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IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) vs UiPath Platform comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 3, 2025

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
8.1
Automate enhances IT by saving resources, improving productivity, and achieving ROI with reduced costs and increased efficiency quickly.
Sentiment score
8.3
IBM RPA offers 20-30% ROI, short payback period, cost-effectiveness, automates tasks, and enhances client satisfaction and financial benefits.
Sentiment score
7.3
UiPath Platform users see quick ROI with time and cost savings, reduced errors, and efficient task automation.
Fortra's Automate has effectively replaced the workload of an entire employee, saving us significant time and money.
It has reduced our expenditures in terms of purchasing more products and employing more technicians.
I've seen a good return on investment with Automate, as it streamlines processes and improves my productivity.
My customers have seen high ROI with IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) because it has a lower cost than other vendors.
It has saved about 20% to 30% of costs.
We have seen a 100% return on investment.
UiPath has reduced human error and saved employee time.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.4
Automate's customer service is highly rated for quick, knowledgeable support and effective communication, despite a complex knowledge base.
Sentiment score
6.6
IBM RPA offers reliable customer service, though some users seek better educational resources and more experienced level-one support.
Sentiment score
7.0
UiPath Platform's customer service is responsive and knowledgeable, but improvement is needed in response times and complex technical support.
They don't always understand the processes I'm trying to implement.
I would rate the technical support as a nine out of ten because it is quite fast and courteous.
They are very responsive and have been able to resolve any issues I have encountered.
They need to improve their support by having more experienced level one support.
They were very helpful, addressing the issue in three hours.
Even though they are external, I can ping them on Slack and I get a response right away, so they really make it very accessible to be in touch.
He works through whatever unique internal environment scenarios we have to overcome to make sure that it's doing exactly what we need, even though we're constantly having new security measures to implement on top of it.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Automate is flexible and scalable, offering high availability, load balancing, and competitive pricing, making it effective for large organizations.
Sentiment score
7.6
IBM RPA is highly scalable, appreciated for its cloud flexibility, aided by Kubernetes, microservices, and AI expansion efforts.
Sentiment score
7.6
UiPath Platform excels in scalability, supporting numerous bots and seamless deployment, despite infrastructure and licensing challenges.
The scalability of Automate also scores a ten out of ten.
It is easy to increase one bot or one studio without needing to buy another orchestrator, which can be quite expensive.
Automate is stable for my needs and is highly scalable, allowing the same workflow to serve numerous tasks effectively.
The solution is very scalable because it's supported by Cloud Pak for Automation, allowing scaling with other solutions or independently.
I would rate the scalability of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) as eight on a scale of one to ten.
The solution is capable of scaling with just a few clicks.
The scalability of the UiPath Platform rates a ten out of ten.
From a technical standpoint, it's essential to make the right technical decisions and design a scalable solution.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Automate is stable and reliable, with minimal glitches, but performance may be impacted by server connectivity and resource dependency.
Sentiment score
6.9
IBM RPA is generally stable, with improved version 11, but some users report minor issues and memory concerns.
Sentiment score
7.3
UiPath Platform is praised for stability and quick support, with minimal downtime; issues often stem from external factors.
The stability of the solution is a ten out of ten.
It has very robust features, and it is not prone to instability.
The stability of Fortra's Automate is excellent.
IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has been running smoothly for four years without any errors, which indicates a high level of stability.
Overall, there was only one instance of downtime in four years, which did not create any significant impact.
I have not experienced any downtime, crashes, or performance issues.
Over six years, we have created zero support cases with UiPath.
 

Room For Improvement

Automate needs improved stability, user interface, integration, documentation, and security, with enhanced community support and OCR capabilities.
IBM RPA needs stronger AI, better integrations, user-friendly features, and improved support to address user challenges and requests.
UiPath Platform needs enhancements in AI, usability, documentation, performance, integration, automation, pricing transparency, and community engagement.
This is a significant concern, especially with critical workloads where visibility into errors is essential.
I would prefer not having to log in to update a ticket; being able to respond via email would be beneficial.
Integration with Amazon S3 is somewhat lacking.
To improve IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for the next release, there should be more integration with external systems, and more integration with IBM's data and AI platforms is needed.
Adding more AI could help in small tasks that require intelligence or machine learning, leading to the next stage of automation.
If the UI changes or a label is changed, sometimes the whole flow breaks.
Regarding additional functionality for UiPath, I believe that additional features will only come into play when you start talking to the customers, accept feedback, and work on it.
 

Setup Cost

Automate offers cost-effective pricing per bot with both perpetual and annual licenses, providing flexibility and competitive enterprise solutions.
IBM RPA pricing is often high with annual licensing, but it offers flexibility, bundling, and a free trial.
UiPath is costly compared to competitors, yet preferred for features, though more budget options are desired for small businesses.
Competitors are often more expensive than Automate.
It offered what we wanted at a good, competitive price.
It does a lot but also costs a lot.
The pricing of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is an area that could be improved.
Most of the UiPath products are priced higher than competitors.
The cost can be a barrier in Hungary, making it difficult for me to persuade others to invest, especially when unattended robots come at a significant price point.
When compared to competition, such as Microsoft's Power Automate platform or IBM Cloud Pak, UiPath is expensive.
 

Valuable Features

Automate boosts efficiency with user-friendly automation, seamless integration, robust scheduling, cost-effective licensing, and minimal technical requirement.
IBM Robotic Process Automation boosts efficiency and productivity with user-friendly automation, integration, and advanced analytics features.
UiPath Platform enables easy automation, efficient process management, and seamless integration, enhancing productivity and minimizing operational costs.
Automate's non-reliance on additional orchestrators makes it quite cost-effective.
In my opinion, the best feature Automate offers is the scheduling.
Automate's compatibility with existing IT infrastructure has impacted our business operations positively by providing smooth integration with other software that we use, such as Gmail, Jira, and Microsoft 365 apps, which gives us a unified platform instead of having to keep switching from one software to another, saving a lot of time and streamlining the whole workflows.
We haven't encountered any errors in the last four years, which speaks to its reliability.
The analytics and reporting tools in IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) are the best compared to all other RPAs because all other RPAs only use dashboards while IBM is the only one to have a reporting tool that includes dashboards.
The tool has a noticeable ROI, and the investment is worth every penny as it reduces tedious tasks and improves scalability.
Our use of automation sped up the process of getting paid from insurance companies, saving us substantial amounts of money.
Whenever they release a product, they also release a course in UiPath Academy. So, you can get familiarized with the product and understand the new capabilities.
 

Categories and Ranking

Automate
Sponsored
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
IBM Robotic Process Automat...
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
12th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
UiPath Platform
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
1st
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
896
Ranking in other categories
Agentic Automation (2nd), AI-Agent Builders (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) category, the mindshare of Automate is 2.0%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is 3.3%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of UiPath Platform is 17.9%, down from 26.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
UiPath Platform17.9%
Automate2.0%
IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)3.3%
Other76.8%
Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
 

Q&A Highlights

WS
May 25, 2022
 

Featured Reviews

Jane Rachma Kiniti - PeerSpot reviewer
Automate has streamlined workflows and increased efficiency with powerful automation
The best features of the solution are the flexible automation features, it is rich with beautiful connectors, and it is easy to use with little to no coding knowledge required to get started, so anybody can use the tool. The intuitive interface of Automate has an intuitive design, which makes it easy to learn and use even without a strong technical background, and it has a drag-and-drop interface, which makes everything so easy and straightforward. The error handling capabilities in complex automation tasks are powerful, as it handles all types of tasks, whether complex or simple. I've never faced any problems even when dealing with complex tasks, so everything is super smooth and highly reliable, even when dealing with big tasks, as it has never slowed down. Automate's compatibility with existing IT infrastructure has impacted our business operations positively by providing smooth integration with other software that we use, such as Gmail, Jira, and Microsoft 365 apps, which gives us a unified platform instead of having to keep switching from one software to another, saving a lot of time and streamlining the whole workflows. The automated analytics have helped improve our business processes since it has increased our efficiency by automating our everyday tasks, freeing up time for us to focus more on strategic activities such as analyzing data and developing new business strategies. It is also cost-saving. By minimizing manual labor, it decreases human errors that can lead to costly mistakes. By automating the tasks, it helps to save costs, and it also improves our accuracy by reducing these errors to ensure that tasks are done almost perfectly.
Saman Guruge - PeerSpot reviewer
We can connect to different databases and use inbuilt activities, but we can't include our own activities
We can use its inbuilt activities, and it's a complete package, but just like ElectroNeek, a limitation is that we have to depend on its inbuilt activities. We can't include our own activities or we can't introduce other activities. When it comes to deployment and scheduling bots, there are some conflicts. They are using Microsoft MQ to communicate with their bots, but it's not reliable. When we are scheduling time, if I need to schedule an interval of one minute, sometimes, the queue gets loaded with a lot of processes or bots, and they don't wait until the first one gets complete. So, that sort of disadvantage is there. I have found one bug in version 22 when sending or configuring mail. While using their orchestration environment, on IBM Server, you can configure an SMTP connection to send out the details you want. For example, when you create a user, they send out an email. That part didn't work, and I created a few tickets. The issue is that there's a typo in the endpoint API. They have probably corrected it in version 23.
Kyle Grimm - PeerSpot reviewer
Desktop development has become faster and improves automation results
My thoughts on UiPath Platform's user community suggest that a lot of content seems outdated and old now that gets referenced. The community experience for the AI is limited because putting the error codes into the community search field doesn't return many results. However, a lot of information from pre-AI, before 2022, is still accurate and helpful, but the cutting-edge content just isn't in the community yet. There should be better training on UiPath Platform. I wish I could search UiPath IXP training and have a course pull up as the first result without having to dig through a bunch of links, dead-end links, and random things. Easier access for training would be ideal.
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Answers from the Community

WS
May 25, 2022
May 25, 2022
My question to you would be - Why are you mixing the two vendors? Do you have licenses for both and are trying to maximize investment? If you have IBM automation you probably have other IBM technology - let the IBM automation run on that as its integration is a little more complicated than UiPath and may cost you time in execution. If you have both IBM and UiPath then I would use UiPath for a...
2 out of 6 answers
DR
Nov 3, 2020
My question to you would be - Why are you mixing the two vendors? Do you have licenses for both and are trying to maximize investment?  If you have IBM automation you probably have other IBM technology - let the IBM automation run on that as its integration is a little more complicated than UiPath and may cost you time in execution.  If you have both IBM and UiPath then I would use UiPath for any areas that are not integral to the IBM technology or systems.  I would need to know a little more about your strategy before giving a definitive answer to your question but all 3 are good technical foundations depending on the scenario.
JF
Jul 6, 2021
Although I've worked with UiPath (not Automation Anywhere), my experience is now solely with AutoMate from Help Systems.  I would recommend aligning IBM's digital business automation with Robotic Process Automation and how it works. It seems to be a very different tool from RPA. If programming is required in the use of IBM's digital business automation go with RPA.  
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Performing Arts
6%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Insurance Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Retailer
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise8
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business240
Midsize Enterprise144
Large Enterprise661
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HelpSystems AutoMate?
We use it for specific cases, mainly secure file transfers, which are vital for us. And it works for us.
What is your primary use case for HelpSystems AutoMate?
My main use case for Automate is to deliver enterprise-scale script execution jobs, which means we are using Automate...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra Automate?
Until now, I have not specified any other tech products except Microsoft Power Automate, N8N, and Make.com that I've ...
What do you like most about IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?
Integrating the tool with SAP, EBS, or other ERPs is easy.
What needs improvement with IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?
To improve IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for the next release, there should be more integration with external ...
What is your primary use case for IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?
My customers' main use cases for IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) are especially in the banking industry, particu...
Best RPA tools for IBM iSeries
I can only speak to UiPath since that is the only RPA solution that I have used. I know that there are specific packa...
RPA that Bots can run without centralized control?
Yes, Attended Bots which can run without centralized control Module. RPA Tools like Automation Anywhere, uiPath ,Pow...
How do I choose between UiPath and Microsoft Power Automate?
Microsoft‌ ‌Power‌ ‌Automate‌ ‌is‌ ‌intuitive‌ ‌and‌ ‌easy‌ ‌to‌ ‌integrate‌ ‌and‌ ‌use.‌ ‌I‌ ‌like‌ ‌that‌ ‌there‌ ‌...
 

Also Known As

HelpSystems Automate, Automate
IBM RPA
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aldergrove Financial Group, Preferred Health Professionals, Mindbeam Technologies, First Credit Union in British Columbia, Vestcom International, Prime Liberty Benefits, University of Tampa, CNLBancshares, World Precision Instruments, BJ's Restaurants, Globe Pequot Press, Accudata Technologies, Norton Healthcare, Pacific Toxicology Laboratories
The Hanover Insurance Group
1. Accenture 2. Deloitte 3. PwC 4. IBM 5. Capgemini 6. KPMG 7. Ernst & Young 8. Infosys 9. Cognizant 10. Wipro 11. Tata Consultancy Services 12. HCL Technologies 13. Genpact 14. Tech Mahindra 15. DXC Technology 16. Atos 17. NTT Data 18. CGI 19. L&T Infotech 20. Hexaware Technologies 21. Mindtree 22. Mphasis 23. Virtusa 24. Syntel 25. Zensar Technologies 26. WNS Global Services 27. Hexaware Technologies 28. Larsen & Toubro Infotech 29. Persistent Systems 30. QuEST Global 31. Sonata Software 32. Zensar Technologies
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) vs. UiPath Platform and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
870,701 professionals have used our research since 2012.