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ACL Analytics vs IBM OpenPages comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 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

ACL Analytics
Ranking in GRC
3rd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
Continuous Controls Monitoring (1st)
IBM OpenPages
Ranking in GRC
7th
Average Rating
7.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
IT Governance (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the GRC category, the mindshare of ACL Analytics is 2.9%, down from 4.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM OpenPages is 4.5%, down from 5.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
GRC Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
ACL Analytics2.9%
IBM OpenPages4.5%
Other92.6%
GRC
 

Featured Reviews

John Erian - PeerSpot reviewer
Identifyies fraud efficiently through automated report analysis
I believe the formulas and scripting language in ACL Analytics need development to be easier for me to use. I want to see more robotic reports generated automatically, rather than relying heavily on scripting. It would also be beneficial if ACL Analytics included features similar to Tableau for data presentation.
Badri Anand Santhanam - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhancing enterprise risk management and reporting capabilities with insightful dashboards and automated features.
IBM OpenPages offers strong reporting capabilities with Cognos integration, providing standard tabular reports, various charts, and powerful dashboards for different lines of defense. It caters to the first line managing risks and controls, the second line of SMEs providing oversight, and the independent audit function with an internal audit management module. The solution is more intuitive and task-based, allowing better involvement of the risk function across different lines of defense. The automated features translate into reporting capabilities, and data can be easily extracted and downloaded in different formats.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I did not have any problems with the stability of ACL Analytics."
"I rate ACL Analytics nine out of ten."
"We apply different methods, such as sampling, data manipulation, and sorting. I'm fond of the scripting feature, which automates routine tasks and saves time. It also offers data insights."
"ACL Analytics is a great application that helps me analyze data more effectively compared to other tools like Excel."
"The most valuable feature of ACL Analytics is its powerful data control capabilities."
"We have seen a return on investment as we have mostly reduced working hours for the audit engagements."
"Initial setup is straightforward."
"It improved my organization using ​an automated audit revision with scripts."
"IBM OpenPages saves time in my work as a developer."
"IBM OpenPages provides time savings in recording risk management components."
"Everything about IBM OpenPages is valuable, particularly when compared to other solutions in the market like MetricStream, from which we switched due to its feasibility, user-friendliness, and performance."
"The ability to keep a record of internal incidents in the company, and also the monitoring of Key Indicators."
"The content, reporting, and workflow features stand out as the most valuable aspects."
"The most valuable features are the workflow engine, calculations, and security rules."
 

Cons

"We have an issue with the hard coding of passwords in ACL Analytics. You do not have an interface where you can enter a password and then it can be encrypted when you enter it."
"​Reporting and presentation of information directly to solutions, such as PowerPoint.​"
"The ease of use could be better."
"I believe the formulas and scripting language in ACL Analytics need development to be easier for me to use."
"The visualization capabilities in ACL Analytics need more variety and features."
"It would be beneficial if the software could improve its capabilities when extracting data from databases, particularly for those who may not be familiar with SQL queries."
"The tool's pricing is quite high. When I purchased the software, I constantly contacted the representatives. I requested a single license, but they informed me that only packages of three licenses were available. This made it very difficult for us to manage the cost, especially given the economic challenges in our country."
"The product's pricing has increased over the years."
"IBM OpenPages could improve by adding more conditions to workflows, as some existing conditions might not work and can produce errors."
"IBM OpenPages needs improvement in its UI. Currently, it is difficult to see the relationships (associations/parents) between all items unless you click on the item itself."
"It would be useful to have more out-of-the-box functionality, especially triggers and calculations."
"I believe there's room for improvement in establishing connections with external information."
"Some self-relationships are not available in OpenPages' relationship model."
"IBM needs to work on pricing for organizations with around 100 users, as the licensing model is not competitive enough for SMEs."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of $5,000 is high, and transferring money from one country to another, particularly in dollars, is challenging due to high exchange rates. Although we managed to purchase it then, the lack of a single license option and the high cost were issues."
"The pricing for me as an individual seems a lot. For our organization, the price is okay. It's about $6,000 a year. I don't know of any additional costs."
Information not available
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Insurance Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
25%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Retailer
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business1
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise1
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about ACL Analytics?
The tool's most valuable feature is its ability to import files from other software packages. Its reporting and visualization capabilities have made our reporting easier. Importing results into spr...
What needs improvement with ACL Analytics?
We have an issue with the hard coding of passwords in ACL Analytics. You do not have an interface where you can enter a password and then it can be encrypted when you enter it. Every time you enter...
What do you like most about IBM OpenPages?
The product’s interface is very intuitive.
What needs improvement with IBM OpenPages?
IBM OpenPages could improve by adding more conditions to workflows, as some existing conditions might not work and can produce errors. Additionally, although there are risk assessment tools, I do n...
What is your primary use case for IBM OpenPages?
I primarily use IBM OpenPages ( /products/ibm-openpages-reviews ) for compliance and audit programs.
 

Also Known As

ACL
OpenPages
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Essar Group, Dean Foods, Lafarge North America, Austrian Ministry of Finance
Nationwide, Process Innovation AG, OSRAM Licht AG, Dep‹sito Central de Valores (DCV), Delta Lloyd Group, Unum
Find out what your peers are saying about ACL Analytics vs. IBM OpenPages and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,566 professionals have used our research since 2012.