UVdesk vs Zammad
PHP help desk with email-to-ticket, a support center, and a knowledge base. A help desk with chat, email, and phone channels. Compare the capabilities you need, then check hosting, licensing and maintenance. This pair is shown for browsing but is not indexed (no written verdict yet).
| Attribute | UVdesk | Zammad |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | PHP help desk with email-to-ticket, a support center, and a knowledge base. | A help desk with chat, email, and phone channels. |
| Documented capabilities | Email-to-ticket from unlimited mailboxes, Customer support center, Knowledge base and FAQ, Automated workflows and saved replies, Unlimited agents and tickets | Multi-channel tickets, Roles and groups, Knowledge base |
| Best-fit workflow | Small teams that want an email help desk with a knowledge base on a PHP and MySQL stack. | Support organizations that need tickets, roles, and more than one channel. |
| Check before choosing | The latest release is from September 2025 and the README still lists PHP 8.1. Reporting is a paid add-on, and no official Docker image is published. | Budget time for Elasticsearch and the rest of the stack if you self-host. |
| Deployment options | Composer, Web installer | Docker, Package |
| GitHub stars | 19,637 | 6,037 |
| License | OSL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Docker noted | Not recorded | Yes |
| Cloud / hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Primary language | PHP | Ruby |
| Last commit | 2026-10-07 | 2026-10-26 |
| Difficulty | Moderate | Moderate |
| Content source | Editorial catalog entry | Editorial catalog entry |
| Metadata checked | Check the current repository | 2026-10-27 |
| Forks | 562 | 1.1k |
| Star growth | Not recorded | +66 (2026-10-01 to 2026-10-27) |
| Alternative to | Zendesk | Intercom, Zendesk |
This comparison uses recorded capabilities, not hands-on performance tests. A capability missing from one record does not mean that product lacks it. Confirm edition, version and current pricing in the official documentation.
When to consider UVdesk
Small teams that want an email help desk with a knowledge base on a PHP and MySQL stack.
The latest release is from September 2025 and the README still lists PHP 8.1. Reporting is a paid add-on, and no official Docker image is published.
UVdesk documentation and sourceWhen to consider Zammad
Support organizations that need tickets, roles, and more than one channel.
Budget time for Elasticsearch and the rest of the stack if you self-host.
Zammad documentation and sourceUVdesk vs Zammad questions
- What is UVdesk?
- PHP help desk with email-to-ticket, a support center, and a knowledge base.
- What is Zammad?
- A help desk with chat, email, and phone channels.
- Can you self-host UVdesk and Zammad?
- Both can be self-hosted.
- What licenses do UVdesk and Zammad use?
- UVdesk uses the OSL-3.0 license. Zammad uses the AGPL-3.0 license.
- Which has more GitHub stars, UVdesk or Zammad?
- UVdesk has 20k stars and Zammad has 6.0k. Stars show attention; check recent commits and releases for maintenance.
- What languages are UVdesk and Zammad written in?
- UVdesk is mainly written in PHP. Zammad is mainly written in Ruby.