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Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs Visual Paradigm comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 2, 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

Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...
Ranking in Business Process Design
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
99
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (2nd)
Visual Paradigm
Ranking in Business Process Design
7th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2025, in the Business Process Design category, the mindshare of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is 8.8%, down from 11.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Visual Paradigm is 5.1%, down from 6.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Design Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect8.8%
Visual Paradigm5.1%
Other86.1%
Business Process Design
 

Featured Reviews

Milan Sterba - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient documentation generation through organized model structure with a good price-performance ratio
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not easy for even experienced users to find their way without guidance. This is not the most user-friendly solution.
Angie Ibrahim Eissa - PeerSpot reviewer
A software application designed for software development teams to model business information systems and manage development processes
Setting up Visual Paradigm is easy. There's hardly any configuration needed, unlike some other tools. You just choose your method and diagram type, and you're good to go. As for improvements, integrating project management features with diagrams could be better. Viewing outputs could also be smoother, especially when working with multiple files.Deployment is quick and painless. It practically takes no time at all to set up. And because I also teach at the university, I use Visual Paradigm for my classes and case studies. It's easy to switch between products, and my students have no trouble using it on their own.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"For the most part, we find that it is remarkable how inexpensive it is."
"The stability has been good and satisfactory. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"The best thing about the tool is that its database is open."
"Sparx offers good flexibility."
"There are a lot of features in Enterprise Architect. It allows us to take on a lot of tasks."
"Customizable and tailored to the environment. Several template frameworks are provided."
"It is a very flexible product. It can do a lot. It is also a reliable product."
"This is a useful tool for IT people who need to design their solution architecture."
"Visual Paradigm is simple and easy to use."
"I like the fact that this solution is complete."
"The solution is very user-friendly. It's easy to just open it and start working."
"Some of the most valuable features of this process modeling tool are process simulation and process animation."
"I find it very user-friendly for my purposes, which is creating business process models that I can publish as HTML pages. It has worked flawlessly for my project, and my clients are able to utilize it as an internal web portal for their process documentation and other needs."
"Visual Paradigm allowed me to create UML diagrams efficiently."
"Visual Paradigm is simple and easy to use."
"The solution is the best application for data modeling. It helps to architect business processes. Its best features are pricing and functionality."
 

Cons

"When collaborating with other people, it needs to be more user-friendly."
"The UI is a little bit outdated. It should be more fresh and clean."
"The documentation could be better. Where I work, we speak French and we don't speak English, so we don't have anything in French. It's perfect in English, but we need something in French."
"Because its easy to create diagrams one needs to be vigilant on the housekeeping of orphaned fragments - I have written my own scripts to do this, maybe they are available now."
"It should be made Windows compatible."
"In a future release, they should improve portfolio planning."
"There should be a MATLAB-specific toolbox added to the solution with better compatibility. The connections currently are good but in the future, it needs a huge improvement."
"The modeling tool is targeted toward a sophisticated user."
"From time to time, we experience some troubles when we work as teams."
"The product's versioning capability needs improvement."
"Visual Paradigm could improve many aspects. The performance could be better because it can be low. When we have large and complicated models, it has a low speed and many bugs. Sometimes the solution stops and you have to restart Microsoft Windows on your PC. The larger database modeling cannot be done properly, I have to use another solution called SAP PowerDesigner."
"There is room for improvement in the licensing model. I would suggest implementing country-specific pricing, as many other products in India do. This would make Visual Paradigm more affordable and accessible."
"It's still early for me to comment since I've only been using it for two months, but the responsiveness when diagramming needs to be improved."
"Takes up a lot of resources."
"The solution can be heavy on resource usage."
"The solution can improve by updating the user interface, and graphics."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is a license for this solution. When comparing this solution to others it is priced well."
"It’s the best deal in town, by far."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"It is very economical and low cost. You have to pay for a one-time license, and it is active forever."
"Use floating licenses strategically."
"This product has a paid license, with a yearly subscription option."
"Pricing and licensing are suitable even for small companies."
"It's reasonably priced for large organizations."
"Over the years I've seen an increase in price, and it makes it difficult for a single person company, like me, to decide whether to extend the license."
"Pricing for Visual Paradigm is a four out of five for me. I'm happy with its pricing."
"Visual Paradigm's pricing is not expensive."
"I rate Visual Paradigm's pricing a five out of ten."
"Visual Paradigm costs $99 per license. I chose the cheapest option from the pricing list."
"This product is fairly cheap, but if you want more complex features, e.g. integration with other products, it does require an additional cost."
"I rate the pricing a three on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."
"This is an open-sourced solution, it is free to use."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Government
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Educational Organization
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business38
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise58
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
The stability has been good and satisfactory. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
One of the reasons many public sector institutions in the Czech Republic use it is that it provides a very good price-performance ratio. While it might be cumbersome to learn, it still delivers exc...
What needs improvement with Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not ...
What do you like most about Visual Paradigm?
The solution is the best application for data modeling. It helps to architect business processes. Its best features are pricing and functionality.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Visual Paradigm?
I purchased Visual Paradigm on my own, and it was competitively priced, so I was fine with the pricing.
What needs improvement with Visual Paradigm?
The product can always get better as the industry changes, however, I didn't necessarily feel it was lacking for what I did with it.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

OmniLink
Adobe, Apple, at&t, Caterpillar, Intel, NASA, Nokia, Toyota
Find out what your peers are saying about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. Visual Paradigm and other solutions. Updated: November 2025.
873,003 professionals have used our research since 2012.