BMC Helix ITSM vs Cherwell Service Management vs ServiceNow comparison

Cherwell Service Management

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BMC Helix ITSM

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between BMC Helix ITSM, Cherwell Service Management, and ServiceNow based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about ServiceNow, Atlassian, ManageEngine and others in IT Service Management (ITSM).

To learn more, read our detailed IT Service Management (ITSM) Report (Updated: March 2026).

IT Service Management (ITSM)

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Helped 885,444 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the IT Service Management (ITSM) category, the mindshare of BMC Helix ITSM is 5.7%, down from 11.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cherwell Service Management is 1.7%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ServiceNow is 15.8%, down from 24.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

IT Service Management (ITSM) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
ServiceNow	15.8%
BMC Helix ITSM	5.7%
Cherwell Service Management	1.7%
Other	76.8%

IT Service Management (ITSM)

Featured Reviews

KuldeepNayak

Senior Application Developer BMC at Balfour Beatty

Self-service portal significantly reduces resolution time and transforms service process with advanced features

We initially had a lot of tickets generated via the service desk through calls and emails. Now, we have almost moved out of email creations by introducing the DWP features on the Studio pages, with about 90% of the tickets coming in via our self-service portal. Recent upgrades offer different types of views for particular business lines, which was missing earlier. The new landing pages have allowed us to add banners, images, and internal videos, encouraging most customers to use these DWP self-service features. Resolution time has decreased significantly since implementing the self-service portal. Additionally, the availability of knowledge articles, chatbots, and the new Helix GPT feature has improved service processes.

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Thobile Moeketsi

Senior Manager at Sasria SOC Ltd.

Having everything in one location has significantly improved our efficiency and reporting

We need to be on VPN in order to set up and access the solution, and that has created some challenges. Even though it uses our Windows login, we still have to be on VPN. The product should be able to log tickets directly from system to system. We haven't got there yet and I'm not sure it's possible but it would determine the product's capability to integrate with other systems.

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MichaelTang1

Manager of Security Engineering & Architecture at a outsourcing company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Seamless data integration and advanced automation improve service delivery efficiency

I think that nothing needs to be improved with the product; you just need the user to commit and spend appropriate time to overcome that learning curve. Once that is done, the product itself is pretty wonderful. I've seen a very nicely built interface with ServiceNow, and I've also seen the ugliest version that feels outdated. ServiceNow does allow that team to exist. They should modernize their fonts and their layout, the UI friendliness. They did introduce AI, chatbots, and AI on the back end, so that's wonderful and extremely useful if you train it. If you don't train it, it's pretty useless. Assessing the impact of ServiceNow's automation on service delivery times is complicated. The engineers who operate on ServiceNow find it isn't straightforward because the data set is accessible by everybody. The problem is that understanding how to manage that data set requires an enormous amount of engineering skill set to run the product. I would not hand the key to the customer; I would highly recommend that ServiceNow take control of that. Instead of offering support for the software, they should offer administrative support for the software. They should provide professional service or some kind of support system that allows us to use their product at a faster pace. I'm sure they offer something, but it's often outrageously expensive, or they rely on another company to resell their product and offer professional service. It makes no sense in my opinion, and they should offer the team at the front to help customize the product to fit each company's needs, as every company has different demands and forms of submitting a request that need adjustment over time.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The MyIT product has given our end users a much better perception of Remedy and made the product look more fluid. This has made people more likely to log calls rather than do work offline."

"From what I've read BMC Helix ITSM has a lot of features and far more than the CA Service Desk."

"Having the solution on the cloud brings increased scalability."

"The solution is already aligned with the framework, so it is easy for us to proceed with any ISO 27K certification."

"The ability to utilise CMDB information is the most valuable feature for us as it helps us to see interlinkages between CIs."

"The valuable feature for me is that it's a tool that allows me to track processes right from the initial user request."

"In general, for incident management, it's okay."

"BMC offers excellent customer solutions, and they're quick to address bugs or shortcomings in their product."

More BMC Helix ITSM pros

"The dashboard is very useful to get a quick overview of current tasks."

"The most valuable features are problem management and change management."

"Implementing CSM has made us very efficient and we're now able to plan changes and the steps required for implementation."

"Its integration features, orchestration features, and discovery tools are the most valuable. It is also pretty stable, and it can be as scalable as you want."

"All our activities are carried out in the one place."

"The best feature is the ability to create functional dashboards, where the IT manager can interact with its data through the dashboard using the drill down feature."

"Clear processes with transparent responsibilities led to more efficiencies within the teams."

More Cherwell Service Management pros

"It's more about the ease of use of ServiceNow. Plus, everything is there in a single platform. If you need any additional functionality, you just need to enable the plugins without even installing anything on the servers"

"I think it's a very, very well architectured platform, and that's the strength of ServiceNow."

"We recently moved to ServiceNow from HP Service Manager about two years ago and it's been leaps and bounds just better than what we had before."

"Last year, there were three steps for installing or uninstalling software when a user asked us to do so, but by using ServiceNow, when a user opens a ticket or incident, we can automatically run the workflows through the system, and the assistant can automatically go to the user's computer and install or uninstall the software."

"ServiceNow is great. You can download the data into Excel and you can basically create reports. It's very flexible."

"Openness and ease of use are the two big things right there."

"Change management is most valuable."

"From my standpoint, it's the process flexibility."

More ServiceNow pros

Cons

"The Approval Central system needs to be refreshed."

"Our middleman provider limits the available functionality so we cannot even do our own analytics."

"Customer Service: Fairly good. Much of it is in Asia and as in with most foreign customer support there is that occasional “understanding the accent” problem, but apart from that they are fairly good at what they do."

"Any software has a lifecycle. To me, BMC is a dated architecture."

"To raise any ticket, there are too many fields to be filled and it makes generating tickets very time-consuming."

"SmartIT could include PR. This would help us greatly in bridging the gap between Remedy's views and SmartIT."

"In User Group sessions held by BMC in India, I mentioned the challenges with vast documentation, making it difficult to find the right information quickly. However, we lack access to a sandbox for in-house development, which was very helpful for hands-on work with new features."

"Their customer service catalog (where a customer can order some products) could be improved. This product is not the best, but they are working on it."

More BMC Helix ITSM cons

"Access is only available if we're on VPN."

"Agile delivery should be supported."

"The support from the actual manufacturer is poor."

"The stability, specifically in the on-premises deployment model, could be improved."

"They need to improve their mobile interface, as well as features regarding the extension of the mobile access to the end user."

"The solution could be more user-friendly."

"Application service mapping, GRC, SecOps, and things like that need improvement."

"Areas for improvement would be the service catalog and customer catalog, which is not very user-friendly. The shopping cart experience is also terrible - you submit and go straight to the cart, you can't continue shopping or see your overall cost."

More Cherwell Service Management cons

"ServiceNow is not meeting our expectations. The contract module is quite rudimentary and doesn't support contract line items, which are subdivisions of contracts in VA."

"Service mapping could be less complicated."

"I find ServiceNow to be a little bit clunky. If I need to report an issue they have a number of different options. I can report an issue, I can ask a question, I can make a request and it has varying levels of importance or levels of attention required. I find that what's required to submit is not always clear."

"I'd like to see improvement in their mobile space just because that's certainly my priority."

"I have found the solution very expensive."

"Their cloud management is also not that great compared to other products."

"Some enhancements to the self-service platform would be helpful. That part is still a little barebone."

"if I consider from the IT operations management side, ServiceNow is pretty premature on some things, especially the discovery, while the other tools like Micro Focus and BMC Remedy, those that have been in the market for quite some time. ServiceNow is evolving itself in the discovery piece of the future."

More ServiceNow cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is costly, but it is well worth it."

"It is too expensive for a small business."

"The cost is relatively high, especially for the BMC Controller application. However, the expense is justified by the standard and reliable features it offers. This product's reputation in the market is strong, providing assurance in terms of data and other considerations."

"If you are looking for some kind of professional services form the OEM then you would have to purchase that."

"The solution's pricing should come down."

"BMC Helix ITSM is a very cost-effective solution."

"It's a yearly subscription but there are a couple of customers who go for the monthly subscription."

"Just make sure you really sit down and look at what you will be using per user, therefore you will not be surprised with a big bill. You do not want every user having every license, it really is not needed."

More BMC Helix ITSM pricing and cost advice

"For an ITIL user, the cost is probably about 50 bucks a month."

"The cost is quite high."

"They could be more competitive with their licensing."

"The solution is expensive."

"ServiceNow is a leader and its pricing is quite good, quite competitive... Sometimes some plugins are not priced reasonably but, generally, the platform itself, its modules, are priced reasonably."

"Initially, the licensing model ServiceNow came up with was very good. But now, from a licensing perspective, they are changing their model day by day. It is becoming a bit expensive for customers."

"There are licensing fees."

"This is a pretty expensive product, so the licensing could be better."

"The pricing is on the high side, but if you look at the stability and option to work, it's kind of justified."

More ServiceNow pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which IT Service Management (ITSM) solutions are best for your needs.

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

Government

Construction Company

12%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Healthcare Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	19
Midsize Enterprise	14
Large Enterprise	55

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	55
Midsize Enterprise	35
Large Enterprise	168

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about BMC Helix ITSM?

If we consider major players like Ford or BMW, their core focus is manufacturing products like cars. To ensure smooth...

What needs improvement with BMC Helix ITSM?

Although BMC Helix ITSM is a strong enterprise platform, there are areas where it could be improved. One key area is ...

What is your primary use case for BMC Helix ITSM?

My main use case for BMC Helix ITSM is validating and automating core ITSM workflows, such as incident, change, and s...

Which solution is better for developing non-ITSM applications: OutSystems or Service Now?

Ask a question

Earn 20 points

The short answer is that OutSystems is far better for 2 main reasons. Firstly, with Service Now you are locked into t...

Would you choose ServiceNow over Microsoft PowerApps?

Hi Netanya, I will choose ServiceNow because ServiceNow is a very good tool compared to Microsoft PowerApp. Because ...

What do you like most about ServiceNow?

The solution has a user-friendly interface.

JIRA Service Management vs BMC Helix ITSM

Comparisons

Compared 12% of the time

Agiloft ITSM ITIL Service Desk Suite vs BMC Helix ITSM

Compared 5% of the time

Zendesk vs BMC Helix ITSM

Compared 4% of the time

Freshservice vs BMC Helix ITSM

Compared 3% of the time

Aisera AI Service Desk vs BMC Helix ITSM

Compared 3% of the time

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Ivanti Neurons for ITSM vs Cherwell Service Management

Compared 7% of the time

Freshservice vs Cherwell Service Management

Compared 7% of the time

JIRA Service Management vs Cherwell Service Management

Compared 5% of the time

Hornbill Systems Supportworks vs Cherwell Service Management

Compared 5% of the time

IT Care Center vs Cherwell Service Management

Compared 4% of the time

More Cherwell Service Management Competitors

IBM Maximo vs ServiceNow

Compared 5% of the time

Zendesk vs ServiceNow

Compared 4% of the time

JIRA Service Management vs ServiceNow

Compared 4% of the time

Freshservice vs ServiceNow

Compared 3% of the time

TeamDynamix vs ServiceNow

Compared 3% of the time

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Product Reports

BMC Helix ITSM

Download BMC Helix ITSM product report

IT Service Management (ITSM)

Download Cherwell Service Management product report

Download ServiceNow product report

Also Known As

Remedy ITSM, Remedy, Helix Remedy, BMC Helix IT Service Management

No data available

Overview

BMC Helix ITSM is a cutting-edge IT service management platform that leads the service management industry. It is built natively for mobile with an intuitive, beautiful, people-centric user experience that makes your whole organization more productive. This platform leverages artificial intelligence to automate and streamline various service management processes. In doing so, it will ultimately make your organization more efficient. This simple-to-use platform is capable of handling even your organization’s most advanced management requirements.

BMC Helix ITSM is a predictive platform that does not simply wait for problems to occur. The advanced analytics software aims to improve your organization’s efficiency by spotting weak areas and then proposing solutions. This platform can improve your resource deployment efficiency by as much as 45% .This is why it is trusted by corporations across a variety of industries.

Key Features

Some of BMC Helix ITSM’s key features include:

Solves service issues in a way that makes you more efficient. BMC Helix ITSM employs advanced analytic software that searches for areas where your organization can drive efficiencies to provide the best possible service.
Groups issues that recur in a way that streamlines both analysis and incident management. It uses artificial intelligence to identify and solve groups of incidents in real time. The AI automates these processes, which can prove both tedious and time-consuming.
Securely and seamlessly provides services across multi-cloud environments with “a single pane of glass” interface. This allows you to be highly flexible. You can configure your services in a number of different ways without having to worry that your multi-cloud environment won’t be able to support your service management.
The ability to view all of your management data in a way that provides you with clear insights into your system’s management. BMC Helix ITSM enables you to create custom reports and dashboards. This makes it possible for you to see any and all significant trends in your operations and services data.

Reviews from Real Users

BMC Helix ITSM’s software stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two of these are the robust activity tracking features and the lightweight nature of the solution.

A PeerSpot user who is a technical Program Manager and Site Lead at a computer software company notes the nature of Helix’s task tracking when they write, “The most valuable features I have found are the activity logs. Additionally, the other features where you are able to continuously address issues and are able to annotate notes inside to convey them to the customer. The customer can read the notes and are able to know where you are in the procedures and process of fixing the problem for them. It has a good interactive piece for dialogue with customers where you do not have to interact with them personally, but they can do it on their own just by going into that activity log. This is great for the customer to have the ability to find out how things are being progressively taken care of.”

Another PeerSpot user, who is a Practice Director of Global Infrastructure Services at a computer software company, notes, “Many other tools are similar. I've used these tools and find that they meet my requirements. Helix is more lightweight than these tools. It's a traditional tool that was developed more than 10 years ago. Ease of use is the operative word.”

BMC Helix

Cherwell Service Management is a powerful IT service management (ITSM) solution that provides IT organizations the flexibility needed for rapid configuration and customization, minimal overhead, and frictionless upgrades at a fraction of the cost and complexity associated with legacy ITSM solutions. Cherwell's codeless design architecture means you can add new functionality without modifying a single line of code, integrate easily with third party applications, and upgrade without fear of breaking what you've built.

Ivanti

ServiceNow is a cloud-based task-management platform that specializes in IT operations management (ITOM), IT services management (ITSM), and IT business management (ITBM). ServiceNow allows users to manage their teams, projects, and customer interactions using a variety of different plugins and apps with which it easily integrates.

ServiceNow offers prebuilt applications to support any process, as well as a framework and tools that allow you to build your own.

ServiceNow’s service management solutions include change, request, incident, problem, and cost management, as well as HR, IT, field service, and facilities management solutions. They also cover business management solutions such as vendor performance management, financial management, performance analytics and project portfolio suite, as well as governance, risk, and compliance.

“The Smarter Way to Workflow”

ServiceNow’s activities, processes, and tasks are overseen as part of a comprehensive managed workflow that supports such features as real-time collaboration, communication, and resource sharing. ServiceNow’s suite of products allow for operation using serverless computing, and include the categories of Business Apps, Customer Service, HR, IT, and Security.

ServiceNow can be used to support most workflows because of the wide range of tools it offers. These include on-suite ticketing tools, predictive modeling to manage workflows, and benchmarking for the tracking of progress. ServiceNow can assist with artificial intelligence and machine learning processes and can be used to organize the cases of a help/service desk as well as for instance management and problem management. It also smoothly integrates with many legacy systems.

ServiceNow offers service management software for industries including:

Cloud services
Education
Financial services
Government
Healthcare
Manufacturing
Telecommunications

Reviews from Real Users

PeerSpot users prefer ServiceNow to its competitors because of its scalability, stability, and ease of use. It helps everyone in the company to be on the same page by creating a single source of record across all departments. One user stated that “I’ve definitely used over 20 project management solutions, but they can't be compared with ServiceNow.” Another said that “ServiceNow is an industry leader in multiple areas and provides an excellent ROI.”

Sample Customers

Brookfield, HealthSouth Corporation, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, Mercator, SAP, Stanford University

Ausenco, Highlights for Children, B/E Aerospace

AAA, AstraZeneca, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Broadcom, Christus Health, Epicor, Equinix, GE Capital, Intuit, KPMG, Loyola Marymount University, OshKosh, Quantas, RedHat, Royal Bank of Scotland, Swiss Re, U.S. Department of Energy, Safeway, Yale University, and Zillow

IT Service Management (ITSM)