FreeITSM vs HaloITSM
FreeITSM
freeitsm.co.uk
HaloITSM
haloitsm.comSide by side
| Figure | FreeITSM | HaloITSM |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | £33/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 5 |
| Spec score · IT Knowledge Base Software | 8.9 (#9) | 9.1 (#4) |
| Spec score · AI IT Service Desk Software | 8.9 (#4) | 9.0 (#3) |
| Spec score · IT Problem Management Software | 9.0 (#7) | 9.1 (#5) |
| Spec score · IT SLA Management Software | 8.9 (#11) | 9.1 (#5) |
| API | An external API endpoint allows automated agents to submit software inventory data. | Halo describes its platform as API-centric, and its guides explain how to connect applications through the Halo API. |
| Asset management | Assets tracks custody, locations, warranties and QR labels and can synchronize VMware vCenter, Proxmox, VMware Cloud Director and Intune data. | The product includes asset and configuration management with a CMDB, dependency visualisation and links between incidents, problems and configuration items. |
| Change management | Change Management includes CAB voting, risk assessment, calendars, activity timelines and post-implementation review. | Change management includes approval flows, CAB reviews, risk checks, change calendars, implementation plans, and rollback steps. |
| Integrations | Official pages document Microsoft 365, Google Workspace/Gmail, VMware vCenter, Microsoft Intune, WhatsApp through Twilio or Meta, and optional chat channels. | Halo advertises more than 200 native integrations, including Microsoft 365, Azure AD, Entra ID, Teams, Slack, Jira, Salesforce, monitoring and discovery tools. |
| Licence | The project is released under the MIT License. | Halo's terms grant a limited internal-use subscription and prohibit copying, reverse engineering, derivative works, sublicensing and source-code discovery, indicating proprietary software. |
| Self-hosting | Supported deployment methods are Docker or manual installation on WAMP, XAMPP, LAMP, IIS or another PHP-capable server. | Halo supports on-premises deployment as well as public-cloud and private-cloud operating models. |
| System requirements | Manual installation requires PHP 7.4–8.4, MySQL 8.0 or newer, PDO MySQL, cURL, OpenSSL and mbstring; MariaDB 10.5+ is also listed on the getting-started page. | On-premises deployments require 32-bit or 64-bit servers, at least 2 GHz dual or quad-core processors and 8 GB RAM per application or database server. |
| What it does | FreeITSM is a self-hosted web IT service-management platform for running a service desk and related IT operations. | HaloITSM is an all-inclusive IT service-management and enterprise-service-management platform for standardising workflows, automating service delivery and analysing operations. |
Plans
HaloITSM
- HaloITSM public-sector listing£33 a month
- All-inclusive ITSM software (G2 listing)£40 a month
- HaloITSM£66 a month
- Halo all-in-one platform£69 a month
- Halo Enterprise PackagePrice not published
In their own words
FreeITSM
FreeITSM is an open-source IT service management platform with 23 integrated modules for running a service desk. Its Tickets module connects Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace mailboxes for email ticketing, assignment, prioritisation, replies, attachments and audit trails. Assets tracks physical and virtual equipment and can discover VMware virtual machines through vCenter. Listed service-management tools include risk assessment, approval workflows, change calendars and change audit trails. Optional AI features provide knowledge answers, ticket-reply cleanup, form assistance, workflow authoring and problem detection. They use a customer-provided Anthropic, OpenAI or OpenRouter key, and provider usage may cost extra. FreeITSM runs with Docker on Linux or Windows, or through IIS with PHP or WAMP and MySQL 8.0+ or MariaDB 10.5+. Security options include OpenID Connect SSO, AES-256-GCM key management, TOTP multi-factor authentication, account lockout, brute-force protection and trusted devices. The project has no formal support.
HaloITSM
HaloITSM is IT service management software for handling incidents, service requests, changes, problems, assets, and reporting. Teams can capture incidents through multiple channels, route them, track SLAs and OLAs, and manage major incidents in a dedicated console. The service catalogue supports forms, approvals, tasks, automation, and portal request tracking. Change management covers approvals, CAB reviews, risk checks, calendars, implementation plans, and rollback steps. Halo brings assets, configuration items, services, and users into a related view, with discovery and integrations for updating data. Reporting includes 1,000+ out-of-the-box reports and a no-code query builder. The platform is API-centric and offers web, iOS, Android, self-hosted, and API options. HaloITSM costs £66 a month per agent, billed annually, with all features included; end users and portal customers are free. An onboarding package is required at a bespoke cost. A 30-day trial includes all features and modules without requiring a credit card. Halo is a UK-based company founded and based in Suffolk.