Best IT documentation software for MSPs in 2026
TL;DR
IT Glue is the most widely-used documentation platform for MSPs, but Hudu is closing the gap fast - at $27/user/month with no minimums and a self-hosted option, it undercuts IT Glue's $29/user minimum-5-users floor by enough that the math increasingly favors switching. ITFlow is the free open-source option if you're comfortable with self-hosting. The choice between them matters more than most MSPs realize: your documentation quality now directly determines how well AI automation tools can close tickets without human hands. Good docs aren't just for your techs anymore - they're the playbook your AI runs from.
Why documentation costs more than you think
A tech spends 15 minutes hunting for a password or network diagram that should be in the system. Multiply that across 20 tickets a day, five technicians, and 250 working days - you're looking at thousands of hours per year burned on finding things instead of fixing things.
That's the number most documentation tool comparisons open with. It's true, but it's only half the cost.
The other half is what happens when documentation is missing at the exact moment it would have enabled automation. AI tools that connect to your PSA - tools that can handle password resets, account unlocks, and onboarding without a human touching the ticket - need structured, reliable documentation to act. Sparse docs mean more escalations. Missing runbooks mean the AI asks the tech instead of handling it. A credential vault with stale passwords means the bot fails mid-resolution.
Your documentation is no longer just a reference for your team. It's the context layer your AI runs on.
We looked at six tools across the MSP documentation landscape. Here's how they actually compare.
What to look for
Before the list: the buying criteria that separate a documentation platform from an overpriced wiki.
Client-centric structure. Your docs should be organized around clients, not topics. When a ticket comes in for Client X, a tech - or an AI - should be able to pull up everything for that client in one view: credentials, network info, SOPs, escalation contacts. Tools that force you to adapt a generic knowledge base structure add friction.
Password vault with proper encryption. Credentials need to live inside your documentation system with AES-256 encryption, role-based access, audit logging, and ideally credential rotation. Separate password managers create sync problems and security gaps.
PSA/RMM integration depth. Docs that live inside your PSA workflow actually get used. Docs in a separate tool that requires switching context get skipped. Integration depth matters.
Active development. The MSP documentation market is moving fast. Platforms that shipped major features in 2024 are already outrunning those that last updated their UI in 2022. Check the changelog.
Self-hosting option. Documentation is one of the stickiest tools in your stack - thousands of client records, passwords, and procedures. Vendor lock-in is real. A self-hosted option means you control the data and the exit.
The tools
1. IT Glue - best for Kaseya shops
IT Glue is the market leader - the most widely-used documentation platform among MSPs globally. It's been building MSP-specific features since 2013 and was acquired by Kaseya in 2019.
What it does well: Structured client documentation with a deep template library, built-in password management (the Vault), asset tracking, network discovery via Network Glue (an add-on), and Cooper Copilot for AI-generated SOPs. The AI SOP generator is genuinely useful - it captures every click and keystroke as you work and turns them into step-by-step guides automatically, which is the kind of documentation automation that actually changes behavior rather than just promising to.
Integrations are deep, especially if you're already in the Kaseya ecosystem. ConnectWise, Autotask, Datto RMM, and NinjaRMM all connect natively. The one-way sync with RMMs pulls asset data directly into client records without manual entry.
Where it falls short: Customer support has declined since the Kaseya acquisition - it's one of the most consistent complaints on r/msp. The pricing structure is also revealing: IT Glue requires a 5-user minimum on every plan, which means a small MSP is paying for seats they might not need.
The Kaseya ownership creates a secondary concern. Price increases post-acquisition follow a pattern across the Kaseya portfolio. Your documentation data - passwords, procedures, client information spanning years - becomes leverage for the vendor at contract renewal time.
Pricing (pricing page):
| Plan | Price | Min users | Minimum monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $29/user/mo | 5 | $145/mo |
| Select | $38/user/mo | 5 | $190/mo |
| Enterprise | $44/user/mo | 5 | $220/mo |
All pricing on 36-month terms. The Select and Enterprise tiers add multi-PSA sync, runbooks, and Microsoft Cloud Editor.
Our take: If you're running ConnectWise or Autotask and already leaning on the Kaseya stack, IT Glue's native integrations earn their place. For everyone else, the 5-user minimum and Kaseya ownership create enough friction that Hudu deserves a serious look first.
2. Hudu - best value for most MSPs
Hudu launched in 2020 as a direct IT Glue alternative and has grown into the most credible challenger in the MSP documentation market, with 5,700+ IT teams using it globally.
The pitch is simple: everything IT Glue covers - client documentation, password management, SOPs, asset tracking, API access - for less money, with no user minimums, faster support, and a self-hosted option that IT Glue doesn't offer.
What it does well: Clean UI that techs actually use (always underrated in documentation discussions), structured docs with templates, a password vault with the same AES-256 standard as IT Glue, Hudu Radar for proactive monitoring alerts, and a REST API that enables tight integrations even where native connectors don't exist. The self-hosted option is the real differentiator - you own the data, you own the infrastructure, and if you decide to switch in three years, there's no vendor hostage situation.
MSPs switching from IT Glue consistently cite two things: better support response times and faster product development. Looking at Hudu's changelog versus IT Glue's, the gap is visible.
"We find Hudu to be far more consistent and reliable compared to ITGlue, we had no idea how used to mediocrity we were until we started using Hudu." - r/msp, 7 months ago
Where it falls short: Fewer native integrations than IT Glue, particularly for Kaseya-stack shops. The self-hosted option means you're managing a server - not complicated, but it's real overhead. And as a newer product, some edge-case features that IT Glue built over a decade are still on Hudu's roadmap.
Pricing (pricing page):
| Plan | Cloud | Self-hosted |
|---|---|---|
| All-inclusive | $27/user/mo (annual) | $30/user/mo |
| Monthly billing | $30/user/mo | $35/user/mo |
No user minimums. All features included on every plan. No contracts required.
Our take: For most MSPs - especially those not locked into Kaseya - Hudu is the better default choice in 2026. Better support, active development, no artificial minimums, and a self-hosted option that gives you data control. The 5-seat minimum at IT Glue costs you $145/month before you get a single page of docs; Hudu starts at $27/month for one user.
3. ITFlow - best for budget-constrained MSPs comfortable with self-hosting
ITFlow is the open-source option. Free, self-hosted, and covers the core of what smaller MSPs need: client documentation, passwords, network info, basic ticketing, and invoicing.
What it does well: Zero licensing cost. You own everything - data, infrastructure, the entire installation. Active open-source community. The feature set is genuinely broader than "just documentation" - built-in ticketing and invoicing means smaller shops can consolidate tools. For an MSP with Linux administration comfort and a tight budget, ITFlow eliminates documentation as a line item entirely.
Where it falls short: No dedicated support team - you're on community forums and documentation. The UI trails IT Glue and Hudu. Fewer native integrations. Setup requires real server management work. For MSPs without someone who can own the infrastructure, the operational overhead quickly erodes the cost savings.
Pricing: Free. You pay for hosting and your time managing it.
Our take: Right tool for specific situations - early-stage MSPs, budget-constrained operations, or shops with a developer who enjoys owning their infrastructure. Not a replacement for IT Glue or Hudu at scale; the polish and support gap is real. But as proof that core documentation functionality doesn't require $29/user/month, ITFlow makes the point clearly.
4. N-able Passportal - best for N-able ecosystem shops
N-able Passportal leans heavily into the password management side of the MSP documentation equation. It's cloud-based, integrates tightly with N-able's RMM suite, and works well as a credential vault for teams already in the N-able ecosystem.
What it does well: Strong password management with automated credential rotation, client portal for end-users to access their own passwords, integration with N-able's monitoring stack.
Where it falls short: Documentation capabilities are thinner than IT Glue or Hudu - it's primarily a password vault with some documentation features bolted on, not a full documentation platform with a vault. If password management is your primary need and you're already on N-able, it fits. If you need full documentation coverage, it's incomplete.
Pricing: Around $18/user/month. Contact N-able for exact quotes.
Our take: Viable if you're in the N-able stack and your documentation needs are lightweight. Not a primary documentation platform - more of a credential management tool with documentation features adjacent to it.
5. NinjaOne Documentation - best for MSPs who want everything in one tool
NinjaOne added documentation features to its RMM platform, letting MSPs manage client docs in the same interface where they handle monitoring, patching, and remote access.
What it does well: Single pane of glass - if your team lives in NinjaOne all day, having documentation there reduces context switching. For MSPs with simple documentation needs, the built-in feature is often enough.
Where it falls short: Compared to dedicated platforms, NinjaOne's documentation is basic. No self-hosted option, less template depth, simpler vault functionality. It's documentation for shops that want good-enough without paying for another tool.
Pricing: Included in NinjaOne RMM pricing (starts around $3-4/device/month for RMM; documentation is bundled).
Our take: Good enough for small MSPs already on NinjaOne who want to avoid adding another tool to the stack. For MSPs with complex multi-client documentation needs, a dedicated platform does the job better.
6. Confluence - best for internal IT teams, not MSPs
Confluence is the category leader in general knowledge management, and it works - for internal IT teams with relatively simple documentation needs.
What it does well: Flexible, powerful wiki with excellent Jira integration, strong search, solid permissions model. Cheap at $5.75/user/month for Standard.
Where it falls short: Not built for MSPs. No built-in password vault, no client-centric structure, no PSA/RMM integrations out of the box. You can adapt it - MSPs have - but you're constantly working around missing features that IT Glue and Hudu ship natively. Managing documentation for 50 clients in Confluence requires significant customization work.
Pricing: $5.75/user/month (Standard), $11/user/month (Premium). See full pricing.
Our take: Right tool for internal IT departments that live in Jira. Wrong tool for MSPs managing multiple clients. The price is tempting, but the MSP-specific gaps are real and the workarounds cost time.
The comparison at a glance
| Tool | Starting price | Self-host | Password vault | PSA integrations | Open source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IT Glue | $29/user/mo (5 min) | No | Yes | Deep (Kaseya) | No |
| Hudu | $27/user/mo | Yes | Yes | Good (API) | No |
| ITFlow | Free | Yes (required) | Yes | Basic | Yes |
| N-able Passportal | ~$18/user/mo | No | Yes | N-able ecosystem | No |
| NinjaOne | Bundled with RMM | No | Basic | Native | No |
| Confluence | $5.75/user/mo | Yes | No | General | No |
The angle every other comparison misses
Most documentation tool comparisons frame the question as: which platform helps your techs find things faster?
That's still true. But in 2026, it's only half the question.
The other half: which platform helps your AI act, not just your techs find?
AI ticket resolution tools - tools that autonomously handle password resets, account unlocks, onboarding, and offboarding without a human touching the ticket - don't work from memory. They pull context from your documentation system in real time. When a ticket arrives, the AI checks the client's IT documentation: What's the AD structure? What password policy is in place? Where does this user sit in the org chart? Is there a runbook for this exact issue?
If the documentation is complete, the AI resolves the ticket and closes it. If the documentation is sparse - missing credentials, outdated network diagrams, no SOP for this class of issue - the AI escalates to a tech, and you're back to paying human rates for L1 work.
The diagram below captures the loop:
This changes how you should evaluate documentation platforms. It's not just about which tool your techs prefer - it's about which tool produces documentation structured well enough for an AI to act on it.
Both IT Glue and Hudu are built for this. Their structured data models - client records with standardized fields, credential vaults with clear access patterns, SOPs with defined steps - are exactly what AI tools consume. Flat wikis and general knowledge bases are harder to connect and harder to query reliably.
For MSPs exploring AI-assisted ticket resolution, the documentation platform choice is a dependency, not a side decision.
IT Glue vs Hudu: the real tiebreaker
The IT Glue vs Hudu debate has settled into a fairly clear pattern on r/msp:
"Hudu isn't perfect, but also neither is IT Glue. Also one is getting updates...while the other one doesn't." - r/msp, 1 year ago
The tiebreaker in 2026 is the self-hosting option. Documentation lock-in is real: once you've built out 50 clients with thousands of credential entries, network diagrams, and SOPs, switching platforms is painful. Vendors know this. IT Glue's Kaseya acquisition showed what that leverage looks like in practice - post-acquisition price increases drove a wave of migrations that kept many MSPs stuck anyway because the data migration work was too painful.
Hudu's self-hosted option breaks that dynamic. Your data lives on your infrastructure. If the pricing changes, if the product stagnates, if you want to switch - the migration starts from your server, not from a vendor export. That's worth real money even if you never use it.
The feature matrix tells a similar story:
IT Glue wins on breadth of native integrations for Kaseya shops. Hudu wins on data ownership, pricing flexibility, and development pace. For a new MSP choosing a documentation platform today, Hudu is the default recommendation - unless you're already committed to the Kaseya ecosystem in a way that makes the native integrations genuinely valuable.
How documentation quality affects automation ROI
Here's the number that gets buried in most discussions: a typical MSP handles 200-400 tickets per month that don't require specialized knowledge - password resets, account unlocks, access requests, license management. At 15 minutes each, that's 50-100 hours per month of tech time.
AI tools can close most of those tickets without human intervention. At $150/hour in billable tech time, that's $7,500-$15,000 per month in margin recovery.
But the recovery rate isn't fixed. It depends on documentation quality.
An MSP with complete, structured IT documentation - credential vaults up to date, client networks fully mapped, SOPs for common L1 issues - sees high autonomous resolution rates. The AI has what it needs to act. An MSP with patchy docs, missing passwords, and outdated runbooks sees the AI escalating more often, and the ROI drops.
The documentation investment and the automation investment aren't separate budget lines - they're multiplied together. Better docs make the automation more effective. Better automation makes the time you invest in documentation worth more.
This is why the IT Glue AI features conversation is more interesting than it looks - not because of what IT Glue's AI does inside the documentation tool, but because of what better-structured documentation enables outside it.
Try Rallied
Rallied is an AI technician built specifically for MSPs. It connects to your PSA, RMM, identity systems, and documentation platform - IT Glue and Hudu both - and autonomously closes L1 and L2 tickets: password resets, account unlocks, onboarding, offboarding, license changes.
When a ticket arrives, Rallied pulls context directly from your IT documentation, executes the resolution, and closes the ticket. The tech never touches it. At $0.50 per resolved ticket ($0.40 annually), and with a typical MSP saving 50-100 hours per month of L1 labor, the math tends to work fast.
The 14-day trial comes with $50 credit and no card required. Deployment happens in the same week - no six-month implementation, no dedicated admin overhead. That last part matters: tools like Rewst and Pia require nearly full-time trainer investment for years; Rallied deploys in days.
For MSPs using IT Glue or Hudu, the integration is native. Your documentation becomes the AI's playbook from day one.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is IT documentation software?
IT documentation software is a platform where MSPs and IT teams store structured records of client environments - network diagrams, passwords, hardware inventories, SOPs, runbooks, and escalation procedures. The goal is to give any technician the context they need to resolve a ticket without hunting for information. Tools like IT Glue and Hudu are purpose-built for MSPs; general tools like Confluence work but lack MSP-specific features like password vaults and client-centric layouts.
IT Glue vs Hudu: which is better for MSPs?
It depends on your stack and budget. IT Glue is the more mature product with deeper Kaseya-ecosystem integrations, but it starts at $29/user/month with a 5-user minimum. Hudu covers the same core functionality - documentation, password management, SOPs, asset tracking - at $27/user/month annually with no minimum and a self-hosted option. MSPs switching from IT Glue most commonly cite better support, faster development pace, and lower cost. If you're heavily embedded in the Kaseya stack, IT Glue's native integrations may be worth the premium. If you're not, Hudu is the better deal.
Is there a free IT documentation tool for MSPs?
ITFlow is free and open source, covering client documentation, passwords, network info, and basic ticketing. The tradeoff is self-hosting (requires Linux administration), community-only support, and a feature set that trails IT Glue and Hudu. For small MSPs comfortable managing their own infrastructure, it's a legitimate option. For those who want vendor support and a polished UI, it's a proof-of-concept rather than a production-ready replacement.
How much does IT documentation software typically cost?
Expect $18-$44/user/month for dedicated MSP documentation platforms, depending on the tier and vendor. IT Glue runs $29-$44/user/month with a 5-user minimum (so $145-$220/month floor). Hudu is $27/user/month annually, $30 monthly, with no minimums. N-able Passportal starts around $18/user/month. Confluence is $5.75/user/month but lacks MSP-specific features. ITFlow is free. The real cost question isn't the subscription - it's what bad documentation costs in tech time. A tech spending 15 minutes hunting for information that should be in the system adds up fast across 20 tickets a day.
Can AI use my IT documentation to resolve tickets automatically?
Yes - and this is the angle most documentation tool comparisons miss. AI ticket resolution tools like Rallied connect directly to IT Glue and Hudu, pulling client context, passwords, and SOPs at ticket time to resolve L1/L2 issues without a human. The quality of your documentation directly determines how well the AI performs. Sparse or inconsistent docs mean the AI escalates more often; complete, structured docs mean more autonomous resolutions. Your documentation is no longer just your techs' reference - it's your AI's playbook.
