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IBM Power Systems vs Intel Server System comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 11, 2026

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

IBM Power Systems
Ranking in Rack Servers
4th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
73
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Intel Server System
Ranking in Rack Servers
11th
Average Rating
6.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of IBM Power Systems is 6.5%, down from 9.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Intel Server System is 4.0%, down from 5.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Power Systems6.5%
Intel Server System4.0%
Other89.5%
Rack Servers
 

Featured Reviews

Foluso  Jibowo - PeerSpot reviewer
Product Manager at Hiperdist Ltd
Has empowered enterprises with secure and cost-effective solutions
When discussing disadvantages, I do not see many areas for improvement because we have received good testimonies from every client. IBM gives customers peace of mind. One challenge, which I would not really call a challenge, is that initially people have the notion that IBM Power Systems is quite expensive. However, IBM does not lose deals based on price. This is a message we need to keep communicating to people who feel that IBM is on the high side in terms of cost. We encourage them to have a discussion with us about their total cost of ownership over three or five years. There is a notion in the market that IBM is expensive, which is false. However, once we engage and show them their return on investments and their total cost of ownership savings, they tend to embrace IBM.
SA
Servers Senior Network Administrator at Dukat d.d.
A stable product that constantly enhances its functionalities like multithreading and caching
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is more stable than AMD for VMware. Intel Server System has a good track record for the last 20 years. Multithreading and caching are areas where improvements keep increasing. If you look at the last four years, you will see a big difference when it comes to the area concerning processors.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The backups work great, data recovery works great."
"From a reliability standpoint it has provided us with excellent performance."
"Reliability would be the strongest thing, and stability is 100%."
"The main feature that I have found most valuable is PowerVM - its virtualization feature which is the most powerful."
"Power uniquely positions our bank in the industry because we are almost 100% virtualized, so we're cloud-ready, if you will."
"The most valuable features of the solution are disaster recovery, replication, and the ability to migrate to another location."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten...Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten."
"The most valuable feature of IBM Power Systems is its performance."
"I would recommend this product; it is stable with good performance, and we are satisfied with Intel's products."
"It is stable and easy to manage."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is more stable than AMD for VMware."
"The price is competitive and it uses well known architecture and it's easy to develop for."
 

Cons

"For the i customers, I think that Power, the horsepower, has always been there. So, I would like to see something more on the lower end, where they would make it more cost effective for the small guy, rather than the big guy."
"I would like to see IBM Power Systems integrate with all cloud types."
"The HMC and PowerVM need a more catchy graphical interface."
"I would like to see firmware available to all of the systems."
"Unfortunately, the hardware models and all those things have gone down a little bit, and there's no such diversity of models, and again, IBM is getting more and more expensive."
"If you asked me what I'd like added, I'd say that it'd be nice if they ran GPUs, however, I know that's not the direction they're going. That said, I would appreciate it if they offered GPU support."
"Since the cloud is so in demand right now, there is a feature that VMware has which is vMotion. I would like this with PowerVC, NovaLink, PowerVM."
"The lack of software vendors moving onto the platform, as opposed to fleeing the platform, is an issue."
"When you have an Intel Server System, the prices may be much higher since it is a different processor, making the solution's pricing part one of its shortcomings where improvements are required."
"The shipment time can be improved. When we order Intel products, we have to wait for a long time. They can increase the local services and engineers in China. Local engineers will be able to know and understand customer problems much better."
"We have to scale it ourselves but it scales. It depends on the software because it's mostly the hardware platform that Intel is managing."
"I give it five out of 10 because, although they're well known, the system isn't really advanced compared to some of the competitors."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"IBM Power Systems is a really expensive product."
"The machine is good and has a comparatively good price."
"The price of the solution depends upon the configuration part of it. Based on what configuration you want to go for it, there is a range like IBM Power Systems POWER9 and IBM Power Systems Power10."
"It's more about the value you get for the price. Considering its stability and performance, the pricing is good."
"The price of the solution could be somewhat better and this is what lowers my rating of it to a seven or eight out of ten."
"The cost model is great. There is so much built in to the technology, that if you know how to use it you can save yourself a lot of money."
"There is a yearly licensing cost, and it's an expensive solution."
"Power Systems is very cheap and provides good value for money."
"The price is competitive."
"It is not expensive."
"I rate the pricing a ten on a scale from one to ten, where one is inexpensive, and ten is very expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
University
7%
Financial Services Firm
16%
University
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise42
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM Power Systems?
In my opinion, the product can be improved by maintaining it and not sunsetting it; that would be my recommendation for IBM. I used to work for IBM for nineteen years, and I know, unfortunately, I ...
What is your primary use case for IBM Power Systems?
I am an architect and system administrator, and I'm responsible for anything related to IBM Power Systems. In IBM Power Systems, I have found a lot of valuable features such as LVM, TCP, ODM, RSCT,...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Power Systems?
I would recommend IBM Power Systems to others. I have given this review a rating of ten out of ten.
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Also Known As

IBM OpenPOWER LC
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Cipher
Emerson, Baosight, Pentamaster
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Power Systems vs. Intel Server System and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
904,680 professionals have used our research since 2012.