Request Tracker review
A customizable, open-source help desk with queues, automation, SLAs, and self-hosting.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Request Tracker (RT) is an open-source ticket and issue-tracking system for IT, support, operations, and organizations serving external customers. Its core model centers on customizable queues, workflows, roles, permissions, email communication, automation, reporting, and SLA policies. Teams can deploy RT on their own infrastructure or choose fully managed Cloud RT from Best Practical Solutions. The product also includes a customer portal, searchable knowledge articles, canned responses, dashboards, scheduled reports, and a REST 2 API.
For managed Cloud RT, the published plans show Starter at $15 per user per month when billed annually, with a minimum of 5 users, 250 tickets per month, 10 GB secure storage, a dedicated environment, the full RT feature set, and documentation and community support. Business is $29 per user per month billed annually, adding 1,000 tickets, 30 GB storage, email support, and a 2 business day SLA. Growth is $39 per user per month billed annually, with 5,000 tickets, 75 GB storage, email and chat support, and a 1 business day SLA. Enterprise includes unlimited tickets, 1 TB+ secure storage, email and chat support, and a 4 business hour SLA, with pricing presented as custom. A 14-day Cloud RT trial is available, while self-hosted RT is free under GPLv2.
RT’s strongest fit is for technical teams that need detailed control over queues, lifecycles, permissions, business hours, deadlines, and ticket automation rather than a narrowly simplified inbox. Its ecosystem includes Zapier, Active Directory, SAML, and the REST API, supporting connections across identity, workflow, and custom applications. The trade-off is operational choice: self-hosting places deployment on the organization, while managed plans impose ticket and storage limits until higher tiers. Choose RT for customizable, process-heavy support or IT operations; consider an alternative if the priority is a simpler help desk with less configuration.
Request Tracker pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Open-source deployment with customizable queues and ticket lifecycles
- Built-in SLAs, automation, reporting, permissions, and audit history
- Self-service portal, knowledge base, REST API, and email ticketing
- Where it doesn't
- Cloud pricing starts at $15 per user per month with annual billing
- Starter limits usage to 250 tickets per month and 10 GB storage
- Self-hosted deployment requires an organization's own infrastructure
Request Tracker fact sheet, pricing and score →
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