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ARIS Architect and Designer vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

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

ARIS Architect and Designer
Ranking in Business Process Design
16th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...
Ranking in Business Process Design
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
99
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Business Process Design category, the mindshare of ARIS Architect and Designer is 0.9%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is 11.4%, down from 12.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Design
 

Featured Reviews

BPMexp67 - PeerSpot reviewer
Users have extensive control over methodology and offers the ability to create custom elements or modify the standard ones
At this moment, we are moving all of these features to the web, which makes it easier to use in a browser. It can be improved because Architect and Designer are the core models of the suite, where you design your processes, your data, your applications, and so on. From this base, you have other features to implement improvements. For instance, to improve a process, we have a specific model, the simulation module, where we can create different scenarios and show the customer the benefits of each. But Architect and Designer are just tools to capture and administer the method, the filters, the templates, and so on. This is important, but for me, it's not enough to bring value to the customer. We need to identify improvements, implement them, and demonstrate the benefits. We need to control the benefits. Thus, the main area for improvement means bridging the gap between creating process models and actually realizing tangible benefits from process optimization. In future releases, I would like to see more features around AI.
Milan Sterba - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient documentation generation through organized model structure with a good price-performance ratio
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not easy for even experienced users to find their way without guidance. This is not the most user-friendly solution.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is suitable for banks, insurance companies, public administration, etc. The method is very adaptable and can be applied independently of the business."
"The most important feature is ARIS's ability to turn a process design into data to analyze anything you want. For example, we have some analysis reports in ARIS that can guide us when we want to change a system. It shows us how this change will affect all of the organization's processes."
"One of the standout features for me is its synchronization to a publication server. It makes sharing diagrams and links with non-users easy."
"We use the product for modeling, conducting process checks, doing process flow, running, and analyzing the report."
"One of the most valuable features is how user-friendly ARIS is, compared to other BPM tools. This tool has very diverse types of assets available. ARIS also has a lot of customizable options, different model types, object types, a number of attributes, and a lot of customization is possible. In comparison, Signavio is very limited in terms of model types and object types. So these customizations ARIS offers are really valuable to any client who wants to create a BPM repository."
"The support team is very responsive."
"The user interface is easy to work with."
"It's really fast. It's much faster compared to Enterprise Architect."
"The company has become more efficient and reduced its budget."
"It is a very rich tool in terms of the functionality, and the types of diagrams, that you can create in this tool."
"Its ability to reference and link to components from any diagram."
"Ability to keep inventory of reusable blocks, and use in different diagrams with views of various templates."
"The features I find most valuable is the ability to create a document and then put it into a OneCare artifact."
"Provides a single repository for all architecture work."
"The best thing about the tool is that its database is open."
"Modeling is a part of my work, and it has a lot of standard modeling languages. It is quite wide, and a lot is possible in it. We are not programming it ourselves, but if you are into programming and developing software yourself, you can go further and do a lot with Sparx. You can work from the framework and go into the details. With this solution, you get a lot of value at a low cost. It is also quite intuitive in terms of use. I like the use of it."
 

Cons

"The support team takes a long time to respond to our queries."
"The simulation part still has some way to go. It's a good feature, and it's something that other vendors don't have right now, but it can still be improved. Some features are needed in ARIS Architect, so advanced users can do things through drag-and-drop functionality."
"Sometimes, it's not easy to convince customers to use this methodology because it's a bit rigid."
"You can have a collaboration feature, but it's necessary to have ARIS Connect which is a separate, costly product."
"This product could be improved by lowering the licensing cost. More organizations could use ARIS if they slashed the licensing costs even a little bit."
"Even with a formal modeling language, users can still draw freely and make a bit of a mess in your repository. It should also improve usability."
"We face problems when the product's capacity is increased."
"The product is not flexible."
"They should make the Save button easier to find. A simplified user interface for a lighter user would probably be useful. I am not sure if such an interface is already there."
"Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward."
"The modeling tool is targeted toward a sophisticated user."
"The automatic creation of reports based on the model elements could be improved."
"When the model is large, it is a bit slow to render."
"In general, we now have a problem with Sparx Enterprise Architect because many analysts think it's too complicated to use in a giant environment."
"If you just want to create some diagrams with shapes and arrows, then use Visio."
"Its usability needs to be improved. For non-technical users, it is a little difficult to understand how Enterprise Architect works. Users who are not engineers find it difficult to understand how this tool works. This is something they need to work on. They can develop a BPM model to simulate processes."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licenses are very costly. I've seen many people who are hesitant or not able to use ARIS Suite just because of the license cost. Even though they like all the functionalities and understand the value of everything ARIS provides, they aren't able to implement it."
"The tool is a little bit expensive."
"Many customers find the licensing configuration confusing. There are many different sub-details in the licensing, making it very difficult for us to understand what we are buying and what we are using with what."
"The product is expensive."
"We have an annual license, and it's very affordable."
"Its price is very good for the value that you get with it."
"The Corporate Edition, or one of the bundles, is the way to go."
"There is no license required for this solution."
"It's affordable. The only additional cost that we haven't yet figured out is the floating license. If you buy a floating license, you have to have a license management server, which comes at an additional cost that's not discussed. So, we haven't yet used the floating license. That’s because I haven't had a chance to figure that out."
"We paid 1200 euros as a once-off cost. All add ons and integrations come at an additional cost."
"It is very economical and low cost. You have to pay for a one-time license, and it is active forever."
"We had a yearly license."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
19%
Insurance Company
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
8%
Educational Organization
18%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with ARIS Architect and Designer?
At this moment, we are moving all of these features to the web, which makes it easier to use in a browser. It can be improved because Architect and Designer are the core models of the suite, where ...
What is your primary use case for ARIS Architect and Designer?
ARIS Architect is like a nuclear product in the suite. Users have the Designer and the administration module as well. But in the future, maybe in two years, we are going to have everything on the w...
What do you like most about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
The stability has been good and satisfactory. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
One of the reasons many public sector institutions in the Czech Republic use it is that it provides a very good price-performance ratio. While it might be cumbersome to learn, it still delivers exc...
What needs improvement with Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not ...
 

Also Known As

ARIS Architect & Designer, ARIS Architect, ARIS Designer
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Tesco, Weifu, Airbus, Siemens, Proximus, Alicorp, Sekerbank, Bancor, Philips,Sky, Emirates NBD, Dubai Municipality, Suva, U.S. Army, Australia Post, Westfalen Weser Energie - ARIS serves customers across all industries and of every size worldwide. Companies trust ARIS as the market leader for process excellence with more than 30 years of experience in the market, 10 million users worldwide, from 1 user companies to the Fortune 500.
OmniLink
Find out what your peers are saying about ARIS Architect and Designer vs. Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,713 professionals have used our research since 2012.