10 Best IT automation tools for optimizing your IT ops

Managing IT infrastructures efficiently and with up-to-date security should be a top priority for any IT organization. As IT infrastructures become more complex, day-to-day tasks keep increasing, and the need for IT automation increases. 

IT automation tools help to address this by enabling IT organizations to automate routine tasks, ensuring consistency and reducing the workload on IT staff. Whether you’re an MSP or part of an IT department, IT automation tools can be a valuable asset for day-to-day IT management operations.

To assist you in selecting an IT automation tool, we have compiled a list of the best solutions on the market. Before we review them, let’s first examine what IT automation tools are, what types are available, and why they are necessary.

What is an IT automation tool?

An IT automation tool is a software that automates repetitive IT tasks, processes, and workflows. IT automation tools enable automated patch management, scripting, IT ticketing, network monitoring, reports, and more.

IT automation tools and capabilities are often part of a more comprehensive IT management platform. For example, Atera offers IT automation as part of its all-in-one IT management platform.

Types of IT automation tools

The types of IT automation tools include automated patch management, RMM, backup and disaster recovery, PSA, and unified IT management software.

Automated patch management software

Automated patch management software automates patching and updating software across multiple devices and operating systems.

The top patch management solutions allow users to deploy patches on custom schedules, automate software installations, create IT automation profiles, and automate routine maintenance such as disk defragmentation, scheduled resets, and cleanups.

Remote monitoring and management (RMM)software

RMM tools allow organizations to continuously monitor their IT infrastructure, identify issues proactively, and provide remote support. A good RMM tool includes real-time monitoring and alert thresholds, which monitor system activity in real-time and alert users to emerging problems.

RMM tools often include proactive server monitoring, which automatically provides insights into server health. This enables you to prevent downtime and maintain operational excellence.

Data backup and disaster recovery (BDR) software

BDR software automates data backup and recovery, ensuring that critical data is protected and can be quickly restored in the event of a system failure or data loss. The best IT automation software include data recovery as part of their more comprehensive platform. For instance, with Atera’s Master plan, you will have access to automated data recovery and backup.

Professional services automation (PSA) software

PSA tools integrate capabilities such as helpdesk and ticketing, contracts and billing, customer portal, reporting, and analytics into one platform. They often include automation features, such as automatically creating tickets from alerts and categorizing them, tracking time, and creating advanced reports.

A few IT management tools also offer AI-powered IT ticketing system, further automating repetitive tasks. PSA capabilities are usually part of a larger IT management platform, aiming to cover an organization’s IT management needs.

Unified IT management software

Unified IT management software combines various IT automation capabilities into one platform. Typical automation capabilities for unified solutions include automated patch management, RMM, PSA, backup and disaster recovery, automated scripting, and real-time monitoring and alerting.

Additionally, Atera is the first unified IT management tool offering AI-powered capabilities to automate IT processes further. 

Why you need an IT automation tool

Investing in IT automation tools has many benefits, which we will discuss next.

The 10 best IT automation tools to streamline IT management

Next, let’s review the best IT automation tools. For each tool, we will highlight the key features, pros and cons, and the pricing. These tools can be used by IT departments and MSPs to streamline IT management and increase IT technician efficiency.

1. Atera

Atera is an all-in-one IT management solution for IT departments and managed service providers (MSPs). IT automation is Atera’s key feature, and users can create IT automation profiles to automate tasks such as patching, Windows version upgrades, disk management, maintenance, scripting, and installing software bundles.

Additionally, Atera offers remote monitoring and management (RMM), professional services automation (PSA), remote access, reporting and analytics, and AI-powered capabilities, such as AI service desk.

You can integrate Atera with various third-party software, such as Domotz, Zomentum, Azure AD, Splashtop, Chocolatey, and Homebrew.

Features and capabilities

Alongside standard IT automation capabilities, Atera enables IT staff to be 10X more efficient by powering its platform with AI through Atera Copilot. The AI capabilities further help to automate repetitive tasks, such as responding to tickets, creating scripts to resolve issues, and creating knowledge base articles.

Atera’s AI-powered service desk enables IT teams to move from reactive to proactive through predictive analytics, automated ticket routing, auto-ticket summarization, and instant issue resolution recommendations.

The AI capabilities also help with scripting. Atera’s automated scripting tool helps to create customized scripts that address issues like slow device performance and concurrent application crashes. The tool only needs a set of instructions. 

The scripts can be scheduled through the IT automation profiles to run automatically across multiple end-user devices.

User interface and usability

To use Atera’s IT automation capabilities, you can create an IT automation profile within Atera’s admin dashboard and modify the profile and its settings according to your specific requirements.

With Atera, creating IT automation profiles and performing other IT management tasks is intuitive and user-friendly. Since the start, Atera’s user interfaces have been designed with ease of use and user-friendliness in mind, so customers have no problem navigating around.

If you need assistance navigating Atera, live chat is available 24/7. You can also find numerous self-help materials, such as an extensive knowledge base, webinars, and blog articles. 

Atera also has an active IT community where IT professionals can troubleshoot and discuss best practices. To get a glimpse of our community spirit, check out the best IT automation scripts submitted by our community members.

Pricing and value for money

Atera is one of the few IT automation platforms using transparent pay-per-technician, where you’re charged based on the number of technicians using the platform. Atera’s pricing plans range from $149 to $199/month for IT departments, $129 to $209/month for MSPs, and enterprise customers can receive a custom quote.

Atera customers highly appreciate the transparency and per-technician pricing model, as scaling has no hidden fees and is cost-effective.

Most IT automation tools listed in our article use pay-per-endpoint pricing, where you’re charged based on how many endpoints/devices you manage. While per-endpoint pricing may be beneficial for some IT organizations, smaller organizations may find it unpredictable and expensive to scale. Additionally, many solutions don’t disclose their prices publicly, which makes it harder to compare them.

Atera G2 rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 stars (550+ reviews)

What Atera users are saying on G2:

AG2 user mentions that their company is new to Atera and is in the process of setting it up. The reviewer mentions that learning Atera and its available features has been easy. The organization benefits from Atera’s reports on device monitoring and system/device performance. According to the reviewer, Atera’s all-in-one solution replaces several different network/device monitoring tools with its built-in capabilities.

Atera Capterra rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 stars (350+ reviews)

What Atera users are saying on Capterra:

A Capterra user mentions using Atera for remote assistance. When some changes cannot be pushed through Windows GPO or Intune, Atera is the last stable option to push those changes to the client machines. This has often been indispensable, especially when existing PAM solutions fail.

Atera pricing:

Atera’s pricing plans for IT departments:

• Professional: $149 per month, per technician
• Expert: $169 per month, per technician
• Master: $199 per month, per technician
• Enterprise: Custom quotation. Contact sales for pricing.

Atera’s pricing plans for MSPs:

• Pro: $129 per month, per technician
• Growth: $179 per month, per technician
• Power: $209 per month, per technician
• Superpower (Enterprise): Custom quotation. Contact sales for pricing.

Get started with Atera on a 30-day free trial with no credit card required.

2. ManageEngine

ManageEngine offers a suite of IT management products aimed at IT departments and MSPs. ManageEngine Service Desk Plus includes IT automation capabilities for the service desk, such as automated ticket assignment and categorization and automated knowledge base article suggestions.

ManageEngine OpManager also offers different IT automation capabilities, such as troubleshooting network issues, automating ongoing maintenance tasks, and creating automated workflows through a drag-and-drop builder. Overall, ManageEngine offers robust IT automation, but it’s spread across its multiple products, resulting in high costs.

G2 Rating: 4.4 out of 5.0 (600+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 5.0 out of 5.0 (750+ reviews)

ManageEngine Endpoint Central Pricing:

• Professional: Starting at $104 per month, per technician

3. Action1

Action1 is a cloud-based endpoint management solution for IT departments. It helps them to secure and manage their networks through patch management, remote desktop access, and software deployment capabilities. Action1 automates the patch management process by detecting missing patches, prioritizing them based on severity, and deploying them.

Action1 is also capable of automated maintenance, including reboots, software updates, and routine checks. While Action1 is a strong solution for automated patch management, it misses other crucial IT management capabilities, such as advanced RMM and PSA and automation capabilities for them.

G2 Rating: 4.9 out of 5.0 (150+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.9 out of 5.0 (80+ reviews)

Action1 Pricing:

• Custom quotation: To get pricing from Action1, you need to request a quote from their website.

4. N-able

One of N-able’s main products, N-central RMM, offers RMM, network and device management, patch management, and Apple MDM capabilities. The available RMM features have built-in automation capabilities, such as auto-remediation and pre-made scripts. N-able also offers Automation manager software for MSPs, allowing them to set up automated tasks via a drag-and-drop builder.

N-able’s main strength is its flexibility, which is due to the wide range of products it offers. However, numerous N-able users on G2 mention that the software has a steep learning curve, especially for the Automation manager.

G2 Rating: 4.3 out of 5.0 stars (170+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 3.9 out of 5.0 stars (40+ reviews)

N-central Pricing:

• The company does not publicly disclose its pricing; it is based on a custom quotation. To obtain the pricing, request a quote from N-able’s website.

5. SysAid

SysAid is an IT service management solution for IT departments and HR teams. It supports features such as service desk automation, task automation, workflow automation (at the moment no AI workflow automation), and self-service automation. Service desk automation capabilities include categorizing, prioritizing, and automatically assigning tickets to the right IT personnel.

SysAid has strong automation capabilities for basic IT service management, making it suitable for organizations seeking such functionality. However, it lacks features such as RMM and automated scripting, which IT departments may require.

G2 rating: 4.5 out of 5.0 stars (600+ reviews)

Capterra rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 stars (400+ reviews)

SysAid pricing:

• Book a demo call to receive custom pricing.

6. Syncro

Syncro is an all-in-one IT management solution for managed service providers (MSPs). Its key features include RMM, PSA, remote access, patch management, scripting, and third-party integrations. Syncro offers different IT automation capabilities, including automated time tracking and billing, automated patch management, and automatic remediation when an alert is generated.

Syncro is especially popular among small businesses that need a user-friendly platform for managing their clients’ IT infrastructure. The available per technician pricing suits most IT teams as well. Syncro has some strong points but also limitations, such as limited patching and reporting capabilities, as reported by G2 users.

G2 rating: 4.5 out of 5.0 (120+ reviews)

Capterra rating: 4.7 out of 5.0 (70+ reviews)

Syncro pricing:

• Basic: $139 per month, per user

7. NinjaOne

NinjaOne is an RMM solution for IT departments and MSPs. Its automation capabilities include automated patch management, backup management, custom scripts, remote control, and drive encryption. NinjaOne’s automation capabilities mainly revolve around its RMM functionality, as opposed to other areas such as helpdesk and ticketing.

NinjaOne’s main drawback is its pay-per-endpoint pricing, which increases with every additional device or endpoint. Alternatives, such as Atera that use per-technician pricing may prove to be more cost-effective and predictable.

G2 Rating: 4.8 out of 5.0 (1,000+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.8 out of 5.0 (200+ reviews)

NinjaOne Pricing:

• NinjaOne states it prices per endpoint but does not make its pricing available publicly; pricing is based on custom quotation. To learn more, visit their website.

8. Naverisk

Naverisk combines RMM, PSA, and data protection capabilities into one platform. It helps IT professionals to automate manual tasks, such as handling and modifying customer tickets, creating scripts, and generating reports. Naverisk can also handle different maintenance tasks automatically, such as disk space issues for devices that cause alerts.

Customers mainly appreciate Naverisk’s all-in-one solution for RMM and service desk. However, users on G2 have complained about its user interface and ticketing system, which makes it difficult to find old tickets.

G2 Rating: 4.7 out of 5.0 stars (60+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.8 out of 5.0 stars (90+ reviews)

Naverisk Pricing:

• Based on a custom quote; to receive information, interested prospects must provide their details and wait for a representative to contact them. Prices start at $110 per month.

9. SuperOps

SuperOps offers RMM, service desk, asset management, patch management, IT automation, and project management under one platform. Its IT automation capabilities are split into event triggers, time triggers, and runbooks. The main automated capabilities include automated ticket assignment, predefined replies, knowledge base article generation, and billing and contracts.

SuperOps uses a per technician pricing model but charges extra if you exceed your plan’s endpoint limit, which is 150 endpoints. This is a drawback compared to Atera, which offers unlimited endpoints at no additional cost.

G2 rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 stars (100+ reviews)

Capterra rating: n/a

SuperOps pricing:

• Starting at $119 per month for the unified PSA and RMM package.

10. Pulseway

Pulseway offers RMM and network monitoring products for IT departments and MSPs. Its key IT automation capabilities include auto-remediation of IT issues based on alerts, scripting from pre-made templates, and automated patch management. It also offers an extensive mobile app for managing IT environments on the go.

Pulseway doesn’t include PSA functionality but integrates with third-party PSA software. IT professionals seeking automation on IT ticketing may want to consider another option besides Pulseway. For example, Atera offers comprehensive automation capabilities for helpdesk and ticketing.

G2 Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0 (50+ reviews)

Capterra Rating: 4.7 out of 5.0 (180+ reviews)

Pulseway Pricing:

• Pulseway’s pricing structure is public and transparent. The company charges per endpoint/device and offers a calculator on its website that includes factors like contract length, number of endpoints, third-party add-ons, etc. 
• Pulseway charges $149 for a one-time ‘Advanced Onboarding and Best Practices’ session.

IT automation accompanied with ActionAI™: Only with Atera

IT automation is a key part of Atera’s all-in-one IT management platform. With it, IT professionals can create IT automation profiles that help automate tasks like deploying patches for software and running scripts to fix problems.

In addition to IT automation, Atera helps IT technicians automate repetitive tasks using AI. One area where AI features come in handy is solving user issues. IT ticketing typically involves a lot of manual work, but Atera helps automate it with auto-ticket summaries, responses, and solution suggestions. As a result, IT technicians are able to automate manual processes even further and focus on more strategic tasks.

If you’d like to try Atera yourself, you can take advantage of the available 30-day free trial, with no credit card required. You can also contact our sales team for a custom demo.