BMC Helix ITSM vs ServiceNow vs TOPdesk comparison

Read 231 ServiceNow reviews

30,705 Views
11,361 Comparison Views

92% willing to recommend

TOPdesk

Read 10 TOPdesk reviews

2,766 Views
2,240 Comparison Views

84% willing to recommend

BMC Helix ITSM

TOPdesk

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

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

Find out what your peers are saying about ServiceNow, Atlassian, Zendesk and others in Help Desk Software.

To learn more, read our detailed Help Desk Software Report (Updated: April 2026).

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Help Desk Software

April 2026

Helped 895,151 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 May 2026, in the Help Desk Software category, the mindshare of BMC Helix ITSM is 4.8%, down from 9.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ServiceNow is 11.2%, down from 22.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of TOPdesk is 2.1%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Help Desk Software Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
ServiceNow	11.2%
BMC Helix ITSM	4.8%
TOPdesk	2.1%
Other	81.9%

Help Desk Software

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.

Read full review

Hemanthreddy Vakiti

Data engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Structured workflows have improved SLA compliance and now support prioritized incident handling

I think the licensing and pricing of ServiceNow is quite expensive compared to other tools. For large organizations, it is acceptable, but specifically for small and medium organizations to track incidents or change requests, ServiceNow is quite expensive. Sometimes performance can be slow when workflows and integrations are configured for complex tasks. For advanced customizations or advanced features which we rarely use, the documentation is not up to standard. The documentation needs to be improved for advanced customization features. However, the platform is stable overall and the features are quite good. The user experience and performance concerns I mentioned are areas I want to be improved. When many workflows and interactions are configured, performance is slow. For the features it is providing, it is quite expensive. If these performance features are improved, we can easily pay that price and get the return on investment.

Read full review

Martina Peneva

People Technology Lead at Scandinavian Tobacco Group

Implement service management changes while addressing UI improvements

Topdesk's user interface makes it easy to handle requests and escalate them to other groups or reassign them when working on a single ticket. Additionally, the service management tool in HR allows for a change in delivering services, replacing email communication with ticket raising. The knowledge library enables the local HR to store and share relevant information and frequently asked cases, enhancing collaboration. The ticket system also facilitates escalating cases to other involved departments. IT, HR, and some other teams primarily use this system.

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 service desk (incident management) function is the lion's portion of use and value, and it has been instrumental in aligning our service desk with the ITIL fundamentals and continuously improving the operating metrics of that area."

"The most valuable feature for our customers using BMC Helix ITSM is change management."

"We reduced many paper processes to electronic driven forms. It helps us a lot in tracking and managing."

"Having all the processes, fields, and settings already setup out-of-the-box, thus minimizing implementation time."

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

"The mobile features are the best part of the new version. It is easy to be notified and update your work from a mobile, which is great."

"BMC Smart IT is somewhat rigid, but they have a powerful backend that supports our complex need for extension versus customization. Between extension and customization, you can achieve complex business processes. That's one of the main advantages of BMC."

"We find the incident management module the best. The reporting part is also useful. We use a feature called smart reporting, and it is very beneficial for us."

More BMC Helix ITSM pros

"I've seen other products, I've seen some of the stuff that they can do, but I really haven't seen one that can, at least in my mind, replace our ServiceNow for everything that we've put into it and everything that we've done, and it would be a very hard thing to do."

"Creating a ticket is much simpler in this tool; that is one big advantage, and the simplicity and ease of use are much better."

"ServiceNow is an industry leader in multiple areas and provides an excellent ROI."

"The solution integrates well with other products."

"The ability to get in there and create stuff without worrying about setting everything up first; we can start developing right away without having to get instances set up, get everything provisional, or all the networking stuff done, and just get up and go."

"For the nuts and bolts running of an IT organization, I can't really say there's anything lacking feature-wise."

"It is very user friendly, and I've enjoyed using the dashboard and user interface."

"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."

More ServiceNow pros

"The most valuable feature of TOPdesk is the reports."

"This solution has provided me with a well-defined process and interaction, compared to my previous tool, GLPI."

"TOPdesk is overall very stable."

"Change management is the most critical feature."

"It is an easy-to-use solution."

"The most valuable feature of TOPdesk is its ease of use if you have implemented it in the right way. If you're not implementing it in the right way, then it's very difficult."

"Its ITSM approach is quite useful."

More TOPdesk pros

Cons

"If you want to have to migrate from on-premises to Helix or from Helix to a ServiceNow, or from cloud to on-premises, it's easy but it requires additional tools."

"Provide documentation on the content of the REST API interfaces. Right now, it is pretty much non-existent."

"The interface is somewhat dated as compared to technologies in use today."

"BMC Helix ITSM could improve by having a cloud version. They are working on it which is a good thing because their competitors, such as ServiceNow, already provide cloud services."

"The tool needs greater customization flexibility, particularly concerning notifications and the progressive view web page. This is significant because it encompasses various aspects like incident management, problem management, change management, work orders, and tasks. Aligning the GUI interface with these functionalities requires more flexibility."

"Customer service: 3/10 - customer service is very painful. It takes a lot of time to pass the issue to the technical support and until that happens, the issue jumps between the people in support, that ask us always the some things."

"Sometimes, there is a performance issue, and it is a little slow and difficult on the usage side."

"Version 20.02 was stable, but I don't think 20.08 is quite stable because we have identified many bugs and reported them to BMC."

More BMC Helix ITSM cons

"The major area for improvement for our needs would be monitoring the metrics of the times to acknowledge and resolve issues and escalations."

"Some of the issues that my team has run into are that something one day works completely fine, the next day it does not."

"I find ServiceNow to be a little bit clunky."

"The solution could improve by being more stable."

"They could improve license management, particularly when integrating different applications or toolsets."

"In an upcoming release, there should be more administration tools."

"For me, there's a real opportunity, especially within the IT Service Management suite, to give a much better overall view of the workflow that individuals have across the different applications."

"Time to respond from support could definitely be better, as the global support timing sometimes causes delays in interactions."

More ServiceNow cons

"One of the disadvantages of TOPdesk is the reporting tool. It is very poor and not in real-time. You do not always receive the correct information."

"An operator is also a user but requires creating two different records."

"The solution's change management could be better."

"Change management implementation, facility management, and making reservations on assets can be improved."

"From a UI perspective, there is room for improvement. It sometimes takes many steps to do something simple, like creating or moving a knowledge item."

"If I open a ticket on the infrastructure team, I can't move it to the financial team for them to manage the ticket."

"An operator is also a user but requires creating two different records."

"The solution should be made more user-friendly."

More TOPdesk cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"BMC is a little bit cheaper than ServiceNow, but BMC doesn't have the same capabilities in its entry-level product at the moment. The basic version does not have the DWP features that most of our customers are requesting."

"The price of BMC Helix ITSM is expensive."

"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."

"It is too expensive for a small business."

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

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

"Please always get the latest quote from a BMC partner or from BMC. Check for the latest offerings."

"There are licenses to use this solution."

More BMC Helix ITSM pricing and cost advice

"ServiceNow's pricing is comparatively higher than Helix's."

"We know that ServiceNow is not cheap, it's more expensive than other solutions. But we are trying to increase our ability to handle tickets so that the cost per ticket is less."

"The licensing cost is based on your partnership with ServiceNow and what you have selected for implementation. There is an annual license cost which is calculated based on your number of devices."

"The cost is quite high."

"The pricing is reasonable and affordable, making it suitable for businesses ranging from small to large scale."

"The mandatory minimum is US$ 20,000 for licensing."

"ServiceNow tends to be a little bit more expensive as compared to BMC Helix ITSM."

"ServiceNow is an expensive solution."

More ServiceNow pricing and cost advice

"The cost of the solution on a yearly basis is $20,000. Technical support is not extra. It's included in the yearly cost. Updates are also included. The solution is good at keeping its product up to date."

"The solution is inexpensive compared to competitors."

"There are three fee options to choose from for a company and these options compared to market prices are very high. For example, if I use one of the first options for 10 assets, then it costs 20,000 Euros. If you went to competitors, then you pay less."

"TOPdesk's pricing is cheaper than Jira's."

"Compared to other products in this segment, I think that they are priced well and not too expensive."

"The solution's pricing is reasonable and not expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

10%

Educational Organization

10%

Computer Software Company

Outsourcing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

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

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	56
Midsize Enterprise	35
Large Enterprise	179

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	7

Questions from the Community

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...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for BMC Helix ITSM?

My thoughts on the pricing and licensing cost of BMC Helix ITSM are that it is flexible.

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

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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ServiceNow?

ServiceNow's pricing is fine. We have accounting for each headcount for ServiceNow, and the pricing is actually good.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for TOPdesk?

The solution's pricing is reasonable and not expensive.

What needs improvement with TOPdesk?

From a UI perspective, there is room for improvement, as some tasks like creating or moving a knowledge item within t...

What is your primary use case for TOPdesk?

I use Topdesk to change the way we deliver our services in HR to the business. Instead of writing an email to a parti...

JIRA Service Management vs BMC Helix ITSM

Comparisons

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Agiloft ITSM ITIL Service Desk Suite vs BMC Helix ITSM

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Cherwell Service Management vs BMC Helix ITSM

Compared 4% of the time

Freshservice vs BMC Helix ITSM

Compared 3% of the time

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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

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JIRA Service Management vs TOPdesk

Compared 10% of the time

LiveChat vs TOPdesk

Compared 6% of the time

Zendesk vs TOPdesk

Compared 5% of the time

GLPI by Teclib vs TOPdesk

Compared 4% of the time

Serviceaide ChangeGear vs TOPdesk

Compared 3% of the time

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Product Reports

Download BMC Helix ITSM product report

BMC Helix ITSM

May 2026

Download ServiceNow product report

April 2026

Download TOPdesk product report

Help Desk Software

April 2026

Also Known As

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

No data available

Overview

BMC Helix ITSM offers advanced IT service management, integrating incident, change, and problem management for streamlined operations. Its ITIL Out Of The Box functionality and strong automation tools enhance service delivery, making it a vital tool for comprehensive IT process oversight.

Designed for diverse business environments, BMC Helix ITSM delivers exceptional customization and integration capabilities. Its automation and self-service features enable efficient incident management and service request handling, all while providing robust reporting tools. The platform scales effectively across businesses, supported by intuitive interfaces, built-in workflows, and APIs for seamless change management. This allows organizations to streamline processes and maintain compliance with ease. However, users have identified improvement areas such as user friendliness, cloud management, and the need for a mobile version. Transitioning between versions should be more fluid, and better customer support responsiveness is needed.

What are the most important features?

Call Logging: Efficiently document and manage support requests.
Escalation Features: Automatically prioritize and handle urgent issues.
Customization: Tailor processes to suit specific requirements.
Integration Capabilities: Connect with other tools to enhance data analysis.
Automation: Streamline workflows to improve service efficiency.
Self-Service: Enable users to resolve issues independently.
Service Request Management: Simplify intake and resolution of service requests.
Reporting Tools: Gain insights and improve IT service operations.

What benefits and ROI should users look for?

Operational Efficiency: Enhance productivity through streamlined workflows.
Scalability: Adapt to growing business demands seamlessly.
Compliance: Maintain regulatory standards effortlessly.
Performance: Achieve rapid issue resolution and improved service levels.
Flexibility: Accommodate diverse IT environments with customizable features.

BMC Helix ITSM is widely used across industries for IT service management and enterprise ticketing systems. Organizations leverage its capabilities to manage internal and external service desks, aligning with ITIL best practices. The platform aids in managing infrastructure, ensuring service assurance, and maintaining network provisioning. Through integration with other tools, companies bolster data analysis and automate workflows, enhancing overall operational efficiency.

BMC Helix

ServiceNow offers customizability and cloud-based integration that sustains operational efficiency. Enabling change and incident management, it accelerates workflow automation and project management without downtime issues, serving deployment needs for IT service and productivity enhancements.

ServiceNow stands out with its adaptable workflows and cloud-native infrastructure, boosting IT service, project, and asset management. Known for its robust incident and change management, the platform addresses business needs through its user-centric design and extensive integration options. By facilitating seamless IT operations and automation, ServiceNow empowers businesses to enhance productivity and efficiency. Regular updates ensure users benefit from the latest features without service interruptions, although pricing and licensing complexities demand attention. Users seek improved reporting tools and a more intuitive design while expressing interest in refined mobile functionality and better documentation.

What are the key features of ServiceNow?

Customizability: Enables tailored workflows to align with business processes.
Cloud-Based Integration: Allows seamless updates and operational sustainability.
Incident and Change Management: Supports efficient handling of IT-related issues.
Automation Capabilities: Automates repetitive tasks, enhancing productivity.
User-Friendly Design: Simplifies navigation and improves user interaction.
Comprehensive Reporting: Provides detailed insights for better decision-making.

What benefits and ROI should users anticipate from ServiceNow?

Improved Efficiency: Streamlines processes and reduces manual efforts.
Enhanced Productivity: Automates tasks, enabling focus on strategic initiatives.
Seamless Operations: Integrates across departments for unified management.
Effective IT Management: Smooth incident, change, and problem resolution.
Cost and Time Savings: Reduces operational costs through efficient workflow management.

ServiceNow finds implementation across industries like IT, HR, asset management, and help desks, addressing ticketing and configuration needs. Businesses use its dashboard for tracking performance metrics, enhancing decision-making in departments like HR service delivery. Its adaptability also makes it suitable for industries requiring robust operational management and process automation, driving efficiency and growth.