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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
10th
Average Rating
6.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of IBM Power Systems is 6.5%, down from 9.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Intel Server System is 3.9%, down from 5.2% 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 System3.9%
Other89.6%
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

"Power uniquely positions our bank in the industry because we are almost 100% virtualized, so we're cloud-ready, if you will."
"The Power hardware is rock-solid and reliable; you can't really ask for better hardware support, software support and reliability of the equipment."
"What we like the most is the ability to upgrade the scaling of the system itself. Whenever we need extra storage, we can do that. Whenever we need extra memory, we can do that as well. It's fast and it's available."
"It has very good stability."
"Using the Power system gives us a leg up."
"Power Systems is like a dream solution for every IT person because it has redundancy, and it doesn't stop. It doesn't get affected easily. I don't see any weaknesses in this solution. At the moment, we have Power8. It is stable and runs smoothly. We have a big load, and it is working very well. It can be customized based on our needs. Flash copy is helping us amazingly. We have virtualization for vDisks, which is again very helpful. We are working on this virtualization technology, and we have a team that is working on redundancy and architecture."
"The performance and stability are great."
"They are reliable, their availability is very good, and their scalability is second to none; I can go from really small to very, very large, and still stay on the same platform, still go with a single server, rather than using multiple boxes and clustering them."
"I would recommend this product; it is stable with good performance, and we are satisfied with Intel's products."
"The price is competitive and it uses well known architecture and it's easy to develop for."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is more stable than AMD for VMware."
"It is stable and easy to manage."
"It uses well known architecture and it's easy to develop for."
 

Cons

"IBM Power Systems could improve by having a cloud feature."
"One of the features that we would like, and I think they are also adapting to the latest trends in the market, is to make it more open, more flexible."
"Software testing and the compatibility of software products that are available in the market should be addressed."
"I think the cost should be cheaper."
"We have a problem with the storage software. The media to restore data is also not found."
"It would be ideal if the solution was more simple to work with."
"The pricing of the product could always be lowered."
"The initial setup is not straightforward."
"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."
"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."
"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."
"The shipment time can be improved. When we order Intel products, we have to wait for a long time."
"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."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of IBM Power Systems is expensive and could improve."
"IBM Power Systems is very expensive."
"There is a yearly licensing cost, and it's an expensive solution."
"Its price is too high."
"The additional software costs are high."
"Power Systems is very cheap and provides good value for money."
"IBM Power Systems is a really expensive product."
"IBM Power is more expensive than other rack-mount servers, and you have to have a license for everything, including cores and memory."
"I rate the pricing a ten on a scale from one to ten, where one is inexpensive, and ten is very expensive."
"It is not expensive."
"The price is competitive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
University
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
15%
University
9%
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: April 2026.
896,563 professionals have used our research since 2012.