Choosing one of the best software deployment tools can drastically enhance an IT professional’s workflow, minimizing the need to do tedious tasks so they can focus more on strategic initiatives that drive business value. You’ve come to the right place, whether you’re shopping for one or simply checking out your options. Today, we’ll explore ten of the best software deployment tools in 2024. We have curated this comprehensive list based on different criteria, mostly on features and functionalities.
By deeply understanding these tools and their capabilities, IT professionals can make informed decisions to streamline their deployment processes. This allows them to improve their infrastructure’s efficiency and ensure application reliability. But to fully grasp the benefits of the following options, let’s establish common ground: What are software deployment tools?
What are software deployment tools?
Software deployment tools are a suite of IT solutions that execute software deployment processes to remote devices. These tools allow the installation of the software, its configuration, and regular updating by automating and streamlining the software deployment process, taking on most of the manual workload from IT teams and technicians.
Why do IT teams need remote software deployment tools?
With some teams working remotely and others on-premises, IT departments and MSPs use remote software deployment to ensure that all devices, whether remote or on-premises, are secure and up to date. Software deployment tools also benefit larger organizations that depend on distributed workforces, also called hybrid workforces. While hybrid workforces have many benefits, such as increased productivity and better collaboration, it’s challenging for IT professionals to manage remote devices.
Software deployment tools are perfectly suited for this undertaking. Bridging the gap between physical location and IT management allows efficient software deployments across the entire organization, regardless of where employees work.
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Table of Contents
- NinjaOne
- Microsoft Intune
- Octopus Deploy
- Scalefusion
- Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform
- PDQ Deploy & Inventory
- Puppet
- Citrix Endpoint Management
- VMWare Workspace ONE
- IBM MaaS360
What to look for in remote software deployment tools?
To find the best IT tools for their businesses, organizations look for reliable, scalable, secure, and intuitive solutions. When searching for remote software installation tools, it’s best to look for all those qualities, as well as features that are specific to software deployment tools, such as:
Integration with OS
The ability to support major operating systems is always an advantage of a remote software deployment tool. Ideally, it should be able to support Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems, providing a consistent deployment experience across your entire device landscape.
Software support
Your software deployment tool should be able to push different software types, including system updates, applications, or even custom software.
Scalability
A deployment tool that lacks scalability can quickly become a bottleneck, leading to delays, inconsistencies, and potential security vulnerabilities. For large organizations, it’s vital that your chosen software deployment tool can keep up with the large number of devices you’re managing. Scaling up and down depending on your IT infrastructure’s needs is always an advantage.
Integration with systems
A software deployment solution should seamlessly integrate with your current tools. If it’s part of a unified endpoint management system, it should be able to deploy software, push patches, and monitor devices from a single pane of glass.
Automation tools
It greatly helps if your software deployment tool is optimized for automating deployment. This promotes enhanced productivity and helps IT teams minimize workloads. Your software deployment tool should offer automation features so your IT team can address matters that must be looked at more closely.
10 Best Software Deployment Tools
1. NinjaOne
NinjaOne’s software deployment solution allows IT teams to deploy and patch software at scale. With its top-rated remote management and monitoring, NinjaOne simplifies software deployment to devices through automation, reducing human errors and improving efficiency. NinjaOne is agent-based, so it can deploy software to any device from any location as long as it is connected to the internet. Additionally, NinjaOne supports the most popular operating systems, such as Windows, MacOS, and Linux.
NinjaOne reviews on G2
| Category | NinjaOne Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.8 out of 5 (1104) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 9.6 |
| Quality of Support | 9.4 |
| Ease of Admin | 9.3 |
| Ease of Use | 9.3 |
NinjaOne reviews on Capterra
| Category | NinjaOne Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.8 out of 5 (206) |
| Ease of Use | 4.8 |
| Customer Service | 4.8 |
| Features | 4.5 |
| Value for Money | 4.7 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 93% |
Need a remote software deployment tool that has all these features and more?
2. Microsoft Intune
Formerly known as Microsoft Endpoint Manager, Microsoft Intune Core Capabilities is a cloud-based endpoint management solution marketed towards IT professionals and small and midsize businesses. It’s integrated with features typical of endpoint management tools, including software deployment functionalities. It can deploy apps to Windows 10, mobile devices (iOS and Android), and other platforms.
Microsoft Intune reviews on G2
| Category | Microsoft Intune Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.5 out of 5 (198) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 8.9 |
| Quality of Support | 8.4 |
| Ease of Admin | 8.6 |
| Ease of Use | 8.6 |
Microsoft Intune reviews on Capterra
| Category | Microsoft Intune Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.6 out of 5 (30) |
| Ease of Use | 4.4 |
| Customer Service | 3.9 |
| Features | 4.5 |
| Value for Money | 4.1 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 87% |
3. Octopus Deploy
Octopus Deploy is an integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) automation tool that offers a visual editor with pre-built steps for various technologies, allowing IT admins to orchestrate deployments across diverse environments.
Octopus Deploy reviews on G2
| Category | Octopus Deploy Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.4 out of 5 (51) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 8.6 |
| Quality of Support | 8.2 |
| Ease of Admin | 8.3 |
| Ease of Use | 8.6 |
Microsoft Intune reviews on Capterra
| Category | Octopus Deploy Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.8 out of 5 (57) |
| Ease of Use | 4.7 |
| Customer Service | 4.8 |
| Features | 4.7 |
| Value for Money | 4.8 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 95% |
4. Scalefusion
Scalefusion is a cloud-based unified endpoint management solution designed to secure and manage various business devices. It features deployment functionalities that IT administrators can leverage to create silent installations and manage deployment orders for applications, scripts, and configurations.
Scalefusion reviews on G2
| Category | Scalefusion Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.7 out of 5 (292) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 9.4 |
| Quality of Support | 9.7 |
| Ease of Admin | 8.8 |
| Ease of Use | 8.9 |
Scalefusion reviews on Capterra
| Category | Scalefusion Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.8 out of 5 (114) |
| Ease of Use | 4.7 |
| Customer Service | 5.0 |
| Features | 4.6 |
| Value for Money | 4.8 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 92% |
5. Ansible Automation Platform
Ansible Automation Platform is an IT automation solution developed by enterprise IT solutions provider Red Hat. It focuses on automating IT tasks, including application deployment, to manage infrastructure configurations across on-premises, cloud, and edge environments.
Ansible Automation Platform reviews on G2
| Category | Ansible Automation Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.5 out of 5 (187) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 8.8 |
| Quality of Support | 8.3 |
| Ease of Admin | 8.8 |
| Ease of Use | 8.8 |
Ansible Automation reviews on Capterra
| Category | Ansible Automation Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.5 out of 5 (8) |
| Ease of Use | 4.1 |
| Customer Service | 3.8 |
| Features | 4.8 |
| Value for Money | 4.1 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 89% |
6. PDQ Deploy & Inventory
PDQ Deploy is a software deployment tool that caters to sysadmins to automate software deployment to gain asset visibility across Windows environments. It features a pre-built library of over 200 deployable packages ready for automated silent installations, streamlining IT workflows while minimizing user disruption.
PDQ Deploy & Inventory reviews on G2
| Category | PDQ Deploy & Inventory Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.9 out of 5 (261) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 9.7 |
| Quality of Support | 9.5 |
| Ease of Admin | 9.5 |
| Ease of Use | 9.5 |
PDQ Deploy & Inventory reviews on Capterra
| Category | PDQ Deploy & Inventory Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.8 out of 5 (334) |
| Ease of Use | 4.7 |
| Customer Service | 4.8 |
| Features | 4.7 |
| Value for Money | 4.8 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 93% |
7. Puppet
Puppet is an open-source software configuration and deployment tool that enables IT administrators to deploy and manage infrastructure across various environments. It is known for its ideal automation features, which support IT efficiency.
Puppet reviews on G2
| Category | Puppet Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.2 out of 5 (43) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 8.8 |
| Quality of Support | 8.5 |
| Ease of Admin | 8.1 |
| Ease of Use | 8.3 |
Puppet reviews on Capterra
| Category | Puppet Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.4 out of 5 (24) |
| Ease of Use | 4.1 |
| Customer Service | 4.3 |
| Features | 4.3 |
| Value for Money | 4.3 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 82% |
8. Citrix Endpoint Management
Citrix Endpoint Management (CEM) is a unified solution that provides a single platform for managing all your devices and applications. It offers cloud-based deployment capabilities with granular control where IT administrators can define the order of resource delivery to devices and set rules for targeted deployments based on specific criteria.
Citrix Endpoint Management reviews on G2
| Category | Citrix Endpoint Management Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.0 out of 5 (27) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 7.5 |
| Quality of Support | 7.9 |
| Ease of Admin | 7.5 |
| Ease of Use | 7.5 |
Citrix Endpoint Management reviews on Capterra
| Category | Citrix Endpoint Management Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.1 out of 5 (20) |
| Ease of Use | 3.7 |
| Customer Service | 4.0 |
| Features | 3.9 |
| Value for Money | 4.0 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 70% |
9. VMWare Workspace ONE
VMWare Workspace ONE is a unified endpoint management solution designed to manage and secure various endpoints within an organization’s environment. It provides capabilities for deploying and managing applications across different types of endpoints.
VMWare Workspace ONE reviews on G2
| Category | VMWare Workspace ONE Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.1 out of 5 (37) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 8.0 |
| Quality of Support | 7.9 |
| Ease of Admin | 8.5 |
| Ease of Use | 8.3 |
VMWare Workspace ONE reviews on Capterra
| Category | WMWare Workspace ONE Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.8 out of 5 (27) |
| Ease of Use | 3.1 |
| Customer Service | 3.1 |
| Features | 3.5 |
| Value for Money | 3.3 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 85% |
10. IBM Security MaaS360 with Watson
IBM MaaS360 with Watson is a unified endpoint management platform designed to help organizations manage and secure various devices, applications, and content. It offers deployment features for applications and resources to managed devices.
IBM Security MaaS360 with Watson reviews on G2
| Category | IBM Security MaaS360 Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.1 out of 5 (152) |
| Has the product been a good partner in doing business? | 8.0 |
| Quality of Support | 7.9 |
| Ease of Admin | 7.9 |
| Ease of Use | 8.0 |
IBM Security MaaS360 with Watson reviews on Capterra
| Category | IBM Security MaaS360 with Watson Rating |
|---|---|
| Overall | 4.2 out of 5 (26) |
| Ease of Use | 3.9 |
| Customer Service | 3.9 |
| Features | 4.3 |
| Value for Money | 4.0 |
| Likelihood to Recommend | 67% |
Try NinjaOne’s remote software deployment tool today
If you are searching for a software deployment solution to simplify and automate processes, try NinjaOne. With NinjaOne RMM in your toolbelt, you gain access to automated software deployment, patch management, endpoint monitoring, device management, and more, all from a centralized console. Explore NinjaOne and all its features to discover why it’s the right solution for your business.
Final scores and summaries of Software Deployment Tools
| Vendor | Final Score | Summary |
| NinjaOne | 3.19 | NinjaOne is a competitive IT monitoring and management platform with deployment features that allow IT administrators to automate software distribution, patch management, and remote application installation across various endpoints. |
| PDQ Deploy & Inventory | 1.685 | PDQ Deploy & Inventory is a device management solution that simplifies software deployment. The platform is developed by and for sysadmins. |
| Scalefusion | 1.297 | Scalefusion is a mobile device and endpoint management suite for IT admins who want to secure the use of iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Linux devices used in an enterprise setting. |
| Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform | 0.93 | Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform is an IT automation solution that focuses on automating routine IT tasks, including software deployment. |
| Microsoft Intune | 0.911 | Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based endpoint management solution that can deploy apps to Windows 10, mobile devices (iOS and Android), and other platforms. |
| IBM Security MaaS360 with Watson | 0.771 | IBM MaaS360 with Watson secures and manages devices, applications, and content with features for deploying them to managed devices. |
| Octopus Deploy | 0.766 | Octopus Deploy is an integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) automation tool that can orchestrate deployments across diverse environments. |
| Puppet | 0.564 | Puppet is an open-source software configuration and deployment tool that can deploy and manage infrastructure across various environments. |
| VMWare Workspace ONE | 0.533 | VMWare Workspace ONE is a unified endpoint management solution that simplifies deployment and management of applications across various devices. |
| Citrix Endpoint Management | 0.499 | Citrix Endpoint Management (CEM) is an endpoint management tool that offers cloud-based deployment capabilities with granular control. |
Understanding the final vendor rankings: Our metrics
Choosing the best software deployment tool takes more than looking at each option’s features. It would be best to consider several factors that matter to the organization you’re servicing. This is where our vendor rankings can come in handy. To derive the final score for each vendor, we employed a weighted formula that considers various metrics. Here’s how it breaks down:
Final Score = w1 * G2 Overall Star Rating + w2 * Capterra Overall Star Rating + w3 * G2 Total Number of Reviews (Scaled) + w4 * Capterra Total Number of Reviews (Scaled) + w5 * G2 Total Number of Awards
Where:
W1 = .25 * G2 score
W2 = .25 * Capterra score
W3 = .2 * Number of G2 reviews
W4 = .2 * Number of Capterra reviews
W5 = .1 * Number of G2 awards
Choosing the best software deployment tool
Now that we’ve presented you with your best options for the top software deployment tools, it’s time for you to make an informed decision. This guide has equipped you with the knowledge of features, functionalities, and vendor rankings to choose the perfect tool for your organization’s specific needs. It’s now up to you to correlate these metrics to your organization’s needs. While you’re at it, take advantage of demos and free trials. These should allow you to narrow down your search and lean more on what will be the most beneficial for you and your team or organization.
