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Appian vs HCL Domino comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 5, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Appian
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
Business Process Management (BPM) (5th), Process Automation (4th), Low-Code Development Platforms (4th), Process Mining (6th)
HCL Domino
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
18th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of Appian is 9.8%, up from 8.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HCL Domino is 0.5%, down from 0.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

Srimanta Pandit - PeerSpot reviewer
Flexible, improves operational efficiency, and reduces the time taken to complete processes
The solution’s turnaround time for development is better compared to other tools. The solution enables fast development. The traceability of the processor is good. There is much more governance and regulations on the processers. The tool reduces the time of the processes by 30% to 40%. The solution’s low-code aspect has greatly impacted the development and deployment speed. One of the major reasons we are using the product is that we can reuse the modules. The developers can reuse all the modules. It enables us to make subsequent developments in less time. The prebuilt modules can be deployed within two to three weeks. The tool is very flexible. Compared to other platforms, the Appian product team was agile in quickly customizing things for us.
FrederickLim - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides mobile email systems with solid stability and easy deployment
The initial setup is easy. You need to sign up. It depends on the scope. It will take longer if there are more than one or more applications. The project usually includes infrastructure and deployment may take anywhere from one month to six months. I rate the initial setup an eight out of ten, where one is difficult and ten is easy.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Low code development: Code can be developed pretty quickly which leads to less turnaround time for automation of business processes."
"The setup is easy."
"The tool is very flexible."
"The low code functionality and being able to get applications faster to customers or to the market are valuable."
"Since implementing we have had a faster time to solution, with fewer resources needed."
"The most productive aspect of Appian lies in its ability to develop interfaces, particularly user interfaces. Creating user interfaces is highly productive, when these interfaces are integrated with the original database. In such cases, using record types proves to be a very efficient method of handling data. The synergy between interfaces and record types enhances productivity."
"It ​reduces development time in half making us more efficient."
"It has good integrations. We were looking for out-of-the-box integration with both on-prem and publicly accessible data sources. We needed integration with the cloud, OData, our REST API feed, and then on-prem passthrough to go to a SQL database or on-prem APIs through Azure local deployment, etc."
"The DAOS feature is the most valuable. It helps to save some of my storage."
"I like that HCL Domino is stable. It's a great product. I also like that HCL Domino is a mature product under IBM, which is why many companies use it."
"This solution can be used for workflow application so that applications can be easily developed."
"Overall, I would rate HCL Domino as eight out of ten. I would recommend HCL Domino and Notes applications for small and medium-sized companies since it offers a good return on investment."
"HCL Domino is the best product from a security point of view."
"One valuable feature of HCL Domino is its integration with other directories."
"It serves as a centralized solution that fulfills all my requirements from operating my email server to managing various aspects of my operations."
"Domino's dual functionality as both a messaging and application solution is a standout feature compared to Exchange, which solely focuses on messaging."
 

Cons

"There should be more flexibility for the developers to choose the look and feel of the UI. They should have a better ability to design their widgets and customize them with different colors, shapes, and sizes. That is a limitation that could be improved upon."
"Lacks business rules management as part of the solution."
"It needs better integration with our existing application ecosystem."
"They should provide more flexibility so designers can create a more picture perfect device."
"A point of improvement would be the SAIL forms. The built-in tool used to generate forms does not have debugging support (to view local variables as they change on live preview, and step-by-step valuation) which is a big drawback for form development. Moreover, the script language used to build SAIL forms does not support inheritance or lambda expressions (functions as arguments of other functions), which makes the code base more verbose."
"It would be useful if they could create an academy or forum in the future to help active users answer questions they have about the solution."
"Lacks integration with other products."
"What could be improved is more on the front end perspective, like the user interface and the mobile application aspect."
"They should provide its integration with other AI applications."
"When you compare with Microsoft Exchange, the UI could be more user-friendly."
"Recently, IBM sold the product to HCL. Since Pakistan and India have some problems on a domestic level, we were actually considering replacing it with Indian products from the organization. We're just facing some regulatory issues."
"HCL Domino could improve by having integration with other solutions, such as Microsoft 365."
"From the Domino side, it should support DKIM and DMARC."
"Many people are not very happy with its speed."
"The solution is expensive."
"HCL Domino could have a better interface."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is high."
"We will have to have a dialogue or negotiate a price for future use. To start with, it is a reasonable price. As we go ahead, we will have to make sure the costs are inline with our expectations as we grow our user base and workloads."
"The price of this solution is a little high here in Mongolia."
"I think that if somebody is really serious at looking at business value, then by all means, the product is well worth the value. You get representative business value for the price that you pay for the product, and for the implementation of the product."
"More flexibility in the licensing model is still needed because initially there were customers who are looking at only one or two use cases of business areas, but now the business areas are changing and there is a larger scope. One license model may not fit everyone. They need to be a little more flexible on the licensing model."
"The cost is calculated on a per-user basis. It might be expensive for small and mid-sized enterprises."
"The solution offers a monthly subscription model. That's what we use. I recall it being about $90 a month. They do have different tiers."
"It's good value for the price."
"I'd rate it a seven out of ten in terms of price."
"HCL Domino is costly, but it still depends on how your organization views it price-wise."
"We're happy with the price of our license — it's pretty standard."
"The license for Domino is yearly. The price is high."
"HCL Domino's pricing depends on the number of users, but its license is not cheap."
"My company's customers need to make monthly or yearly payments towards the license charges of the product."
"HCL Domino has reasonable pricing. It's not expensive."
"The pricing is subjective and contingent on the intended usage."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
30%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which do you prefer - Appian or Camunda Platform?
Appian is fast when building simple to medium solutions. This solution offers simple drag-and-drop functionality with easy plug-and-play options. The initial setup was seamless and very easy to imp...
Is Appian a suitable solution for beginners who have no additional preparation?
Appian is actually pretty big on educating its users, including with courses that reward you with certifications. There is a whole section on their company’s website where you can check out the edu...
Is it easy to set up Appian or did you have to resort to professional help?
We had some issues when we were setting up Appian. It was quite surprising, since this is a low-code tool which, in its essence, means it is meant for business users and inexperienced beginners. So...
What do you like most about HCL Domino?
The most valuable features of the solution are security and integration.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HCL Domino?
The pricing is individually determined. HCL has a simple pricing model: per user per year. We pay $100 US per user per year. But "guest" users are permitted without any licence requirement. And any...
What needs improvement with HCL Domino?
Scalability needs to be improved to be on the level that's required. Support could also be enhanced.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Appian BPM, Appian AnyWhere, Appian Enterprise BPMS
IBM Lotus Domino, Lotus Domino
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Hansard Global plc, Punch Taverns, Pirelli, Crawford & Company, EDP Renewables, Queensland Government Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning (, Bank of Tennessee
A1 Telekom, Acubiz, Afrisam, E. A. Juffali & Brothers, Fiducia & GAD, and Pakistan State Oil
Find out what your peers are saying about Appian vs. HCL Domino and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,713 professionals have used our research since 2012.