Mule ESB Reviews

Determining ROI from Mule ESB involves complex factors, including cross-departmental support and high licensing costs. Effective design and governance, especially in reusability and microservices adherence, enhance returns. Users report reduced build efforts, which suggests financial benefits. Some users find the ROI satisfactory, rating it high, or notice significant improvements, leading to contract expansions with vendors. Despite challenges, there is a realization of ROI seen in continuing investment.

Mule ESB pricing is perceived as expensive, with annual renewal and no perpetual licenses. The enterprise version offers additional support and connectors compared to the free Community Edition. Costs are tailored to customer needs, with flexible licensing options for larger enterprises. Additional fees apply for premium features. Some find it more affordable than competitors, while others consider it the priciest ESB. Companies should evaluate their requirements and plan for licenses based on integration needs.

• "The solution is expensive."
• "Regarding licensing and pricing, I find it somewhat flexible. They are more flexible with larger customers compared to small and medium ones, as their licensing model depends on ports and other factors. Large customers benefit from more flexibility in implementation and renewal compared to smaller ones."
• "The pricing must be improved."

Organizations utilize Mule ESB for system integration, focusing on API-driven management, data transformation, and message processing. It bridges ERP, CRM, and payment systems, simplifying orchestration and workflow tasks. Users deploy Mule ESB both on-premises and cloud, facilitating third-party integrations, data exchange between multiple systems, and managing business logic. Mule ESB supports various connectors for integration, enabling seamless connectivity and protocol transformation between heterogeneous systems.

Mule ESB customer service is rated highly, emphasizing prompt and expert support through various channels. Some users highlight fast responses and helpfulness, while others mention delays and areas for improvement. Subscription level influences the quality of support received. Community users often rely on forums for assistance, finding them active and informative. Technical support is typically regarded as responsive and efficient, but their assistance can vary based on the complexity of issues and account specifics.

Many describe Mule ESB's initial setup as straightforward, supported by detailed documentation and a reactive community. It's simple to deploy with considerations for development-versus-production environments. Deployment involves downloading, unzipping, and executing processes quickly. Complexity arises with more secure enterprise contexts requiring clustering, integration with tools, and extensive configurations. Cloud deployments ease infrastructure management. Installation times vary, typically taking less than an hour. Some complexity stems from organization-specific environments and configurations.

Mule ESB scales efficiently both horizontally and vertically. While some encountered issues under heavy load, others found seamless scalability, especially when leveraging Cloud deployments. Successful scalability often depends on proper application design and tuning. Various connectors support data streaming, aiding performance. Mule ESB is used across small to large enterprises, with many users benefiting from its capabilities. It handles significant data volumes and adapts to growing business needs, with a scalability rating commonly high.

Mule ESB is generally stable, with newer versions addressing past stability issues. Many users report it runs smoothly without significant problems, though some encountered challenges with clustering and large file processing. Earlier versions, such as Anypoint Studio 5.x.x, had more stability concerns. Many rate its stability highly, finding it reliable and resource-efficient, though some suggest the need for improvements, especially in on-premise environments. Many believe recent releases like version 4.3 are notably stable.