GNU Make vs IBM Rational Build Forge comparison

GNU and IBM are both solutions in the Build Automation category. GNU is ranked #16 with an average rating of 9.0, while IBM is ranked #23. GNU holds a 0.6% mindshare in BA, compared to IBM’s 0.8% mindshare. Additionally, 83% of GNU users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM users who would recommend it.

GNU Make

Read 6 GNU Make reviews

226 Views
152 Comparison Views

83% willing to recommend

IBM Rational Build Forge

Read 2 IBM Rational Build Forge reviews

434 Views
331 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

GNU Make

IBM Rational Build Forge

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 2025

IBM Rational Build Forge and GNU Make compete in the build automation space. IBM Rational Build Forge is praised for support and pricing while GNU Make is preferred for features and adaptability.

Features: IBM Rational Build Forge delivers centralized build management, customizable workflows, and integration, boosting productivity and automation. GNU Make is known for simplicity, flexibility, and powerful scripting, making it ideal for custom builds.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM Rational Build Forge offers strong deployment support and comprehensive documentation for enterprise integration. GNU Make features a simple installation and relies on community support and extensive documentation, appealing to users desiring quick setup without formal support.

Pricing and ROI: IBM Rational Build Forge entails significant setup costs, promising strong ROI for large enterprises with advanced automation. GNU Make, being open-source, involves minimal costs, offering significant long-term returns due to its flexibility and absence of licensing fees. Its cost-effective nature attracts smaller operations.

To learn more, read our detailed GNU Make vs. IBM Rational Build Forge Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

GNU Make vs. IBM Rational Build Forge

March 2025

Download the complete report

Helped 845,406 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

GNU Make

Ranking in Build Automation

16th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

IBM Rational Build Forge

Ranking in Build Automation

23rd

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Build Automation category, the mindshare of GNU Make is 0.6%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Rational Build Forge is 0.8%, down from 1.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Build Automation

Featured Reviews

reviewer2561757

Software at a computer software company with 201-500 employees

Enhances productivity with efficient dependency handling and a straightforward setup

GNU Make is used as a build system tool. Most people don't use GNU Make directly but utilize other systems like CMake to generate Make files, which are then run by GNU Make. This is common for tasks like compiling C++ code. In the industry, AI developers, for example, use GNU Make in their work…

Read full review

Amy DeLorge

CRM Program Release Manager at Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center

Great reporting features and very functional

The solution could be more user friendly. Trying to train somebody on it can be difficult. If you're in this field, you kind of learn the tools, but trying to show a PM how to find report sheets to pull data was difficult. I had to show them how to write the queries and pull the data that they needed. It's not a layman's solution. If you're working with a programmer or with an architect, you won't have issues trying to relay how to utilize the tool. It was for those who cut the checks where there were problems enabling them to pull the data they required. I guess the answer is DevOps, but it depends on your environment. Just being able to sign into dashboards and get accurate results was my biggest thing with my PMs on my projects. They like charts and pie graphs, the ability to see things at a glance data where they could make decisions on the fly.

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

"The initial setup of GNU Make is straightforward."

"Makefiles are extremely easy to work with using any preferred editor. GNU Make can be run directly from the terminal, not requiring any time wasted on clicking."

"Full-featured syntax allows building strategies as simple or as complex as one wishes, and declarative approach fits the task really well. Wide adoption also means that everybody knows what GNU Make is and how to use it."

"Setup is extremely straightforward."

"GNU Make is such an essential tool that it is almost impossible to imagine working without it. Not having it, developers would probably have to resort to doing everything manually or via shell scripts."

"I have not encountered any scalability issues with GNU Make. It is as scalable as the project's structure is, and then some."

"All features are useful. Our customer doesn't have any complaints about the tool. It works pretty well for what they want and what they need to do."

"Very good reporting features."

Cons

"Vanilla GNU Make does not support any kind of colored output. A wrapper named colormake exists to work around this, but native (opt-in) support would be welcome."

"GNU Make requires using the Tab symbol as the first symbol of command line for execution. In some text editors this can be problematic, as they automatically insert spaces instead of tabs."

"GNU Make does not provide traditional customer support."

"Its logging can be improved. When something goes wrong, it is not always very easy to find the problem. It is hard to identify whether the problem is because of low memory in the server or some configuration in Rational Build Forge. The error logs are not very detailed, and they should provide more information. It should also have more integration with third-party tools. It would be great to have more integration with third-party tools."

"Not user friendly for the layman."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is no price for this product. No licensing. It’s open-source."

"GNU Make is free and open source software."

Information not available

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Build Automation solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

20%

Financial Services Firm

18%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Educational Organization

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for GNU Make?

GNU Make is a free solution that comes with Linux, which positively impacts operational costs by eliminating licensing fees.

See all answers

What needs improvement with GNU Make?

I am not familiar enough with it to suggest any specific new features or areas for improvement. It occupies its niche well.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for GNU Make?

See all answers

Ask a question

Earn 20 points

Comparisons

Jenkins vs GNU Make

Compared 100% of the time

More GNU Make Competitors

Jenkins vs IBM Rational Build Forge

Compared 100% of the time

More IBM Rational Build Forge Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Build Automation

March 2025

Download GNU Make product report

Buyer's Guide

Build Automation

March 2025

Download IBM Rational Build Forge product report

Also Known As

No data available

Rational Build Forge

Overview

Make is a tool which controls the generation of executables and other non-source files of a program from the program's source files.

GNU

IBM Rational Build Forge is an adaptive execution framework that helps automate and standardize the software assembly process. Rational Build Forge helps teams standardize repetitive tasks, improve software quality and manage compliance mandates. This software scales to 25 seats. Rational Build Forge delivers:
Flexibility - gives developers self-service access to preconfigured build processes from within their integrated development environment (IDE). You can add IBM Rational software products to further enhance automation, reporting and integration.
Productivity - accelerates build and release cycles through iterative development, parallel processes and efficient use of hardware.
Compliance - simplifies compliance management with self-documenting audit trails and role-based security.
Compatibility - increases team efficiency with centralized build and release management using the tools you have today.

IBM

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Cars.com

Buyer's Guide

GNU Make vs. IBM Rational Build Forge

March 2025

Free Report: GNU Make vs. IBM Rational Build Forge

Find out what your peers are saying about GNU Make vs. IBM Rational Build Forge and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.

DOWNLOAD NOW

845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our GNU Make vs. IBM Rational Build Forge report.

See our list of best Build Automation vendors.

We monitor all Build Automation 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.