Adobe Experience Manager vs IBM FileNet comparison

Adobe and IBM are both solutions in the Enterprise Content Management category. Adobe is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.6, while IBM is ranked #2 with an average rating of 7.9. Adobe holds a 3.3% mindshare in ECM, compared to IBM’s 6.5% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of Adobe users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 91% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Adobe Experience Manager

Read 27 Adobe Experience Manager reviews

3,343 Views
1,170 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

IBM FileNet

Read 103 IBM FileNet reviews

4,015 Views
3,694 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Adobe Experience Manager

IBM FileNet

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

Adobe Experience Manager and IBM FileNet compete in the enterprise content management category. Adobe Experience Manager seems to have the upper hand with its strong integration with Adobe Marketing Cloud and efficient content management capabilities, although it's often more suited for larger enterprises.

Features: Adobe Experience Manager offers tight integration with Adobe Marketing Cloud, robust Digital Asset Management (DAM), 3D asset management, and handles user-generated content effectively. FileNet provides advanced business process automation, extensive scalability, and reliable storage capabilities, along with strong document and records management.

Room for Improvement: Users of Adobe Experience Manager often find the high total cost of ownership and complexity challenging, especially without skilled developers. Adobe's tech support can be slow. IBM FileNet's licensing model is costly and complex, with users wishing for more intuitive user interfaces and better support for cloud transitions. Both products could improve their integration capabilities and simplify implementation processes.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Adobe Experience Manager is available in multiple deployment options, while FileNet focuses on on-premises deployment. Adobe's tech support, despite having dedicated teams, often experiences delays. FileNet's support system is robust but the product's complexity poses challenges. Deployment can be complex for both, but FileNet benefits from a more established reputation.

Pricing and ROI: Adobe Experience Manager is pricey, matching its feature richness suitable for large enterprises, but requires careful cost management. IBM FileNet demands a significant investment with complex licensing that can result in unexpected costs. Both provide substantial value, with Adobe focusing on larger enterprises and FileNet offering flexibility for medium to large businesses.

To learn more, read our detailed Adobe Experience Manager vs. IBM FileNet Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Adobe Experience Manager vs. IBM FileNet

December 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score

5.2

Adobe Experience Manager is valued for ease, scalability, quick market time, AI capabilities, and notable ROI despite some dissent.

Sentiment score

3.8

IBM FileNet boosts productivity and efficiency, reduces costs, and enhances document management, yielding significant financial gains and competitive advantage.

I have seen a return on investment through reduction in time to market, automation through AI, and the availability of very scalable solutions.

Prasad Boddu

project manager at FedEx

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

There is a significant ROI from IBM FileNet because before its introduction, the company needed to do all the work manually.

Shoichiro Takeshita

Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

6.6

Adobe Experience Manager's customer service is praised for promptness but criticized for inconsistent support, especially with complex issues.

Sentiment score

6.8

IBM FileNet's support is praised for responsiveness and partnerships, despite occasional delays and challenges like database implementation issues.

They are attentive to big companies but tend to be negligent towards mid-sized companies.

Thomas Becker

Managing Partner(Austria) at a integrator with 11-50 employees

There are Adobe engineers, sales representatives, and engineers assigned to Sephora North America.

reviewer2752413

Digital Asset Specialist at a retailer with 10,001+ employees

For P1 tickets, the resolution time is approximately four hours.

reviewer2771634

Senior Technical Program Manager /Senior Lead Solution Architech- Product Technology & Gen AI at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

People come from all over the world, and they have specialists at the other end of the world to help if needed.

reviewer2585457

Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

IBM has a different division that provides consultation to end users, and most customers utilize consultation from IBM, which costs approximately $100k USD to $200k USD.

Shoichiro Takeshita

Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN

The consulting experts that IBM provides sometimes do not understand the tool very well.

ARTHUR BRUNO

Consultor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

6.7

Adobe Experience Manager offers scalable cloud solutions, supports large groups, and facilitates enterprise content management despite licensing and configuration needs.

Sentiment score

8.2

IBM FileNet excels in scalability and adaptability, supporting extensive users and data, suitable for multinational enterprises with diverse needs.

You cannot simply add more servers without purchasing the license.

Ketan Sahasrabudhe

Infra At Idealake IT Pvt Ltd Head at Idealake Information Technology Pvt. Ltd.

Adobe Experience Manager's scalability is excellent, as it reduces infrastructure and maintenance costs.

Prasad Boddu

project manager at FedEx

Adobe Experience Manager can handle numerous projects because more projects can be developed, enhanced, and numerous components can be reused in many projects and published.

reviewer2794089

Senior Project Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

The bigger products like IBM FileNet can handle billions of documents and thousands of users.

reviewer2585457

Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

With Kubernetes, we can simply add instances of the worker, CPU, or memory without needing deployment.

Shoichiro Takeshita

Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN

We have about 80 transactional systems connected to IBM FileNet.

ARTHUR BRUNO

Consultor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

7.0

Adobe Experience Manager offers stability and security, with occasional memory issues, resolved with proper server specifications and cloud updates.

Sentiment score

7.8

IBM FileNet is valued for its reliable performance and stability, with improvements noted in recent upgrades and infrastructure configurations.

Adobe Experience Manager is a stable tool.

reviewer2794089

Senior Project Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Since they are enterprise and have significant digital business coming through the digital medium, the stability of the product is very important.

Ketan Sahasrabudhe

Infra At Idealake IT Pvt Ltd Head at Idealake Information Technology Pvt. Ltd.

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

FileNet was restricted to DB2's enterprise edition instead of the standard edition, causing complications.

Emad Rizki

System integrator at Indépendant

In terms of stability, we haven't experienced any big technical issues or downtime with IBM FileNet.

reviewer2585457

Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Room For Improvement

Adobe Experience Manager struggles with complexity, high costs, integration, support, and ROI, needing optimization and better documentation.

IBM FileNet needs enhanced hybrid cloud support, integration, automation, analytics, mobile experience, simplifying APIs, and reducing costs.

Technical support could be improved, especially for smaller companies.

Thomas Becker

Managing Partner(Austria) at a integrator with 11-50 employees

There is a feature missing where if content is created on the UAT environment and needs to be transferred or synced to the production environment, there is no direct way of doing the sync.

Ketan Sahasrabudhe

Infra At Idealake IT Pvt Ltd Head at Idealake Information Technology Pvt. Ltd.

Many people complain about the price as it's one of the most expensive tools.

reviewer2752413

Digital Asset Specialist at a retailer with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

Ease of use with IBM FileNet is a disadvantage of this tool. It is complex and hard to use.

ARTHUR BRUNO

Consultor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

The response time and resolution of issues by technical support need improvement.

reviewer2141718

Assistant Vice President at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees

From the beginning, we cannot use a REST API; we have to use the IBM FileNet native API, which is quite outdated.

Shoichiro Takeshita

Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Setup Cost

Adobe Experience Manager is costly, suitable for large enterprises, with complex pricing varying by sites and users; offers a free trial.

IBM FileNet is costly, but often valued by medium to large enterprises, with complex licensing and significant setup expenses.

For large enterprises, the cost is often comparable with other major CMSs.

Thomas Becker

Managing Partner(Austria) at a integrator with 11-50 employees

Adobe Experience Manager is expensive compared to competitors.

Ketan Sahasrabudhe

Infra At Idealake IT Pvt Ltd Head at Idealake Information Technology Pvt. Ltd.

The price is significantly high.

reviewer2771634

Senior Technical Program Manager /Senior Lead Solution Architech- Product Technology & Gen AI at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

The product has become more expensive and requires significant investment for enterprise solutions.

Emad Rizki

System integrator at Indépendant

The price is high, with yearly subscriptions increasing day by day.

reviewer2141718

Assistant Vice President at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees

FileNet and similar enterprise-level tools require substantial costs, starting in the millions.

reviewer2585457

Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Valuable Features

Adobe Experience Manager provides advanced content management with strong integration, user-friendliness, multi-platform support, and robust security features.

IBM FileNet provides scalability, robust document management, and seamless integration with extensive automation, governance, and workflow tools for efficient operations.

Feature-wise, I believe the dispatcher module is the best aspect of Adobe Experience Manager.

Ketan Sahasrabudhe

Infra At Idealake IT Pvt Ltd Head at Idealake Information Technology Pvt. Ltd.

Adobe Experience Manager has made document management smoother because many people use Adobe, making it simpler for me to modify and resend PDF documents.

reviewer2785143

Founder . Interior Architect & Interior Designer at a university with 5,001-10,000 employees

Adobe Experience Manager increases operational efficiency through centralized assets and reduces time spent searching, editing, and managing files.

Prasad Boddu

project manager at FedEx

For more quotes and insights, download the Adobe Experience Manager report

There is a significant ROI from IBM FileNet because before its introduction, the company needed to do all the work manually.

Shoichiro Takeshita

Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN

The main features we find impactful are the workflow and document management along with FileNet file stores.

reviewer2141718

Assistant Vice President at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees

At this level, companies don't buy a ready-made solution.

reviewer2585457

Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM FileNet report

Categories and Ranking

Adobe Experience Manager

Ranking in Enterprise Content Management

5th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Web Content Management (1st), Enterprise Social Software (5th), Digital Experience Platforms (DXP) (1st)

IBM FileNet

Ranking in Enterprise Content Management

2nd

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

103

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Enterprise Content Management category, the mindshare of Adobe Experience Manager is 3.3%, up from 2.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM FileNet is 6.5%, down from 10.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Content Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
IBM FileNet	6.5%
Adobe Experience Manager	3.3%
Other	90.2%

Enterprise Content Management

Featured Reviews

reviewer2771634

Senior Technical Program Manager /Senior Lead Solution Architech- Product Technology & Gen AI at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees

Have faced challenges with setup and pricing but have found flexibility and support helpful

Adobe Experience Manager needs more optimization. The frequency of components where we have vitals of a page or an app needs to be optimized because these are heavy Java codes along with some AEM developments. The code language should be optimized or they should have some string functions or web plugins to create a lighter version rather than implementing large amounts of code lines. They should start implementing industry best practices which are not currently offered. We perform our internal development for customization at our own pace. We have multiple frameworks that help us in various ways. We are advancing in terms of AI integration. We have already started our own POCs before Adobe implements these features.

Read full review

Shoichiro Takeshita

Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN

Business process handling improves while adaptation shows potential for updates

The business process manipulation in IBM FileNet is very effective for implementing business processes. IBM FileNet has content management, and these two features are very good. Compared with Kamunda business process management, Kamunda is easier for implementation than IBM FileNet. There is a significant ROI from IBM FileNet because before its introduction, the company needed to do all the work manually. This significant ROI has been evident since IBM FileNet was first introduced ten years ago. While there might be documentation prepared by the company, it is not currently available.

Read full review

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

14%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Retailer

Financial Services Firm

19%

Computer Software Company

Government

Insurance Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	5
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	20

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	32
Midsize Enterprise	12
Large Enterprise	74

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Adobe Experience Manager?

It is easy to learn. You don't need to be an advanced Java developer.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Adobe Experience Manager?

I think Adobe Experience Manager can be improved by making it simpler to use. I do not have anything specific in mind regarding needed improvements. I chose seven because if the app were simpler, I...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Adobe Experience Manager?

My main use case for Adobe Experience Manager is to share papers with colleagues and to edit PDF files. I use Adobe Experience Manager to share or edit documents with my colleagues because we work ...

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM FileNet?

The product is robust and can process a lot of documents for enterprise content management.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM FileNet?

From the company's perspective, the licensing cost for IBM FileNet is still affordable. Though the license cost is somewhat expensive, it remains manageable. The company rates it between 3 and 5 be...

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM FileNet?

We almost do not utilize the automation capabilities of IBM FileNet to streamline our business processes. The process automation and business automation features are barely used. Currently, we prim...

See all answers

Comparisons

OpenText Content Management vs Adobe Experience Manager

Compared 6% of the time

SharePoint vs Adobe Experience Manager

Compared 6% of the time

Oracle Content Management vs Adobe Experience Manager

Compared 5% of the time

SAP Extended Enterprise Content Management vs Adobe Experience Manager

Compared 4% of the time

Liferay Digital Experience Platform vs Adobe Experience Manager

Compared 4% of the time

More Adobe Experience Manager Competitors

OpenText Content Management vs IBM FileNet

Compared 14% of the time

SharePoint vs IBM FileNet

Compared 13% of the time

Hyland OnBase vs IBM FileNet

Compared 9% of the time

Alfresco vs IBM FileNet

Compared 9% of the time

More IBM FileNet Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Adobe Experience Manager

January 2026

Download Adobe Experience Manager product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM FileNet

December 2025

Download IBM FileNet product report

Also Known As

Adobe Day CQ5, Ektron Social Marketing, Episerver Content Cloud, Adobe CQ5

No data available

Overview

Adobe Communique 5 (Adobe CQ5), currently manifested as Adobe Experience Manager (AEM), is a web-based content management system which is developed to help businesses in offering high-end digital experience to their customers.

Adobe

IBM FileNet is a leading IBM enterprise content management product family. IBM FileNet is one of the ECM solutions that can change the way a company does business by enabling users to capture, activate, socialize, analyze, and govern content throughout its lifecycle.

There are many IBM FileNet products available, all of which are integrated and based on the FileNet P8 Platform.

IBM

Sample Customers

Metra

Suncorp Group Limited, St. Vincent Health, Citigroup, SRCSD, and UK Dept for Work and Pensions.

Buyer's Guide

Adobe Experience Manager vs. IBM FileNet

December 2025

Free Report: Adobe Experience Manager vs. IBM FileNet

Find out what your peers are saying about Adobe Experience Manager vs. IBM FileNet and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

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