AI Index / Self-hosted helpdesk software

Best Self-hosted helpdesk software

What AI assistants actually recommend when buyers ask about self-hosted helpdesk software — measured weekly across 3 engines, published as open data.

Updated 2026-08-02 · 49 sampled answers · rolling 4-week window · methodology

Rankings are measured from sampled AI answers — never editorial, never paid. Orbator builds AI-visibility tooling; when Orbator itself appears in any category, it is measured by the same rules as everyone else.

Updated weekly49 samples3 enginesmethodology

Sample: 49 AI answers · Window: Jul 5, 2026Aug 2, 2026 (4-week rolling) · trend vs prior 4 weeks (44 answers)

What is the best self-hosted helpdesk software?

Across 49 sampled AI answers from 3 engines, Zammad is recommended most often — appearing in 83.7% of recommendations, followed by FreeScout (71.4%) and osTicket (67.3%).

This is a measurement of share of voice across 3 AI engines — not an editorial pick. See the full ranking below.

#ProductShareTrendEngines
1
Zammad

zammad.org

Best for: AI recommends Zammad most when buyers ask best open-source helpdesk tool for a support team of 10 or fewer agents (100% of those answers)

83.7%

95% CI 7191.5%

41 mentions · avg pos 3.9

first pick 14.6%

GEMINI 90.5%CLAUDE 85.7%PERPLEXITY 76.2%
Claim
2
FreeScout

freescout.net

Best for: AI recommends FreeScout most when buyers ask best open-source helpdesk tool for a support team of 10 or fewer agents (88.9% of those answers)

71.4%

95% CI 57.682.2%

35 mentions · avg pos 3.5

first pick 25.7%

GEMINI 76.2%CLAUDE 85.7%PERPLEXITY 61.9%
Claim
3
osTicket

osticket.com

Best for: AI recommends osTicket most when buyers ask best open-source helpdesk tool for a support team of 10 or fewer agents (100% of those answers)

67.3%

95% CI 53.478.8%

33 mentions · avg pos 3.3

first pick 24.2%

GEMINI 76.2%CLAUDE 57.1%PERPLEXITY 61.9%
Claim
4
Frappe

frappe.io

Best for: AI recommends Frappe most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (77.8% of those answers)

40.8%

95% CI 28.254.8%

20 mentions · avg pos 7.8

first pick 5%

GEMINI 57.1%CLAUDE 71.4%PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
5
Frappe Helpdesk

Best for: AI recommends Frappe Helpdesk most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (77.8% of those answers)

40.8%

95% CI 28.254.8%

20 mentions · avg pos 7.8

first pick 5%

GEMINI 57.1%CLAUDE 71.4%PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
6
Zendesk

zendesk.com

Best for: AI recommends Zendesk most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (88.9% of those answers)

38.8%

95% CI 26.452.8%

19 mentions · avg pos 1.6

first pick 36.8%

GEMINI 33.3%CLAUDE 42.9%PERPLEXITY 42.9%
Claim
7
Help Scout

helpscout.com

Best for: AI recommends Help Scout most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (77.8% of those answers)

30.6%

95% CI 19.544.5%

15 mentions · avg pos 2

first pick 40%

GEMINI 28.6%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 33.3%
Claim
8
PHP

php.net

Best for: AI recommends PHP most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (100% of those answers)

30.6%

95% CI 19.544.5%

15 mentions · avg pos 2.5

first pick 20%

GEMINI 33.3%CLAUDE 57.1%PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
9
UVdesk

Best for: AI recommends UVdesk most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (77.8% of those answers)

30.6%

95% CI 19.544.5%

15 mentions · avg pos 5.9

first pick 0%

GEMINI 42.9%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 23.8%
Claim
10
HelpSpot

helpspot.com

Best for: AI recommends HelpSpot most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (77.8% of those answers)

28.6%

95% CI 17.842.4%

14 mentions · avg pos 4

first pick 21.4%

GEMINI 33.3%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 28.6%
Claim
11
Chatwoot

chatwoot.com

Best for: AI recommends Chatwoot most when buyers ask what self-hosted helpdesk should I use to handle email, chat, and social support in one place (88.9% of those answers)

26.5%

95% CI 16.240.3%

13 mentions · avg pos 7.2

first pick 15.4%

GEMINI 28.6%CLAUDE 42.9%PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
12
MySQL

mysql.com

Best for: AI recommends MySQL most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (100% of those answers)

22.4%

95% CI 1335.9%

11 mentions · avg pos 4.6

first pick 9.1%

GEMINI 14.3%CLAUDE 57.1%PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
13
Deskpro

deskpro.com

Best for: AI recommends Deskpro most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (88.9% of those answers)

20.4%

95% CI 11.533.6%

10 mentions · avg pos 5.1

first pick 0%

GEMINI 28.6%PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
14
Jitbit Helpdesk

jitbit.com

Best for: AI recommends Jitbit Helpdesk most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (88.9% of those answers)

18.4%

95% CI 1031.4%

9 mentions · avg pos 4.3

first pick 0%

GEMINI 23.8%PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
15
Faveo

Best for: AI recommends Faveo most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (66.7% of those answers)

18.4%

95% CI 1031.4%

9 mentions · avg pos 4.6

first pick 0%

GEMINI 28.6%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
16
Libredesk

Best for: AI recommends Libredesk most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (55.6% of those answers)

18.4%

95% CI 1031.4%

9 mentions · avg pos 10.4

first pick 0%

GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 28.6%
Claim
17
Docker

docker.com

Best for: AI recommends Docker most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (77.8% of those answers)

12.2%

95% CI 5.724.2%

6 mentions · avg pos 5.3

first pick 16.7%

GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
18
PostgreSQL

postgresql.org

Best for: AI recommends PostgreSQL most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (55.6% of those answers)

12.2%

95% CI 5.724.2%

6 mentions · avg pos 6.6

first pick 16.7%

GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
19
UseResponse

useresponse.com

Best for: AI recommends UseResponse most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (44.4% of those answers)

10.2%

95% CI 4.421.8%

5 mentions · avg pos 3.5

first pick 0%

GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
20
OTRS

otrs.com

10.2%

95% CI 4.421.8%

5 mentions · avg pos 4.3

first pick 0%

GEMINI 19%PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
21
GLPi

glpi-project.org

Best for: AI recommends GLPi most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (88.9% of those answers)

10.2%

95% CI 4.421.8%

5 mentions · avg pos 5.6

first pick 0%

GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
22
OpenSupports

opensupports.com

10.2%

95% CI 4.421.8%

5 mentions · avg pos 6.8

first pick 20%

GEMINI 23.8%
Claim
23
Ubuntu

ubuntu.com

Best for: AI recommends Ubuntu most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (55.6% of those answers)

10.2%

95% CI 4.421.8%

5 mentions · avg pos 6.8

first pick 20%

GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
24
NGINX

nginx.org

Best for: AI recommends NGINX most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (55.6% of those answers)

10.2%

95% CI 4.421.8%

5 mentions · avg pos 7.4

first pick 0%

GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
25
Freshdesk

freshdesk.com

Best for: AI recommends Freshdesk most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (33.3% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions · avg pos 3

first pick 0%

GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
26
SupportPal

Best for: AI recommends SupportPal most when buyers ask what self-hosted helpdesk should I use to handle email, chat, and social support in one place (44.4% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions · avg pos 3.3

first pick 25%

GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
27
Faveo Helpdesk

faveohelpdesk.com

Best for: AI recommends Faveo Helpdesk most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (44.4% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions · avg pos 5

first pick 0%

GEMINI 19%
Claim
28
Apache Hop

apache.org

Best for: AI recommends Apache Hop most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (66.7% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions · avg pos 5.8

first pick 0%

GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
29
Debian

debian.org

Best for: AI recommends Debian most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (44.4% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions · avg pos 6

first pick 25%

GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
30
Featurebase

featurebase.app

Best for: AI recommends Featurebase most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (44.4% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
31
Tidio AI

tidio.com

Best for: AI recommends Tidio AI most when buyers ask best open-source helpdesk tool for a support team of 10 or fewer agents (44.4% of those answers)

8.2%

95% CI 3.219.2%

4 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 19%
Claim
32
Helpy

helpy.io

Best for: AI recommends Helpy most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (44.4% of those answers)

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions · avg pos 2.5

first pick 33.3%

GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
33
Hesk

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions · avg pos 3.7

first pick 0%

GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
34
OneDesk

onedesk.com

Best for: AI recommends OneDesk most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (55.6% of those answers)

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions · avg pos 3.7

first pick 33.3%

GEMINI 14.3%
Claim
35
Magento

magento.com

Best for: AI recommends Magento most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (33.3% of those answers)

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions · avg pos 4

first pick 0%

GEMINI 14.3%
Claim
36
osTicket Awesome

osaweso.me

Best for: AI recommends osTicket Awesome most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (33.3% of those answers)

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions · avg pos 4

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
37
IIS

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions · avg pos 13

first pick 0%

GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%
Claim
38
Iris Agent

irisagent.com

Best for: AI recommends Iris Agent most when buyers ask self-hosted open-source helpdesk vs hosted SaaS helpdesk for a 5-person startup (55.6% of those answers)

6.1%

95% CI 2.116.5%

3 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 14.3%
Claim
39
CentOS

centos.org

4.1%

95% CI 1.113.7%

2 mentions · avg pos 6

first pick 50%

GEMINI 9.5%
Claim
40
Rocket.Chat

rocket.chat

4.1%

95% CI 1.113.7%

2 mentions · avg pos 6

first pick 0%

GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
41
MS SQL Server

Best for: AI recommends MS SQL Server most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (33.3% of those answers)

4.1%

95% CI 1.113.7%

2 mentions · avg pos 11

first pick 0%

GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
42
Dev.to

dev.to

Best for: AI recommends Dev.to most when buyers ask how do I self-host a helpdesk system that supports shared inboxes and SLA tracking (33.3% of those answers)

4.1%

95% CI 1.113.7%

2 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
43
Heroic Knowledge Base

herothemes.com

Best for: AI recommends Heroic Knowledge Base most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (33.3% of those answers)

4.1%

95% CI 1.113.7%

2 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 9.5%
Claim
44
Elasticsearch

elastic.co

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions · avg pos 1

first pick 100%

CLAUDE 14.3%
Claim
45
Kayako

kayako.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions · avg pos 3

first pick 0%

GEMINI 4.8%
Claim
46
ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions · avg pos 3

first pick 0%

GEMINI 4.8%
Claim
47
Shopify

shopify.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions · avg pos 4

first pick 0%

GEMINI 4.8%
Claim
48
Znuny

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions · avg pos 7

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
49
Make

make.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions · avg pos 21

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
50
AWS

aws.amazon.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
51
Budibase

budibase.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
52
Deelo

deelo.ai

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
53
Easydesk

easydesk.app

Best for: AI recommends Easydesk most when buyers ask self-hosted open-source helpdesk vs hosted SaaS helpdesk for a 5-person startup (44.4% of those answers)

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
54
Freshsuccess

freshworks.com

Best for: AI recommends Freshsuccess most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (44.4% of those answers)

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
55
Hiver

hiverhq.com

Best for: AI recommends Hiver most when buyers ask self-hosted helpdesk for a healthcare company that needs to keep patient data on-premise (33.3% of those answers)

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
56
MirrorFly's AI Chatbot Solution

mirrorfly.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
57
Nextiva

nextiva.com

Best for: AI recommends Nextiva most when buyers ask open-source helpdesk alternatives to popular cloud ticketing platforms with expensive per-agent pricing (44.4% of those answers)

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
58
NocoBase

nocobase.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
59
OpenAlternative

openalternative.co

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
60
PCMag

pcmag.com

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
61
eesel AI

eesel.ai

Best for: AI recommends eesel AI most when buyers ask best open-source helpdesk tool for a support team of 10 or fewer agents (33.3% of those answers)

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim
62
getagent.chat

getagent.chat

2%

95% CI 0.410.7%

1 mentions

first pick 0%

PERPLEXITY 4.8%
Claim

Reading the numbers: Share is a point estimate on 49 sampled answers, so each row also shows its 95% CI — the Wilson score interval around that share. When two products' intervals overlap, the gap between them isn't statistically meaningful at this sample size. First pick is the share of a product's recommending answers where it was named first, which separates “always mentioned” from “usually the top recommendation”. Full methodology.

Independence: Orbator customers are badged for disclosure. Customer status does not affect prompts, sampling, extraction, or ranking — see the methodology. Your product on this list? Claim it to see the prompts behind your rank and track it weekly.

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