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ConnectWise PSA vs SCSM comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 1, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

ConnectWise PSA
Ranking in Help Desk Software
20th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Business Management Software (1st), Professional Services Automation (PSA) (1st)
SCSM
Ranking in Help Desk Software
10th
Average Rating
7.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
IT Service Management (ITSM) (9th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Help Desk Software category, the mindshare of ConnectWise PSA is 2.4%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SCSM is 1.6%, down from 1.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Help Desk Software
 

Featured Reviews

JonMcWilliams - PeerSpot reviewer
Very useful for ticketing and billing purposes
In this case, we have the ability to fire on tasks. An email can be sent, and it is being received into the Kaseya tool or Autotask. Autotask then can parse the email appropriately and route it based on the rules that we set up. In that sense, it's very dynamic, and I can immediately identify which client is making a support request. It can route it to the appropriate queue and then send out the appropriate notifications. As work is done on the ticket, you can also notify the person requesting support or other pre-designated contacts so that they're kept in the loop. ConnectWise PSA is making its updates, and its integration with Office 365 has been really good. I like the fact that the solution integrates with IT Glue. ConnectWise PSA is making improvements, and it's a little bit more dynamic. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
LuisSanchez3 - PeerSpot reviewer
Current setup enables smooth problem-solving but lacks comprehensive guidance and local support
More information about setup procedures and a more user-friendly front end would be beneficial. We need more information for setup processes. It is difficult to do the work independently, requiring us to hire external companies for maintenance hours to fix small issues that could be resolved faster in-house if we had better information. We have been looking for an upgrade version, but finding local service has been difficult. It has been challenging trying to get things done. Speaking with the Microsoft office, we found there are no local companies with substantial experience with SCSM. What we have now was installed five or six years ago. It has been difficult to change configurations and look for upgrades, even with all the manuals. Our office is considering moving away from SCSM and getting a service desk solution outside of Microsoft. For me, it has been a good tool to get help and solve internal problems in the office. It is a very good tool, but the difficulty in getting local service or more information is pushing us to look for another tool.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product has been pretty stable so far."
"The ease of reporting is valuable. We have a weekly management meeting, and we gather numbers from ConnectWise in preparation for that. It is helpful for measuring how we're doing in our performance."
"I also like ConnectWise's ability to set up queries. I can set up all these different queries that look for specific things and end up with a list of results, like feedback from the client or the ticket status."
"The search function is really good. To have a single place where we have the account information stored is probably most valuable."
"The initial setup isn't too difficult."
"The most valuable feature is the management of projects from start to finish."
"We like the way that ConnectWise is completely integrated. So you when you identify an opportunity, you can save it, and ConnectWise pushes it through to the whole invoicing process."
"It's a nice ticketing system."
"SCSM is easy to learn because all of the material, including training videos, can be found online."
"The solution offers good productivity at a low price point."
"It is quite scalable."
"The reporting is very good."
"The solution's setup process is relatively straightforward due to the familiar deployment steps similar to other Microsoft solutions."
"Many more features than other comparable products."
"The remote access is one of the features I really enjoy. The pushing of email updates and things like that are very good."
"It is a simple solution that is easy to configure."
 

Cons

"It would be nice if ConnectWise gave us more flexibility when using customized fields in the interface. You can set up a user-defined field, but those don't port over to tables. It's really inconvenient."
"If you've got 40 tickets that come in, that get generated, that don't get properly tagged with the company, you can't just check them all and reassign them to another company. You have to individually reassign each one of those tickets to a new company."
"Has a very outdated 90s interface and not all features are accessible via the mobile app."
"Their reporting options aren't great. BrightGauge was something that we added on, and that enhanced the experience."
"The speed could be better, and the reporting could be a lot better."
"A lot of times, it'll take a couple of moments for things to go through. If you're not patient about it, it may seem like things aren't working."
"It needs to be easier to share tickets between users who need to work together."
"The tracking inventory or the way it tracks the products is not very good."
"Although some engineers at Microsoft are good, the support often lacks expertise, and response times are slow."
"It's not too hard to compile stuff but it is hard to manage the solution. Even the design itself makes it difficult for management."
"The user interface needs to be improved."
"The configuration could be easier."
"They might be looking for additional functionalities that SCSM could integrate."
"The patch management aspect of the solution should be improved. It's quite complicated and not user-friendly. If your systems are not patched properly, you are unable to pull reports."
"It crashes our client's computers. Sometimes they get blue screens. It would be useful if SCSM could check the upgrades or patches before we implemented them to see if they are going to crash a client's system. Or, if it does install, and the client's system crashes, it would be good if the solution could revert back somehow."
"It has not helped reduce the burden on IT resources."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We're paying $940 a month for 14 users."
"The cost can be the main barrier. It's not a solution for a three person company. It just isn't going to be cost effective. Because ConnectWise Manage does have everything there, the licensing is a little bit restrictive as far as how they want to granularly assign licenses rather than having more of an all-inclusive package."
"There are some different add-ons and benefits that are optional and come at an additional cost."
"I have one monthly license for all of the ConnectWise products I use, and it's $85 per user."
"The pricing is not based on my clients so much as it is on how many people I have accessing the system, and I think it's pretty good."
"The pricing of ConnectWise Manage is reasonable."
"It comes free with the enterprise agreement that we have, but the expense really is in having to buy another product to sit on top of it to make it work properly. You wind up having to buy additional support and additional product with their own support and maintenance costs on top of that."
"The price of the solution could be better. My organization has an enterprise annual license with Microsoft which provides us support."
"The platform is competitively priced."
"It is an expensive solution."
"Licensing can be complex and confusing."
"It is a lower price vs. other things on the market."
"The license for SCSM is cheap."
"The price should be lower."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
36%
Performing Arts
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Financial Services Firm
5%
Government
25%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
7%
University
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ConnectWise Manage?
In our case, the solution is priced out by the user we have in the system. The pricing is not based on my clients so much as it is on how many people I have accessing the system, and I think it's p...
What needs improvement with ConnectWise Manage?
The technical support of ConnectWise PSA is not very good.
What do you like most about SCSM?
The solution offers good productivity at a low price point.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SCSM?
I am not sure about the pricing as I do not have experience with it.
What needs improvement with SCSM?
More information about setup procedures and a more user-friendly front end would be beneficial. We need more information for setup processes. It is difficult to do the work independently, requiring...
 

Also Known As

ConnectWise Manage
System Center Service Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

IT Connexx, High Standards Technology Inc, Solvere One, MyIT, ConnectWise, Simpatico Systems, Fred IT Group, ECS, OneStop, K2 Technologies, Clark Integrated Technologies, Jmark, Geek on Wheels
Fibabanka, UMC Health System
Find out what your peers are saying about ConnectWise PSA vs. SCSM and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.