AWS X-Ray vs IBM Application Performance Management comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and IBM are both solutions in the Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #14 with an average rating of 8.2, while IBM is ranked #58 with an average rating of 6.0. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 3.9% mindshare in APM, compared to IBM’s 0.4% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 62% of IBM users who would recommend it.

AWS X-Ray

Read 6 AWS X-Ray reviews

6,507 Views
5,878 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM Application Performance...

Read 7 IBM Application Performance Management reviews

1,057 Views
687 Comparison Views

62% willing to recommend

AWS X-Ray

IBM Application Performance...

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 24, 2024

IBM Application Performance Management and AWS X-Ray compete in the application performance monitoring and analysis category. AWS X-Ray has the upper hand due to its extensive feature set and better integration capabilities.

Features: IBM offers strong predictive analytics, comprehensive monitoring tools, and robust support. AWS X-Ray provides extensive tracing capabilities, seamless integration with AWS services, and enhanced tracing functionality.

Room for Improvement: IBM needs better customization options, faster update cycles, and simplified configuration. AWS X-Ray could improve its documentation, provide a more intuitive setup process, and enhance UI/UX design.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM is noted for straightforward deployment and responsive customer service. AWS X-Ray has a steeper learning curve but benefits from deep AWS ecosystem integration once set up.

Pricing and ROI: IBM is valued for transparent pricing and higher perceived ROI. AWS X-Ray, despite higher costs, is considered worthwhile due to its feature set. IBM is seen as more cost-effective with quicker ROI, while AWS offers a high-value, feature-rich option.

To learn more, read our detailed AWS X-Ray vs. IBM Application Performance Management Report (Updated: October 2024).

Buyer's Guide

AWS X-Ray vs. IBM Application Performance Management

October 2024

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Categories and Ranking

AWS X-Ray

Ranking in Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

14th

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

IBM Application Performance...

Ranking in Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

58th

Average Rating

6.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability category, the mindshare of AWS X-Ray is 3.9%, up from 3.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Application Performance Management is 0.4%, down from 0.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

Featured Reviews

Parth Solanki

Founder & CEO at Quicklead.io

Dec 29, 2022

Saves time, is relatively cheap, and helps find errors

It's basically like a cloud stack. You can trace your entire HTTP request. Once you have submitted any request, it will be addressed as a 500 Error or 401 Error, or if there is any exception happening when this request, and how much time will take. X-Ray can trace all the information about the…

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Daniel Tamiru

Manager, Database & System Administration at Awash International Bank

Nov 1, 2022

A multi-functional solution but has poor stability and performance-related issues

We are using version 4 of IBM Application Performance Management, and it is deployed on-premises. We use it for internet banking and mainly for application performance on-site. For example, if we face performance-related issues in one of our software or managed services, we use this solution to…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most important one is compliance. We're able to achieve our regulatory levels. We're able to achieve the security level that we need for the federal government."

"AWS X-RAY identifies bottlenecks in terms of stability and performance and how long certain data lives in terms of response time and duration."

"AWS X-Ray is a strong solution and has a smooth integration process."

"The solution has made it easier for us to trace the problems that we have with our requests and to monitor the timing of each step in each request we do in our endpoints."

"The most promising feature of AWS X-Ray is that you can debug the issues through the proper logs. You can also get an analysis out of the logs for some use cases, though I have yet to try all the features of AWS X-Ray."

"It is a very scalable solution."

"IBM Application Performance Management helped us increased our response time by 80% and cost 60% less."

"The most valuable feature is the breakdown that it provides, such as a description of the fields for a particular transaction."

"The initial setup was straightforward and took minimal effort."

"It's easy to use."

"I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten."

"Because we have partnerships with other partners, I can share a bit about what I've noticed with IBM APM compared to other vendor solutions. Specifically, with IBM, the visibility into detailed process information is more tangible. On the OS level, APM displays all processes (or the top 10 processes) that are consuming CPU or resident memory. This is the most important thing that is not always available with other vendors."

"The transaction tracking feature from IBM is the most important feature for us. It is something that provides a terrific value for us and our clients. It has a lot of data sources and agents that are collectors. It is also stable."

Cons

"What needs to be better in AWS X-Ray is the log filtering. Predefined filters could be helpful because the power of analytics comes from how you can filter the data. I also want to see more KPIs from AWS X-Ray."

"Like most Amazon products, the user interface, configuration, and tuning aren't the easiest. That's the biggest reason why people tend to go to products like TerraForm and Terragrunt. We use TerraForm and Terragrunt. So, for setting things up and interacting with X-Ray, it's definitely the user interface that can be better."

"I do not have any notes in terms of improvements."

"They can improve how traces are sent to other providers."

"The user interface is sometimes kind of confusing to understand. It's not very user-friendly."

"If you have a small team, it's probably overkill."

"With APM, we noticed that the agent can cause a lot of issues for the application, making the agent very unreliable. Many issues are happening, and we've had to discuss it with support to try and get a fix. It affects application availability, and sometimes actions fail because of the agent, degrading the performance of the application."

"They should focus on potentially enhancing the dashboard to make it more contemporary and adding some customization options. Furthermore, there might be room for improvement in the pricing policy."

"Technical support can be slow and needs improvement."

"It's still missing some platforms. For example, if you look to applications itself, it is missing the interface."

"The stability is not great and should be better."

"The demo that was provided to us is not working very well. At times, there are errors."

"Its web user interface is a little bit old in comparison to other solutions, such as New Relic, and it should be improved. Its scalability and technical support should also be improved. Currently, it is scalable, but only in a vertical way. They provide good technical support, but the initial steps for a new case can be improved to fasten the resolution process."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is a bit expensive."

"As you develop a relationship with Amazon, your pricing gets lower. You get credits for the amount of the system you use, and then if you're the government, you can get government pricing. For commercial users, there's a hump when you go from small to medium to big enterprise. Small businesses can live pretty easily off the free tier in a lot of cases, but when you go from a medium to a big enterprise, it becomes more expensive on a per-user basis. I'd like to see that curve going in a different way where pricing can be driven down while people are trying to adopt the technology."

"The pricing for AWS X-Ray is a six out of ten."

"The licensing fees can be paid every six months or on a yearly basis."

"IBM APM is one of the cheaper products on the market, while everything necessary to get started is included in the license."

"As I previously indicated, I initiated the IBM and uncovered all its elements. Consequently, I'm not inclined towards a licensing approach."

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814,649 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

20%

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

22%

Computer Software Company

15%

Government

11%

University

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS X-Ray?

AWS X-Ray is a strong solution and has a smooth integration process.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS X-Ray?

The solution is a bit expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with AWS X-Ray?

They can improve how traces are sent to other providers.

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM Application Performance Management?

I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Application Performance Management?

They should focus on potentially enhancing the dashboard to make it more contemporary and adding some customization options. Furthermore, there might be room for improvement in the pricing policy. ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for IBM Application Performance Management?

I monitor business applications for more than four end users.

See all answers

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Compared 18% of the time

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Compared 13% of the time

Google Cloud's operations suite (formerly Stackdriver) vs AWS X-Ray

Compared 12% of the time

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IBM Tivoli Composite Application Manager vs IBM Application Performance Management

Compared 11% of the time

Dynatrace vs IBM Application Performance Management

Compared 10% of the time

AppDynamics vs IBM Application Performance Management

Compared 8% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

AWS X-Ray

November 2024

Download AWS X-Ray product report

Buyer's Guide

Application Performance Monitoring (APM) and Observability

October 2024

IBM Application Performance Management report

Download IBM Application Performance Management product report

Also Known As

No data available

IBM APM

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Amazon Web Services (AWS)

IBM

Overview

AWS X-Ray is a powerful debugging and performance analysis tool offered by Amazon Web Services. It allows developers to trace requests made to their applications and identify bottlenecks and issues.

With X-Ray, developers can visualize the entire request flow and pinpoint the exact location where errors occur. It provides detailed insights into the performance of individual components and helps optimize the overall application performance.

X-Ray integrates seamlessly with other AWS services, making it easy to trace requests across different services and identify dependencies. It also offers a comprehensive set of APIs and SDKs, enabling developers to instrument their applications and capture valuable data for analysis. With its user-friendly interface and powerful features, AWS X-Ray is a valuable tool for developers looking to improve the performance and reliability of their applications.

The IBM Application Performance Management portfolio provides visibility, control and automation of your mission-critical applications. It helps pinpoint the root cause of application's issue more quickly and resolve the problem. The integrated capabilities cover the five key areas: discovery, end-use experience, transaction tracking, enterprise diagnostics and analytics. It also easily monitors applications to ensure optimal performance to extend your hybrid management environment capabilities, to measure the customer experience from multiple locations and to further eliminate blind spots in your application environment.

Sample Customers

COMCAST, ConnectWise, skyscanner, AirAsia, cookpad, cimpress, VTEX, zowdow

Mibtree, EatDrinkDeals.com, IT Performance Advisor

Buyer's Guide

AWS X-Ray vs. IBM Application Performance Management

October 2024

Free Report: AWS X-Ray vs. IBM Application Performance Management

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