Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Freshdesk
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Freshdesk is a cloud-based customer service software that helps businesses of all sizes to deliver customer support. Freshdesk converts requests coming in via email, web, phone, chat, and social into tickets, and unifies ticket resolution across channels. Additionally, Freshdesk lets the user automate workflows, provide self-service, manage SLAs, and measure metrics, to stay on top of customer support. Freshdesk also offers out-of-the-box features like an AI-powered support chatbot,…
$0
Up to 2 agents
Spiceworks Help Desk
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
Spiceworks offers a set of free tools for IT network management and help desk support ticketing. The inventory management system essentially provides comprehensive device information for asset management. The Spiceworks Network Monitor provides information on observed IT for problem tracking and server performance monitoring. And finally, the Spiceworks Help Desk Software lets IT personnel stay on top of issues across the network with a ticketing system. Help desk roles with role-based…N/A
Pricing
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Editions & Modules
Free
$0
Up to 2 agents
Growth
$15
per month (billed annually) per agent
Pro
$49
per month (billed annually) per agent
Enterprise
$79
per month (billed annually) per agent
All Tiers
Free
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Considered Both Products
Freshdesk
Chose Freshdesk
As saied before, Freshdesk is very simple to use. It is very agile to our needs and uses, based on the requests are made from our employees only. So, everything they demand, is a well know task or activity in our duties. Zammad does it very well, but needs an on premises …
Chose Freshdesk
We used to use Spiceworks but it was extremely clunky and not very customisable at the time. When we started looking at other options we ended up focusing on Freshdesk, Zendesk and Zoho as they seemed like the best out of all the ones we found. We eventually went with Freshdesk …
Chose Freshdesk
The ticket system from Freshdesk was a breath of fresh air for us compared to Spiceworks. Freshdesk has yet to crash or stop responding (Spiceworks was on-prem and we had to re-install many times.) The reports were also far more informational to our management than Spiceworks.
Chose Freshdesk
I have no experience using Spiceworks, as the first project I undertook at my current place of employment was researching and implementing the new Freshdesk helpdesk. However, the feedback I have received since the implementation has been that it is simpler to use and has …
Chose Freshdesk
Spiceworks was powerful, but we also found it quite clunky and heavy-duty. Freshdesk is a lot lighter, quicker, and generally feels easier to use.
Chose Freshdesk
We used Spiceworks before Freshdesk because it was free, and we had nothing but trouble out of it. I couldn’t do all the automations I wanted to do, customers found it difficult to use, and the interface was terrible. Since switching to Freshdesk all of those areas are improved …
Chose Freshdesk
These other softwares do some of the same things as Freshdesk, but Freshdesk excels at doing them better. They make it easier to set up, configure, and start using. They make the user interface enjoyable for both technicians and users. These other softwares are largely text …
Chose Freshdesk
Spiceworks was too much work to get off the road and didn't offer much on the user's side. Freshservice is a lot more focused on IT work and I'd recommend starting with it. Desk.com is great for a whole organization, but rules frequently break with a mixed bag of how useful the …
Spiceworks Help Desk
Chose Spiceworks Help Desk
Spiceworks is a great option for a free help desk. In terms of features, it is similar to the free level of Freshdesk. If you want a lot of features and customization though, you should look at JitBit Help Desk or the paid tiers of Freshdesk. Both offer better reporting, …
Chose Spiceworks Help Desk
Overall, Spiceworks Help Desk is an easy-to-use option at a GREAT cost. We didn't feel that any other products offered anything that Spiceworks couldn't so we haven't felt the need to explore any more companies. The Spiceworks FREE option is great on its own and it's hard to …
Chose Spiceworks Help Desk
We found that for entry-level SMB in-house needs that Spiceworks had an impressive range of features and options at an unbeatable price-free! For our in-house and multi-tenant needs, we use a different product that is more appropriate to our particular needs, but with no cost …
Chose Spiceworks Help Desk
Spiceworks has all of the features we would require. It matched up well in features and definitely price!
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Incident and problem management
Comparison of Incident and problem management features of Product A and Product B
Freshdesk
8.5
174 Ratings
5% above category average
Spiceworks Help Desk
8.4
55 Ratings
4% above category average
Organize and prioritize service tickets9.0170 Ratings8.054 Ratings
Expert directory8.1115 Ratings7.347 Ratings
Subscription-based notifications8.43 Ratings8.642 Ratings
ITSM collaboration and documentation7.64 Ratings6.345 Ratings
Ticket creation and submission8.8170 Ratings10.054 Ratings
Ticket response8.9170 Ratings10.053 Ratings
Self Help Community
Comparison of Self Help Community features of Product A and Product B
Freshdesk
8.1
156 Ratings
4% above category average
Spiceworks Help Desk
7.2
52 Ratings
8% below category average
External knowledge base8.2142 Ratings7.748 Ratings
Internal knowledge base7.9145 Ratings6.748 Ratings
Multi-Channel Help
Comparison of Multi-Channel Help features of Product A and Product B
Freshdesk
8.4
165 Ratings
7% above category average
Spiceworks Help Desk
7.7
52 Ratings
1% below category average
Customer portal8.1141 Ratings8.046 Ratings
IVR8.451 Ratings6.011 Ratings
Social integration8.287 Ratings7.027 Ratings
Email support9.1164 Ratings9.346 Ratings
Help Desk CRM integration8.3101 Ratings8.328 Ratings
Best Alternatives
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Small Businesses
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Score 9.0 out of 10
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Score 9.0 out of 10
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Agiloft Service Desk (discontinued)
Score 9.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Front
Front
Score 8.8 out of 10
SysAid
SysAid
Score 8.8 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Likelihood to Recommend
8.7
(241 ratings)
9.7
(83 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.3
(21 ratings)
10.0
(29 ratings)
Usability
8.7
(41 ratings)
9.0
(9 ratings)
Availability
5.5
(5 ratings)
10.0
(3 ratings)
Performance
6.2
(5 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
8.1
(39 ratings)
8.7
(26 ratings)
In-Person Training
8.2
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
8.1
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.7
(171 ratings)
10.0
(7 ratings)
Configurability
5.4
(6 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
6.8
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
7.6
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
6.2
(5 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Professional Services
6.4
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
6.9
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
6.9
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
FreshdeskSpiceworks Help Desk
Likelihood to Recommend
Freshworks Inc
Freshdesk is really good for start-up companies that want to update their current system or buy a new one. It is the best option possible when it comes to having a structure, following up, and making a better strategy because you can always see what your team is doing, and you have some great reports to help you.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
It's a great helpdesk solution - we currently have five years of data within it, roughly 25,000 tickets. The older edition is a great inventory and software license tracking tool. It is easy for users to use the interface and submit tickets and requests on the web, and its email integration is solid. The new version is a below-average system monitoring tool, only giving up/down status and a few other metrics.
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Pros
Freshworks Inc
  • The price is great for small startups just large enough to need a support ticketing system.
  • This may seem minor, but many tools don't have this: the ability to link a contact to multiple companies/accounts.
  • Agent collision detection is great for making sure agents don't duplicate each others' work!
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
  • It helps to multitask, even on the go with the mobile App.
  • We can customize to meet your needs with automated responses, notifications, and templates.
  • Detailed reports allow managers to keep track [of] and analyze data.
  • Allows for a database to store notes helpful for future tickets.
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Cons
Freshworks Inc
  • Data Security.
  • SLA Policies where it is not customer / contract driven but agents / groups driven.
  • Audit Trail is not available in Pro version makes the tool adoption difficult from compliance perspective.
  • Chat Bot and Fresh Chat Services has greater potential to explode, but the pricing model tagged to chat bot sessions .are illogical as it limits the ability to use the fresh chat feature
  • Agent Logon Screen use earlier version of Captcha as it is annoying for the agents to login. Very frustrating experience.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
  • I have always wanted a way to redirect a support request into another IS bin, such as a development task.
  • It's possible to extract the data from the Spiceworks database, but it would be helpful if the process to do so were easier.
  • Improved ability to customize the system generated emails to improve the formatting and company branding.
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Likelihood to Renew
Freshworks Inc
We are extremely happy with Freshdesk and can foresee using it for the next year. We might only consider using a different platform if our average daily ticket volume reaches four digits and its AI isn’t enough to handle our needs by then. While we haven’t tested this yet, we have read reviews that it’s AI capabilities are lacking
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
Spiceworks is a free tool, so there would be no hesitation if we are required to upgrade it. We have installed Spiceworks on a dedicated server with more than enough resources to get the most from this tool, so we will have this running in our department for years to come.
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Usability
Freshworks Inc
I gave it a rating of 9 out of 10 because they delivered on everything we asked them to do. Easy to setup, easy to deploy to end users, easy to customize, easy to enter tickets and so much more. Our experience with their support is top notch! After opening a ticket for support they call use back within 10 minutes every time!
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
Spiceworks is user friendly and easy to set up. It can be customized to suit your needs. If there are any problems, you can go to the community forums for support and be in contact with many IT Pros, as well as the Spiceworks support staff and development teams who are always happy to help users out
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Reliability and Availability
Freshworks Inc
I have encountered a lot of errors in the Freshdesk, however, they tend to resolve it on priority or at least they will share the timeline by when this can be resolved. Most of the time the issue has been from the other partner's end. They take time to resolve their vendor issues and they don't have any timelines in case of developed app errors.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
We use it both locally on our own server so up time is decided by us and we also use the hosted help desk. We have never had an outage of that.
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Performance
Freshworks Inc
The reports take a lot of time to download if the time period is large. Also, the tickets take their sweet time to open and load. It is not fast as Zendesk. Only 30 tickets are visible in a single go and there isn't any option to select all. If we need to change the pages and dashboards it takes a lot of time to open.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Freshworks Inc
The main thing about Freshdesk user service is that once a request has been made for information about a feature of the platform, the support team responds to tickets quickly, within a day of writing and submitting them, with information that is concise enough so that there is no need to ask for help on the same topic again.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
Spiceworks has been working out of the box, and some of the basic customizations have been successful with just our internal staff handling. We don't have any other issues with the tool. It provides us with the inventory information we want in a quick and concise report in a variety of formats for our team.
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In-Person Training
Freshworks Inc
In-person training is provided to all the agents and it is very easy to learn the basics of the Freshdesk interface. Solving tickets via dashboards, replying to the guest queries in bulk via Freshdesk. The training which is a bit hard is creating the logic according to the ticket flow and intergeration.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
No answers on this topic
Online Training
Freshworks Inc
This tool is no doubt easy to learn but in-person training is a lot better than online training. It takes time to grasp things in the online training, however, in pandemic we have done all the training online. Apart from a bit more time we haven't faced any issues with online training.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Freshworks Inc
Most important, Freshdesk is a user- friendly platform which directly supports interfaces and navigates user to start. Helps to provide multiple and complex documentation and troubleshooting. It provides build templates for different workflows and processes also refuces effort and time to implement and perform corporate tasks and complete the execution.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
If you can spin up a VM to run it on, you'll thank yourself later. If you have remote sites, set up a local server (or dedicated computer) at each site and set them up as remote collectors for the main site. You'll save time and bandwidth
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Alternatives Considered
Freshworks Inc
AI-powered automation, with its ability to integrate multiple communication channels—such as email, chat, and phone—into a single platform, helps us resolve common issues more quickly, reducing response times and allowing agents to focus on more complex inquiries. Their 24/7 customer support is highly responsive, and they proactively engage with clients through regular reviews to ensure alignment with business goals.
Read full review
Spiceworks Ziff Davis
EGroupware UI is clunky and hard to use, Jira is great but the pricing is expensive in comparison with spice works that has a free version and you can test it out properly before buying and make a correct decision based on your business plan and company objectives with the right software.
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Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Freshworks Inc
I was not very involved with the purchase/contract (my company purchased Fresjdesk before I was brought on), but I will say that pricing per agent made it difficult to grow our support team. Additionally, we were kind of disappointed after our upgrade because it didn't solve our pain points as much as we expected.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
No answers on this topic
Scalability
Freshworks Inc
My company had Freshdesk agents from support and success. It's generally difficult to customize permissions for different agent "roles." We were a fully distributed company, so "multiple sites" doesn't apply to us. We found Freshdesk features lacking as we grew our customer base, and adding agents wasn't easy because price steeply increases with number of agents.
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
No answers on this topic
Professional Services
Freshworks Inc
- good customer support
- personal contact
- usage limited to basic product features, individually designed solutions seem unlikely
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Freshworks Inc
  • Increased response times - Client Success maintains at 98% SLA for resolution
  • Categorization of feedback and issues - custom ticket fields make it easier for us to review why clients contact us on a high level
  • Standardization of internal procedures via templates, canned responses and automations
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Spiceworks Ziff Davis
  • Positive - Allow organizations to implement structured Help Desk procedures.
  • Positive - IT can begin to quantify their tickets and uncover needs within the organization.
  • Positive - IT can develop a solid roadmap with [the] management of future needs, equipment refresh schedules, etc.
  • Positive - IT can pinpoint employees who may need extra training or updated equipment based on historical ticketing data.
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ScreenShots