Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs erwin Data Modeler comparison

Quest Software and Sparx Systems are both solutions in the Enterprise Architecture Management category. Quest Software is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.4, while Sparx Systems is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.0. Quest Software holds a 8.3% mindshare in AM, compared to Sparx Systems’s 9.3% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Quest Software users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 87% of Sparx Systems users who would recommend it.

erwin Data Modeler

Read 46 erwin Data Modeler reviews

5,210 Views
3,543 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...

Read 99 Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect reviews

7,841 Views
3,293 Comparison Views

87% willing to recommend

erwin Data Modeler

Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 23, 2025

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect and erwin Data Modeler are leading tools in the modeling and data management realms. While Sparx is praised for its pricing and support, erwin is often favored for its rich feature set, providing advanced reverse engineering and collaborative functionalities at a higher cost, yielding significant returns through its robust data management capabilities.

Features: Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect offers extensive modeling functionalities, supporting UML, ArchiMate, and TOGAF, with collaborative capabilities via an RDBMS back-end. It allows architecture teams to collaborate from requirements to deployment efficiently. Erwin Data Modeler is revered for its reverse engineering, data lineage, and metadata management, with capabilities to visualize complex data environments and enforce naming conventions, making it ideal for large-scale data management tasks.

Room for Improvement: Users of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect suggest enhancements in user-friendliness, visual appeal, and broader compatibility with modeling standards, noting a steep learning curve and performance issues with larger models. For erwin Data Modeler, recommendations include user interface improvements, better cloud database integration, and dynamic reporting improvements. The Complete Compare feature could also benefit from ease-of-use refinements and better client-side performance.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect allows diverse deployment options across on-premises and cloud environments. It is appreciated for its active user community and responsive support via email, with emphasis on its stability reducing customer service needs. Erwin Data Modeler is primarily on-premises and is supported by responsive customer service, though it requires proactive engagement for complex issues, as feedback indicates.

Pricing and ROI: Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is noted for its cost-effectiveness, providing strong ROI through cost savings and improved project timelines. It suits budget-conscious businesses by delivering enhanced productivity and quick ROI recovery. Erwin Data Modeler, despite being higher-priced, is justified by superior modeling capabilities and reliability. It offers flexible access with concurrent licensing, although it represents a significant investment, rewarded by enhanced operational efficiencies and advanced data management benefits.

To learn more, read our detailed Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. erwin Data Modeler Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. erwin Data Modeler

December 2025

Download the complete report

Helped 881,176 peers since 2012

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

erwin Data Modeler

Ranking in Enterprise Architecture Management

2nd

Ranking in Business Process Design

8th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

5.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Data Governance (15th)

Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...

Ranking in Enterprise Architecture Management

5th

Ranking in Business Process Design

5th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Enterprise Architecture Management category, the mindshare of erwin Data Modeler is 8.3%, down from 11.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is 9.3%, down from 14.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Architecture Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
erwin Data Modeler	8.3%
Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect	9.3%
Other	82.4%

Enterprise Architecture Management

Featured Reviews

Sushree Panigrahi

Snowflake Data Engineer| Senior PLSQL Developer |Data Modeler|Assitant Vice Pre at Jp Morgan Chase & Co.

Data modeling has transformed regulatory reporting and collaboration across cloud environments

In erwin Data Modeler, areas that have room for improvement include performance improvements. I see that large models sometimes cause it to be slow when opening. Impact analysis can lag as well. Version control is another aspect. If we have developed a current version, it is not integrated with Git where we can easily compare different versions. UI modernization is also something we cannot utilize as it is primarily for development. Additionally, cloud-specific optimizations are needed when it comes to Snowflake or Databricks. When it comes to AI aspects, auto-suggestions for normalization or identifying primary, foreign, or surrogate keys are areas that can be improved.

Read full review

Milan Sterba

Senior Enterprise Architect at Deepview S.r.o.

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.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I compare erwin Data Modeler with other solutions such as ER/Studio and believe it stands out as an enterprise-grade data modeling tool capable of serving different industries, such as finance, healthcare, and telecom."

"I have worked with erwin Data Modeler for quite some time and familiarity is its most valuable feature."

"It reduces monthly savings by hundreds of thousands of dollars. Think about a company like Costco and all of the points of sale systems in Costco, all of the systems, the applications, but if all the applications in Costco all had their own data model, trying to integrate those, upgrade them and manage their different versions of the same model throughout the store, is an absolute nightmare. It's phenomenally expensive. This helps reduce that cost significantly. I'm talking on the orders of hundreds of thousands of dollars."

"The principal feature that I liked is that the solution has a very graphic interface."

"erwin has versioning so you can keep versions, over time, of those models and you can compare any version to any version. If you're looking at a specific database and you want to see what changed over time, that's really useful. You can go back to a different version or connect that to your change-control processes so you can see what was released when."

"Quest can create conceptual and physical data models to facilitate effective communication between business and IT. It can also integrate expertise from various engineering and database systems within your organization to enhance data management and administration."

"The modeling portion of the tool is the most valuable. There are some notes, naming standards, and other functions that we use as well. There's a whole boatload of functionality in this thing and we use maybe 10% of it. It seems to be pretty common that not all the functionality is fully utilized. But it's just got gobs and gobs of stuff that you can implement if you so choose to."

"We can create mappings in erwin and possibly data dictionaries."

More erwin Data Modeler pros

"The solution allows us to quickly present designs and concepts to customers and get their feedback, thereby moving the project forward step by step."

"Sparx has got a range of modeling features, and I am comfortable with all its offering. I've used a lot of tools over the phone. I found EA Spark, probably the most feature rich product all in all compared to other products. The solution is very cost-effective and that is its best feature. It's a very good delivery architecture tool, which also has enterprise architecture capabilities, and it's got full life cycle processes and software development. So for me, it's a pretty comprehensive tool"

"For the most part, we find that it is remarkable how inexpensive it is."

"Sparx offers good flexibility."

"It's easy to search within the solution."

"Its ability to reference and link to components from any diagram."

"Its traversability is most valuable. I can use ArchiMate, and I can create a UML model. ArchiMate is for logical enterprise architecture, UML is for software engineering, and BPMN is for business processes. I can build it to have multiple models, and they are also traversable, which is not something that every tool allows. If there is a huge organization, you can segment it and have separate models for business technology or internal resource management system. You don't need to keep them in one model, and you can decide to segregate them."

"Scalability is not a problem. You can always increase the footprint of what the thing can do because it's so powerful."

More Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect pros

Cons

"I would like to have more data sources from other, different vendors. In recent years, the vendor has reduced the number of data sources, and I would like to have more data sources for every brand. For example, with Oracle, I would like to have compatibility for many versions, including old ones, not just the most recent."

"The only real complaint I have is the time it takes to do a database comparison on a large model. If they could speed that up, that would be the only thing I can think of that needs improvement."

"The solution's model mark could be better because it crashes sometimes."

"I find the UI very clunky and very difficult to use. If I add columns to a table the whole workflow could be so much easier. I get frustrated using it. I've tried other tools. I've tried to get off of erwin a few times. I always come back to it because every tool has its own set of problems, and it seems like if I have to pick my poison, I stay with erwin. But so many things that are clunky with it."

"I would like the solution to be less rigid in terms of its theory."

"I would rate the visualization feature in erwin Data Modeler a six out of ten because the visualization is somewhat poor and some of the features are not user-friendly."

"The navigation is a little bit of a challenge. It's painful. For example, if you've got a view open and you want to try to move from side to side, the standard today is being able to drag and drop left and right. You can't really do that in the model. Moving around the model is painful because it doesn't follow the Windows model today."

"The Bulk Editor needs improvement. If you had something that was a local model to your local machine, you could connect to the API, then it would write directly into the repository. However, when you have something that is on the centralized server, that functionality did not work. Then, you had to export out to a CSV and upload up to the repository. It would have been nice to be able to do the direct API without having that whole download and upload thing. Maybe I didn't figure it out, but I'm pretty sure that didn't work when it was a model that sat on a centralized repository."

More erwin Data Modeler cons

"Their technical support is not good in India. I wrote to them because I had a question, but I never got an answer. So, I just left it behind."

"The automatic creation of reports based on the model elements could be improved."

"The Portfolio Management features can be added in the next release. As it helps you to manage more portfolio of projects and architectures of cost projects on a portfolio level. This would be an important feature in the next release."

"I would like the system to more "intellectually" build a scheme, place icons, and connect lines on the schemes."

"The user interface is not so good. It's not easy for someone to use it at first. The product takes some getting used to."

"It would be nice to have it supported on the Linux operating system."

"It took me a while to figure out how to use the report generation features effectively. So, it would be really nice if they had a way to make that a little bit more interactive and a little bit more straightforward."

"The presentation graphics need to be improved in future builds."

More Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I don't specifically know what we're paying now. About three years ago, in another organization, I have this memory of 6,000 AUD a seat or something like that, but I am not sure. In the mid-2000s, it was something like 1,200 AUD a seat. I get the impression that there was a price jump when it was spun off from CA as a separate company, which is understandable, but it could sometimes be a barrier in some organizations picking it up. I haven't talked to erwin people yet, but I'm going to suggest to them that they could perhaps think of having an entry-level product that is priced a bit lower, and then, you can buy the extra suite."

"An issue right now would be that erwin doesn't have a freely available browser (that I am aware of) for people who are not data modelers or data engineers that a consumer could use to look at the data models and play with it. This would not be to make any changes, but just to visually look at what exists. There are other products out there which do have end user browsers available and allow them to access data models via the data modeling tool."

"Though the solution is not cheap, it's worth the money."

"The price of erwin Data Modeler is very expensive, in particular for this part of the world."

"The primary reasons that erwin was selected were that it was much more affordable for us [than Embarcadero] and it was easily maintainable."

"We've continued to use the product for many years and compared it with others on the market. The pricing is reasonable considering what the solution offers and what we pay. There are cheaper tools, but they may not be as robust and easy to use, so it's worth the money."

"It is not a very expensive solution. Only the licensing and maintenance fee needs to be paid."

"This company had bought the license for three years, and it's not an individual license. While you can buy a license for each individual, that would be very expensive. There is something called concurrent licenses where you can purchase licenses in bulk and 15 to 20 people can access the license and model. Concurrent licenses are scalable to the number of users and are proportional to the cost."

More erwin Data Modeler pricing and cost advice

"I think our license costs roughly $1,000 a year, but I could be wrong."

"There is a license for this solution. When comparing this solution to others it is priced well."

"It's reasonably priced for large organizations."

"It’s the best deal in town, by far."

"The Corporate Edition, or one of the bundles, is the way to go."

"We have an annual license, and it's very affordable."

"Use floating licenses strategically."

"I use my own license. So, I just bought the professional version, which costs $800 or something like that. In the company where I am working, we have floating licenses. They are probably more expensive. Its licensing is affordable, but we are talking about a large organization, and there could be modelers or viewers of the models. We don't know how much that would cost us."

More Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Enterprise Architecture Management solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

881,176 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

18%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Performing Arts

Financial Services Firm

14%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	34

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	38
Midsize Enterprise	20
Large Enterprise	58

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for erwin Data Modeler by Quest?

Regarding pricing, I am unsure what the exact price is for erwin Data Modeler, but I believe it is not useful for an individual. It is more targeted toward an enterprise level since organizations l...

See all answers

What needs improvement with erwin Data Modeler by Quest?

I write code and I write code accessing erwin Data Modeler's API, the Application Programming Interface, so that I can use Excel to update erwin Data Modeler and then get those updates and put them...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for erwin Data Modeler by Quest?

I work for CVS with a pretty big database as a data modeler on the PBMs, the Caremark PBM side, which is the Pharmacy Benefits Manager. There's a retail side too for all the stores, but our data wa...

See all answers

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.

See all answers

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...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?

See all answers

Comparisons

SAP PowerDesigner vs erwin Data Modeler

Compared 41% of the time

IDERA ER/Studio vs erwin Data Modeler

Compared 11% of the time

Lucidchart vs erwin Data Modeler

Compared 7% of the time

Visio vs erwin Data Modeler

Compared 5% of the time

LeanIX vs erwin Data Modeler

Compared 3% of the time

More erwin Data Modeler Competitors

Visual Paradigm vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect

Compared 12% of the time

No Magic MagicDraw vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect

Compared 8% of the time

Visio vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect

Compared 8% of the time

Lucidchart vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect

Compared 7% of the time

erwin Evolve vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect

Compared 3% of the time

More Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

erwin Data Modeler

January 2026

Download erwin Data Modeler product report

Buyer's Guide

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect

January 2026

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect report

Download Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect product report

Also Known As

erwin DM

No data available

Overview

Erwin Data Modeler provides an effective approach to visualizing and managing data models. It assists in creating, reversing, and synchronizing data models with ease, supporting logical and physical transitions while enhancing understanding across teams.

Erwin Data Modeler is a comprehensive tool designed for professional database management. It offers capabilities to organize and enforce standards, automating script generation with robust reverse engineering and DDL output. Users can manage complex data environments, capitalize on integration with data intelligence, and maintain large-scale databases smoothly. Despite its strengths, improvements in multi-language support, database integration, and reporting features are needed. Users benefit from extensive support for conceptual, logical, and physical database modeling, enhancing architectural design and data governance for platforms like SQL Server, Oracle, and Teradata.

What are the key features of Erwin Data Modeler?

Visual Representation: Facilitates clear visualization of data models, aiding comprehension.
Versioning and Editing: Enhance usability with versioning and bulk editing capabilities.
Reverse Engineering: Offers powerful tools for reverse engineering and DDL generation.
Integration: Aligns with data intelligence to streamline database management.
Naming Standards: Enforces consistency with automated script creation.

What benefits should users consider in Erwin Data Modeler reviews?

Collaboration: Promotes team understanding and collaboration through visual tools.
Automation: Reduces manual effort through automated processes and integration.
Scalability: Handles large database management efficiently, crucial for enterprise settings.
Data Governance: Facilitates effective data governance with structured modeling.

Erwin Data Modeler finds application in industries focused on robust data management, implementing it for enterprise data warehouses, business domain models, and operational systems. It supports architectural design and governance, aligning with business applications demanding precise data representation and visualization.

Quest Software

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is an enterprise solution that helps streamline, accelerate, and integrate software, system, and business development. With this intuitive modeling and design solution, enterprises can stay in control of their workplaces, enable collaboration, support their teams and colleagues, and manage complex projects. Software architects, business analysts, project managers, developers, support staff, and testers can unite under a single repository. Through numerous view points and potential sub-systems, users are offered a unified view in a complex environment.

With Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect, users are also offered a shared model option which can be accessed quickly and securely by in-office and remote team members through the Enterprise Architect’s Pro Cloud Server. Building a coherent, verifiable model can be done by connecting and integrating a variety of behavioral and structural information in visual form. As a result, Enterprise Architect offers high performance, flexibility, and the ability to model, manage, and trace every stage of the business development and modeling process.

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect Features

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect assists in creating a unified and accessible vision in business development by offering a flexible platform with a unique set of rich features. These features include:

Test and debug - Streamline software development and visualize software with the simulation process. Users can test and confirm correct behavior, set and oversee test points, and debug and examine software.

Track tasks - Track, prioritize, and assign individual and group tasks to assist in the model’s development. Users can visually monitor their progress through the Gantt chart.

Open standards - Users can visualize and analyze running software with integrated custom tools. They can also run advanced simulations, team-based repositories, testing tools, and version control. In addition, the solution supports enterprise architecture frameworks such as UPDM and TOGAF.

Simulation - Create and debug embedded solutions by simulating behaviors and state models. Users can specify events, triggers, constraints, and more. Users can also specify extensive and complex structural systems and create custom domain-specific solutions.

Reviews from Real Users

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect merges high-end tools, online availability, a dedication to open standards, and accessible pricing so enterprises can stay in control of their workplaces, whether remote or in-office. Users particularly like the architectural frameworks and the scalability.

Marc L., a principal architecture enterprise solution adviser at Cronomagic Canada, notes, "The product offers very good support for all mainstream modeling notations and architectural frameworks."

An enterprise architect at a manufacturing company writes, "Scalable solution for modeling, project sharing, and collaboration. Support for it is good."

Sparx Systems

Sample Customers

Premera, America Honda Motors, Aetna, Kaiser Permanente, Dental Dental Cali, Cigna, Staples

OmniLink

Buyer's Guide

Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. erwin Data Modeler

December 2025

Free Report: Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. erwin Data Modeler

Find out what your peers are saying about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. erwin Data Modeler and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

DOWNLOAD NOW

881,176 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. erwin Data Modeler report.

See our list of best Enterprise Architecture Management vendors and best Business Process Design vendors.

We monitor all Enterprise Architecture Management reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.