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BMC AMI DevX vs IBM InfoSphere Optim comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 14, 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

BMC AMI DevX
Ranking in Database Development and Management
18th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
Software Configuration Management (1st), Debugging (7th), Mainframe Application Development (1st), Test Data Management (6th), Mainframe Testing Tools (1st), Data Masking (6th)
IBM InfoSphere Optim
Ranking in Database Development and Management
15th
Average Rating
6.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Database Development and Management category, the mindshare of BMC AMI DevX is 2.1%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM InfoSphere Optim is 2.4%, down from 2.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Database Development and Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM InfoSphere Optim2.4%
BMC AMI DevX2.1%
Other95.5%
Database Development and Management
 

Featured Reviews

RS
Technical Consultant at Services Robert Samson SCRS
Improves disaster recovery processes and offers an efficient CPU cycle optimization
Using BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on z/OS has greatly improved our database administration tasks. Although we don't test the database before production, we have experienced benefits in disaster recovery situations and capacity management. For instance, when facing capacity issues during peak transaction times, I've been able to quickly allocate additional resources to ensure smooth operations. This has been crucial, especially during times when the demand surges, such as peak flight hours.
Kenneth Estanislao - PeerSpot reviewer
Solutions Designer at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
Backups become efficient while cost concerns remain
I am still working with IBM and we are transitioning to other tools rather than using IBM InfoSphere Optim. We use other tools, but I cannot recall the name because I am not the one currently handling it. It has transitioned to other architects. For IBM InfoSphere Optim, we are still currently using it, but we have transitioned to the newer version, the latest one with support for AWS S3. I cannot identify a main competitor for IBM InfoSphere Optim because we have transitioned to other architects, and they are the ones looking for other tools. The last comparison I did was almost 4 years ago. I am not using any AI technology with IBM InfoSphere Optim. I rate IBM InfoSphere Optim a seven out of ten. The tool is good, but the price is not favorable as it is the most expensive part. I can recommend IBM InfoSphere Optim for enterprises.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Test data management capabilities are good."
"It's a modernized development portal and helps reduce the learning curve for younger people coming in to work on the platform,"
"We had parallel development before, but the way ISPW implements it is better. It has more control and oversight of the process, whereas before, it was like the Wild West. Everybody could have their own package with their own version of the component in it... ISPW is constantly aware of it. It notifies when someone else is using or has a different version of that component."
"I like the ability that it has to format copy books in a presentable manner. So, you will be able to see the starting offset in length of each field within the layout."
"BMC Data Management improved our data recovery process by simplifying it."
"The smart editor helps because it will code-complete for me. I can see code working a lot faster and I'm able to get things coded in less time."
"It helps our staff work by speeding up their documentation process."
"The visual ability to see potential downstream impacts to changes being made assists our developers in understanding the impact associated with their change."
"The compression feature is valuable because it achieves around 80% compression."
"We like that we can easily restore the database with just a few clicks. The database is linked as well."
"I feel the solution to be a bit faster than the traditional methods, which makes it easy to customize."
 

Cons

"I'm always looking for improvement in things like the documentation, to make things a little bit easier and simpler to understand, a place where people can go to troubleshoot issues."
"It would be good if the vendors would work together or at least have some collaboration between them, so they would know what would work and what wouldn't work. Right now, the way things are working, they're relying on the customer to make everything work."
"It's a very complicated tool."
"Better discussions to identify inventory prior to the start of any migration would be helpful for potential clients that have applications with code that is not modified often."
"The solution could be improved by being better integrated with the open world. In the next release, I would like to have the ability to work in an open environment whilst remaining integrated with the legacy environment."
"I'm waiting to see what 19.2 for Topaz looks like, but I have a problem with the JES Explorer right now. It limits you to a certain prefix for job names and there are some groups that have multiple prefixes that they'd like to see all at once in their job names, because of how they work in a group. And they can't see that in the JES Explorer."
"One area for improvement with this product could be in providing clearer guidance and tools for disaster recovery planning and execution."
"Their technical support could be better. There were times where, when we reported bugs, they would fix one bug but add another one. That's probably because of their support model. A lot of organizations are developing software using Agile rather than the Waterfall method, so things are happening all over the place. You get things quicker, but sometimes one fix will break another one or add other bugs."
"The potential room for improvement for IBM InfoSphere Optim is usually its cost, as it is too expensive."
"While the solution is very supportive of Db2, it is not so friendly when it comes to IMS databases."
"We're looking for a solution that can be implemented on AWS. IBM InfoSphere Optim can be implemented on AWS, but it costs more than double what we're currently paying. So, it's not really of good value for us."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The only thing I would mention related to the licensing and/or the pricing, is that they have some visualization features in there that are licensed by concurrent users. We're starting to trip up on that. We're looking to probably increase the number of concurrent licenses that we have. But those types of licensing strategies, where they license by concurrent users or the number of seats is confusing for some people. They don't understand why it works sometimes and doesn't work other times."
"I like the seat-based licensing much more than MSU-based licensing, and that the cost has been competitive."
"The price point is great."
"In general, Compuware tools are very competitive."
"In terms of pricing, there isn't an extra charge for the parts of it we use. It comes with the licenses we purchased for other products, so no complaints there. The licensing is built in with the other products that you purchase from Compuware."
"It has saved our developers time and effort when working on documentation, which is now more readable and fluent."
"IBM InfoSphere Optim is a very expensive solution. Actually, it's the most expensive archiving solution that we have."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
34%
Insurance Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
19%
Insurance Company
9%
Retailer
9%
Outsourcing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Large Enterprise16
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Compuware File-AID?
The product has made our mainframe data management process easier. It has helped us save manhours. The tool's most valuable feature is the ability to edit tape files. Its ability to clone files is ...
What needs improvement with Compuware File-AID?
We plan to replace BMC Compuware File-AID due to its price. Two years back, we paid 11,000 dollars. However, the current price is 27,900 dollars. The price has increased to at least eight times its...
What needs improvement with IBM InfoSphere Optim?
The potential room for improvement for IBM InfoSphere Optim is usually its cost, as it is too expensive. Currently, there are no issues with IBM InfoSphere Optim; the only problem is the cost, whic...
What is your primary use case for IBM InfoSphere Optim?
My current use case for IBM InfoSphere Optim is just for doing backups. We are using IBM InfoSphere Optim specifically for backup purposes.
What advice do you have for others considering IBM InfoSphere Optim?
I am still working with IBM and we are transitioning to other tools rather than using IBM InfoSphere Optim. We use other tools, but I cannot recall the name because I am not the one currently handl...
 

Also Known As

File-AID, Data for Db2, Code Debug, Data Studio, Workbench for Eclipse, Code Pipeline
IBM Optim, Optim
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Helvetia, The IMT Group, Hapag-Lloyd, Royal Bank of Canada, Chunghwa Telecom
Durham Police Department, Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc., Continental, KCE Electronics Public Company Limited, The University of Adelaide, Migros Zurich, COPROB
Find out what your peers are saying about BMC AMI DevX vs. IBM InfoSphere Optim and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,515 professionals have used our research since 2012.