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Oracle Application Express (APEX) vs ServiceNow Now Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 18, 2024

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

Oracle Application Express ...
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
3rd
Ranking in Low-Code Development Platforms
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
Development Platforms (2nd)
ServiceNow Now Platform
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
14th
Ranking in Low-Code Development Platforms
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
No-Code Development Platforms (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of Oracle Application Express (APEX) is 7.5%, down from 8.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ServiceNow Now Platform is 1.9%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Oracle Application Express (APEX)7.5%
ServiceNow Now Platform1.9%
Other90.6%
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

Rodrigo-Mesquita - PeerSpot reviewer
Rapid application development empowers big projects in months
The ability to quickly develop applications without needing to code a lot is very valuable. It is very quick to create a page, and one can use AI to speed up software development. It is easy to learn. In my company, we could develop a very big application in a couple of months.
SiddharthZunjarrao - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables us to have significant improvements in operational efficiency
ServiceNow is highly scalable from a customization point of view, allowing for the building of portals, adding and configuring widgets, and designing workflows as preferred. The text-to-code feature is particularly useful for turning natural language instructions into recognizable code on the ServiceNow platform, aiding both implementation teams and customers. The case summarization feature is also great, as it summarizes user comments and agent notes into a resolution code without needing to review the entire activity history.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Oracle APEX is its comprehensive set of features for creating user-friendly and visually appealing applications."
"You don't have to know a lot of PL because it's built on PL/SQL. You don't need developers. You only need to design a good application that resolves a problem, or many problems, for companies and you're ready to go."
"One of the most valuable features is the ability to build very fast data-driven UIs."
"It's fairly easy to make a user-friendly interface."
"Quick development and the connection with the database are the most valuable and useful features. It is also very stable, scalable, and easy to set up. Its support is also good."
"With only a browser, it is very easy to develop in a web environment."
"I particularly enjoy the web builder capabilities, especially the Page Designer. It offers so many elements or components to choose from, which is a major plus for me."
"What I like best about Oracle Application Express (APEX) is that it doesn't require hard coding for reporting and building applications. It's a GUI-based application builder that even end-users with little development and language knowledge can develop applications on Oracle Application Express (APEX). The software is also very user-friendly, which I find valuable."
"The product's most advantageous feature is platform innovation."
"The integration with other tools is pretty good."
"It can integrate anywhere, and you can make any kind of workflow."
"The most valuable features are the ease of use, stability, and the ability to change or upgrade seamlessly."
"The solution is very comprehensive."
"The solution is a seamless tool that can integrate with all applications."
"The level of automation within the platform is great."
"The workflow feature really has a lot of value because you can create complex workflows in a simple, intuitive way with only a few clicks."
 

Cons

"Apex has effectively incorporated new market trends into its features. The platform's user-friendly nature is notable, guiding developers through the development process. While advanced customization of the user interface with HTML and CSS is possible, the out-of-the-box options often suffice, providing 80-90% of the required functionality. The IDE is commendable, yet an enhancement in the Page Designer to allow a real-time preview of layout changes would be beneficial. Currently, running the page is necessary to visualize layout adjustments, but an immediate preview during the design phase would be a valuable improvement."
"The solution does not include a default or custom template like other products."
"I would like to see easier integration into active directory authentication. Also, maybe integration of JavaScript frameworks would resolve some issues."
"In terms of improvement, there should be a greater focus on AI and machine learning tools in Oracle APEX."
"The solution could provide more AI functionalities or AI assistance."
"You also need an APEX specialist for deployment because not many people use it."
"There is one disadvantage. When facing problems, it can be difficult to find solutions online (Google/YouTube), unlike with Java coding, where solutions are readily available on Google."
"The product's stability has certain shortcomings, making it an area where improvements are required."
"The Playbooks feature is useful for visualizing steps in a process, however, it lacks support for rollbacks in case of complex customer processes."
"The programming language is currently limited to JavaScript. So I would like to see more programming languages available, especially since they have come up with the machine-learning features. Some more languages would be an additional improvement."
"ServiceNow Now Platform's technical support needs to improve."
"This platform is used more by large companies because it is a little bit expensive."
"The analytics should be more readily available on the base product."
"The integration towards other ERP systems could be improved."
"Simplifying the user interface for both users and administrators is key. It is not very intuitive."
"It is still difficult to build a set of services in ServiceNow. It can be done, but it is one of the more difficult things to do. If we're talking about scalability, we're talking about the ability to actually build that set of services a little easier."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is completely free of cost."
"The solution is moderately priced, where it is neither cheap nor expensive."
"I would rate it around an eight in terms of price, with one being low and ten being high."
"The solution is free if you are using on Oracle database."
"The pricing is very good and less expensive than Mendix or OutSystems."
"Pricing is expensive, overall on an enterprise system but we consider that it gives corresponding value in the product."
"The solution is free."
"I believe APEX comes bundled with the database, including autonomous database and other related database products, so the pricing is quite reasonable."
"Most of the features are included in the licensing cost. However, if we need extra plugins that are not available at the ServiceNow Hub or store, then we have to pay extra for those."
"The solution is expensive."
"I would rate the pricing an eight out of ten, with ten being very expensive solution."
"The solution is expensive, and I rate it a ten for pricing."
"People seem to be buying the tool a lot. I think its licensing is okay."
"The product is very expensive."
"The pricing of this solution is done annually and it is very expensive."
"It's expensive and if you need some analytical views of your activity, there is an additional cost."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
12%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Government
10%
Computer Software Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business28
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise28
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise34
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
I consider Oracle Application Express (APEX) to be good value for the money because it has infinite quality for money since it's included in any Oracle database license. It's free once you have the...
What needs improvement with Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
One of the things that could be done to improve Oracle Application Express (APEX) is if Oracle decided to open it up to other databases. It needs to be an enterprise database; therefore, it needs t...
What do you like most about ServiceNow Now Platform?
The integration with other tools is pretty good.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ServiceNow Now Platform?
From what I have heard only from our sales team, ServiceNow Now Platform falls within the more expensive tier of a product, but I can't really judge it.
What needs improvement with ServiceNow Now Platform?
What could be improved in ServiceNow Now Platform is the availability of skill sets. For some reason, we don't get too many people who know this technology easily. Regarding their pricing, I would ...
 

Also Known As

Oracle APEX
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Hepart AG, pharmasol, SATLOG, Collège Bois-de-Boulogne
experian, beachbody, health partners
Find out what your peers are saying about Oracle Application Express (APEX) vs. ServiceNow Now Platform and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,513 professionals have used our research since 2012.