Handesk vs OpenSupports
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted helpdesk & ticketing options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Handesk
Laravel help desk and lead management application
VS
OpenSupports
Open-source ticket-based customer support system
| Feature | Handesk | OpenSupports |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Helpdesk & Ticketing | Helpdesk & Ticketing |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | PHP | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,450 | ★ 1,038 |
| First released | 2018 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Zendesk, Freshdesk | Zendesk, Freshdesk |
Why pick each one
Choose Handesk if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1.4k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Choose OpenSupports if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1k GitHub stars)
- Written in JavaScript
Frequently asked questions
Is Handesk or OpenSupports better?
Neither is universally better. Handesk has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Handesk and OpenSupports free and open-source?
Yes. Handesk is licensed under MIT and OpenSupports under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Handesk and OpenSupports with Docker?
Handesk: check the project docs for container support. OpenSupports: yes.