Kayako vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Kayako and ManageEngine are both solutions in the Help Desk Software category. Kayako is ranked #52, while ManageEngine is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.3. Additionally, 100% of Kayako users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 91% of ManageEngine users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Kayako and ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus 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: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Help Desk Software

August 2026

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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

Automation Anywhere

Featured Reviews

Venkat Sivaprakash

Management Consultant at Accenture

Has significantly improved document-driven workflows and reduced processing time across finance and HR functions

Automation Anywhere has evolved significantly and upgraded itself to provide agentic AI and AI-based automation solutions for document automation. The product has matured considerably over time. We can create workflows that can call an API. We can include prompts in particular workflows for ChatGPT-related functions, connecting to an LLM and RAG to perform tasks. For document automation, modern features are available to train documents, ensuring high accuracy and repeatability over time. The system is very easy to use. I recently completed a course in document automation, typically designed for people involved in coding and technical aspects. Though I understand coding comprehensively, I don't do actual coding. The course was very accessible. Currently, extensive coding isn't necessary due to the hybrid model incorporating GenAI aspects, low-code, no-code capabilities, APIs, and numerous pre-built objects in Automation Anywhere. The features include GenAI-driven prompting methods and workflow creation capabilities. In these workflows, we can create decision boxes and call APIs without coding. We simply pull objects, drop them, connect them, and add minimal coding when needed. The most crucial aspect isn't coding but rather sizing the automation and fleshing out the details. Automation Co-pilot takes notes and performs automated analysis. It can extract details from videos, summarize conversations, and provide detailed information. During calls, it identifies instructions and performs tasks such as preparing reports and reconciliation. Automation Anywhere can also connect with Microsoft Co-pilot. Through Co-pilot, real-time operations can be executed, allowing direct interaction between vendors and automation through this component.

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reviewer1712472

Operations and Support Manager at a consultancy with 501-1,000 employees

Flexible, straightforward implementation, and helpful support

We are in the process of switching from Kayako to ManageEngine Desktop Central. We went through a full review of our service desk processing and one of the solutions we purchased was a ManageEngine Desktop Central. When we were looking at the integrations into the Kayako system and how it works, we found that ManageEngine Desktop Central did very similar things. It had better layers of classification, other templating, and additional features that we did not have with Kayako. Our service manager made the decision to switch at that time. My advice to others wanting to implement Kayako would be for them to plan out their service processes first, prior to trying to implement them in the tool. We made the mistake of jumping in too soon back 10 years ago. I started using it in a way that we could have tooled it in a different way to make it better. We could have had more implementation process information to make sure we received what we wanted to out of the solution. I rate Kayako an eight out of ten.

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Mostafiz Miah

Sr. Presales & Technical Lead at Elitbuzz Technologies Ltd

Automation has transformed daily request handling and now tracks every customer interaction

ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus helps my team manage and resolve requests compared to previous methods as we previously managed things through paperwork and diaries. After deploying ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus, whenever any customer request comes, we provide the customer a product demo if they ask about the products. We then convert that request to a lead, which is converted to a demo, and then to the product POC, allowing us to follow up every stage of the requests. Everything can be tracked from ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus, whether at the closing stage or the initial stage. I use ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus daily in a unique way because previously everyone managed their own tracking system through their diary, but now everyone inputs data into this solution so that at the end of the day, we can get reports on how many leads we have taken care of and when they need to be taken care of. This information is visible from the ServiceDesk tool, and using the dashboard, we can easily identify it, providing an at-a-glance view. The best features ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus offers for my team include automating manual tasks, which allows whatever tasks we previously did manually to be converted into automatic tasks. Currently, they have also introduced Zia, a very helpful solution for us. Using Zia, we can search for anything, not only inside the tool but also outside, integrating it with ChatGPT and Teams, and it can integrate with other ManageEngine solutions as well as solutions such as Jira and ServiceNow. When we integrate our network monitoring solutions with ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus, it automatically raises an incident ticket and assigns it to the right team whenever any incident has occurred, which saves us time and reduces manual tasks. Previously, we had to communicate to the right people through mail or phone calls after an incident, but now the incidents are automatically converted and assigned to the relevant support groups along with the SLA. The integration with Teams allows us to raise tickets without logging into the portal, and we can see the ticket status and add comments through Teams, which is very helpful. Additionally, mail integration can automatically convert emails into tickets, adding further efficiency. ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus has positively impacted our organization, particularly in customer satisfaction. Previously, customers managed service requests, incidents, changes, and problems manually, but after integration, most of these processes are automated. This includes change requests that now follow a workflow based on organizational needs and ITIL best practices, making tracking incidents and requests much easier for end customers through scheduled reports.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"A valuable feature of Automation Anywhere for my needs is IQ Bot because it covers most of the semi-structured and structure data. That's where we are struggling a lot. So, IQ Bot is a very good solution to know and bring onboard for the automation of unstructured and semi-structured data."

"The features like IQ Bot and Metabot have helped our organization to gain business trust and provide a greater number of unique solutions to our clients for complex projects."

"It is an easy product. It is easier and less complex than any other RPA tool in the market. It is a popular product."

"I like all of the features, especially the MetaBot, REST API, and SAP DLL."

"This most valuable features of this solution are the drag-and-drop interface, and it is easy to code."

"The most valuable features are ease of use and deployment."

"With Automation Anywhere bots, we are able to cut down the manual efforts by 80% in generating Excel and Power BI reports, extracting and uploading files to various sites, and many other web-based administrative tasks."

"During the digital transformation of a company, the number of internal portals and applications increases leading to an increased number of data silos."

More Automation Anywhere pros

"The most valuable feature of Kayako is its flexibility, as we can do anything we want with it, which is nice."

"This solution has helped a lot by freeing up valuable time, allowing the IT personnel to work on other more critical areas, key projects, and perform their fundamental job requirements on time without interruption."

"The most valuable features are project management, change management, and the flow according to the mail chain."

"The strength is its pricing. It is easy to use."

"The most valuable feature of ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is ticket management."

"Easy to setup with a user-friendly interface that works well on cloud. It has a lot of important features: workflow builder, configuration management database, and recorded solutions."

"The auto-routing feature saves a lot of effort, where we used to spend a lot of time manually assigning things."

"It offers robust project management capabilities. You can create projects, define staging environments, and set rules and regulations according to organizational standards."

"It's very easy to customize the tool to your business needs."

More ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus pros

Cons

"I don't use the technical support a lot. It feels like a lot of time that they will ask us to check the user manual."

"Its licensing can become too expensive for a small startup company."

"One way Automation Anywhere can be improved is in ticketing; I have a couple of tickets that have been outstanding for a while, and the support staff have closed tickets without checking with me first, which has been a sore spot."

"One key feature we are looking for from Automation Anywhere is the need for a fully evolved CI/CD pipeline approach within our IT organization, given that we manage multiple applications."

"These guys need to build a good team."

"Automation Anywhere has newly integrated the Generative AI feature. It should be more customizable. Currently, we can change certain parameters, but we would like to have the ability to do modifications within the LLM for better outputs."

"There should be more organized training sessions. I prefer interactive classes to one-on-one training. You can create super users and organize conferences or workshops where users can learn from experts. Maybe you only have a few of these super users in your organization, so that's why you need to have workshops on a weekly basis."

"Some things that I do not see as of today are interactive chat or video interface. These are things that I will look for in future. I saw something like picture recognition, but something like a video or voice recognition is something that I'm looking for in the Automation Anywhere platform as an end user and even as a reseller."

More Automation Anywhere cons

"Some of the reporting in Kayako could be improved. It only has two levels of classification and if there were additional levels added for reporting purposes it would be awesome for our environment."

"Its reporting could be improved. The current list of predefined reports seems to be fine for most of the customers, but there should be some tools to allow us to create highly customized reports for measuring different KPIs. We should also be able to connect some kind of BI to it. We haven't yet implemented it, and we are currently evaluating it. We are looking for advanced integration options where we could integrate it with our SCCM and Azure environments as well as with other Office solutions. For direct communication with customers, we are looking for a chatbot or a similar feature."

"The CMDB should have correlation capabilities."

"It is sometimes a bit slow. If it can have a quicker response time, it would be good for users, service desk engineers, and technicians. For service requests, they don't have an SLA for each priority. For a service request, the SLA of response or resolution is only one irrespective of the priority. SLA should be different for each priority. For a ticket, there is no response SLA for the service request. For resolution SLA, that is, P1, P2, P3, or whatever you define, you still have the same SLA. It should be different."

"I would also like to see better integration with external software. It is possible, but it is tough. The APIs are not very flexible, so you really have to write a lot of code to create that integration. Opening it up for external integration would allow for easier customization of the existing autobox workflows. It would help with the user's perception."

"There could be some improvement regarding integration with other platforms like Sharepoint."

"Feature-wise, the reporting is not quite satisfactory."

"Lacks some flexibility in the configuration of workflows."

"There is a limitation when assigning an approval; it has to be a single user. It would be beneficial to have an option to assign approvals to a user group or a variable."

More ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We would like to use Citrix going forward. We use Bot Runners to scale up, and it gets to be expensive. Using Citrix, it can mitigate costs."

"The licensing cost of Automation Anywhere is better than UiPath and Blue Prism."

"The price is a little bit high but the support is good."

"This solution costs approximately $3,500 USD per license."

"The Community Edition is a good offering from the company."

"Licensing for Automation Anywhere (AA) is paid on a yearly basis. Out of all the RPA tools, it has the most value for money, e.g. what you pay is what you get."

"It's somewhat pricier than some of the other tools that we've used, and the breakout between the different applications is also somewhat costly. If they can make it a little more cost-effective or bundle packages a little bit more, that would be beneficial."

"It's cheaper than other similar solutions."

More Automation Anywhere pricing and cost advice

"Kayako is a highly affordable solution."

"ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus' price is very reasonable."

"Cost-wise, we're quite happy."

"Its price is very lucrative. It would be great if the price can come down, but overall, its price is great. It is half or maybe one-third of the price of other market leaders."

"ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is much cheaper than many of its competitors. We pay about nine dollars per agent and one dollar per device. There are no hidden costs."

"For 90 service agents and our need for a cloud solution with incident management and service request management, it annually costs around 12,000. If you need additional development or deployment support from the vendor, there might be an additional cost."

"For our 500 assets that are using the professional version of the solution, we pay somewhere between $4,000 and $5,000 per year."

"ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus' pricing is reasonable."

"It is above average. But it is neither cheap nor expensive."

More ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Outsourcing Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

No data available

Outsourcing Company

11%

Construction Company

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	161
Midsize Enterprise	82
Large Enterprise	558

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	33
Midsize Enterprise	24
Large Enterprise	20

Questions from the Community

How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

It depends on your use case. Is it simply to automate a couple of processes? Is it to augment a human team? AA is ver...

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How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

From my experience using AA tool, it depends on the applications that you want to automate, because there some applic...

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How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

It is a highly preferred RPA tool. You can check my Automation Anywhere Review to know more.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus?

Regarding pricing, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus offers three editions: Standard edition, Professional, and Enterpris...

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What needs improvement with ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus?

The biggest friction point or frustration I have run into with ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is the upgrade risk and ...

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What is your primary use case for ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus?

My main use case for ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is that we are receiving tickets from multiple users regarding iss...

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Comparisons

UiPath Platform vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 12% of the time

Blue Prism vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Power Automate vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 5% of the time

AutomationEdge vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 3% of the time

Appian vs Automation Anywhere

Compared 2% of the time

More Automation Anywhere Competitors

JIRA Service Management vs Kayako

Compared 31% of the time

ServiceNow vs Kayako

Compared 26% of the time

Hiver vs Kayako

Compared 11% of the time

SCSM vs Kayako

Compared 7% of the time

Salesforce Service Cloud vs Kayako

Compared 5% of the time

More Kayako Competitors

ServiceNow vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

Compared 12% of the time

JIRA Service Management vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

Compared 5% of the time

SCSM vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

Compared 5% of the time

SysAid vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

Compared 5% of the time

LiveChat vs ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

Compared 5% of the time

More ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Automation Anywhere

September 2026

Download Automation Anywhere product report

Buyer's Guide

Help Desk Software

August 2026

Download Kayako product report

Buyer's Guide

ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

August 2026

Download ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus product report

Also Known As

Automation Anywhere, Testing Anywhere, Automation Anywhere Enterprise, Agentic Process Automation System (Now Certified for WorkSpaces)

No data available

Interactive Demo

Automation Anywhere

Demo not available

Kayako

Demo not available

ManageEngine

Overview

Automation Anywhere offers ease of use, robust system connectivity, and GenAI-driven document automation through a cloud-native platform, significantly enhancing productivity across multiple industries with advanced AI features.

Delivering a comprehensive suite of tools designed for easy integration and rapid deployment, Automation Anywhere drives efficiency by reducing costs and automating repetitive tasks. Its cloud-native platform supports broad industry adoption, including advanced AI features like process automation and Co-Pilot, streamlining complex workflows with minimal technical skills required. Users benefit from robust integration capabilities, which facilitate seamless interaction with multiple systems. However, there is room for improvement in areas such as user-friendliness for beginners, stability, flexible licensing, and enhanced OCR functionality. Organizations in sectors such as banking, finance, manufacturing, and healthcare gain from the improved operational efficiency and ROI Automation Anywhere offers.

What are the important features of Automation Anywhere?

Ease of Use: Simplifies automation tasks with a user-centric interface.
Robust Connectivity: Provides seamless integration with multiple systems.
GenAI-Driven Document Automation: Leverages AI to automate document management.
Process Automation & Co-Pilot: Enhances workflow automation with advanced AI.
Cloud-Native Platform: Enables rapid deployment and integration.

What benefits should be evaluated in reviews?

Time Savings: Automation drastically reduces manual processing time.
Cost Efficiency: Decreases overall operational costs by automating tasks.
Productivity Enhancement: Streamlines workflows with AI-driven tools.
Improved Integration: Enhances ability to work with multiple systems.
Scalability: Supports growth with a flexible cloud-native architecture.

In the insurance industry, Automation Anywhere is utilized for automating processes such as enrollment management and compliance checks. Its applications extend to supply chain management, financial transactions, and business performance monitoring across sectors like banking, finance, manufacturing, and healthcare, helping organizations to automate routine tasks, improve efficiency, and reduce costs.

Automation Anywhere

Kayako offers an integrated helpdesk solution that aids businesses in managing customer interactions efficiently. Its user-friendly design and robust features cater to various customer service needs.

Kayako transforms customer support by streamlining and organizing interactions across platforms, providing businesses with a cohesive view of customer queries and feedback. It bridges communication gaps by integrating chat, email, and social media responses into a single dashboard. This aligns support teams and enhances customer satisfaction through consistent and timely responses. Its adaptability makes it suitable for startups to large enterprises, allowing scalability and customization according to business demands.

What are Kayako's most valuable features?

Live Chat: Real-time interactions through customizable chat widgets.
Unified Dashboard: Centralized platform for email, chat, and social media.
Customer Insights: Detailed analytics and reporting tools for better decision-making.
Automated Workflows: Streamline repetitive tasks and improve efficiency.

What benefits and ROI should users consider?

Increased Efficiency: Reduce response time with automated and streamlined processes.
Enhanced Customer Experience: Improved satisfaction through personalized support.
Cost Reduction: Optimize support operations and minimize overhead costs.

Kayako is implemented in various industries such as e-commerce, ensuring seamless customer communication through live chat, enabling faster issue resolution. Technology firms use it to manage complex inquiries, while financial services ensure customer privacy and support through secure communication channels. It aligns with industry standards, ensuring compliance and efficient operations.

Kayako

ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus is an ITIL-compliant tool designed for IT help desk and incident management. It offers user-friendly ticketing, automation, and integration features, assisting businesses in effective IT service management.

ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus provides comprehensive solutions for ticketing, automation, and integration with third-party tools. Its features include project, change, and asset management, which are essential for streamlining IT operations. The intuitive interface supports both technical and non-technical users. The platform's reporting, SLA management, and CMDB functions significantly enhance business operations. Despite its strengths, there are areas for improvement, such as customization and integration capabilities. Users often seek better automation for active and asset management, enhanced search functionality, and improved security.

What are the key features of ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus?

Ticketing System: Facilitates efficient issue tracking and resolution.
Automation: Allows the creation of automated workflows to reduce manual effort.
Customizability: Enables tailoring of the platform to fit specific business needs.
Integration: Seamless connectivity with third-party tools for enhanced functionality.
Project Management: Supports planning and execution of IT projects.
Change Management: Helps in managing IT service changes systematically.
Asset Management: Tracks and manages IT assets effectively.

What benefits and ROI should users expect from ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus?

Improved Efficiency: Streamlined workflows and processes save time and resources.
Enhanced Communication: Facilitates better interaction within IT departments.
Operational Visibility: Reporting and metrics provide insights into IT operations.
Flexibility: Customization options help tailor the system to specific requirements.
Security Enhancement: Regular updates enhance system security and data protection.

Industries implement ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus to address specific challenges such as IT help desk management and asset tracking. Companies use the platform to log incidents, automate workflows, and ensure compliance with ITIL standards, supporting effective management of daily operations, system auditing, and improved client interaction.

ManageEngine

Sample Customers

Google, Linkedin, Cisco, Juniper Networks, DellEMC, Comcast, Mastercard, Quest Diagnostics

Toshiba Canada, Disney, Avast, Namecheap, Texas Tech University

Tranter IT Infrastructure Services Limited, Sterlite Technologies, averda, Radiology Associates

Find out what your peers are saying about ServiceNow, Atlassian, Zendesk and others in Help Desk Software. Updated: August 2026.

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