BMC FootPrints Service Core vs ServiceNow comparison

BMC Helix and ServiceNow are both solutions in the IT Service Management (ITSM) category. BMC Helix is ranked #27, while ServiceNow is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.5. Additionally, 90% of BMC Helix users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 92% of ServiceNow users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

ServiceNow and BMC FootPrints Service Core are competing products in the IT service management solutions space, with ServiceNow having the upper hand in pricing and support, while BMC FootPrints Service Core stands out for its comprehensive feature set, appealing to those seeking feature-rich solutions.

Features: ServiceNow offers a scalable cloud-based platform with strong workflow automation and robust customization capabilities, making it suitable for enterprises needing extensive process integration. BMC FootPrints Service Core features an intuitive drag-and-drop interface, customizable dashboards, and extensive reporting tools, which make it attractive for businesses focusing on adaptability and user-driven customization.

Room for Improvement: ServiceNow could improve by reducing its high initial setup costs, expanding flexible deployment options, and enhancing manual integration processes for businesses not prioritizing automation. BMC FootPrints Service Core may need to boost its cloud capabilities, streamline automation functionalities, and provide more comprehensive support options to compete effectively with its counterpart's automation and integration offerings.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: ServiceNow offers a cloud deployment model known for swift implementation and consistent support, reducing infrastructure burdens. BMC FootPrints Service Core provides both on-premises and cloud options, offering flexibility in deployment and satisfactory customer service. ServiceNow facilitates a smoother setup process with significant support, whereas BMC’s versatile deployment options offer adaptability for varied infrastructure scenarios.

Pricing and ROI: ServiceNow typically involves higher initial setup costs but focuses on automation and integration that can lead to substantial ROI over time through reduced operational inefficiencies. BMC FootPrints Service Core presents more affordable upfront costs with ROI driven by its customizable features and adaptability. The primary pricing distinction lies in ServiceNow's long-term efficiency gains versus BMC's cost-effectiveness and feature-driven ROI outlook.

To learn more, read our detailed BMC FootPrints Service Core vs. ServiceNow Report (Updated: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

BMC FootPrints Service Core vs. ServiceNow

August 2026

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Automation Anywhere

Featured Reviews

Venkat Sivaprakash

Management Consultant at Accenture

Has significantly improved document-driven workflows and reduced processing time across finance and HR functions

Automation Anywhere has evolved significantly and upgraded itself to provide agentic AI and AI-based automation solutions for document automation. The product has matured considerably over time. We can create workflows that can call an API. We can include prompts in particular workflows for ChatGPT-related functions, connecting to an LLM and RAG to perform tasks. For document automation, modern features are available to train documents, ensuring high accuracy and repeatability over time. The system is very easy to use. I recently completed a course in document automation, typically designed for people involved in coding and technical aspects. Though I understand coding comprehensively, I don't do actual coding. The course was very accessible. Currently, extensive coding isn't necessary due to the hybrid model incorporating GenAI aspects, low-code, no-code capabilities, APIs, and numerous pre-built objects in Automation Anywhere. The features include GenAI-driven prompting methods and workflow creation capabilities. In these workflows, we can create decision boxes and call APIs without coding. We simply pull objects, drop them, connect them, and add minimal coding when needed. The most crucial aspect isn't coding but rather sizing the automation and fleshing out the details. Automation Co-pilot takes notes and performs automated analysis. It can extract details from videos, summarize conversations, and provide detailed information. During calls, it identifies instructions and performs tasks such as preparing reports and reconciliation. Automation Anywhere can also connect with Microsoft Co-pilot. Through Co-pilot, real-time operations can be executed, allowing direct interaction between vendors and automation through this component.

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reviewer1765752

System Engineer at a manufacturing company with 51-200 employees

A flexible, comprehensive, integrated IT service and asset management platform with good technical support

We use BMC FootPrints Service Core to manage network issues, infrastructure issues, software issues, and ERP. We also use it to manage our facility. So, we do some work orders and also use it as an extra ticketing system Technical support is good. It would be better if it were more…

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Hemanthreddy Vakiti

Data engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Structured workflows have improved SLA compliance and now support prioritized incident handling

I think the licensing and pricing of ServiceNow is quite expensive compared to other tools. For large organizations, it is acceptable, but specifically for small and medium organizations to track incidents or change requests, ServiceNow is quite expensive. Sometimes performance can be slow when workflows and integrations are configured for complex tasks. For advanced customizations or advanced features which we rarely use, the documentation is not up to standard. The documentation needs to be improved for advanced customization features. However, the platform is stable overall and the features are quite good. The user experience and performance concerns I mentioned are areas I want to be improved. When many workflows and interactions are configured, performance is slow. For the features it is providing, it is quite expensive. If these performance features are improved, we can easily pay that price and get the return on investment.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"IQ Bot is a valuable feature. It processes unstructured data to structured data. It helps me by making tasks less time consuming. It reduces the effort it takes versus manually."

"Automation Anywhere has a great learning curve, and we have automated processes through bots that ease our work by handling repetitive tasks and minimizing effort and work inefficiencies."

"The most valuable feature of Automation Anywhere right now is its low-code, no-code framework, which allows us to build a lot of templates that are both repeatable and reusable over time."

"MetaBot is the most valuable feature. Other products have robotic functionality but MetaBot is a kind of functionality by which code is created... so business users who do not have coding knowledge can drag and drop."

"The valuable features that I see for automation with enterprise RPA are IQ Bot and Bot Insights. If you do anything, Bot Insight will provide the dashboard. It starts from the developer with artificial intelligence and the dashboard, which will provide the visibility of business-level metrics as well as operational-level metrics. Those are the good things I see in automation."

"An easy to deploy and learn automation tool that can save resources, effort and money."

"The dashboards are excellent."

"One of the most valuable features is IQ Bot. If you compare Automation Anywhere with any of the other organizations, we may get same type of RPA solution, as there are multiple organizations. But, IQ Bot was one of the primary reasons to choose Automation Anywhere. Using IQ Bot, we can extract more data out from the documents that are unstructured. Therefore, we need to do two things at the same time: We need to extract the information from image-based documents We need to make sure that the efficiency and accuracy of the extraction is improving with each extraction."

More Automation Anywhere pros

"Technical support is good."

"Now all IT related issues, problems, changes and even projects are more controlled using Footprints."

"I have used Tier II BMC support a few times. They were very responsive and recreated my environment in their lab to support me."

"Having a one stop shop for linked assets and tickets has improved end user adoption and led to a reduction in phone/email tickets."

"It's extremely stable; we've got customers who are mobile telecommunication customers, hospitals, power companies, and an airport, and we can handle the volume with no interruptions where instability would really be unacceptable."

"Ability to auto-generate email messages, process email messages, and approvals."

"We use BMC FootPrints Service Core to manage network issues, infrastructure issues, software issues, ERP, and our facility, using it for work orders and as an extra ticketing system."

"I feel confident in saying that BMC FootPrints Service Core is definitely one of the best products in the market."

More BMC FootPrints Service Core pros

"We recently moved to ServiceNow from HP Service Manager about two years ago and it's been leaps and bounds just better than what we had before."

"ServiceNow gives us a lot for free: workflows, organizational structures, service portal, forms, reporting, disaster recovery, and so on."

"ServiceNow is a very good tool."

"It can scale well if you are managing IT assets."

"It has an excellent capability to integrate different access points."

"If you can afford it, this is the premium Service Management suite out there."

"It's a great platform but it's so open that you can get bogged down pretty quickly in trying to make all of your customers happy."

"The biggest feature is that it is cloud-based, so it's always updated, it's always current; we don't have to worry about patches or revisions because we're always working with the latest version and the features continue to improve."

More ServiceNow pros

Cons

"I would like to see more complex use cases coming out for our industry."

"Automation Anywhere can be improved as there are issues with the recorder, which needs enhancement to extract more fields in the property set to increase reliability across various web application platforms, such as those built on React, React Azure, and React Angular."

"My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing has been mixed."

"It would be great if there will be a built-in machine learning model available in the AA, so the developer can directly map it with their task and train the model accordingly."

"Our current version needs drag and drop, but that should be in the next release."

"Automation Anywhere is expensive. They should consider lowering the price to make Automation Anywhere more affordable to SMEs, which comprise a huge segment."

"From the IQ Bot perspective, frankly speaking, they still have to improve a lot... My expectation from a straight, technical, architectural point of view was that I would be able to create my own algorithm and integrate it. But with IQ Bot, I am not able to integrate anything..."

"The scheduling is a little difficult at times. Rather than setting up individual instances, it would be really nice if we had the ability to set repetitive jobs easily. Right now, if you want a job to run every 15 minutes, you have to schedule it a lot of times. I'd rather have the ability to just say 'run every 15 minutes.'"

More Automation Anywhere cons

"Sometimes it is difficult to make the application do exactly what you need."

"To improve the product for our usage, the pricing maybe could be a bit lower."

"The workflow should be made to be more user-friendly. It should also have more granular scalability."

"We need more customizable reporting functionality."

"It is pretty clunky and not very intuitive. Even though I have used it for many years, I don't think it is a very good ITSM platform in general. In the telecom space, a lot of telco providers use this solution, but from my perspective, it is not very user friendly. It is a bit more laborious. There are still too many human touchpoints. There can be a little bit more automation. It would also be good to integrate it with other tools. Integration is quite difficult, especially in the telco space."

"It is pretty clunky and not very intuitive. Even though I have used it for many years, I don't think it is a very good ITSM platform in general."

"It would be better if it were more user-friendly. The reporting part in the version we have is a little complicated. It takes too long to build and report. It would also be better if there were another way to manage notifications."

"It would be nice if they added the ability to go directly to a form via a deep link URL."

More BMC FootPrints Service Core cons

"I do see there's definitely a learning curve involved."

"They need to be providing vendors and implementation partners with materials and guidance on implementation."

"The biggest issue that I see is the way that they license some of their add-on products."

"ServiceNow is such a complex piece of software. It's trying to be everything."

"The price is a huge barrier in the Portugese market when it comes to implementing ServiceNow."

"The standard UI is very restricted. It doesn't look as good, compared to Remedy. Building your own UI requires some additional coding..."

"Upgrades can be kind of painful."

"Sometimes there is not enough information about releases. For example, right now we have an issue understanding what the roadmap is for the Scaled Agile Framework."

More ServiceNow cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We just did a round of price comparison on a global scale and found it's so hard to compare the license prices. But, Automation Anywhere, in general, is on the same price level as the other vendors, a bit lower in some cases."

"I believe it is $10,000 for Bot Creator."

"When I started working on it, it was difficult to obtain a trial version (barrier to entry). Now, they have a Community Edition, which may make it easy to get started."

"Our licensing costs are setup on an annual basis."

"Automation Anywhere is flexible in terms of costing and licensing."

"I don't agree with the IQ Bot licensing costs, which depends on the consumption of the document rather than per bot or user. This is confusing for me, because most of the cases for us in a possible future scenario, there would be a lot of invalid data to be scanned to get to real data. E.g., we would have to supply approximately 100 pages of scanned data to extract two pages of original data. In these type of cases, the IQ Bot might be a costly venture."

"The cost can be reduced a little for users."

"I would rate the price of Automation Anywhere a six out of ten, with ten being the most expensive."

More Automation Anywhere pricing and cost advice

"Cost was on par with other service desk products, and well below Remedy, while still being a BMC product."

"The licensing for FootPrints is a perpetual license with an annual support fee."

"Our costs are well over $250,000."

"This solution has good pricing."

"There are licensing fees."

"In Tunisia, the companies find the licensing costs to be expensive."

"They could be more competitive with their licensing."

"While the option exists to pay for a monthly license, we are dealing with large enterprises and these typically involve multi-year licenses of ten or five years, at a minimum."

"This is a pretty expensive product, so the licensing could be better."

"$230 per user."

"I am from Brazil. For Latin American markets, ServiceNow is very expensive as compared to other vendors, such as VMware."

"The price could be a little lower for the solution. Many of my customers have issues with the licensing process, they have to make it easier and straightforward."

More ServiceNow pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

14%

Construction Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Outsourcing Company

10%

Construction Company

21%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Outsourcing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	157
Midsize Enterprise	81
Large Enterprise	558

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	57
Midsize Enterprise	35
Large Enterprise	179

Questions from the Community

How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

It depends on your use case. Is it simply to automate a couple of processes? Is it to augment a human team? AA is ver...

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How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

From my experience using AA tool, it depends on the applications that you want to automate, because there some applic...

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How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?

It is a highly preferred RPA tool. You can check my Automation Anywhere Review to know more.

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Which solution is better for developing non-ITSM applications: OutSystems or Service Now?

The short answer is that OutSystems is far better for 2 main reasons. Firstly, with Service Now you are locked into t...

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Would you choose ServiceNow over Microsoft PowerApps?

Hi Netanya, I will choose ServiceNow because ServiceNow is a very good tool compared to Microsoft PowerApp. Because ...

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ServiceNow operates on a subscription-based pricing model with custom pricing based on modules, users, and business r...

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Comparisons

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Compared 16% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Automation Anywhere

August 2026

Download Automation Anywhere product report

Buyer's Guide

IT Service Management (ITSM)

July 2026

Download BMC FootPrints Service Core product report

Buyer's Guide

ServiceNow

July 2026

Download ServiceNow product report

Also Known As

Automation Anywhere, Testing Anywhere, Automation Anywhere Enterprise, Agentic Process Automation System (Now Certified for WorkSpaces)

FootPrints Service Core

No data available

Interactive Demo

Automation Anywhere

Demo not available

BMC Helix

Demo not available

ServiceNow

Overview

Automation Anywhere offers ease of use, robust system connectivity, and GenAI-driven document automation through a cloud-native platform, significantly enhancing productivity across multiple industries with advanced AI features.

Delivering a comprehensive suite of tools designed for easy integration and rapid deployment, Automation Anywhere drives efficiency by reducing costs and automating repetitive tasks. Its cloud-native platform supports broad industry adoption, including advanced AI features like process automation and Co-Pilot, streamlining complex workflows with minimal technical skills required. Users benefit from robust integration capabilities, which facilitate seamless interaction with multiple systems. However, there is room for improvement in areas such as user-friendliness for beginners, stability, flexible licensing, and enhanced OCR functionality. Organizations in sectors such as banking, finance, manufacturing, and healthcare gain from the improved operational efficiency and ROI Automation Anywhere offers.

What are the important features of Automation Anywhere?

Ease of Use: Simplifies automation tasks with a user-centric interface.
Robust Connectivity: Provides seamless integration with multiple systems.
GenAI-Driven Document Automation: Leverages AI to automate document management.
Process Automation & Co-Pilot: Enhances workflow automation with advanced AI.
Cloud-Native Platform: Enables rapid deployment and integration.

What benefits should be evaluated in reviews?

Time Savings: Automation drastically reduces manual processing time.
Cost Efficiency: Decreases overall operational costs by automating tasks.
Productivity Enhancement: Streamlines workflows with AI-driven tools.
Improved Integration: Enhances ability to work with multiple systems.
Scalability: Supports growth with a flexible cloud-native architecture.

In the insurance industry, Automation Anywhere is utilized for automating processes such as enrollment management and compliance checks. Its applications extend to supply chain management, financial transactions, and business performance monitoring across sectors like banking, finance, manufacturing, and healthcare, helping organizations to automate routine tasks, improve efficiency, and reduce costs.

Automation Anywhere

BMC FootPrints Service Core is a comprehensive tool that aids in incident, problem, and change management while offering customizable views and integration options.

Valued for its customizable home views and flexible database relations, BMC FootPrints Service Core excels in stability and responsive technical support. With capabilities for email automation, survey integration, and report creation, it enhances IT service management and business process efficiency. The solution supports ticket status updates with minimal downtime and accommodates multiple administrators across workspaces. Pink Elephant certification and smart IT features broaden its appeal for IT departments.

What are the key features of BMC FootPrints Service Core?

Incident Management: Tracks and resolves service desk tickets efficiently.
Problem Management: Identifies and mitigates underlying issues to prevent recurrence.
Change Management: Helps assess and handle changes seamlessly in the environment.
Customizable Views: Offers tailored dashboards for user-specific information.
Email Automation: Facilitates swift communication and response handling.

What benefits or ROI should users look for in reviews?

Stable Performance: Ensures reliable operation for consistent IT services.
Responsive Support: Provides timely technical assistance to resolve issues.
Administrative Flexibility: Allows versatile control across different workspaces.

In industries like IT services and HR, BMC FootPrints Service Core supports managing service desk tickets, tracking assets, and resolving issues in network, infrastructure, and software areas. Its functionalities also extend to HR issue tracking, service requests, and contract management, facilitating both on-premises deployments and ITIL process implementations such as Service Request and Service Catalog Management.

BMC Helix

ServiceNow offers customizability and cloud-based integration that sustains operational efficiency. Enabling change and incident management, it accelerates workflow automation and project management without downtime issues, serving deployment needs for IT service and productivity enhancements.

ServiceNow stands out with its adaptable workflows and cloud-native infrastructure, boosting IT service, project, and asset management. Known for its robust incident and change management, the platform addresses business needs through its user-centric design and extensive integration options. By facilitating seamless IT operations and automation, ServiceNow empowers businesses to enhance productivity and efficiency. Regular updates ensure users benefit from the latest features without service interruptions, although pricing and licensing complexities demand attention. Users seek improved reporting tools and a more intuitive design while expressing interest in refined mobile functionality and better documentation.

What are the key features of ServiceNow?

Customizability: Enables tailored workflows to align with business processes.
Cloud-Based Integration: Allows seamless updates and operational sustainability.
Incident and Change Management: Supports efficient handling of IT-related issues.
Automation Capabilities: Automates repetitive tasks, enhancing productivity.
User-Friendly Design: Simplifies navigation and improves user interaction.
Comprehensive Reporting: Provides detailed insights for better decision-making.

What benefits and ROI should users anticipate from ServiceNow?

Improved Efficiency: Streamlines processes and reduces manual efforts.
Enhanced Productivity: Automates tasks, enabling focus on strategic initiatives.
Seamless Operations: Integrates across departments for unified management.
Effective IT Management: Smooth incident, change, and problem resolution.
Cost and Time Savings: Reduces operational costs through efficient workflow management.

ServiceNow finds implementation across industries like IT, HR, asset management, and help desks, addressing ticketing and configuration needs. Businesses use its dashboard for tracking performance metrics, enhancing decision-making in departments like HR service delivery. Its adaptability also makes it suitable for industries requiring robust operational management and process automation, driving efficiency and growth.

ServiceNow

Sample Customers

Google, Linkedin, Cisco, Juniper Networks, DellEMC, Comcast, Mastercard, Quest Diagnostics

Cast & Crew

AAA, AstraZeneca, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Broadcom, Christus Health, Epicor, Equinix, GE Capital, Intuit, KPMG, Loyola Marymount University, OshKosh, Quantas, RedHat, Royal Bank of Scotland, Swiss Re, U.S. Department of Energy, Safeway, Yale University, and Zillow

Buyer's Guide

BMC FootPrints Service Core vs. ServiceNow

August 2026

Free Report: BMC FootPrints Service Core vs. ServiceNow

Find out what your peers are saying about BMC FootPrints Service Core vs. ServiceNow and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.

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