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IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) vs UiPath Platform comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 20, 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
7.0
Fortra's Automate delivers fast ROI by enhancing productivity, reducing errors and labor costs, and saving over 200 hours monthly.
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 delivers strong returns through automation, enhancing efficiency, reducing errors, and providing significant time and cost savings.
Fortra's Automate has effectively replaced the workload of an entire employee, saving us significant time and money.
Chief Technology Officer at DOB Systems LLC
It has reduced our expenditures in terms of purchasing more products and employing more technicians.
System Administrator
On a scale from one to ten, I would rate the ROI as nine.
Project Manager - DevOps Engineer at ACC
My customers have seen high ROI with IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) because it has a lower cost than other vendors.
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
It has saved about 20% to 30% of costs.
Governance Director at Diyar United Company
We have seen a 100% return on investment.
Software Engineer at university of southern california
UiPath has reduced human error and saved employee time.
Developer at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.4
Fortra's Automate team offers prompt, effective support with some challenges in accessibility and language, yet overall satisfies customers.
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
Users appreciate UiPath Platform's responsive support, though mixed response times and varied effectiveness are occasionally mentioned.
They don't always understand the processes I'm trying to implement.
Senior Data Analyst at a financial services firm with 1-10 employees
I would rate the technical support as a nine out of ten because it is quite fast and courteous.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
They are very responsive and have been able to resolve any issues I have encountered.
Chief Technology Officer at DOB Systems LLC
They need to improve their support by having more experienced level one support.
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
They were very helpful, addressing the issue in three hours.
Consultor at Visagio
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.
Senior Finance Manager at a retailer with 5,001-10,000 employees
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.
Senior Manager, Tools & Automation at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Fortra's Automate is scalable, flexible, and efficient for diverse workloads, though costs and challenges may increase with expansion.
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 is scalable, handling vast data and bots efficiently with proper orchestration, licensing, and cloud integration strategies.
The scalability of Automate also scores a ten out of ten.
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
It is easy to increase one bot or one studio without needing to buy another orchestrator, which can be quite expensive.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Automate is stable for my needs and is highly scalable, allowing the same workflow to serve numerous tasks effectively.
DevOps Engineer at Teksphere Global Services Limited
The solution is very scalable because it's supported by Cloud Pak for Automation, allowing scaling with other solutions or independently.
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
I would rate the scalability of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) as eight on a scale of one to ten.
executive procurement technology at a insurance company with 11-50 employees
The solution is capable of scaling with just a few clicks.
Hyper Automation Practice Head | RPA Manager at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
The scalability of the UiPath Platform rates a ten out of ten.
Application Architect / Project Manager at KNDS France
From a technical standpoint, it's essential to make the right technical decisions and design a scalable solution.
Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Fortra's Automate is highly rated for stability, with rare crashes, occasional connectivity issues, and effective technical support.
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 stable but faces occasional issues with third-party apps, Citrix environments, and complex or changing systems.
The stability of the solution is a ten out of ten.
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
For stability on a scale from one to ten, I would give it a solid nine.
Cloud Engineer - ll at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
It has very robust features, and it is not prone to instability.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has been running smoothly for four years without any errors, which indicates a high level of stability.
executive procurement technology at a insurance company with 11-50 employees
Overall, there was only one instance of downtime in four years, which did not create any significant impact.
Senior Business Analyst at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I have not experienced any downtime, crashes, or performance issues.
Senior Manager, Information Technology at Autodesk, Inc.
Over six years, we have created zero support cases with UiPath.
Director, Applications at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
 

Room For Improvement

Fortra's Automate needs improvements in web automation, integration, OCR, UI, password management, and community support for better efficiency.
IBM RPA needs stronger AI, better integrations, user-friendly features, and improved support to address user challenges and requests.
Users desire more AI features, system integration, cost-effectiveness, user-friendly interface, and better support in UiPath Platform.
This is a significant concern, especially with critical workloads where visibility into errors is essential.
DevOps Engineer at Teksphere Global Services Limited
My major recommendation would be for easier upgrade paths between major versions.
Project Manager - DevOps Engineer at ACC
When new employees join our company, we created automation so they receive AWS credentials and all their AWS access and cloud access.
Cloud Engineer - ll at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees
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.
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
Adding more AI could help in small tasks that require intelligence or machine learning, leading to the next stage of automation.
Governance Director at Diyar United Company
If the UI changes or a label is changed, sometimes the whole flow breaks.
Student at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees
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.
Team lead at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
 

Setup Cost

Fortra's Automate provides cost-effective pricing with scalable licenses, offering more affordability compared to leading competitors in the market.
IBM RPA pricing is often high with annual licensing, but it offers flexibility, bundling, and a free trial.
UiPath offers scalable solutions with high costs, but discounts and free community options are available, providing strong ROI potential.
Competitors are often more expensive than Automate.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
It offered what we wanted at a good, competitive price.
Senior Data Analyst at a financial services firm with 1-10 employees
It does a lot but also costs a lot.
Chief Technology Officer at DOB Systems LLC
The pricing of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is an area that could be improved.
executive procurement technology at a insurance company with 11-50 employees
Most of the UiPath products are priced higher than competitors.
Developer at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
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.
RPA Developer at a consultancy with 11-50 employees
When compared to competition, such as Microsoft's Power Automate platform or IBM Cloud Pak, UiPath is expensive.
Solutions Head of Software at Raya Integration
 

Valuable Features

Fortra's Automate offers user-friendly, no-code automation with integration capabilities, enhancing productivity and efficiency across diverse business needs.
IBM Robotic Process Automation boosts efficiency and productivity with user-friendly automation, integration, and advanced analytics features.
UiPath Platform offers user-friendly automation with robust features, integration, and support, boosting productivity and efficiency across industries.
Automate's non-reliance on additional orchestrators makes it quite cost-effective.
Account Director at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
In my opinion, the best feature Automate offers is the scheduling.
DevOps Engineer at Teksphere Global Services Limited
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.
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
We haven't encountered any errors in the last four years, which speaks to its reliability.
executive procurement technology at a insurance company with 11-50 employees
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.
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
The tool has a noticeable ROI, and the investment is worth every penny as it reduces tedious tasks and improves scalability.
Governance Director at Diyar United Company
Our use of automation sped up the process of getting paid from insurance companies, saving us substantial amounts of money.
Software Engineer at university of southern california
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.
Developer at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Fortra's Automate
Sponsored
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
4th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
35
Ranking in other categories
Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies (5th)
IBM Robotic Process Automat...
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
10th
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
909
Ranking in other categories
Agentic Automation (2nd), AI-Agent Builders (1st), Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies (1st), AI Finance & Accounting (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) category, the mindshare of Fortra's Automate is 2.7%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is 3.0%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of UiPath Platform is 12.9%, down from 25.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
UiPath Platform12.9%
Fortra's Automate2.7%
IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)3.0%
Other81.4%
Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
 

Q&A Highlights

WS
General Director at BCI
May 25, 2022
 

Featured Reviews

Jane Rachma Kiniti - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires
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.
MA
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
Has improved analytics and reporting but needs better integration and support
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. There is an AI part in IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for Machine Learning, but IBM has another platform specifically for data and AI, which is integrated right now. More features are hoped for in the future.
reviewer2761431 - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager Rpa at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
Significantly reduces manual effort and improves team workflows through automated ticketing
We've used Agent Builder, IXP, and Maestro for orchestration. We have created context-grounded searches or chatbots using context grounding, and we also use context grounding within an Agentic flow where a bot or agent reads ServiceNow tickets to determine whether it has been assigned to the right work group. If it has not been assigned correctly due to human error, it automatically reassigns it to the right group. I would assess Agentic AI's ability to extract data points as effective. We created an agent for the purpose of extracting data, though not in a document. We created what we call an email conversation agent that engages with a customer, vendor, or someone in an email conversation with a set goal of extracting specific data points for an action to be performed subsequently. The one automation we have deployed in production involves the agent interacting with team members to collect data points and create a ServiceNow ticket. We appreciate almost all features of UiPath Platform, with one of the most successful ones being the use of Coms Mining. Most of the new features related to AI have all been good, and we use Agentic. We have already created a few agents and have started to use Maestro for a few flows, though we are not yet there to orchestrate an end-to-end workflow. We have good ROI from the automations we have developed with UiPath Platform, which far exceeds the investment in the platform. It has saved us tens of thousands of hours in manual effort, making the team members happy to pursue other things of value.
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Answers from the Community

WS
General Director at BCI
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
Go To Market Executive at #Liferocks Consulting
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
Principal at Adaptive Growth, Inc
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%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Performing Arts
6%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Insurance Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Retailer
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise9
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business249
Midsize Enterprise143
Large Enterprise665
 

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?
We have been using Automate for approximately one to one and a half years for the automation component. For complex a...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra Automate?
The pricing aspect is covered by my senior, but Automate is a centralized tool, so we do not need to buy different to...
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
UiPath Maestro, UiPath Apps, UiPath Agent Builder
 

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: December 2025.
879,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.