Freshservice

What is Freshservice

Freshservice is a cloud-based IT service management (ITSM) platform from Freshworks designed to help IT and operations teams manage incidents, requests, assets, changes, and service catalogs. It consolidates ticketing, reporting, automation, and a self-service portal into a single application so teams can triage issues, enforce processes, and provide internal and external support from one system. Freshservice supports ITIL-aligned workflows while remaining configurable for teams that do not require strict ITIL adherence.

Freshservice targets IT support teams, managed service providers (MSPs), HR/operations service teams, and small-to-large organizations that require a central system to manage employee-facing and customer-facing service requests. The platform is used both as a help desk and as a broader ITSM suite with modules for asset discovery, CMDB, release and change control, and knowledge management.

Because Freshservice is delivered as a SaaS product, it reduces infrastructure overhead for teams that prefer not to host an on-premise help desk. It includes multi-tenant cloud hosting, role-based access controls, SSO integrations, and compliance features suitable for regulated environments when deployed at scale.

Freshservice features

What does Freshservice do?

Freshservice provides a set of core ITSM capabilities that cover the lifecycle of an incident or service request from intake to resolution:

• Ticketing and incident management with prioritization, SLA tracking, and agent assignments
• Self-service portal and knowledge base for end users to find answers and raise requests
• Service catalog and request fulfillment processes for standardizing internal services
• Asset management and a CMDB (configuration management database) that links assets to tickets and changes
• Change, release, and problem management workflows with approvals and audit trails
• Automation and orchestration through workflow builders, canned responses, and automatic ticket routing
• Reporting, dashboards, and analytics for SLA adherence, team workload, and operational metrics
• Mobile apps and multi-channel intake (email, chat, phone integration, portal, and APIs)

Beyond the core list above, Freshservice includes features designed to reduce manual work and improve service quality:

• Discovery and inventory collection to track hardware and software across an environment
• Contract and vendor management to track warranties, SLAs, and suppliers
• Agent collision detection and audit logs to avoid duplicated work
• Configurable roles, RBAC, and data segregation for multi-team organizations
• Built-in templates and ITIL-aligned workflows that can be customized

Feature depth is supported by a library of integrations and a modern UI that supports views by team, agent, or service. For automation, Freshservice offers a drag-and-drop workflow builder and the ability to trigger automations from ticket fields, time-based rules, or external events.

Freshservice pricing

Freshservice offers these pricing plans:

• Free Trial: $0/month for a limited trial period with full-feature access for evaluation
• Starter: $19/month per agent (billed annually) — basic ticketing, self-service, and standard automations
• Growth: $39/month per agent (billed annually) — asset management, service catalog, and advanced automations
• Pro: $69/month per agent (billed annually) — CMDB, change management, analytics, and higher automation quotas
• Enterprise: $99/month per agent (billed annually) — advanced security, custom roles, and enterprise-grade governance

Each plan typically changes depending on billing frequency, seat counts, and add-on modules such as discovery, advanced security, or concierge onboarding. Check Freshservice's current pricing plans for the latest rates and enterprise options.

How much is Freshservice per month

Freshservice starts at approximately $19/month per agent for entry-level paid plans when billed annually. Monthly billing and promotional discounts may affect the effective per-agent monthly price.

How much is Freshservice per year

Freshservice costs approximately $228/year per agent for the entry-level Starter plan when billed annually (based on $19/month per agent multiplied by 12). Annual billing often unlocks lower per-user pricing and the ability to negotiate enterprise agreements for larger deployments.

How much is Freshservice in general

Freshservice pricing ranges from roughly $0 for temporary trials up to $99+/month per agent for full enterprise feature sets. Small teams and pilot projects can operate on lower-priced tiers, while organizations that require CMDB, change governance, and advanced security will typically select Pro or Enterprise tiers. Always review the official Freshservice pricing page to compare current plan limits, included automations, discovery quotas, and add-on costs.

What is Freshservice used for

Freshservice is used primarily as an IT service desk and ITSM platform to centralize the intake and resolution of IT incidents and service requests. Organizations use it to streamline request fulfillment (password resets, hardware provisioning), manage incidents (outages, malfunctioning systems), and maintain an asset inventory tied to tickets and changes.

It’s also used for change and release management: teams use Freshservice to prepare change records, run approval workflows, and document rollback instructions and post-change reviews. For teams that support company-wide services (HR onboarding, facilities requests), Freshservice can host a service catalog that routes requests to the correct teams and tracks fulfillment metrics.

Operational benefits include clearer SLA tracking, reduced mean time to resolution (MTTR) through automation, and better auditability of configuration changes and vendor contracts. By linking incidents to assets and changes, teams can identify root causes, recurring problems, and areas for proactive remediation.

Freshservice is often adopted by IT departments, MSPs, and service teams in non-IT areas (HR, legal, facilities) that require a single service management platform with configurable workflows.

Pros and cons of Freshservice

Pros:

• Strong, modern ticketing system with multi-channel intake and configurable SLAs
• Built-in asset management and CMDB that link hardware and software to tickets and changes
• Visual workflow automation and a low-code approach to routine process automation
• Self-service portal and knowledge base to deflect common requests and reduce agent load
• Mobile apps and an intuitive interface for agents and requesters

Cons:

• Advanced ITSM features (robust CMDB, extensive automation, enterprise security) are gated behind higher-priced plans
• Some organizations report a learning curve for complex workflows and change management setups
• Large enterprises with heavy customization needs may require professional services or custom integration work
• Pricing per agent can become costly for large teams when advanced modules and discovery are required

When evaluating Freshservice, teams should weigh immediate help desk needs versus longer-term ITSM requirements (CMDB depth, change reporting, discovery) and choose a plan that matches projected scale and governance needs.

Freshservice free trial

Freshservice offers a trial period so teams can test core capabilities like ticketing, self-service, automation, and basic asset management. The free trial typically includes most features for a specified number of agents for a limited time, allowing teams to verify workflows, SLA behavior, and integrations before committing.

During the trial, organizations should validate the following: automation capacity, CMDB discovery results, integration behavior with existing tools (SSO, directory sync), and whether the service catalog can model internal services. Trials are also the right time to estimate the number of agents and the automation quotas you will need once you move to a paid plan.

Check Freshservice's trial and sign-up options to start an evaluation and to review the feature set included with the trial.

Is Freshservice free

Yes, Freshservice provides a free trial period for teams evaluating the product, but long-term free tiers are limited or unavailable for full ITSM feature sets. The free trial gives temporary access to core features; ongoing use of advanced features, CMDB, and discovery requires a paid plan.

Freshservice API

Freshservice provides a RESTful API that covers core objects such as tickets, assets, users, contacts, and change records. The API supports create, read, update, and delete (CRUD) operations, search endpoints, and webhooks for event-driven integrations. Authentication is typically via API key or OAuth depending on the integration and security posture.

Typical API capabilities include:

• Ticket automation and bulk operations through the tickets API
• Asset and inventory synchronization with the assets API and CMDB endpoints
• User and contact provisioning to sync with an identity provider or HR system
• Webhooks to notify external systems of ticket events, status changes, or SLA breaches
• Search and filter endpoints for reporting and custom UI integrations

Freshservice also provides SDKs and example scripts in common languages, and many third-party integration templates exist for popular services. For enterprise integrations, the platform supports SSO, SCIM provisioning, and can be extended with middleware for custom orchestration.

For API reference and developer guides, consult the official Freshservice developer documentation at the Freshworks developer portal and the Freshservice API reference to review endpoint formats, rate limits, and example payloads.

10 Freshservice alternatives

• ServiceNow — Enterprise-grade ITSM with deep workflow automation, strong CMDB capabilities, and extensive governance features.
• Jira Service Management — ITSM focused on DevOps workflows with strong issue tracking, change management, and developer integrations.
• Zendesk — Customer support platform that can be extended for internal help desks with multi-channel support and knowledge management.
• ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus — On-premise and cloud help desk with asset management and ITIL modules.
• Cherwell — Flexible ITSM platform that supports no-code configuration and heavy customization for enterprise processes.
• Freshdesk — Freshworks’ customer-facing support product that overlaps for external help desks and omnichannel support.
• SolarWinds Service Desk — ITSM with ITAM capabilities, discovery, and security-focused integrations.
• BMC Helix ITSM — Large enterprise ITSM platform built for complex environments and heavy governance.
• SysAid — ITSM with on-premise and cloud deployments, focusing on automation and asset management.
• Spiceworks (Help Desk) — Lightweight help desk tooling for small IT teams that need basic ticketing and asset tracking.

Paid alternatives to Freshservice

• ServiceNow: Enterprise-focused ITSM and ITOM platform with extensive customization, automation, and vendor ecosystem. Best for large organizations that require deep governance and integration capabilities.

• Jira Service Management: Integrates service requests with development workflows; strong for organizations that want tight coupling between operations and engineering teams.

• Zendesk: While primarily customer service software, Zendesk Support and Zendesk Suite can be configured for internal service desks and scaled with apps and automation.

• ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus: Offers both cloud and on-premise options with an emphasis on asset management and ITIL processes, often priced competitively for mid-market customers.

• BMC Helix ITSM: Built for enterprises with complex change and release requirements, BMC provides robust process maturity and vendor-grade SLAs.

• SolarWinds Service Desk: Targeted at IT operations teams needing discovery plus service desk features and consolidated ITAM capabilities.

Open source alternatives to Freshservice

• osTicket: Open-source ticketing system suitable for small to mid-size help desks; straightforward ticket workflows but limited ITSM depth.

• OTRS Community Edition (now Znuny or OTOBO forks): Provides ticketing and process automation; requires more hands-on maintenance and customization for ITSM features.

• GLPI: Open-source IT asset management and help desk platform with inventory, CMDB-like functions, and plugins for extended ITSM use.

• Zammad: Modern open-source help desk with web interface, multi-channel support, and API access; good for teams that want self-hosted solutions.

Frequently asked questions about Freshservice

What is Freshservice used for?

Freshservice is used for IT service management and help desk operations. Organizations use it to manage incidents, service requests, asset inventories, changes, and knowledge bases. It centralizes workflows so IT and operations teams can track SLAs, automate routine work, and maintain an auditable service record.

Does Freshservice integrate with Active Directory or SSO providers?

Yes, Freshservice supports single sign-on and directory integrations. It integrates with common SSO providers (SAML-based) and directory services for user provisioning and authentication. This reduces manual user management and simplifies agent and requester access across enterprise environments.

How much does Freshservice cost per agent per month?

Freshservice starts at approximately $19/month per agent for entry-level paid plans when billed annually. Higher tiers that include CMDB, change management, and advanced automation are priced at higher per-agent rates.

Is there a free version of Freshservice?

Yes, Freshservice offers a free trial for evaluation purposes. Ongoing free plans for production ITSM are limited; full ITSM capabilities and discovery features require a paid subscription.

Can Freshservice be used for change management and CMDB?

Yes, Freshservice includes change management and a CMDB on higher plans. Change workflows, approval gates, and change calendars are available, and the CMDB links assets to tickets and changes to provide context for root cause analysis.

Does Freshservice provide mobile apps?

Yes, Freshservice provides mobile apps for agents and requesters. Mobile apps allow agents to respond to tickets, update statuses, and receive notifications, while requesters can raise requests and check ticket statuses on the go.

How secure is Freshservice for enterprise use?

Freshservice offers enterprise-grade security controls and compliance features. The platform supports role-based access control, SSO, data encryption in transit and at rest, and audit logging; specific compliance certifications and security details should be confirmed on Freshservice’s security documentation.

Can I import data from Excel or other help desk tools into Freshservice?

Yes, Freshservice supports data imports from CSV/Excel and migrations from other help desks. Import utilities and migration guides help bring users, tickets, and assets into Freshservice; complex migrations can be assisted by Freshservice support or professional services.

Does Freshservice offer automation and orchestration?

Yes, Freshservice includes a workflow automation builder and orchestration features. You can automate ticket routing, escalation, and routine remediation tasks using a visual workflow builder and scheduled rules.

What integrations are available for Freshservice?

Freshservice integrates with common collaboration, monitoring, and IT operations tools. Prebuilt integrations and apps exist for tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, monitoring systems, remote support tools, and identity providers. For a full list and developer APIs, consult the Freshservice integrations library and API documentation.

freshservice careers

Freshservice is part of Freshworks and roles typically include product management, engineering, customer success, sales, and ITSM subject matter experts. Job listings emphasize experience with SaaS products, user-focused design, and operational support for cloud services. Candidates often look for roles that combine ITSM knowledge with cloud-scale engineering practices.

freshservice affiliate

Freshservice does not operate a public affiliate program in the same way some consumer SaaS products do; channel and reseller partnerships are available for qualified partners. Organizations interested in reselling or referring Freshservice should review the Freshworks partner programs and contact Freshworks for partnership terms and eligibility.

Where to find freshservice reviews

To evaluate real-world experiences, check independent review sites and user communities for Freshservice reviews. Popular sources include G2, Capterra, and IT-focused forums where reviewers discuss deployment experiences, pricing, support responsiveness, and feature maturity. For recent customer case studies and official references, review Freshservice customer stories and product case studies on the Freshservice website.