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IBM BPM vs Pega Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 12, 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
7.5
Businesses using IBM BPM reported improved efficiency, automation, and cost savings despite high costs and moderate ROI.
Sentiment score
7.6
Pega Platform boosts efficiency, revenue, and ROI up to 80% through improved processes, automation, and quick digital transformation.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
IBM BPM customer service is generally positive, with effective support, though response delays and communication issues are noted.
Sentiment score
6.8
Pega Platform's customer support receives mixed reviews; premium service users report higher satisfaction but slower response for critical issues.
The customer service is outstanding.
We had a contract that provided on-site support, which was very satisfactory.
The technical support from Pega is very low, rating a one or two out of ten.
I never needed support from the platform standpoint, but if additional features are required, we have regular meetings with the product team for feedback.
Pega's technical support team is very helpful.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
IBM BPM offers impressive scalability, efficiently managing high user volumes with varied experiences and requiring occasional careful tuning.
Sentiment score
7.6
Pega Platform is scalable across industries with some performance challenges, requiring robust infrastructure and strategic capacity planning.
The solution has scalability issues; on a scale, I would rate it at eight out of ten.
I found IBM BPM to be scalable to a certain level but it struggled with large volumes of concurrent transactions.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
IBM BPM stability varies; recent versions improve reliability, but issues remain with infrastructure, configuration, and developer expertise.
Sentiment score
7.7
Pega Platform is generally stable and reliable, but high task volumes or configurations can cause occasional glitches.
 

Room For Improvement

IBM BPM needs improved customization, integration, and user-friendliness, addressing complexity and high cost with enhanced API and AI features.
Users report Pega Platform's complexity, UI issues, and limited customization, seeking improved AI, better support, and enhanced integration.
IBM BPM also lacks smaller solutions, so I must purchase multiple solutions to start with workflows and applications.
Pega introduced Constellation, which allows a user to build a more engaging visual experience.
My learning curve in robotics has been challenging.
 

Setup Cost

IBM BPM's high costs suit large enterprises, while flexible Cloud Pak and tiered licensing offer varied pricing options.
Pega Platform is costly for small businesses, offering scalable features and negotiable pricing, ideal for large enterprises.
SAP is more expensive, but IBM BPM is very expensive.
The pricing is expensive, and this is an issue.
Pega is priced higher than open-source options like Flowable but is suitable for large-scale industries like banking and insurance.
 

Valuable Features

IBM BPM offers integration, scalability, and low-code development with strong UI, enhancing efficiency and reducing complexities.
Pega Platform offers rapid deployment, strong integration, and flexible workflows with extensive functionalities for diverse industry needs.
The integration capabilities of IBM BPM are excellent.
Management capabilities such as dashboards.
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.
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM BPM
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
4th
Ranking in Process Automation
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
111
Ranking in other categories
Application Infrastructure (8th)
Pega Platform
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
3rd
Ranking in Process Automation
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
82
Ranking in other categories
Business Rules Management (1st), Rapid Application Development Software (6th), Low-Code Development Platforms (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of IBM BPM is 7.4%, up from 7.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pega Platform is 5.5%, down from 7.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

SureshThota1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Good automation, stable, and scalable
The initial setup is complex, but once we have a mature framework in place, it has been working well. When deployed properly and as expected, customers are happy to use the solution. However, there is still a lot of configuration and installation taking time. IBM BPM provides a cloud-fast model, where it is possible to integrate automation of the process and where manual interaction is only necessary if automation is not available. We have implemented an ultimate installation that includes both capabilities, but some features were not enabled in the process access station. For example, I could not open KFC documents, they all uploaded, and saved the data, but could not do a profile page without manual interaction. IBM is still working on a permanent solution for this. The deployment time depends on the requirements, which can be critical, low, or medium-high. If the requirements are critical, it will take six to eight months. For medium requirements, it will take five months, and for low requirements, it will take only one month. Eight people were part of the deployment team.
Mallik-Kesavaraju - PeerSpot reviewer
Significantly improves the overall cycle time, and offers robotic automation, and the BPM workflow
The extensive availability of ready-made gadgets in Pega BPM is a double-edged sword. While it offers convenience, it also leads to a steeper learning curve. Our developers and business analysts need to invest significant time and effort to fully understand and utilize the platform's capabilities. In essence, it's a complex product that demands a deep understanding to be used effectively. So, it cuts both ways. This complexity can be both an advantage and a disadvantage, depending on the user's expertise. So, the learning curve is pretty high! So, it's very good if you are a professional user, but you need to be a really good professional user to use this solution effectively.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
32%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
6%
Financial Services Firm
29%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better, IBM BPM or IBM Business Automation Workflow?
We researched both IBM solutions and in the end, we chose Business Automation Workflow. IBM BPM has a good user interface and the BPM coach is a helpful tool. The API is very useful in providing en...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM BPM?
Once it is installed, maintaining it is not a big issue.
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...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

WebSphere Lombardi Edition, IBM Business Process Manager, IBM WebSphere Process Server
Pega BPM, Pegasystems, SmartBPM, PegaRULES
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Barclays, EmeriCon, Banca Popolare di Milano, CST Consulting, KeyBank, KPMG, Prolifics, Sandhata Technologies Ltd., State of Alaska, Humana S.A., Saperion, esciris, Banco Espirito Santo
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 IBM BPM vs. Pega Platform and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,640 professionals have used our research since 2012.