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IBM FileNet vs SharePoint comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

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
6.5
IBM FileNet boosts efficiency, reduces costs and errors, enhances productivity, and offers significant financial benefits through automation and quicker access.
Sentiment score
7.5
Organizations achieve cost savings with SharePoint, boosting efficiency, centralizing data, and enhancing stability, despite unspecified ROI metrics.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.2
IBM FileNet's customer service is positively rated but faces challenges with resolution delays, time zones, and consultant training.
Sentiment score
5.9
SharePoint support quality varies significantly based on subscription, with users often relying on communities due to mixed satisfaction.
People come from all over the world, and they have specialists at the other end of the world to help if needed.
The product-level support is better now than before.
For IBM FileNet, I give a rating of nine out of ten.
Microsoft support could be better, especially for enterprise troubleshooting.
I deal with a third-party service provider, which is a Microsoft partner, and they have been very good to me.
technical support has been efficient and reactive to problems we encountered with SharePoint.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.6
IBM FileNet offers scalable infrastructure, seamlessly integrates with systems, and efficiently supports large data volumes and automation processes.
Sentiment score
7.7
SharePoint is highly scalable with proper planning, despite some initial configuration challenges and storage constraints in the cloud version.
The bigger products like IBM FileNet can handle billions of documents and thousands of users.
Making it easy to scale from a load-balancing and infrastructure perspective.
SharePoint is massively scalable and I would rate it as 8.5 out of ten.
SharePoint allows multiple teams to work at the same time, making it adaptable for large data volumes.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
IBM FileNet is reliable with 99.9% uptime, praised for stability, despite initial setup issues and occasional large document concerns.
Sentiment score
8.2
SharePoint's stability varies; it is generally stable with proper setup, but issues arise with updates and large data volumes.
FileNet was restricted to DB2's enterprise edition instead of the standard edition, causing complications.
In terms of stability, we haven't experienced any big technical issues or downtime with IBM FileNet.
The stability of SharePoint is high; it is quite stable and resilient.
Everything runs smoothly, and I have no problems with its stability.
SharePoint is a stable product.
 

Room For Improvement

IBM FileNet needs improved integration, usability, cloud capabilities, automation, and AI features, with reduced complexity and cost.
SharePoint needs improvements in co-authoring, permissions, search, integration, mobile optimization, user interface, workflows, and interoperability for better usability.
The response time and resolution of issues by technical support need improvement.
FileNet needs improvement in pricing as it has become very expensive.
There are only a few products large enterprises can choose from, and it doesn't really matter which one as it often depends on the consultants and the team implementing the solution.
The rights management aspect can be particularly challenging, which may affect the overall user-friendliness of the product.
Expansion of scalability is needed, specifically the threshold limits for site items should be increased beyond the current 5,000 items.
A chat support or chatbot feature could also improve the response time of technical support.
 

Setup Cost

IBM FileNet's high costs and complex pricing make it a significant investment, mainly suited for larger enterprises.
SharePoint offers variable pricing influenced by CAL agreements, requiring careful planning and expert consultation for tailored organizational needs.
The product has become more expensive and requires significant investment for enterprise solutions.
The price is high, with yearly subscriptions increasing day by day.
FileNet and similar enterprise-level tools require substantial costs, starting in the millions.
Unlike Drupal, all necessary applications are included in the Microsoft license, making it cost-effective.
Microsoft offers bundled pricing for Office, SharePoint, and Exchange, making it cost-effective.
Enterprise licensing is generally cost-effective compared to individual purchases.
 

Valuable Features

IBM FileNet offers robust document management with automation, integration, security, and excellent compatibility with business applications for efficiency.
SharePoint offers collaboration, Office integration, document management, search, version control, multi-device access, customization, and robust workflow features.
The main features we find impactful are the workflow and document management along with FileNet file stores.
At this level, companies don't buy a ready-made solution.
The best part of FileNet includes its advantages and most valuable features, which are its scalability and stability.
Additionally, SharePoint acts as a version control system, allowing easy recovery of past document versions.
Its rights management capabilities and ability to restrict access to certain people are also very useful.
The most valuable feature of SharePoint is the ability to collaborate on documents without having multiple versions.
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM FileNet
Ranking in Enterprise Content Management
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
101
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
SharePoint
Ranking in Enterprise Content Management
1st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
158
Ranking in other categories
Web Content Management (2nd), Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) (1st), Enterprise Intranet (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Enterprise Content Management category, the mindshare of IBM FileNet is 10.6%, up from 9.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SharePoint is 17.3%, down from 20.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Content Management
 

Featured Reviews

Emad Rizki - PeerSpot reviewer
Facilitates seamless integration for large enterprises with strong deployment capabilities
FileNet was scalable and could be implemented into big multinational organizations. However, it has become very expensive recently. Compared to low-code solutions such as Appian and outsystems, FileNet has gaps, mainly because it requires coding, which is not preferred by clients due to pricing concerns in Pakistan. We transitioned clients to cloud solutions, although FileNet has been strongly integrated with on-prem deployments.
Sanil Paul - PeerSpot reviewer
Streamlined collaboration through seamless integration and customization
I have been an administrator for SharePoint and have used it as an end-user for document storage. Predominantly, I've been involved in administration SharePoint helps a lot since we've moved from using it directly to using it as a backend for Teams, which makes collaboration easier. It supports…
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Enterprise Content Management solutions are best for your needs.
842,194 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user8925 - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 23, 2013
Jive vs Sharepoint vs Drupal Commons
At Mediacurrent we often get requests to compare Drupal to other platforms used for intranet sites and social business platforms (like https://dev.twitter.com/ for example). This is often referred to as “Social Business Software”, which has grown in popularity in recent years. I decided to do a…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
23%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
10%
Insurance Company
9%
Government
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM FileNet?
The product is robust and can process a lot of documents for enterprise content management.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM FileNet?
The product has become more expensive and requires significant investment for enterprise solutions.
What needs improvement with IBM FileNet?
FileNet needs improvement in pricing as it has become very expensive. Also, in comparison to local solutions, the need for coding is a disadvantage.
Would Alfresco give an organization more benefits in terms of cost, features & security as compared to Sharepoint?
Alfresco scores are high on all features of an ECM solution and tools. Back office processing, rated as 3.36 good. Business Process Application 3.55 Good to excellent. Document Management 4.12...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SharePoint?
With SharePoint, we save by not needing multiple external licenses. Unlike Drupal ( /products/drupal-reviews ), all necessary applications are included in the Microsoft license, making it cost-effe...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

No data available
SharePoint 2007, SharePoint 2010
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Suncorp Group Limited, St. Vincent Health, Citigroup, SRCSD, and UK Dept for Work and Pensions.
Toyota, Aeroports de Paris, ASBBank Ltd., Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals, CambridgeshireConstabulary, D&M Group, NPL Construction Company, and The Regional Municipality of Niagara.
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM FileNet vs. SharePoint and other solutions. Updated: February 2025.
842,194 professionals have used our research since 2012.