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BMC Helix ITSM vs Cherwell Service Management comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

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

BMC Helix ITSM
Ranking in Help Desk Software
8th
Ranking in IT Service Management (ITSM)
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Cherwell Service Management
Ranking in Help Desk Software
28th
Ranking in IT Service Management (ITSM)
27th
Average Rating
7.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the IT Service Management (ITSM) category, the mindshare of BMC Helix ITSM is 5.7%, down from 11.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cherwell Service Management is 1.7%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
IT Service Management (ITSM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
BMC Helix ITSM5.7%
Cherwell Service Management1.7%
Other92.6%
IT Service Management (ITSM)
 

Featured Reviews

KN
Senior Application Developer BMC at Balfour Beatty
Self-service portal significantly reduces resolution time and transforms service process with advanced features
We initially had a lot of tickets generated via the service desk through calls and emails. Now, we have almost moved out of email creations by introducing the DWP features on the Studio pages, with about 90% of the tickets coming in via our self-service portal. Recent upgrades offer different types of views for particular business lines, which was missing earlier. The new landing pages have allowed us to add banners, images, and internal videos, encouraging most customers to use these DWP self-service features. Resolution time has decreased significantly since implementing the self-service portal. Additionally, the availability of knowledge articles, chatbots, and the new Helix GPT feature has improved service processes.
Thobile Moeketsi - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager at Sasria SOC Ltd.
Having everything in one location has significantly improved our efficiency and reporting
We need to be on VPN in order to set up and access the solution, and that has created some challenges. Even though it uses our Windows login, we still have to be on VPN. The product should be able to log tickets directly from system to system. We haven't got there yet and I'm not sure it's possible but it would determine the product's capability to integrate with other systems.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The valuable feature for me is that it's a tool that allows me to track processes right from the initial user request."
"We use this tool for managing tickets, other employee related services, and reporting purposes."
"I like the single sign-on and that administrators can customize."
"The self-service feature and knowledge base resolutions are helping the customers in resolving issues rather than opening tickets."
"BMC Smart IT is somewhat rigid, but they have a powerful backend that supports our complex need for extension versus customization. Between extension and customization, you can achieve complex business processes. That's one of the main advantages of BMC."
"Smart IT and the phone app are easily the most valuable features in reporting and tracking ongoing issues."
"Smart Reporting makes it easy to create/publish views for tables, so our customers can easily create their own reports."
"Our Change Management and Incident Management​ processes have been greatly improved."
"Clear processes with transparent responsibilities led to more efficiencies within the teams."
"Its integration features, orchestration features, and discovery tools are the most valuable. It is also pretty stable, and it can be as scalable as you want."
"All our activities are carried out in the one place."
"The dashboard and the reporting functionality are the solution's most valuable features."
"The most valuable features are problem management and change management."
"We use the solution every day and quite extensively."
"The dashboard is very useful to get a quick overview of current tasks."
"Clear processes with transparent responsibilities led to more efficiencies within the teams."
 

Cons

"It needs to be web based."
"It needs to be more comfortable for the end-user."
"Needs less infrastructure requirements."
"The Approval Central system needs to be refreshed."
"Maybe the upgrade process and the release between environments should to be more transparent for anyone to execute it."
"In the next release, I would like to see AI used for classification or categorization."
"Provide documentation on the content of the REST API interfaces. Right now, it is pretty much non-existent."
"It is too expensive for a small business."
"They need to improve their mobile interface, as well as features regarding the extension of the mobile access to the end user."
"Access is only available if we're on VPN."
"The support from the actual manufacturer is poor."
"The stability, specifically in the on-premises deployment model, could be improved."
"The solution could be more user-friendly."
"Areas for improvement would be the service catalog and customer catalog, which is not very user-friendly. The shopping cart experience is also terrible - you submit and go straight to the cart, you can't continue shopping or see your overall cost."
"Application service mapping, GRC, SecOps, and things like that need improvement."
"Agile delivery should be supported."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is costly, but it is well worth it."
"It's a yearly subscription but there are a couple of customers who go for the monthly subscription."
"There are licenses to use this solution."
"The cost is relatively high, especially for the BMC Controller application. However, the expense is justified by the standard and reliable features it offers. This product's reputation in the market is strong, providing assurance in terms of data and other considerations."
"The solution's pricing should come down."
"The price of BMC Helix ITSM is expensive."
"If Customer and IT agents are happy, that is one of the greatest ROI. However, one of the major factors is Leadership, because at the end they have to justify the cost."
"BMC is a little bit cheaper than ServiceNow, but BMC doesn't have the same capabilities in its entry-level product at the moment. The basic version does not have the DWP features that most of our customers are requesting."
"For an ITIL user, the cost is probably about 50 bucks a month."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Government
5%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Energy/Utilities Company
11%
Healthcare Company
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise55
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about BMC Helix ITSM?
If we consider major players like Ford or BMW, their core focus is manufacturing products like cars. To ensure smooth operations, any arising issues, be it security concerns or issues within depart...
What needs improvement with BMC Helix ITSM?
Although BMC Helix ITSM is a strong enterprise platform, there are areas where it could be improved. One key area is usability and simplification of configuration, especially for new administrators...
What is your primary use case for BMC Helix ITSM?
My main use case for BMC Helix ITSM is validating and automating core ITSM workflows, such as incident, change, and service request management. I focus on ensuring that these workflows function cor...
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Also Known As

Remedy ITSM, Remedy, Helix Remedy, BMC Helix IT Service Management
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Brookfield, HealthSouth Corporation, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, Mercator, SAP, Stanford University
Ausenco, Highlights for Children, B/E Aerospace
Find out what your peers are saying about BMC Helix ITSM vs. Cherwell Service Management and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.