# CMDB Alternatives Compare
> Editorial ranking of alternatives to a hand-kept configuration database (CMDB): CMDBs with discovery, platforms that reconcile asset data and keep ServiceNow in sync, and network discovery tools, scored 0 to 100 on completeness of discovery, data trust and reconciliation, ownership mapping, keeping the CMDB in sync, effort to maintain, actionability and pricing clarity. Vendor facts read 27 September and 11 October 2026; published 11 October 2026.

## Ranking
- [CMDB alternatives ranked](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-alternatives-ranked): Axonius 83.2, Lansweeper 69.8, runZero 69.3, Oomnitza 68.9, Armis 68.0, JupiterOne 67.8, ServiceNow CMDB 64.9, Freshservice 60.8, Device42 55.2
- [How we rank](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/ranking-method)
- [Compare records](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/compare-records)
- [Drift cost calculator](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/drift-cost-calculator)

## Options
- [Axonius](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/axonius): Teams that want one reconciled record from the tools they already run, kept in sync with ServiceNow
- [Lansweeper](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/lansweeper): IT teams that want a fast, priced, agentless start
- [runZero](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/runzero): Networks with OT and unmanaged devices, including air-gapped sites
- [Oomnitza](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/oomnitza): IT asset lifecycle: hardware, licenses, joiners and leavers
- [Armis](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/armis): Estates heavy in OT, IoT and medical devices
- [JupiterOne](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/jupiterone): Security teams that want ownership and relationship queries with published prices
- [ServiceNow CMDB](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/servicenow-cmdb): Organizations whose IT workflows already run on ServiceNow
- [Freshservice](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/freshservice): IT teams that want the CMDB inside a service desk with published agent prices
- [Device42](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/option/device42): Data center teams that need dependency mapping from mainframes to containers

## Learn
- [CMDB course](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course): 10 lessons
- [What a CMDB is for, and what it is not](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/what-a-cmdb-is-for): A CMDB is the record IT work runs on: which configuration items exist, how they connect and what changed. It is not automatically a complete inventory, and treating it as one is where most data quality trouble starts.
- [How a configuration record drifts: five patterns](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/how-cmdb-drift-happens): CMDB records rarely go wrong in one dramatic failure. They drift through five ordinary patterns: missing assets, ghosts, duplicates, stale fields and lost owners. Each one needs a different fix.
- [Configuration items and assets: why the two lists disagree](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/configuration-items-vs-assets): IT asset management counts what you own and pay for; configuration management records what you run and how it connects. The two lists overlap but never match exactly, and confusing them is a common source of CMDB disputes.
- [Three ways to fill a CMDB without typing](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/three-ways-to-fill-a-cmdb): There are three automatic routes into a configuration record: the CMDB's own discovery, network discovery tools that feed it, and platforms that reconcile data from tools you already run. Most mature setups combine two of them.
- [Choosing a source of truth field by field](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/source-of-truth-per-field): No single tool is right about everything. A trustworthy record picks a source of truth for each field, not for each tool: the MDM for the serial number, the directory for the user, the EDR for agent health.
- [Matching duplicate records: identifiers that hold up](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/matching-duplicate-records): Duplicates appear when two sources describe one device with different keys. Matching on stable hardware identifiers, with hostnames and IP addresses as supporting evidence only, removes most of them.
- [Putting an owner on every record](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/owners-for-every-record): A record with no owner stays wrong. The reliable way to assign owners is to pull them from systems that already know, such as identity directories, HR systems and the service catalog, rather than asking people to fill in a field.
- [Writing corrections back to ServiceNow safely](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/write-back-to-servicenow): A corrected record that never reaches the CMDB changes nothing. Writing back automatically is powerful, so start with creating missing records, add updates field by field, and leave retirement for last with a review step.
- [Measuring CMDB accuracy with numbers you can defend](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/measuring-cmdb-accuracy): Accuracy needs a few simple, repeatable measures: coverage against trusted outside lists, a sampled correctness rate, duplicate and ghost counts, owner coverage and record age. Track them monthly and publish them to the teams who use the record.
- [Running a 30-day pilot of a CMDB alternative](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-course/cmdb-alternative-pilot): A pilot should test one option against your own estate and your own measures, not against a demo. Thirty days is enough to see coverage, matching, owners and sync, if you prepare the sources and the baseline first.
- [CMDB terms](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-terms): 34 terms
- [CMDB questions](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/cmdb-questions): 23 questions

## Record notes
- [Twelve questions to answer before the next CMDB clean-up project](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/questions-before-a-cmdb-cleanup): Most CMDB clean-ups fix the records once and leave the causes in place. Answer these twelve questions first and the clean-up becomes a change in how the record is filled, not a one-time sweep.
- [How the CMDB alternatives ranking moves when you change the weights](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/how-weights-move-the-ranking): Weights are a judgment. We tested four alternatives to our default weighting to see which results hold and which flip. The top of the table holds; what changes is the gap, and the order below the leader.
- [The ownership gap: few CMDB alternatives document who owns each asset](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/the-ownership-gap): Ownership mapping is the criterion with the weakest evidence across the set. Only a few options document it fully on their own pages. Here is who does, who partly does, and how to fill the gap with data you already hold.
- [Discovery, reconciliation or a better CMDB: what the scores say about each route](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/three-routes-compared): The nine options fall into three routes away from a hand-kept CMDB. Averaging their scores by route shows where each route is strong, where it is weak, and why the best answer for many teams combines two.
- [Service desks with a CMDB built in: what the pricing pages say](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/service-desk-cmdb-pricing): Freshservice, Jira Service Management, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus and Halo all list asset or CMDB features on their pricing pages. Here is what each publishes, priced per agent or technician, and what the pages leave unsaid about discovery.
- [Axonius's CMDB Reconciliation Workspace, read closely](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/axonius-cmdb-reconciliation-workspace): In July 2026 Axonius described a workspace that compares a CMDB such as ServiceNow against its correlated asset data. Here is what the announcement and docs say it does, what it leaves to other tools, and where Axonius still trails in our scores.
- [Dragos buys runZero: questions for teams that feed a CMDB with it](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/dragos-runzero-acquisition): Dragos announced on 21 September 2026 that it acquired runZero and NetRise. runZero leads this site on effort to maintain. Here is what is known, what is not, and what to ask before renewing.
- [ServiceNow now owns Armis: what it changes for the CMDB record](https://cmdbalternativescompare.com/record-notes/servicenow-armis-cmdb): ServiceNow completed its Armis acquisition on 20 April 2026. For teams that rely on the CMDB, the deal joins a passive device discovery platform to the system of record. It does not settle coverage of SaaS apps, identities or owners.