Jira vs ServiceNow

Both Jira and ServiceNow are popular platforms and offer great services. Jira is basically a bug-tracking tool that also helps in agile project management and ServiceNow is a software that helps in managing and fulfilling the requests in the project. Let us see in what aspects these terms differ.

What is Jira?

Jira platform was introduced in 2002 by Atlassian, an Australian Company. It works as a cloud and subscription-based bug-tracking tool and is written in Java programming language. It helps the teams of an organization to plan, assign, track, report, and manage the whole work. It started its services of project management in 2012 and is mainly used by the developers in Agile field.

Key Features

1. It keeps teams and organizations in sync with the feature of roadmaps.
2. Customizable workflows.
3. It is compatible with Android and iOS devices.
4. Great Product Integrations with Salesforce Sales Cloud, Service Des, Balsamiq, Zendesk, etc.

Advantages

1. It supports the roadmap requirement.
2. Integration is available. Also, it enables users to create any kind of issue.
3. Scheduling and time management.
4. Large organizations can easily use this platform.
5. It allows for easy customization and configuration to fit the specific needs of a project or organization.
6. Jira offers a wide range of plugins and add-ons that enhance its functionality and extend its capabilities.
7. It has a large and active community of users and developers who share knowledge and provide support.
8. It offers a variety of project management features, including agile boards, workflows, and issue tracking, making it suitable for different project management methodologies.
   

Disadvantages

1. Reports are not reusable.
2. It has complex User-Interface and is difficult to understand for new users.
3. It is quite expensive to use.
4. It has no collaborative feature to communicate with the team.
5. It can be overwhelming for small teams or projects due to its many features and complex user interface.
6. It requires a significant amount of time and effort to set up and configure initially.
7. The software can be slow or unresponsive at times, particularly when working with large datasets.
8. Jira can be less user-friendly for non-technical team members or stakeholders who are not familiar with the software or the agile methodology.

What is ServiceNow?

ServiceNow is a company founded in 2004 and is based in Santa Clara, California, United States. It develops a cloud computing platform that further helps companies to manage digital workflows for work operations in an organization. Basically, this product is a tool that stores and organizes data for users. It provides software as a service (SaaS) for technical management support. 

Key Features

1. It enables instance-based implementation.
2. It has a dashboard that can be used to track the activities. 
3. It provides good customer support.
4. It has high security which gives confidentiality and integrity to data. 
5. Customization of settings is quite easy.

Advantages

1. It helps organizations track each task’s progress in an efficient manner.
2. It has an efficient task management system.
3. Employees can easily handle repetitive tasks, as it has an automated work environment.
4. It eliminates human errors and quickly detects problems in the platform.
5. It has a well-organized user interface which makes navigation easy.
6. It offers a wide range of plugins and integrations, allowing users to customize the platform as per their needs.
7. It has a good knowledge management system, which helps in storing and sharing knowledge across the organization.
8. It has a strong security system with strict access controls and encryption protocols.
9. It provides excellent customer support, with multiple channels available for users to seek help.

Disadvantages

1. It is quite a complex platform for new clients.
2. Customization can be hard to manage on this platform.
3. The mobile app is too complex to set up. 
4. Technicians are not always available if needed on an urgent basis.
5. The pricing model can be complex, making it difficult for small organizations to afford.
6. The learning curve can be steep for new users, who may need extensive training to use the platform effectively.
7. The platform can be slow to load and run at times, leading to frustration among users.
8. There can be compatibility issues with certain browsers or operating systems.
9. Customizations can lead to performance issues if not done properly.

Difference between Jira and ServiceNow

	Jira	ServiceNow
User Interface	Its User Interface is interactive.	Its User Interface is not quite interactive.
Expenses	The price is less for this platform when compared with ServiceNow.	The price is on the higher side for this platform when compared with Jira.
Set up and Installation	Its setup is easy, and installation time is less.	Its setup is not easy and installation takes time.
Service	All the requests are handled by the same group of people.	The query is not solved by the same group of people.
Application	It runs on on-premise and on cloud platforms.	It works only on the cloud.
Learning Curve	Users find it complex to explore as its learning curve is not steep.	Users find it easy to explore this platform as its learning curve is steep.
Integrations and APIs	Custom-built integrations are less.	Custom-built integrations and APIs are more.
Updates	Updates are done easily, and no money is charged.	Updates are not easy.
Visual Environment	Visual Environments are not provided in Jira.	Visual environments are provided to help the users to know the output beforehand.
Hardware Sharing	As it is not an enterprise-related platform, hardware is not shared.	Hardware is shared on this platform.
Expenses of time-based events	If the events are based on time-based events, no extra charges are added.	If the events are based on time-based events, extra charges are added.
Offline capabilities	Offline capabilities are added and thus changes can be made even when the system is not connected to the network.	There is no offline capability.
Productivity level	It has a good productivity level, as the platform and software have the same user interface and APIs.	It has less productivity as the platform and software are built on various software and as a result, APIs are different.

Conclusion

One can choose Jira over ServiceNow as the latter has high costs and other functionalities which users find complex to use. Jira gives a shorter implementation schedule, a good package of pricing, and an easy-to-use platform. It also offers time to value and a better return on the services. Both platforms have their own pros and cons and it all depends on the user and their requirements to choose the platforms.