20 Best Bug Tracking Tools (Defect Tracking Tools) in 2021

A bug tracking tool can help record, report, assign and track the bugs in a software development project. There are many defect tracking tools available. You can put this in another way "Better is the bug tracking tool, better the quality of the product."

List of Popular Defect Tracking Tools/Software

Following is a handpicked list of Top Bug Tracking Tool, with their popular features and website links. The list contains both open source(free) and commercial(paid) software.

1) BackLog

Backlog is a popular bug and project tracking tool in one platform. It’s easy for anyone to report bugs and keep track of a full history of issue updates and status changes. Development teams use Backlog to work with other teams for enhanced team collaboration and high-quality project delivery.

• Easy bug tracking tool
• Search and advanced search features
• Full history of issue updates and status changes
• Project and issues with subtasks
• Git and SVN built-in
• Gantt Charts and Burndown charts
• Wikis and Watchlists
• Native mobile apps
• Kanban-style boards for visual workflow

2) SpiraTeam

SpiraTeam provides a complete Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) solution that manages the requirements, tests, plans, tasks, bugs and issues in one environment, with complete traceability. SpiraTeam’s completely integrated bug tracking solution lets you manage your entire testing process with features like:

• Automatic creation of new incidents during the test script execution.
• Fully customizable incident fields including statuses, priorities, defect types and severities.
• Ability to link incidents (bugs) to other artifacts and incidents.
• Robust reporting, searching and sorting, plus an Audit log tracking changes.
• Email notifications triggered by the customized workflow status changes.
• Ability to report issues and bugs via email.

3) Zoho bug tracker

Zoho bug tracker is a powerful bug tracker that helps you to view issues filtered by priority and severity. It improves the productivity by exactly knowing which bugs are reproducible. It is an online tool that allows you to create projects, bugs, milestone, reports, documents, etc. on a single platform. With Zoho bug tracker automate reminding and notifying team members is possible.

Main Features

• Bug views and integration
• Issue trackers flexible workflow
• Classification of issues into different categories

4) Monday

Monday is a bug tracking tool that that enables you to analyze your performance and manage your team in one place. It provides flexible dashboard for easy visualization of data. 

Features:

• You can collaborate with other people.
• It can automate your daily work.
• Integration with Mailchimp, Google calendar, Gmail, and more.
• You can track your work progress.
• It enables you to work remotely.

5) BugZilla

BugZilla is a popular bug tracking tool. These tool is an open source software and provides some great features like

• E-mail notification for change in code
• Reports and Charts
• Patch Viewers
• List of bugs can be generated in different formats
• Schedule daily, monthly and weekly reports
• This bug tracking tool detect duplicate bug automatically
• Setting bug priorities by involving customers
• Predict the time a bug may get fixed

Download BugZilla

6) JIRA

Thousands of software professionals use JIRA as a bug-tracking tool because of its easy to use framework. JIRA is a commercial product and helps to capture and organize the team issues, prioritizing the issue and updating them with the project. It is a tool that directly integrates with the code development environments making it a perfect fit for developers as well. Due to its capability to track any kind of issues it is not just restricted to the software industry. It supports agile projects. It comes with many add-ons that make this tool more powerful than other tools

Download JIRA

7) Mantis

If you have used other bug tracking tool, this tool can be easy to use. Mantis not only comes as a web application but also has its own mobile version. It works with multiple databases like MySQL, PostgreSQL, MS SQL and integrated with applications like chat, time tracking, wiki, RSS feeds and many more.

Mantis main features include

• This is a Open source tool
• This defect tracking tool provides E-mail notification
• Supported reporting with reports and graphs
• Source control integration
• Supports custom fields
• Supports time tracking management
• Multiple projects per instance
• Enable to watch the issue change history and roadmap
• Supports unlimited number of users, issues, and projects

Download Mantis

8) RedMine

It is an open source bug tracking tool that integrates with SCM (Source Code Management System) too. It supports multiple platforms and multiple data-bases while for reporting purpose, Gantt charts and calendar are used. Redmine is a project management web application developed using Ruby on Rail framework. Some of the RedMine features include

• Gantt chart and calendar
• News, document and files management
• This bug reporting tool provides SCM integration
• Issue creation via e-mail
• This bug tracking software supports multiple database.
• Flexible issue tracking system
• Flexible role based access control
• Multilanguage support

Download Redmine

9) Trac

Trac is a web based open source issue tracking system that developed in Python. It is the superior version of wiki and used as the issue tracking tool for software development projects. You can use it to browse through the code, view history, view changes, etc. when you integrate Trac with SCM. It supports multiple platforms like Linux, Unix, Mac OS X, Windows, etc. A time-line shows all current and past project event in order while the roadmap highlights the upcoming milestones.

Download Trac

10) Axosoft

It is a bug tracking system, available for hosted or on-premises software. It is a project management tool for Scrum teams. Project managers and developers can view each task, its requirement, defects and incidents, in the system, on individual filing cards, through the Scrum planning board. With Axosoft, you can manage your user stories, defects, support tickets and a real-time snapshot of your progress.

Main features

• It is one of the Best Bug management tool
• Scrum planning board
• Scrum burn down charts
• Requirement Management
• Team wiki
• Data visualization
• SCM integration
• Reporting
• Help desk or incident tracking

Download Axosoft

11) HP ALM/ Quality Center

HP ALM is a complete test management solution with a robust integrated bug tracking System within it. HP ALM's bug tracking mechanism is easy and efficient. It supports Agile projects too. It is an expensive tool and may not be very friendly with all the web browsers.

Download HP ALM/Quality Center

12) eTraxis

eTraxis is an open source bug tracking tool supporting multiple languages. This tool is developed in a PHP language and supports multiple-database like Oracle, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MS Server. For managing project, eTraxis gives you a flexible platform involving multiple organizations by providing a central place for all project activity. It allows to create multiple users and projects and at the same time view the bugs assigned. Custom workflows is an additional feature of this system that make handling project as per your requirement.

Main features

• Files exchange and supports attachment
• E-mail notification
• Flexible permission
• Powerful filtering on issues
• Custom workflow
• View complete history of all events

Download eTraxis

13) Bugnet

It is an open source bug tracker and issue tracking system that is written using Asp.Net platform and requires MySQL as a database. It has got everything that is required for creating projects, issues and managing them efficiently. It is free but the pro-version is licensed and commercial.

Main features

• Email notification
• Issue management
• This bug tracker system Supports multiple projects and databases
• Excellent Security
• Online support community
• Project and milestone management
• Easy navigation and administration
• Online support community

Download link

14) FogBugz

FogBugz is a web based bug tracking system that refers to defects as ‘cases’. It prioritize and organize development task in one central place. It includes a powerful search engine that enables you to instantly search the complete content of cases, wiki articles, and customer correspondence. Fogbugz supports almost all ios, Android, Blackberry, tablets, and ipads. It is a commercial product but reasonably priced.

Main Features

• Issue tracking
• Quick and easy case creation
• Support help desk
• Automated error reporting with Bugzscout
• Automatic upgrades and backups
• Integration with other tools
• Project management
• Time tracking
• Integrated wiki

Download FogBugz

Recording the issue in the Bug Genie is simple and fast. Also, you can add any number of the custom field to your issues. It exports all searches and project timeline as RSS feeds. In issue views and search lists, issue related actions are available with a single click. While the integrated quicksearch enables you to quickly view your issue, it also allows to search through wiki articles, users, teams and more. It is a complete Project management and issue tracking tool

Download Bug Genie

16) Lighthouse

Lighthouse is the perfect ticket tracking solution. It is simple, organized and compatible with your mobile devices. To manage the bug, lighthouse give you all the amenities it requires like custom states, effective tagging system, advanced search, saved searches and a mass editing tool. It also integrates with dozens of useful services that integrates with Lighthouse like Airbrake, Github, Exceptional, Beanstalk, etc. With few clicks, you can start managing tickets with commit messages or convert the application exception into lighthouse issues

Download Lighthouse

17) BugHost

Though it is a commercial tool, it is affordable. This tool is developed for large companies who need high volume licensing with a minimum prize. Bughost is accessible on cloud and can create an issue directly into your project.

Main features

• Record unlimited defects
• Integrated emails and file attachments
• Bug linking
• Update multiple bugs at once
• Submission of bugs directly to your project by customers
• Strong security protection to access bugs

Download BugHost

18) Collabtive

It is an open source web based project management software designed for small and medium size businesses. It is cloud based and alternative to tools like basecamp. The key features of collabtive includes project management, milestones, basecamp import, file management, collaboration, timetracking etc.

Download Collabtive

19) Team Foundation Server

Team foundation server enables all stakeholders to participate in the development process using a single solution, but it is also used as a bug tracking tool. For bug tracking TFS gives notifications to team members as well as keeps the record of whom the bug was assigned to. Since TFS integrates with Active Directory, it is possible to send updates about the bug to the customer who filed the bug.

Main features

• Version control
• Agile planning and collaboration
• Reporting
• Test case management
• Bug tracking and notification

Download Team Foundation Server

20) IBM Rational ClearQuest

IBM ClearQuest tracks, captures and manages any type of bugs. Like any other tool, IBM rationalquest also gives you all the advantage of bug tracking system. It support multiplatform, like HP-UX, Linux, Microsoft Windows operating system. It can improve visibility and control of software development projects.

Main Features

• Integrating with other tools
• Supports real time reporting and metrics
• Increasing team collaboration

Download IBM Rational ClearQuest

21) Unfuddle

With unfuddle developers can commit source code. It can integrate with most critical tools for any software project. Unfuddle gives better security to your data as amazon provides their servers. It helps to track bugs, feature request and manage the tickets.

Main Features

• Bug and issue management
• Web-based subversion access
• Wiki
• Milestone tracking

Download Unfuddle

22) DevTrack

DevTrack is not specially designed as a regular bug tracker tool. It has a wide range of function but can be considered for defect tracker.

Main features

• Automatically route issues to appropriate users
• Email notifications
• Help team members to track and resolve issues
• Create and assign sub issues
• Import and authenticate users from Active directory

Download DevTrack

23) Salesforce

It is a web-based bug tracking and project management system. The platform supports tasks planning, creates stories to track tasks, as well as various reports and statistics. The other features of this tool include

• Projects
• Clone defects
• Defect Sharing
• Kanban
• Defects
• Chatter
• Reports
• Burn work hours

FAQ

❓ Which factors should you consider while selecting a Bug Tracking Software?

⚡ When should you NOT Defect Tracking Software?