We may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page. It never changes a score or a ranking. How we make money
Most buyers should pick Zammad.
Choose osTicket if you want free, self-hosted ticketing and can work with community support. Choose Zammad if you need broader service channels, automation, a knowledge base, or managed hosting. Zammad starts at €7 per agent monthly with annual billing on Starter, capped at five agents; listed prices exclude VAT. osTicket’s hosted plans start at $12 per agent monthly, while its Open Source plan is free. Compare currencies, attachment limits, and hosting before switching.
01Side by side
| osTicket | Zammad | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free self-hosted; hosted starts at $12/agent/month | €7/agent/month with annual billing |
| Free plan | Open Source is free; self-hosted | No free plan; 30-day trial |
| Best for | Self-hosters wanting free ticketing | Teams needing broader channels and workflows |
| Core strength | Routes email, web form, and API inquiries | Channels, automation, and knowledge base |
| Learning curve | Not published | Not published |
| Integrations/data | Email, web forms, APIs | REST API; email, SMS, chat, and more |
| Team/seat costs | $12-$24/agent/month hosted; attachment caps apply | €7-€25/agent/month annually; 5 to unlimited agents |
| Support | Community support; commercial options from $12,500/year | Self-hosted support from €2,999/year |
osTicket Choose osTicket if
- Choose osTicket if free self-hosting is the priority.
- Choose osTicket if community support meets your needs.
- Choose osTicket if its attachment limits fit your workload.
Zammad Choose Zammad if
- Choose Zammad if you need more built-in support channels.
- Choose Zammad if automation and a knowledge base matter.
- Choose Zammad if you want hosted plans with published agent caps.
02Pricing compared
osTicket has a free, self-hosted Open Source plan with community support; seat limits are not published. Its hosted Basic plan starts at $12 per agent per month, with an 2 MB attachment cap. Standard is $16 with 8 MB, and Premium is $24 with 16 MB. Annual prices are not published. Zammad has no free plan. Starter costs €9 per agent monthly, or €7 with annual billing, and is capped at five agents. Professional is €18 monthly or €16 annually, capped at 35 agents; Plus is €27 or €25 and allows unlimited agents. Zammad’s listed prices exclude VAT. Both offer a 30-day trial. Compare the currencies, billing periods, hosting, and attachment limits before treating one as cheaper.
03Features and depth
osTicket covers core ticketing: it routes inquiries from email, web forms, and APIs, and offers dashboard reports, ticket filters, configurable help topics, a customer portal, and business-hour settings for service agreements. Its hosted plans list unlimited tickets, users, and email addresses, but attachment caps vary by tier.
Zammad adds ticket priorities, assignments, and internal notes, plus templates, bulk actions, and automation. Its REST API provides access to real-time channel and operations information, and it includes a knowledge base. AI features can summarize tickets, refine replies, and automate routine work; AI calls cost €0.03 each. Channels depend on the hosted plan: Starter lists email, web forms, and SMS; Professional adds chat and Telegram; Plus also lists Facebook and WhatsApp. Zammad can be hosted or installed on your own servers. If you mainly need a straightforward ticket flow, osTicket covers the basics; Zammad offers more listed workflow and channel options.
04Ease of use and learning curve
Neither product’s published information gives a setup-time comparison, so we would not call either easier to deploy. osTicket is web-based, and its free option is self-hosted; teams choosing it need to run that deployment and rely on community support. The review published for osTicket describes its presentation as dated and rates ease of use 5/10.
Zammad offers hosted plans as well as self-hosting, so teams can choose whether to run it on their own servers. Its review rates ease of use 6.5/10 and advises checking plan caps and record-editing rules. For a switch, verify the agent limit and required channels first; the Starter cap is five agents.
Questions people ask
Which is cheaper, osTicket or Zammad?
It depends on hosting and currency. osTicket’s Open Source plan is free and self-hosted; hosted plans start at $12 per agent monthly. Zammad Starter starts at €7 per agent monthly with annual billing, but is capped at five agents. Zammad’s listed prices exclude VAT.
Does osTicket or Zammad have a free plan?
osTicket offers a free Open Source plan for self-hosted teams, with community support; seat limits are not published. Zammad has no free plan in the listed pricing, though both products list a 30-day trial.
How do osTicket and Zammad compare on attachment limits?
osTicket’s hosted Basic, Standard, and Premium plans list attachment caps of 2 MB, 8 MB, and 16 MB. Zammad Starter lists 10 MB, Professional 35 MB, and Plus 50 MB. Those limits make plan choice relevant if customers often send large files.
Which product supports more customer-service channels?
osTicket routes inquiries from email, web forms, and APIs. Zammad’s listed channels vary by plan: Starter includes email, web forms, and SMS; Professional adds chat and Telegram; Plus also lists Facebook and WhatsApp. Check the plan’s channel list against your current support routes.