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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
3rd
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 March 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of IBM Power Systems is 7.0%, down from 9.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Intel Server System is 3.7%, down from 5.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Power Systems7.0%
Intel Server System3.7%
Other89.3%
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

"We generally find the compute and the processing power, and the ability to handle the load, is far better on the POWER systems."
"The most valuable feature of our machines is their ability to replace faulty parts without causing any downtime."
"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 stability and scalability is why you invest in IBM i."
"We have been seeing a return on investment in the moves from version to version due to better performance and they cut the licensing costs down."
"On the security side, we get regular security patch updates and system hardening. There are free tools available to harden the system."
"We have had a good experience with the technical support team at IBM."
"Using the Power system gives us a leg up."
"It is stable and easy to manage."
"It uses well known architecture and it's easy to develop for."
"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."
 

Cons

"For the most part it's good, when you can get to second-level support. Usually, when you call first-level you get somebody in India who doesn't always know what they're talking about."
"The initial setup is not straightforward."
"The lack of software vendors moving onto the platform, as opposed to fleeing the platform, is an issue."
"IBM changes licensing, so to speak, with the wind. You never know what they're going to go with."
"Because you still get into the expense of going to the Power hardware, but if you're already on the Power hardware, I don't see the issue."
"I would say that in general we would prefer it if the software was more transparent, in terms of how you are using it."
"Its price can be improved. It is too high."
"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."
"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."
"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."
"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."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The machine is good and has a comparatively good price."
"It is designed for a large workload, as opposed to a small workload. For our circumstances, and even as an independent, I can't buy a Power system to experiment on. It can't happen. You cannot buy them."
"It's more about the value you get for the price. Considering its stability and performance, the pricing is good."
"The solution's pricing is very, very high compared to other platforms."
"The additional software costs are high."
"Price-wise, I rate the solution a five out of ten."
"The licensing costs are okay. With IBM Power Systems, it's inclusive, so you can differentiate the price of the hardware from the software itself."
"When there is an error in the SAS drive of 10,000 RPM, my company buys support for 1,500 USD."
"The price is competitive."
"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."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
7%
University
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
8%
Computer Software 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: March 2026.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.