How to read a service desk price page

Most IT service desks charge per agent (the person working tickets) per month. The word varies: ManageEngine prices per technician, monday service per seat. Requesters are often not charged (ManageEngine places no limit on the number of end users [ManageEngine pricing]), but check: some plans cap portal users instead, as monday service does by plan [monday pricing].

Headline prices are usually for annual billing. monday service, for example, shows its Standard price 'billed annually' and states an 18% annual discount [monday pricing]. Compare quotes on the same billing basis.

• Minimums: monday service requires three seats; SysAid Enterprise starts at 20 agents [monday pricing] [SysAid pricing].
• Plan gates: change management is on Premium in Jira Service Management and on Pro in Freshservice [Atlassian pricing] [Freshservice pricing].
• AI add-ons: Freshservice sells Freddy AI Copilot at $29 per agent per month [Freshservice pricing].
• Credits and actions: Jira Service Management Standard includes 250 Rovo credits; monday service Enterprise lists 250K automation and integration actions per month [Atlassian pricing] [monday pricing].
• Currency: Halo's page text shows a UK list price in pounds, with a currency selector for other regions [Halo pricing].
• No price at all: ServiceNow and Ivanti do not publish ITSM prices on the pages we read [ServiceNow ITSM] [Ivanti].

ManageEngine lists its editions as 'from' $13, $27 and $67 per technician per month [ManageEngine pricing]. A 'from' figure is the lowest price for that edition, not a quote. Ask what applies at your technician count and with the options you need, and compare it with vendors that list a single figure per plan, such as Halo's one plan [Halo pricing].

Line them up on the same terms before you look at the numbers. Use one unit (agents, seats or technicians), one billing basis (usually annual), one currency, and the lowest plan at each vendor that includes the practices you need. Then add the add-ons and usage allowances you would buy. Only at that point is a lower headline price a lower price. The calculator does the first steps for list prices, and the plan gates lesson shows where each vendor puts problem and change management.

For each vendor: the unit, the price on the plan you need, the billing basis, the minimum, the add-ons you would buy and any caps you would hit. That is the input for the 20-agent worked example on our total cost page.