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IBM Storage Protect vs Rubrik comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 16, 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
1.0
IBM Storage Protect enhances data recovery, reduces downtime, and aids compliance, making it a valuable investment for organizations.
Sentiment score
7.1
Rubrik enhances ROI with time savings, reduced costs, data protection, improved productivity, seamless backups, and compliance benefits.
Rubrik provides long-term return on investment for my customers, as well as immediate benefits because of deduplication and compression, drastically reducing the cost on the storage side from traditional to Rubrik.
Technical Architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.6
IBM Storage Protect's support shows mixed experiences, with praise for expertise but concerns over response times and service consistency.
Sentiment score
8.3
Rubrik's support excels with quick responses, proactive issue resolution, and incorporates user feedback, surpassing other vendors in service.
Support from IBM is very good, and they always have knowledgeable people.
Interim Head of Infrastructure at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Support is good from IBM, although it mainly comes from my local partner.
Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd
Some support staff are highly skilled, others are not, leading to longer times to resolve issues.
CEO at Fischerei Leipold
They offer 24/7 support and even have a dedicated ransomware hotline with a team ready to engage immediately.
Rubrik administrator at Freelance
Rubrik's support has been good, better than many other vendors like Microsoft, VMware, and Dell.
IT Program Manager at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Rubrik provides excellent customer service and technical support.
Senior System Engineer at Goya Foods
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
IBM Storage Protect is praised for scalability and adaptability, though some users cite challenges in features and large-scale integration.
Sentiment score
7.8
Rubrik offers scalable, high-performance data management with seamless integration and expansion, praised for adaptability and non-intrusive scaling.
TSM is a generic and robust product, which is why I continue using it for my core banking.
Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd
It is one of the most scalable platforms, and that is its strong point.
Interim Head of Infrastructure at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Scalability is great in IBM Spectrum Protect; there are several options available to scale.
Solution architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
It can scale out horizontally as well as vertically, and the availability of expansion is very quick.
Technical Architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Azure Backup solution offers faster restoration for data over six terabytes compared to on-premises.
Information Technology Specialist at LIGHTHOUSE DOCUMENT TECHNOLOGIES, INC
Rubrik is highly scalable, with a rating of nine out of ten based on its seamless integration.
Sales Manager at Beta Information Technology
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
IBM Storage Protect is highly stable and reliable, with consistent enhancements despite occasional minor issues with new features.
Sentiment score
8.1
Rubrik is praised for stability and reliability, offering seamless integration and prompt support for minor issues.
Rubrik has been stable, and we have not experienced any downtime.
IT Program Manager at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
When you do the restore, it is also stable and quickly delivering what we have been looking for.
Senior Technical Support Engineer at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
The prerequisite dependencies with the cost team site, infrastructure, port opening, and adding the complete Rubrik console module take time, depending on the volume of servers and storage occupancy.
Information Technology Specialist at LIGHTHOUSE DOCUMENT TECHNOLOGIES, INC
 

Room For Improvement

IBM Storage Protect needs an improved interface, intuitive features, better cloud integration, and enhanced reporting and virtualization support.
Rubrik users suggest improvements in UI, integration, database compatibility, and pricing while praising their receptiveness to feedback.
It is not compatible with other operating systems like Windows or Linux.
Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd
IBM Storage Protect does not work well with virtual environments such as VMware and Hyper-V.
CEO at Fischerei Leipold
There is a need for additional layers of security to fill the gaps, which is why we are using Cobalt Iron.
Solution architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
We need more efficient search capabilities that allow searching by last name or login ID.
IT Program Manager at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
I need a better output from the existing reports as they currently do not provide comprehensive metrics.
Senior System Engineer at Goya Foods
Including packaged training with the product at the time of purchase would be beneficial.
Rubrik administrator at Freelance
 

Setup Cost

IBM Storage Protect offers varied and complex licensing, often seen as expensive but potentially cost-effective with tailored agreements.
Rubrik's cost is justified by its simplicity, comprehensive features, and potential TCO savings through multi-year agreements.
We do not see the cost of the licensing.
Interim Head of Infrastructure at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
It's expensive.
Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd
IBM Storage Protect is generally an expensive tool.
CEO at Fischerei Leipold
Rubrik is considered expensive, with a price rating of three out of ten.
Sales Manager at Beta Information Technology
We could mix and match to optimize costs for our needs.
IT Program Manager at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Rubrik is expensive due to its robust hardware.
Rubrik administrator at Freelance
 

Valuable Features

IBM Storage Protect excels in efficient backups, cost-effective storage, scalability, reliability, user-friendliness, adaptability, and robust disaster recovery.
Rubrik features instant recovery, a user-friendly interface, automation, and immutability, providing efficient, secure, and cost-effective backup management.
The product works efficiently with very large tape libraries, unlike most other products in the market that have problems handling large tape libraries or more than one tape library.
CEO at Fischerei Leipold
IBM Spectrum Protect has excellent integration capability.
Solution architect at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Incremental and differential backup features are built-in, which I frequently utilize on a weekly and daily basis.
Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd
The most valuable feature of Rubrik is its concept of a 'backup airbag', which provides a robust defense against attacks.
Sales Manager at Beta Information Technology
Since switching to Rubrik, our backup times have decreased significantly, going from two and a half days to one and a half hours for certain systems.
IT Program Manager at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Even if my network is compromised by ransomware, the file system does not allow overwriting of the backups, ensuring that my backups remain safe.
Rubrik administrator at Freelance
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM Storage Protect
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Rubrik
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
4th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
96
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Backup (4th), Disaster Recovery (DR) Software (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM Storage Protect is 1.8%, down from 2.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rubrik is 4.1%, down from 7.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Rubrik4.1%
IBM Storage Protect1.8%
Other94.1%
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2787573 - PeerSpot reviewer
Interim Head of Infrastructure at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Backup coverage has supported immutable protection and now needs a more modern, intuitive interface
IBM Storage Protect is from a previous generation of backup software. In those days, backup software was complex in setting up and complex to manage. The new software, such as Rubrik, is very easy to use and more relatable to younger engineers because its interface design is more similar to Office 365 and the newer controls and labels that we are accustomed to. The difficulty that we now have with IBM Storage Protect is that for this day and age, compared to other products that are out there, it seems complex. If we look back 15 years ago, all enterprise class backup software was complex, so IBM was not any different. However, many of these older systems, such as Commvault, still have the same complaint that they are very complex because they have tried to keep that same interface and the same way it works. This suits them, but it probably needed a complete overhaul to bring it into the ease of use that we have with modern software. However, that upgrade has not been done. IBM Storage Protect has not been upgraded into a modern platform. It still looks a legacy platform.
KB
Information Technology Specialist at LIGHTHOUSE DOCUMENT TECHNOLOGIES, INC
Technical support has improved my data management process but I encounter GUI and cost challenges
The solution is available in the Azure Marketplace, but approaching directly is more cost-effective. The Marketplace approach incurs additional platform and reporting costs. We initially built Rubrik at host level and DB level. We encountered latency issues when reverting back, with numerous snapshots available. This resulted in increased costs and occupied spaces. I performed manual deletion of snapshots and verified with the Rubrik team for confirmation. The GUI reporting functionality lacks flexibility. For instance, obtaining specific server reports considering drive space and backup quantities is not possible, as it only provides overall reporting.
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Educational Organization
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business53
Midsize Enterprise25
Large Enterprise95
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise21
Large Enterprise55
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Storage Protect?
The best point about IBM Storage Protect is that it can use IBM tape environments, which we still use and will continue to use in the future.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Storage Protect?
IBM Storage Protect is generally an expensive tool. However, with good contracts with IBM or its partners, the cost might not be so high. New customers can expect very high prices.
What needs improvement with IBM Storage Protect?
One point for improvement for IBM Spectrum Protect is security, as IBM has not been investing as much as in the past. There is a need for additional layers of security to fill the gaps, which is wh...
Which would you choose - Rubrik or Veeam Backup & Replication?
Veeam Backup & Replication provides an easy-to-set-up solution to the issue of data storage and recovery. Setting it up is a relatively simple affair. For the most part it prompts you from scre...
What do you like most about Rubrik?
It's easy to manage and has an innovated solution.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Rubrik?
Regarding pricing, Rubrik is a costly solution, and I would rate it an eight.
 

Also Known As

IBM Spectrum Discover
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

CEMEX
Driscoll's, Red Hawk Casino, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, Wabash National, Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Galliker Transport & Logistics
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Storage Protect vs. Rubrik and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.