OpenSupports vs Faveo Helpdesk
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted helpdesk & ticketing options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | OpenSupports | Faveo Helpdesk |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 14 · At risk | 65 · Good |
| Category | Helpdesk & Ticketing | Helpdesk & Ticketing |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | JavaScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,038 | ★ 1,255 |
| First released | 2016 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Zendesk, Freshdesk | Zendesk, Freshdesk |
What are OpenSupports and Faveo Helpdesk?
OpenSupports
OpenSupports is an open-source customer support ticket system that lets users submit and track support requests through a web portal. Staff manage tickets with departments, custom responses, and statistics.
- Customer support portal
- Department-based routing
- Custom responses
- Ticket statistics
Faveo Helpdesk
Faveo Helpdesk Community is an automatic ticket-based support system built on Laravel. It captures customer requests and converts them into trackable tickets.
- Automatic ticket conversion
- Knowledge base module
- SLA management
- Multi-channel intake
OpenSupports vs Faveo Helpdesk: key differences
OpenSupports is written in JavaScript, while Faveo Helpdesk is built with PHP. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for OpenSupports versus MIT for Faveo Helpdesk. OpenSupports lists first-class Docker deployment; Faveo Helpdesk does not.
Why pick each one
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
Choose Faveo Helpdesk if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in PHP
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is OpenSupports or Faveo Helpdesk better?
Neither is universally better. Faveo Helpdesk has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are OpenSupports and Faveo Helpdesk free and open-source?
Yes. OpenSupports is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Faveo Helpdesk under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run OpenSupports and Faveo Helpdesk with Docker?
OpenSupports: yes. Faveo Helpdesk: check the project docs for container support.