Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Request Tracker VS osTicket

Compare Request Tracker VS osTicket and see what are their differences

Request Tracker logo Request Tracker

open-source enterprise grade issue and ticket tracking system

osTicket logo osTicket

osTicket is a widely-used open source support ticket system.
  • Request Tracker Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-30
  • osTicket Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-04-21

Request Tracker features and specs

  • Open Source
    Request Tracker (RT) is open-source, allowing users to customize and adapt the system to fit their unique needs without licensing costs.
  • Extensive Features
    RT offers a comprehensive set of features that support ticketing, workflow automation, and reporting, which cater to various business processes and industries.
  • Scalability
    RT is scalable and can handle a large volume of tickets, making it suitable for both small businesses and large enterprises.
  • Customizable
    Users can tailor the interface and workflows to their specific requirements, offering flexibility in how the software is utilized.
  • Strong Community Support
    Being open source has allowed RT to foster a strong community that contributes plugins, extensions, and support to improve user experience.

Possible disadvantages of Request Tracker

  • Complex Setup
    The initial setup and configuration of RT can be complex and time-consuming, potentially requiring technical expertise to get it working optimally.
  • User Interface
    Compared to some modern ticketing systems, RT's user interface can feel dated and less intuitive for new users.
  • Steep Learning Curve
    RT's extensive features come with a learning curve, which may require additional training and time for users to become proficient.
  • Limited Native Integrations
    While RT supports integrations, the number of out-of-the-box native integrations with other software may be limited compared to some competitors.
  • Maintenance Responsibility
    As an open-source solution, the responsibility of software updates, security, and maintenance falls on the user or organization, which might be challenging without dedicated IT resources.

osTicket features and specs

  • Open Source
    osTicket is open-source, which means it is free to use and allows for extensive customization.
  • Customizable Fields and Forms
    The platform provides the ability to add custom fields and forms, making ticket management flexible to meet specific business needs.
  • Email Integration
    osTicket supports email integration, allowing users to create tickets directly from incoming emails.
  • Multi-Language Support
    The system supports multiple languages, making it suitable for international teams.
  • Ticket Filters
    Powerful ticket filtering allows for better organization and prioritization of incoming tickets.
  • Reports and Dashboards
    Built-in reporting tools and dashboards help track performance metrics and identify trends.
  • User and Role Management
    Fine-grained user and role management allows administrators to control who has access to different parts of the system.
  • Community Support
    Having a large community of users and developers can be a great resource for troubleshooting issues and sharing best practices.

Possible disadvantages of osTicket

  • Complex Setup
    Initial setup and configuration can be complicated, especially for users without technical expertise.
  • Limited Advanced Reporting
    While osTicket includes basic reporting features, it may not be robust enough for more advanced analytics needs.
  • User Interface
    The user interface is functional but might appear outdated and less intuitive compared to newer platforms.
  • Self-Hosted Only
    As an open-source solution, it requires self-hosting, which may necessitate additional resources for server management and maintenance.
  • Lack of Real-Time Updates
    osTicket does not offer real-time updates, which can delay the notification of ticket changes.
  • No Mobile App
    There is no official mobile app, making it less convenient to manage tickets on the go.
  • Limited Integration Options
    Unlike some commercial products, osTicket has fewer options for integrating with third-party applications.

Analysis of osTicket

Overall verdict

  • Overall, osTicket is a good choice for organizations looking for a reliable and customizable support ticket system without wanting to incur the costs associated with commercial solutions. Its open-source nature allows for flexibility and adaptability to various business needs.

Why this product is good

  • osTicket is renowned for being a robust, open-source support ticket system that is easy to set up and scale. It offers a wide range of features such as auto-responses, ticket filters, customizable fields, and reporting. Additionally, its user-friendly interface and active community support make it an appealing choice for businesses seeking a cost-effective solution.

Recommended for

  • Small to medium-sized businesses
  • Organizations requiring open-source solutions
  • Teams needing a customizable and scalable ticketing system
  • Businesses seeking to improve customer support without incurring excessive software costs

Request Tracker videos

Introduction to Request Tracker (RT)

More videos:

  • Review - Deploying Request Tracker

osTicket videos

What's New in osTicket Version 1.14?

More videos:

  • Review - OSTicket: a Customer Support solution for online communities
  • Review - OsTicket - Pretty much cover everything!

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Request Tracker and osTicket)
Customer Support
14 14%
86% 86
Help Desk
16 16%
84% 84
Customer Service
12 12%
88% 88
Project Management
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Request Tracker and osTicket. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Request Tracker and osTicket

Request Tracker Reviews

We have no reviews of Request Tracker yet.
Be the first one to post

osTicket Reviews

The 20 Best Help Desk Apps and Knowledge Base Tools for Customer Support
Want a free support tool that can run on your own servers? osTicket is the app for you. It's an open source support tool that includes everything—you can answer support emails, assign tickets to other team members, create support forms, and write your help documentation all on your own server, for free. You can even tweak osTicket, by digging into its code or installing...
Source: zapier.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, osTicket should be more popular than Request Tracker. It has been mentiond 38 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Request Tracker mentions (22)

  • I don't want to fill out your contact form
    > Hook up a shared mailbox, collaborative inbox, or one of the many off-the-shelf customer service solutions like Zendesk, Zoho Desk, Freshdesk, Zammad, osTicket, or FreeScout to your email. This list is missing the classic, and still excellent, Request Tracker. https://bestpractical.com/request-tracker https://github.com/bestpractical/rt (I have no affiliation,... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: Helpdesk/ticketing software for small SaaS company
    At a previous company we used RT (open source), self hosted: https://bestpractical.com/request-tracker We hooked it into help@company.com emails and also made a web page that allowed customers to ask for support when they were logged in. The web page would add customer details when signed in so the CS staff didn't have to look as much stuff up to answer the question. They have cloud-hosted plans though I have no... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Shelf – open-source asset management software
    Request Tracker is an older ticket system that also does asset management and can associate tickets with assets. It can be rather tedious to configure, as I recall, but it can do almost whatever you want. Hope you know some perl. Have not used it in at least 5 years. https://bestpractical.com/request-tracker. - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Ticketing Systems
    I have had good luck with RT Https://bestpractical.com/request-tracker It was a good mix of customizable and supported. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Open source employee management and help ticket system?
    We used this several versions back. We just outgrew it. https://bestpractical.com/request-tracker. Source: about 2 years ago
View more

osTicket mentions (38)

  • Ask HN: Helpdesk/ticketing software for small SaaS company
    You can try osTicket https://osticket.com The UI is very tho dated, but we're working on a rewrite with modern UI. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Looking for a ticketing system
    Check out https://osticket.com/ I used earlier on my career. It’s free to use it worked great for a small team and it has everything you need. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Help tickets
    We use https://osticket.com/ It's not a groundbreaking ticket system but it's rock solid, user-friendly, and free. Source: about 2 years ago
  • I would like to find a free software for tickets in my household
    Another option, for a dedicated ticketing/helpdesk system, is osTicket. Self-hosted is completely free, and I had it up and running inside of an hour, from creating a fresh Debian LXC, installing Apache/MariaDB/PHP8.1, and uploading the requisite files for osTicket followed by the initial setup. Going off your mention of snaps, I'm assuming you're on Ubuntu or a derivative, if you'd like I should be able to... Source: about 2 years ago
  • MSP opensource ticketing tool -ITSM
    GLPI (https://glpi-project.org/) or osTicket (https://osticket.com/) are open source ticketing systems but I highly doubt they're what a MSP need. You need a PSA. Source: about 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Request Tracker and osTicket, you can also consider the following products

Zammad - The Zammad - Help Desk and Ticket System - Community Page

Freshdesk - Freshdesk is a cloud-based customer support software that lets you support customers through traditional channels like phone and email, social channels like Facebook and Twitter, and your own branded community

Intercom - Intercom is a customer relationship management and messaging tool for web businesses. Build relationships with users to create loyal customers.

Zendesk - Zendesk is a beautiful, lightweight help-desk solution.

LiveAgent - LiveAgent is a fully-featured web-based live chat and help desk software. It harnesses the power of a universal inbox, real-time live chat, built-in call center, and a robust customer service portal. Start your free 1 month trial today!

JitBit Helpdesk - JitBit is a web-based help desk and ticketing software solution