{"id":8956,"date":"2026-08-14T14:46:24","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T09:16:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.anakage.com\/blog\/?p=8956"},"modified":"2026-08-14T14:47:49","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T09:17:49","slug":"anakage-com-blog-servicenow-vs-freshservice-vs-jsm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.anakage.com\/blog\/anakage-com-blog-servicenow-vs-freshservice-vs-jsm\/","title":{"rendered":"ServiceNow vs Freshservice vs Jira Service Management vs Anakage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pick ServiceNow<\/strong> if you are large and need depth. Pick Freshservice<\/strong> if you are mid size and want to know the price upfront. Pick Jira Service Management<\/strong> if your engineers already use Jira. Pick Anakage<\/strong> if your network is offline, or if too many tickets are reaching your service desk in the first place.<\/p>\n

Those four cover most of what people mean when they search for ServiceNow alternatives. Now the detail behind each one.<\/p>\n

One thing upfront.<\/strong> This comparison is published by Anakage. We have linked a source for every competitor claim and marked our own claims separately. Where a competitor is the better choice, we say so.<\/p>\n

The Difference That Decides Everything<\/h2>\n

ServiceNow, Freshservice and Jira Service Management all do the same core job. They capture a ticket, route it, track it, and report on it.<\/p>\n

Anakage does a different job. It fixes the problem on the device before a ticket gets raised, and guides users through tasks inside their applications.<\/p>\n

So they are usually complementary, not competing. Most of our customers keep their ITSM platform and add us to cut ticket volume. We also offer Anakage ITSM if you want both in one place.<\/p>\n

That gives you two questions to answer, not one.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Which ITSM platform should you buy?<\/li>\n
  2. Is your real problem the service desk, or the number of tickets hitting it?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    ServiceNow Alternatives Compared at a Glance<\/h2>\n

    The three main ServiceNow competitors below are the ones most teams shortlist, plus Anakage in the fourth column. You will see the same platforms searched as service now alternatives and service now competitors, since both spellings are common.<\/p>\n

    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
    <\/th>\nServiceNow<\/th>\nFreshservice<\/th>\nJira Service Management<\/th>\nAnakage<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
    What it does<\/strong><\/td>\nEnterprise service management<\/td>\nCloud ITSM<\/td>\nService desk on Atlassian<\/td>\nFixes endpoint issues<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Approach<\/strong><\/td>\nRecord the issue<\/td>\nRecord the issue<\/td>\nRecord the issue<\/td>\nFix the issue<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Price published?<\/strong><\/td>\nNo<\/td>\nYes<\/td>\nYes<\/td>\nNo<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Starting price<\/strong><\/td>\nQuote only<\/td>\n$19 per agent\/month<\/td>\nFree up to 3 agents<\/td>\nQuote only<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Mid tier<\/strong><\/td>\nEst. $70 to $200 per user<\/td>\n$49 to $99 per agent<\/td>\n$20 to $51 per agent<\/td>\nQuote only<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Setup time<\/strong><\/td>\nMonths<\/td>\nWeeks<\/td>\nDays to weeks<\/td>\nDays to hours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Works offline?<\/strong><\/td>\nNo<\/td>\nNo<\/td>\nNo<\/td>\nYes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Self hosted?<\/strong><\/td>\nNo<\/td>\nNo<\/td>\nNo longer for new buyers<\/td>\nYes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Main weakness<\/strong><\/td>\nCost and complexity<\/td>\nAdd ons push cost up<\/td>\nWeaker asset management<\/td>\nSmaller brand than the giants<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

    Pricing: ServiceNow vs Freshservice vs Jira Service Management<\/h2>\n

    ServiceNow<\/h3>\n

    ServiceNow does not publish prices. Every deal is quoted separately.<\/p>\n

    Analysts estimate $70 to $200 per user per month<\/a> for ITSM licences. Treat that as an estimate, not a price.<\/p>\n

    One detail catches people out. ServiceNow charges for managers who only approve requests and read reports, which many competing platforms do not<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    They also changed their packaging in April 2026<\/a>, moving to three tiers called Foundation, Advanced and Prime. If your quote is older than that, it is out of date.<\/p>\n

    Freshservice<\/h3>\n

    Prices are published, per agent, billed annually:<\/p>\n