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IBM OpenPages vs MetricStream vs RSA Archer comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the GRC category, the mindshare of IBM OpenPages is 5.5%, up from 5.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MetricStream is 5.0%, up from 3.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of RSA Archer is 17.2%, down from 17.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
GRC
 

Featured Reviews

Badri Anand Santhanam - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhancing operational risk management and reporting capabilities with insightful dashboards and automated features
IBM OpenPages offers strong reporting capabilities with Cognos integration, providing standard tabular reports, various charts, and powerful dashboards for different lines of defense. It caters to the first line managing risks and controls, the second line of SMEs providing oversight, and the independent audit function with an internal audit management module. The solution is more intuitive and task-based, allowing better involvement of the risk function across different lines of defense. The automated features translate into reporting capabilities, and data can be easily extracted and downloaded in different formats.
AP
Reasonably priced, stable, with out of the box deployment, and has good local support
They have now reworked it. The interface is mobile-friendly and it is getting a good response from our customers. It's a very good feature that the product offers. It is also available as a cloud option, which is getting a lot of interest from customers who are looking into the GRCC. It is very useful, especially in the solution platform. It has good features and good functionality, and our customers feel there is a lot of merit in that. I think that the portal is constantly improving. They do their own enhancements very often. They keep doing those enhancements from their site itself.
IMRAN ALMARZOOQI - PeerSpot reviewer
Automates compliance management effectively but needs improved interface and dashboards
The tool basically automates whatever processes you already have, so I cannot specify improvements in that regard. However, my main issue with Archer is the graphics. The graphics have always been lacking. I always need to depend on another tool to read information from Archer to have better dashboards. It is like using Linux, and it has a Linux mindset and interface. I want to use Archer for top management and CEOs, but it looks too technical, and the dashboards are not really friendly. They are bulky, like opening an old Nintendo system from nineteen-ninety. The management agrees that Archer lacks in terms of presentation and dashboarding. It is complex, not user-friendly, and bulky. The interface just looks old.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features are the workflow engine, calculations, and security rules."
"IBM OpenPages provides time savings in recording risk management components."
"The content, reporting, and workflow features stand out as the most valuable aspects."
"Everything about IBM OpenPages is valuable, particularly when compared to other solutions in the market like MetricStream, from which we switched due to its feasibility, user-friendliness, and performance."
"IBM OpenPages saves time in my work as a developer."
"The ability to keep a record of internal incidents in the company, and also the monitoring of Key Indicators."
"Key features are usability and ease of configuration. It allows us to have all the information in a single place and provide real-time indicators and information for our executives."
"The interface is mobile-friendly and it is getting a good response from our customers."
"Solution is scalable."
"From my perspective as a customer and end user, RSA is about the look and feel."
"The most valuable features of RSA Archer are the asset management, risk management, and vendor management."
"It is enterprise-wide accessible. So, it is very helpful for all the employees in our bank. They can log in and do their risk management activities. It has a few inbuilt modules that are helpful for doing risk management activities, such as issue management, risk identification, risk assessment, and policy exception management. It also has some inbuilt workflows inside these modules. They are also helpful."
"Risk management is one of the most impressive features of Archer, especially with the recent restructuring of the user interface."
"The solution has improved my organization by having everything combined to a single platform."
"The tool has stability, and it allows me to automate whatever process I have."
"Good dashboards and reporting features; it's easy to gather reports quickly."
 

Cons

"IBM OpenPages could improve by adding more conditions to workflows, as some existing conditions might not work and can produce errors."
"IBM OpenPages needs improvement in its UI. Currently, it is difficult to see the relationships (associations/parents) between all items unless you click on the item itself."
"I believe there's room for improvement in establishing connections with external information."
"Some self-relationships are not available in OpenPages' relationship model."
"It would be useful to have more out-of-the-box functionality, especially triggers and calculations."
"IBM needs to work on pricing for organizations with around 100 users, as the licensing model is not competitive enough for SMEs."
"I would like to see out-of-the-box integration with more security, it would be helpful."
"We would like to have more dashboards and reports, such as geographical and trend reports in the next version. Also, an improvement in the mobile version would be helpful."
"Performance could be improved."
"RSA Archer might be a bit expensive for small companies because it's a vast tool."
"It's resource-hungry, that's the best way of putting it."
"It would be nice if RSA Archer featured more customization. When customers are updating, they should be notified whether certain updates are optional. The install screen should not proceed to the next page unless we make some selections about which updates we want to install."
"I would like to have the ability to build and maintain an inventory of personal data processing activities and assets utilizing a purpose-built taxonomy and data structure."
"The interface just looks old."
"There should be built-in integration mechanisms, for example, for organizations switching from platforms like ServiceNow to Archer, instead of custom integrations for each client."
"If you need to integrate the RSA products with another SEIM solution, then it doesn't work properly."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"They are flexible in terms of customers' needs."
"The solution's price should be reduced. You only have to pay the license and there are no additional fees."
"The solution is not at all a cheap product."
"The solution’s pricing is moderate."
"Fairly highly-priced, especially for smaller companies."
"The price of the solution is very affordable."
"At the higher end of the price scale, but provides better, more accessible functionality and customization than cheaper products."
"The price of RSA Archer is good. The price isn't too high considering it is a leading tool in the market."
"As I am a developer and responsible for providing production support, I do not have personal knowledge of the pricing. However, my colleagues claim that it is very expensive in comparison with other tools."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
28%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Government
5%
Educational Organization
28%
Financial Services Firm
19%
Computer Software Company
8%
Non Profit
5%
Educational Organization
47%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
6%
Manufacturing Company
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM OpenPages?
The product’s interface is very intuitive.
What needs improvement with IBM OpenPages?
IBM OpenPages could improve by adding more conditions to workflows, as some existing conditions might not work and ca...
What is your primary use case for IBM OpenPages?
I primarily use IBM OpenPages ( /products/ibm-openpages-reviews ) for compliance and audit programs.
What are the main differences between RSA Archer, MetricStream and IBM OpenPages?
RSA Archer, IBM OpenPages and MetricStream are the top GRC software solutions in the market today. Out of the 3, IBM ...
What do you like most about RSA Archer?
It has various valuable features. For example, showing us if a control aligns with specific standards or frameworks h...
What needs improvement with RSA Archer?
If the user needs to fill data, they need to go to one page and then to the next page if they can reduce the number o...
What is your primary use case for RSA Archer?
I perform all of our information security management governance and risk -related activities through Archer. My organ...
 

Also Known As

OpenPages
No data available
Archer
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Nationwide, Process Innovation AG, OSRAM Licht AG, Dep‹sito Central de Valores (DCV), Delta Lloyd Group, Unum
Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago, ACCO Brands Corporation, AgFirst Farm Credit Bank, AIB International, Associated Banc-Corp, BAE Systems, Barclaycard, Dell Inc, DIRECTV, Energizer, Fresenius Kabi, Hasbro, Goodyear, HudsonCity Savings Bank, Infigen Energy, Kaydon, Leroy Merlin, Mountry Financial Corp., Nicholas Piramal, Pepco, Pfizer, Societe Generale, Whitney Bank
T-Systems, Bridge Point, Equifax, First Data, Global Imaging Company, Manulife Financial
Find out what your peers are saying about RSA, OneTrust, MEGA International and others in GRC. Updated: March 2025.
849,190 professionals have used our research since 2012.