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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

"We can easily use it with our new customers."
"Some of the business processes are very easy to compare when you have the diagrams."
"The features I find most valuable is the ability to create a document and then put it into a OneCare artifact."
"Automated document generation is a real time saver, no more cut and paste, no more keeping track of which diagrams are in which reports, no more last minute update panics. Just click a mouse and you've got an up to date report."
"Ability to model and create view under same roof."
"I like Sparx's BPM features and the way it lets you create the diagram."
"Ability to maintain cross-references for all models in all levels - great tractability."
"There are a couple of things. Price is one thing, but we also like the scriptability of it. We got into scripting it and automating tasks with it, and it is super duper easy to do and helpful. The API has improved over the years. We automate everything, and I love the automation aspects of it."
"The solution is stable. It hasn't crashed, stopped or caused any issues in any way."
"It is a scalable solution...The initial setup was straightforward."
"It is easy and intuitive to use, not excessively rigid, and quite flexible."
"Visual Paradigm allowed me to create UML diagrams efficiently."
"The solution is the best application for data modeling. It helps to architect business processes. Its best features are pricing and functionality."
"What I like best about Visual Paradigm is its simple GUI, especially since I'm a new user. In my two years of experience with this tool, I didn't find it complex because I was able to learn how to use it via YouTube videos. Visual Paradigm is enough for me. I also find the bridging feature in the tool valuable."
"The application is easy to use and provides informative diagrams."
"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."
 

Cons

"If you just want to create some diagrams with shapes and arrows, then use Visio."
"Insufficient control of metadata and standards."
"The UI is a little bit outdated. It should be more fresh and clean."
"This solution should have better ease of use for the uninitiated."
"For data modeling, it is not very mature when comparing with other data modeling tools."
"The UI could be improved and made a little bit more presentable."
"The Business Process Modeling or BPM feature can be improved to make it more interactive and user friendly because it is a tool for technical people. My current use is only for business process modeling notation and putting in the icons etc. You need to take them in as a class, which makes things very complex. Because of this complexity, it is not an easy-to-handle solution. Enterprise Architect is not very good for mockups. We cannot create user screens and other similar kinds of stuff, which is bad. For these things, we prefer to use Axure RP and other similar solutions. They should either remove this feature from this product or provide some kind of connectivity with Axure RP so that people can do better mockups of screens and import them. They need to augment and strengthen the BPM feature, which is the main feature. They need to put in some elements like artificial intelligence and augmented reality. They should look into such features because these things are coming up."
"The automatic creation of reports based on the model elements could be improved."
"In terms of room for improvement in Visual Paradigm, I tried looking for one. I'm pleased with the tool, but it would be great if you could integrate Visual Paradigm with more tools. For example, when moving from Visual Paradigm to another tool, such as Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect, the process could be improved a bit. Still, I wonder if it's not limited by the standards Visual Paradigm follows, such as XMI files. It could be connected to limitations related to the standards rather than a tool limitation. When you move projects from Visual Paradigm into Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect via XMI files, you lose all your notes from the elements, so this is an area for improvement in Visual Paradigm. TOGAF support is an additional feature I'd like to see in the next release of Visual Paradigm. I'd also like the tool to have ArchiMate support. If both TOGAF and ArchiMate could be supported in Visual Paradigm and made part of a lower level of licensing or cheaper licensing models, that would be best for me."
"The product's versioning capability needs improvement."
"The solution's technical support can be improved and accessible for our company location since Visual Paradigm follows a remote support model with some challenges."
"I would like to see something for visualizing innovation work maps."
"Visual Paradigm is much better now. But each project has its own challenges, which is why I'm exploring different tools for my new projects. For instance, designing reports can be tough, especially with the costly intervention of professional services from vendors."
"Visual Paradigm can improve by having better process mining tools and model integration."
"For me, what needs improvement in Visual Paradigm is the limited features included in the $99 license, which is the cheapest option. If more features could be included in the cheapest licensing package, Visual Paradigm would be better, especially for businesses that have a limited budget for buying software."
"The product can always get better as the industry changes."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's affordable. The only additional cost that we haven't yet figured out is the floating license. If you buy a floating license, you have to have a license management server, which comes at an additional cost that's not discussed. So, we haven't yet used the floating license. That’s because I haven't had a chance to figure that out."
"We have an annual license, and it's very affordable."
"The licensing is not as expensive as some of the other data modeling tools such as Erwin."
"Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is priced well. The price we pay is approximately $20 per month. Other solutions I have found to be much more expensive."
"I think our license costs roughly $1,000 a year, but I could be wrong."
"There is no license required for this solution."
"Enterprise licensing is competitive. What would be helpful if they load the pricing for consultants, you know, people who are consultants for clients. So the license is fine for end-user organizations. Still, they should consider lowering the license to support this adoption, particularly for people who are consultants like myself."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"The pricing of Visual Paradigm is very appropriate and affordable. There are no hidden costs involved."
"This product is fairly cheap, but if you want more complex features, e.g. integration with other products, it does require an additional cost."
"Pricing for Visual Paradigm is a four out of five for me. I'm happy with its pricing."
"I rate the pricing a three on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive."
"You can move between the tiers from month to month so you are not restricted to one pricing model."
"This is an open-sourced solution, it is free to use."
"Compared to other solutions such as IBM Rational which is expensive, This solution is priced low."
"Visual Paradigm's pricing is not expensive."
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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.
873,209 professionals have used our research since 2012.