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Magic xpa Application Platform vs Salesforce Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

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

Magic xpa Application Platform
Ranking in Mobile Development Platforms
13th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
Application Server (9th), Application Infrastructure (16th)
Salesforce Platform
Ranking in Mobile Development Platforms
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
97
Ranking in other categories
PaaS Clouds (9th), Rapid Application Development Software (6th), Low-Code Development Platforms (6th), No-Code Development Platforms (1st), Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies (14th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Mobile Development Platforms category, the mindshare of Magic xpa Application Platform is 3.1%, down from 3.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Salesforce Platform is 5.9%, down from 8.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Mobile Development Platforms Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Salesforce Platform5.9%
Magic xpa Application Platform3.1%
Other91.0%
Mobile Development Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

Mylsamy T. - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Associate - IT at Himalaya Wellness Company
Enables us to develop more than 90 applications in-house, which are used across our organization
It's a bit difficult to work with purely web-based applications to get the data and display it. There have been a few times when the connection was disconnected between the server and your browser. The connectivity on browser-built applications needs to be improved. The mobile application development could be easier. They could include different external applications, like finger sensors. I'm not sure whether it's in version 3.8 or not.
Sharmila-K - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Transformations and Infrastructure Delivery Manager at a university with 10,001+ employees
Integration processes improve but scripting requires effort
The updates, pricing part, and upgrades to the products are some of the most valuable features with the Salesforce Platform.With the Salesforce Platform, I have minimal experience of approximately one and a half years. I get minimal exposure, once every three or two months, especially during holidays. The Salesforce Platform is connected to the cloud, which is beneficial. When it is integrated with different tools such as Microsoft BI Analytics, it helps us analyze much better. Currently, the integration itself is tricky as we have to use extensive scripting. It should be more of a plug-in and use solution. That is the only issue I see, but otherwise, I appreciate it.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Typically an experienced Magic developer can do the work of two to three experienced C#/.NET developers."
"The speed of development is the quickest for any tool on the market."
"Without the need to compile code, the time spent in the development cycle is greatly reduced, allowing the programmer to test modifications to a program immediately after they have been saved."
"What I found most valuable in the Magic xpa Application Platform is that it has a client-server and web browser technology that's perfect for company users."
"Speed of development and database connectivity (MS SQL, Oracle, DB2, Btrieve/Pervasive PSQL, ODBC, MySql, and SQLite)."
"Magic’s Database Gateway allows the logic of the program to be isolated from the underlying database. This provides the flexibility not only to move existing programs to different database environments without the need to change the logic in the program but also allows the programmer access to different databases without the need to know how to "talk" to them."
"Magic is rapid, it's a tool which we use to develop, change and maintain our programs, and xpa has a lot more features onboard and it gives us the opportunity to do such things so that we can easily adapt and maintain our programs, giving us certain benefits to stay with our customers and the market."
"The solution makes the managing and adapting of the software very easy."
"Salesforce encourages independent app development and what this simply does is, it extends the Salesforce functionality."
"There is very good documentation available and Salesforce offers good communication with its clients. It's very user-friendly and has a system that is easy to learn."
"The solution is very robust and easy to develop in."
"Salesforce's strongest feature is reporting especially. It's also a lot more usable than other platforms I've worked with. It has a great user experience, with the ability to filter and access information in real-time."
"They are already beginning to implement generative AI."
"It's an easy platform for salespeople to quickly and efficiently be able to track an opportunity."
"The activities, opportunities, follow-up of the opportunities, and business tracking are valuable features. It provides everything that we need. It works pretty well."
"What I like about the Salesforce Platform, in particular, its enterprise edition is that apart from its many features, you can have a wider view of the customers, a 360-degree view. I also enjoy managing opportunities in the Salesforce Platform a lot because it's easier and gives you a wider view, compared to HubSpot."
 

Cons

"The configuration of the xpa RIA mobile environment is complex and a discouragement to new developers. Also, Magic's documentation can be less than complete at times which leads to frustration for new developers. (I encourage new Magic developers to join the Magic Users Group)."
"Magic has a tradition, when it adds new technologies/features to the Magic development tool, to provide either no documentation or documentation that does not provide an organized approach for bringing this new technology/feature to experienced Magic programmers."
"They want to be one toolbox for everything, but primarily, we are using xpa to develop desktop applications, and in that area they're lacking functionalities, flexibility, and modern stuff."
"The ability to display page up, page down, top and bottom buttons along the scroll bar would make my mouse-reliant customers happy."
"There is room for improvement in Magic's marketing and licensing. I would like to see more integration of web functionality."
"In the next version of the Magic xpa Application Platform, I want tables or small programs where I can directly add expressions. I can do it on SQL, but it would make life much easier if that specification were added to the platform."
"The configuration of the xpa RIA mobile environment is complex and a discouragement to new developers."
"Support is very bad."
"There needs to be more documentation."
"Salesforce is incredibly slow. It was difficult to run live sales calls and leveraging Salesforce at the same time."
"Identification management systems integration should be easier."
"Better flexibility in editing emails created from templates would be great, and being able to add hyperlinks in emails for scheduling meetings would allow us to automate more."
"Salesforce Platform operates as a cloud system, and within our organization, numerous internal systems handle data processing. While real-time data retrieval is feasible through services, achieving real-time communication poses some challenges."
"I have found it takes an exceedingly long time to put opportunities or clients in the system. If I have an opportunity that I need to put in the system it could take approximately 10 minutes. This is a lot of time when you have multiple opportunities to put in. There are other tasks to do that are required by supervisors, such as forecasts. What I have done to save time is I did not input as much detail as I could have because I knew it was going to take me an hour to get five leads in."
"The management of Salesforce could be quite a task. Old and unusable contacts can add up over time. If I could wave a magic wand, it would be to initiate a self-cleaning feature."
"I think the interface should be enhanced and more user-friendly."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"My clients have to purchase additional licenses in order to use what I built. It's not a fair approach."
"The licensing cost varies because nowadays Magic has tailor-made offerings for clients. I think the solution is worth the money."
"It's not cheap. The licenses are not cheap. Not at all. They cost much money. There are other tools with free licenses but Magic asks for a lot of money."
"The cost for developers is high because you have to pay for licenses as well as runtime."
"The licensing is too costly."
"Magic is not the cheapest IDE out there. If you are considering Magic xpa, you should do a cost-benefit analysis to feel comfortable with your decision. The Magic sales staff is very helpful in providing pricing."
"There are different licenses, we have the application and the online application. There are two different licenses for two different program sites for the Magic xpa Application Platform."
"The main problem with the Magic xpa Application Platform is pricing. You have to pay a lot of money for development, and you also have to pay a lot for the deployments and runtime, while in most competitors, you have to pay a lot for one of the two and not both."
"The cost of this solution depends on negotiations. It is somewhere between expensive and reasonable. There is always additional costs for consulting services. It's the kind of solution that requires consulting, but it is not a licensing cost. It is a consulting cost. It is CAPEX versus OPEX."
"The licensing is per user per month, which we took out a contract on a long time back. It's really an okay price for what solutions are available and for how many features and what kind of functionality you get."
"The solution is fairly priced."
"I don't know anything about its cost, but I'm sure it has got a nice little price tag that goes along with it."
"Costly, but it is the top product in SaaS/PaaS. Pricing is more for large to enterprise level companies."
"Pricing and license differ and depend on how much license you are purchasing from them."
"It is very expensive. Its licensing is on a monthly basis."
"Salesforce does a user capacity analysis on a regular basis. For example, if you're not using certain areas, you may lose access. If you don't go in and quote and edit quotes, all of a sudden you may lose your rights to quote."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
14%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business39
Midsize Enterprise26
Large Enterprise39
 

Questions from the Community

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Also Known As

uniPaaS
Salesforce1, Force.com, Salesforce App Cloud
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ADD, Cape plc, Adecco, Kuno Kinzoku Industry Co., GE Capital, Dove Tree, CBS Outdoor, Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Center, Allstate Life Insurance Company, Titan Software Systems
ADP
Find out what your peers are saying about Magic xpa Application Platform vs. Salesforce Platform and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.