past users, SolarWinds is incredibly robust. The bad news is, it comes at a price. SolarWind’s cheapest tier starts at $39 per tech per month (although keep in mind you can test it with a 30-day free trial).
SolarWinds Service Desk features
- Custom roles
- Problem management
- Release management
- Automations (requires upgrade)
- Internationalization
SolarWinds Service Desk pricing
- Essentials: $39 per tech per month for incident management, asset management, service portals and catalogs, and more
- Advanced: $79 per tech per month for virtual agents, advanced automations, scheduled reports, API access, and more
- Premier: $99 per tech per month for 1,500 API calls per user per minute, dependency mapping, Visual CMDB, and more
7. Autotask Professional Services Automation (PSA): best for MSPs & TSPs
Autotask PSA is a cloud-based platform offering IT service management tools. It currently provides more than 250 features to both managed service and technology service providers.
The Autotask parent company offers a variety of other tools as well. For example, you can tap into endpoint backups, SaaS protection, or even managed networks such as WiFi and switches.
Just keep in mind it’s not really designed for non-MSPs. If you’re looking for a more consumer-friendly option, you may want to consider an ESM alternative.
Autotask PSA features
- Outsource management
- Sales and marketing CRM
- Tech scheduling
- Contract and billing management
- Service desk tools
Autotask PSA pricing
You won’t find any online pricing for Autotask. Instead, you’ll have to contact the company for a quote.
8. Atera: best for remote monitoring & management (RMM)
Atera’s ESM serves two kinds of businesses: IT departments, and managed service providers (MSPs). It also offers a variety of tools — including RMM, asset management, and ticketing — in four different languages (German, English, French, and Spanish).
Just keep in mind this ESM platform doesn’t offer as many integrations as its competitors. The ones it does offer may require per-instance pricing, which only gets more expensive as your business grows.
Considering the average small business has ~172 apps in its tech stack, a more limited service management tool might not make sense for you.
Atera features
- Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM)
- Customer ticketing
- Helpdesk automations
- Action AI™ (requires upgrade)
- Third-party integrations (requires add-ons)
Atera pricing
The following prices are for IT departments (not MSP pricing, which you can explore here).
- Professional: $149 per tech per month for remote monitoring and management, ticket automations, audit logs, service portals, and more
- Expert: $189 per tech per month for unlimited concurrent sessions, end-user chats, auto-tagging tickets, 50 GB of file transfer space per month, and more
- Master: $219 per tech per month for data recovery, audit logs with data recovery (up to one year), Anydesk remote access, and more
- Enterprise: Custom price per tech per month for SSO, seven-year audit log data retention, 99.9% uptime guarantee, and more
Keep in mind you might have to pay extra for specific app add-ons, ranging from ~$0.35 to $135 per license.
9. Xurrent: best for all-in-one service management
You can rely on Xurrent (formerly 4me) for all sorts of service tasks, from ITSM and ITOM to ESM and beyond. A whopping 93% of customers would recommend this platform, and its long list of awards proves a strong commitment to customer service.
You should know that Xurrent requires a small learning curve — and you may need to communicate with customer service in the beginning. Past users say the acclimation can be overwhelming, so if you choose this platform, be sure to give yourself time to learn the ropes.
Xurrent features
- Post-sales engagement
- Integrated KB
- SIAM capabilities
- ITIL competencies
- SOC2 and ISO compliant
Xurrent pricing
Xurrent does not disclose its pricing online. You should contact the sales team if you’re interested in a quote.
10. IFS Assyst: best for operations management
Whether you’re in IT, HR, facilities, or finance, you can use IFS Assyst to help you set up automations. This ESM was designed to make operations simpler, regardless of the size or scale of your business.
According to past users, however, there might be a learning curve before getting started. You also have to worry about limited integrations — not ideal if you’re looking to connect with your tech stack.
IFS Assyst features
- SecOps management
- Process and service automations
- Event, license, and infrastructure management
- Service mapping
- Service-view CMDB
IFS Assyst pricing
Like several other providers on this list, IRS Assyst doesn’t offer online pricing. Your best bet is to contact the company for a quote, then request a demo to see the product in action.
How we chose the best enterprise service management platforms
We selected the top ESM platforms based on six basic factors:
- Cost: Does the cost of the platform match the features you get?
- Reliability: Does the platform have a solid uptime history?
- Customer support: How quickly can you contact a rep for help?
- Customer reviews: How well-rated is the ESM?
- Features: Is there a solid mixture of legacy features and newer tools involving AI?
- Integrations: Does the ESM integrate with third-party platforms, including digital signage platforms?
Making the best choice for your business
ESM platforms are powerhouses for centralizing and streamlining various enterprise functions. Every platform is different, of course, so you’ll need to choose a system that makes the most sense for you.
Once you’ve selected an ESM, you’ll be ready to integrate it with the rest of your tech stack. This includes other enterprise management tools, including digital signage platforms like Fugo.ai.
Fugo makes it easy to manage digital signage from anywhere with a WiFi connection. That way, you can display real-time updates from your ESM on TV screens and keep your frontline connected — exactly how it should be.
See why hundreds of small businesses integrate their ESMs with Fugo by signing up for a 14-day free trial.
