Open source ticketing systems play at the crux of growing a business. Without them keeping your customers happy becomes impossible. But does that mean every ticketing system will be good for your business? The answer is a resounding NO. Not all open source ticketing systems will be suitable for your industry. Hence you need to be careful when you pick one. If you are a startup or medium-sized business, we recommend open source systems. 

Here is a challenge:  There are only a couple of ticketing systems that are 100% open source. Are you looking for one of those systems but don't know where to look? Please don't fret. We've made things easy for you. In this article, we compare seven top open-source ticketing systems.

But before we dive in, let's answer this crucial question:

What's an open-source ticketing system?

There are many ways of defining an open-source ticketing system. The simplest way to define it is:

An open-source ticketing system is a solution that any business can use. It is available to anyone, including your business too. It benefits companies in many ways. For starters, it allows customers to raise issues online. No need for them to bombard you with calls and emails. You may ask, "What about my support team?" Well,  an open-source ticketing system will enable your support team to resolve customer issues faster. Ultimately, this will keep your existing customers happy. 

Most open-source ticket solutions offer one of the following key benefits: 

• They help companies to serve customers better than competitors.
• They allow support teams to escalate customer queries faster.
• And they allow support teams to process queries without any hindrances. 

The more efficient the solution is, the more quality customer service you offer. Here are seven open source ticketing systems you need to consider: 

OSTicket

OSTicket is one of the easy-to-use open-source platforms. It is reliable, easy to install, and to figure out. You support team won't have to spend hours on training to start using it. Plus, it comes with great features that will make raising tickets easy for them.  You can use it to manage multiple departments. Or to customize your customer services and exceed customer expectations. 

Features 

OSTicker has the following outstanding features:

• OSTicket comes with an IT Management Feature, and Comparison feature. 
• It has a robust API.
• It allows you to access controls and permissions.
• It has an activity dashboard.
• OSTicket has an activity tracking functionality.
• You get alerts and notifications
• You can import and export data. 
• You can view data through data visualization. 
• OSTicket has a drag and drop feature.
• It has monitoring functionality.
• Reporting/Analytics feature.
• You can filter for data using a search feature. 
• It supports email integration.

Redmine

Another open-source ticketing system you should consider is Redmine. This robust tool is more than a ticketing system but web-based project management as well. With Redmine, you and your team can manage multiple projects and subprojects. It comes with efficient features, and it has per-project wikis and forums, time tracking, and flexible, role-based access control. Your support team can track any project and report back whenever a need arises. 

Features 

Redmine has the following features:

• You can track many projects at the same time. 
• Redmine supports flexible role-based access control.
• It has issue tracking functionality.
• You can access the Gantt chart and calendar. 
• Want to do more than tracking tickets? Great, Redmine integrates news, documents, and files management.
• It allows you to see web feeds and get email alerts. 
• You can create numerous custom fields. From issues to time entries, projects, and users.
• It can sync with a wide range of SCM systems, including SVN, CVS, Git, Mercurial, Bazaar, and Darcs.
• It supports LDAP authentication.
• Allows user self-registration
• You can access it in 49 languages.

Zammad

Another incredible free ticketing system you should try out is Zammad. There is a lot you'll love about it. From it's easy to use interface to its multi-functionality.  The history behind its name is also fascinating. The name Zammad means "together," which is a Bavarian dialect. Now you understand why we say "together with your team you can exceed customer's satisfaction."

This helpdesk tracking system is suitable for any business, regardless of its size or industry. It allows you to do more than raising tickets. Thank its various channels like email, chat, telephone, Twitter, or Facebook. 

Zammad's back end is impressive. It runs in Ruby and JavaScript and uses only the latest web technology. From HTML5 to WebSockets for the frontend. At the same time, Ruby on Rails supports the backend. 

People love it for the intuitive dashboard that makes it easy for support teams to raise tickets. They have an option to generate queries via email, phone, chat, Facebook, or Twitter. 

Features

Zammad features include the following:

• Zammad filtering and search feature supports full-text search.
• It comes with versatile text modules.
• It allows you to generate reports. 
• It has an auto-save functionality.
• You can use Zammad to escalate individual queries. 
• As it is easy to audit Zammad's information, financial institutions can use it too. 
• Zammad supports different security mechanisms like device-logging and two-factor authentication.
• You get a customer interface where you can track queries at any time.
• It is available in nine languages. 

Pricing

Zammad starts at a monthly subscription of 5€ per user.

When you sign up, you'll get the following:

• Email support (8x5, CET)
• You get channels like email, web form, and SMS.
• Text modules, macros, multilingualism, ticket history, mentions/watch, trigger, schedulers, business hours, branding.
• 10 MB attachments + 10 GB disk space
• Datacenter in Germany, SSL encryption, device management.

Best Practical

Best Practical also has an open-source ticketing system that you should consider. Request Tracker is a ticket-tracking system any business can use. This solution can do a couple of things. From coordinating tasks to managing requests; better than many expensive systems. Yet, it is open source (FOSS) and distributed under the GNU General Public License. SaaS Companies use it to track bugs, raise tickets, and optimize workflows. 

Features

RT is available in the following functionalities:

• You can access controls and permissions.
• It comes with an Active Directory Integration. 
• You get an intuitive dashboard.
• You can use the Ad hoc Query to a query at any time.
• Get instant Alerts/Notifications
• It comes with an Asset Management feature. 
• There is also a Compliance Management functionality.
• You customize your workflows with a workflow feature.
• It has an easy-to-use search box.
• Your team can track tickets with support ticket tracking.

Pricing

You pay $125 per month to raise 500 tickets.

Freescout

Freescout is called Freescout for two reasons: Because it is an open-source any business can use, and it has a free version. So if you have a startup this is a tool for you. You can use it to grow your business without incurring. That said, medium-sized businesses can also benefit from using it. 

It comes with a myriad of features that makes raising customer tickets easy. Plus, you'll get free email management and analytics. With FreeScout, you enjoy free Zendesk & Help Scout without compromising your privacy. 

It runs in PHP7 (Laravel 5.5 framework), which makes it pretty much lightweight. But it is still the best open-source system anyway. It is suitable for enterprises that want to offer world-class customer support. 

Features

Freescout comes with the following features:

• You can raise an unlimited number of tickets.
• A total number of users can access it.
• You can access it from your mobile phone. 
• It is available in English, French, Japanese, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Dutch, German, Spanish, and Swedish.
• It comes with seamless email integration.
• It has a web installer and updater functionality.
• You can mark your conversations with stars.
• FreeScout allows you to forward your conversations.
• You can merge conversations.
• You can have phone conversations.
• You can send new conversations to multiple recipients at once.
• You can track queries at any time.

Pricing

While the FreeScout ticketing system is an Open Source and Freemium product, there is an option to sign up for a perpetual license. Premiums range between $3 and $26.

Faveo Helpdesk

Faveo Helpdesk is an open-source ticketing system. Your support team can benefit from using it. It is available in two versions: as an open-source and in the paid version. What people like most about it is that it comes with FAQS that are in multiple languages. Faveo Helpdesk is based on PHP and uses MySQL.

You'll benefit from the responsive design that quickly lets the customers access it in various screen sizes. The Dashboard of Faveo is also quite intuitive and easy to figure out, and it is suitable for SMEs or just any SaaS startup company. 

Features

Faveo Helpdesk features include the following:

• It comes with an interactive dashboard.
• Aveo Helpdesk allows you to install it directly on CPanel via Softaculous.
• It is SEO-friendly.
• It is mobile-friendly.
• It comes with an Auto-Reply system for every ticket.
• There is a Built-In Knowledge Base to define FAQs.
• You get an SLA Management.
• You get a category sorting articles.
• There is a functionality for forwarding Tickets to high-level attention. 
• Easily integrate platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp.
• Integrate email addresses with the ticketing system

Pricing 

The paid version starts at $ 576 to$ 729.

HubSpot Help Desk Software

HubSpot's Help Desk & Ticketing software is a great ticketing system that can connect you with customers. You can use it to handle a high volume of customer queries. Your support team can track tickets, organize questions, and escalate them faster. Its intuitive dashboard allows them to see every time your dev team resolves an issue. Indeed, offering quality customers will be possible for you and your team with this tool. 

Features

Features of the Hubspot Help Desk comes with the following great features:

• You get an excellent dashboard.
• You can use it to organize your customer records.
• It is super easy to log in.
• It allows you to prioritize customer requests.
• It has a live chat, which makes conversing with customers fairly easy.
• You get conversational bots.
• It comes with an in-built reporting feature. 

Pricing

HubSpot Help Desk & Ticketing system comes with a 14-day free trial. Expect to pay as low as $35 per month.

Conclusion 

Businesses of all sizes should embrace open-source ticketing systems. Why? Because using them makes better business sense. Circumstances when using open-source is recommended include:

- When the ticketing system makes serving customers easier, especially when it speeds up the process of raising tickets. For example, when using a ticketing system your support team should be able to communicate with customers. Any delay or breakdown in communication can exacerbate problems. 

- When the system you choose offers better support for you. The support should either come from the company leading the project, or from a third party. 

Having an open-source system that offers many features is also beneficial. You need a tool that allows you to raise tickets in various ways. And if IT can integrate with other tools, the better. For stance, Freescout comes with a host of features that makes serving many customers at the same time feasible. The fact that it comes with free email management and analytics means monitoring campaigns will be super easy for you. It allows you to track your tickets from your smartphone, tablet, or computer. Another benefit about Freescout is that it is available in more than one language. This allows you to serve customers from different countries. It doesn't matter whether they speak French, Japanese, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, or Russian.

Last but not least, it's essential to pick a solution that can do more than raising tickets. You'd need a system like Redmine that can also help you manage your projects in real-time. You can use it to organize your workspaces. Or to optimize workflows and boost productivity. Remember, to get the best results from using a tool like Intercom Help Desk, you need to install and maintain it.

Are you looking for some to help you install a ticketing system for your business? We would love to hear from you.