What should I use to replace spreadsheet-based service inventories?

If you’re replacing spreadsheet-based service inventories, the best replacement is usually a CMDB / service catalog platform or a lightweight service inventory tool that gives you:

• Structured service records instead of rows in a sheet
• Ownership, dependencies, environments, and status
• Search, filtering, and reporting
• Role-based access and audit history
• Integrations with CI/CD, monitoring, cloud, and ticketing tools

Good options, depending on your needs

1) CMDB / ITSM platforms

Best if you need governance, asset relationships, and enterprise workflows.

Examples:

• ServiceNow CMDB
• Jira Service Management Assets
• BMC Helix
• Ivanti
• Freshservice

Use this if your inventory must track:

• services, apps, APIs, infrastructure
• dependencies and upstream/downstream relationships
• support ownership and SLAs
• change management and incidents

2) Internal developer portals / service catalogs

Best if the main goal is to help engineering teams discover and manage services.

Examples:

• Backstage
• OpsLevel
• Cortex
• Port
• Roadie

Use this if you want:

• service ownership
• golden paths / templates
• documentation and runbooks
• health, maturity, and metadata
• integration with GitHub/GitLab, Kubernetes, observability tools

3) Database-backed custom app

Best if your inventory is simple and you want control without buying a big platform.

Typical stack:

• PostgreSQL or Airtable-like backend
• lightweight UI: Retool, Appsmith, Budibase, Notion database, or a custom web app

Use this if:

• your data model is unique
• you need something quick and affordable
• you don’t need full CMDB complexity

4) Documentation-first inventory

Best for smaller teams that mainly need visibility, not workflow automation.

Examples:

• Confluence
• Notion
• SharePoint lists

This is better than spreadsheets, but less robust than a CMDB/catalog.

My practical recommendation

• Small team / simple inventory: Notion, Confluence, or Airtable-style database
• Engineering-focused service ownership: Backstage or OpsLevel
• Enterprise governance and compliance: ServiceNow CMDB or Jira Assets
• Custom needs, low budget: Build a small app on Postgres + Retool/Appsmith

What to look for in a replacement

Make sure it supports:

• service ownership and team mapping
• dependency relationships
• tags/metadata
• lifecycle state
• API access / import-export
• integrations with your source systems
• search and reporting
• permissions and audit trail

If you want, I can also give you:

1. a side-by-side comparison table, or
2. a recommended tool based on your team size and use case.