Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

AWS Step Functions vs Pega Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 2, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
5.3
AWS Step Functions reduce development time and costs, enhance scalability and reliability, streamline workflows, and improve ROI.
Sentiment score
7.1
Pega Platform boosts efficiency with quicker solutions, yielding significant ROI through cost savings, revenue increase, and improved customer satisfaction.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.9
AWS Step Functions support is reliable, but users desire quicker, tailored assistance; enterprise support offers rapid, expensive yet effective help.
Sentiment score
6.7
Pega Platform's support is mixed, offering knowledgeable help but facing issues with delays and responsiveness; premium support is costly.
The speed of reply and the content of their responses usually solve the problems that arise.
EPM Practice Manager at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I use enterprise support, which is excellent, providing responses within fifteen minutes.
Senior AWS Tech Lead at Nextios
The technical support from Pega is very low, rating a one or two out of ten.
Chief Information Officer at a government with 10,001+ employees
I never needed support from the platform standpoint, but if additional features are required, we have regular meetings with the product team for feedback.
MEA Head at Aaseya IT Services Pvt. Ltd.
Pega's technical support team is very helpful.
Quality Assurance Team Lead at Value Labs
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.0
AWS Step Functions are valued for efficient scalability, handling demand spikes and multiple requests, suitable for medium to large organizations.
Sentiment score
7.6
Pega Platform offers scalable solutions for complex applications, though optimization and infrastructure are crucial for handling high loads.
They can handle multiple simultaneous requests effectively.
Senior AWS Tech Lead at Nextios
There isn't much need for scalability when creating orchestration in AWS Step Functions, which explains the rating of six.
Assistant Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Currently, big banking providers and insurance providers, even the members for healthcare payers, are using more than millions of operations on a daily or weekly basis.
Global Head of Digital, Process Automation at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
AWS Step Functions are praised for stability and reliability, ensuring consistent performance and uptime across multiple availability zones.
Sentiment score
7.6
Pega Platform is stable and resilient for complex tasks, though technical proficiency is needed for optimal performance.
If one zone fails, others handle the demand, ensuring high availability.
Senior AWS Tech Lead at Nextios
I never faced any faults or issues due to its stability with AWS, making it very reliable with no downtime and 100% reliability.
Assistant Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Room For Improvement

AWS Step Functions needs improvements in data limits, integrations, pricing, and execution visibility while enhancing fault tolerance and third-party support.
Pega Platform needs improved UI, better integration, scalable performance, cost-effective licensing, comprehensive docs, and simpler upgrades.
It would benefit from more integration with different applications or services.
EPM Practice Manager at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
With the recent development of AI agents in Pega Platform 24.2, the adoption is not heavy due to regulations around using external LLM by customers, especially regulated customers in BFSS and healthcare.
Global Head of Digital, Process Automation at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Pega introduced Constellation, which allows a user to build a more engaging visual experience.
MEA Head at Aaseya IT Services Pvt. Ltd.
My learning curve in robotics has been challenging.
Quality Assurance Team Lead at Value Labs
 

Setup Cost

AWS Step Functions pricing fluctuates based on usage, leading to potential high bills despite being cheaper than Azure Workflow.
Pega Platform is costly but offers ROI and value for large industries despite complex licensing and high fees.
Pricing for Step Functions is very cheap.
Senior AWS Tech Lead at Nextios
The cost is average, provided it is configured correctly.
Big Data Architect at SoftServe Ltd.
Pega is priced higher than open-source options like Flowable but is suitable for large-scale industries like banking and insurance.
Quality Assurance Team Lead at Value Labs
The pricing is expensive, and this is an issue.
Chief Information Officer at a government with 10,001+ employees
From a licensing perspective, it is higher than the competition.
Global Head of Digital, Process Automation at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
 

Valuable Features

AWS Step Functions enable efficient workflow automation with integration, orchestration, parallel tasking, and management through a user-friendly interface.
Pega Platform offers robust, scalable low-code solutions for seamless integration and digital transformation across diverse industries and frameworks.
Step Functions provide seamless integration with AWS services, which enhances the speed of application development.
Senior AWS Tech Lead at Nextios
It was particularly valuable for its integration capabilities, allowing for execution of scripts and data migration.
EPM Practice Manager at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
AWS Step Functions offers advanced workflows that save time and enhance efficiency by reducing delays and ensuring consistent orchestration among various services.
Big Data Architect at SoftServe Ltd.
Management capabilities such as dashboards.
Quality Assurance Team Lead at Value Labs
Pega Platform is excellent for enterprise-level solutions with integrations to entire systems, including case management, service orchestration, CRM, decision-making capabilities, digital process automation, and AI-driven functionalities.
MEA Head at Aaseya IT Services Pvt. Ltd.
 

Categories and Ranking

AWS Step Functions
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
11th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
Workload Automation (9th)
Pega Platform
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
83
Ranking in other categories
Business Rules Management (1st), Process Automation (4th), Rapid Application Development Software (9th), Low-Code Development Platforms (7th), Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies (7th), AI Software Development (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of AWS Step Functions is 1.7%, down from 2.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pega Platform is 3.9%, down from 5.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Pega Platform3.9%
AWS Step Functions1.7%
Other94.4%
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2706945 - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Orchestration and integration simplify processes with seamless stability and reliability
I use the Visual Workflow Editor feature of AWS Step Functions. I mainly work through code and then improve it through the visual aspect. There are two ways to do orchestration: through code and through visual. My main task is to develop flows. I have only implemented AWS Step Functions with AWS services, not with any third-party tools. The integration between AWS Step Functions and other AWS services is excellent, working seamlessly with EventBridge, Glue jobs, and databases. I have not encountered any challenges with customers regarding AWS Step Functions that needed me to find a workaround. The pricing of AWS Step Functions is moderate and not particularly costly. AWS Step Functions is affordable for small, medium, and enterprise businesses as an orchestration tool. I have not used any documentation, manuals, or guides for AWS Step Functions as it's very simple to implement. When help is needed, I consult Stack Overflow or AI for commands. Overall rating for AWS Step Functions: 9 out of 10.
reviewer4848291 - PeerSpot reviewer
Global Head of Digital, Process Automation at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Pega is a low-code platform that enables organizations to build, automate, and optimize business processes and customer experiences through AI-powered decisioning and workflow automation.
Here are the key areas where Pega Platform could be improved: 1. User Interface (UI) & User Experience (UX) Customization Limitations: The UI layer is tightly coupled with the platform, limiting flexibility for custom front-end development. Constellation Architecture: While it improves consistency, it restricts advanced UI customizations compared to older section-based designs. Learning Curve: Non-technical users find the UI unintuitive despite the low-code promise. 2. Integration & Extensibility Limited Out-of-the-Box Integrations: Users report challenges integrating with non-relational databases and legacy systems. Robotics Integration: Pega RPA (formerly OpenSpan) is not seamlessly integrated with BPM, creating silos in automation. 3. AI & Decisioning AI Capabilities Need Maturity: Users expect more advanced, native AI features without relying on external tools. CDH & Decision Hub: While powerful, these components require deep expertise to configure effectively. 4. Cost & Licensing High Licensing Costs: Pega is often seen as expensive, especially for small and mid-sized enterprises. Lack of Flexible Pricing Models: Calls for subscription-based or usage-based pricing to improve accessibility. 5. Performance & Scalability Scalability Concerns: Some users report performance degradation with large user bases or complex workflows. Upgrade Complexity: Platform upgrades can be time-consuming and disruptive if not planned well. 6. Documentation & Community Support Insufficient Learning Resources: Especially for advanced features, documentation is limited and community support is not as strong as competitors. Talent Availability: Finding skilled Pega professionals remains a challenge in many regions. 7. Low-Code/No-Code Experience Not Fully No-Code: Despite branding, some tasks still require technical intervention, and the drag-and-drop interface can be restrictive 2. Conflict Management: Simultaneous development by multiple users can lead to rule conflicts.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Business Process Management (BPM) solutions are best for your needs.
879,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
27%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
7%
Insurance Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
25%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise69
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Amazon Step Functions?
The integration capability is easy, whereas building state machines is tricky.
What is your primary use case for Amazon Step Functions?
My customer's usual use cases for AWS Step Functions that I've been working with include orchestration, flows, diagram creation, and creating a flow for multiple Glue jobs to run a single pipeline.
What advice do you have for others considering Amazon Step Functions?
I use the Visual Workflow Editor feature of AWS Step Functions. I mainly work through code and then improve it through the visual aspect. There are two ways to do orchestration: through code and th...
Is Pega BPM easy to work with and can beginners utilize this software?
You do need some preparation to be able to use all functions of Pega BPM. However, all users of this platform are in luck as it comes with good documentation and you can learn pretty much everythin...
Have you encountered any issues while using Pega BPM and were you assisted by the company?
My company has been using this tool for years and the only issue we have had, if you can call it that, was while setting it up. When we were setting it up initially, we had some drawbacks and could...
When you consider the features and benefits of Pega BPM, would you say this product is fairly priced?
Pega BPM can be considered overpriced for some; it all depends on the size of your company and the requirements of your customers. Sure, there are products out there that do the things that Pega B...
 

Also Known As

Amazon Step Functions, Step Functions
Pega BPM, Pegasystems, SmartBPM, PegaRULES
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Alpha Apps, The Guardian, SGK, Bigfinite
The State of Maine, ANZ, Coca-Cola, Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), ME, New South Wales, OptumRx, Texas Department of Transportation, UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Step Functions vs. Pega Platform and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.