No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Appian RPA vs IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) comparison

Why PeerSpot?
Sponsored
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Automation Anywhere
Sponsored
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
666
Ranking in other categories
Business Process Management (BPM) (2nd), Process Mining (1st), Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) (1st), Agentic Automation (1st), Business Orchestration and Automation Technologies (2nd), AI Legal & Compliance (1st), AI Finance & Accounting (2nd), AI Procurement & Supply Chain (1st)
Appian RPA
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Process Automation (20th)
IBM Robotic Process Automat...
Ranking in Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
7th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) category, the mindshare of Automation Anywhere is 5.2%, down from 9.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Appian RPA is 1.3%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is 2.0%, down from 3.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Automation Anywhere5.2%
IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)2.0%
Appian RPA1.3%
Other91.5%
Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
 

Featured Reviews

Venkat Sivaprakash - PeerSpot reviewer
Management Consultant at Accenture
Has significantly improved document-driven workflows and reduced processing time across finance and HR functions
Automation Anywhere has evolved significantly and upgraded itself to provide agentic AI and AI-based automation solutions for document automation. The product has matured considerably over time. We can create workflows that can call an API. We can include prompts in particular workflows for ChatGPT-related functions, connecting to an LLM and RAG to perform tasks. For document automation, modern features are available to train documents, ensuring high accuracy and repeatability over time. The system is very easy to use. I recently completed a course in document automation, typically designed for people involved in coding and technical aspects. Though I understand coding comprehensively, I don't do actual coding. The course was very accessible. Currently, extensive coding isn't necessary due to the hybrid model incorporating GenAI aspects, low-code, no-code capabilities, APIs, and numerous pre-built objects in Automation Anywhere. The features include GenAI-driven prompting methods and workflow creation capabilities. In these workflows, we can create decision boxes and call APIs without coding. We simply pull objects, drop them, connect them, and add minimal coding when needed. The most crucial aspect isn't coding but rather sizing the automation and fleshing out the details. Automation Co-pilot takes notes and performs automated analysis. It can extract details from videos, summarize conversations, and provide detailed information. During calls, it identifies instructions and performs tasks such as preparing reports and reconciliation. Automation Anywhere can also connect with Microsoft Co-pilot. Through Co-pilot, real-time operations can be executed, allowing direct interaction between vendors and automation through this component.
Ashish-Chopra - PeerSpot reviewer
Principal Architect at Westpac Bank
Automation has reduced manual errors and now needs better high-volume data handling
In my opinion, Appian RPA can be improved. We are planning to conduct a proof of concept on volume because we are still not entirely certain about how well the record type feature performs on Appian with high volumes of data. After conducting client calls with HSBC, Santander, and a few of the Big Four, we learned about use cases where Appian has been used for high volumes of data. We are planning to conduct a proof of concept to test that hypothesis. Additional features that could enhance Appian RPA in the future would include AI on Azure. Currently, their AI is only AWS-based, and we are in discussions with the company about this because we are an Azure shop. I believe this would be a good area for them to concentrate on.
MA
Business Solutions Manager at valleysoft
Has improved analytics and reporting but needs better integration and support
To improve IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for the next release, there should be more integration with external systems, and more integration with IBM's data and AI platforms is needed. There is an AI part in IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for Machine Learning, but IBM has another platform specifically for data and AI, which is integrated right now. More features are hoped for in the future.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"With the help of Automation Anywhere, we are able to upload 10k documents in 1 to 4 working hours which is a great achievement for us."
"For the tasks that I do repeatedly, I can record processes using Automation Anywhere. I record mouse and keyboard actions and create a workflow for those activities. This minimizes my workload. The recording option is very useful."
"We saw a 70 percent decrease in manual steps. If something took 10 steps to do, we are doing it in three steps today."
"The character extraction capability of IQ Bot is much, much better than the other OCR (Optical Character Recognition) engines that you have in the market today."
"It gives us the capability of leveraging our investments in different applications. I can use Automation Anywhere to tie a number of applications or processes together, without having to do in-depth coding to automate something."
"By using this solution for RPA, we can automate a lot of business processes, which helps achieve less time to market."
"Earlier users were converting the unstructured data from the PDF into the structured format to process the task but now, this activity is replaced by IQ Bot."
"We have almost 27 use cases in production and, as of now, we have saved almost eight FTEs per annum."
"I find the pricing of Appian RPA reasonable because it is user-based, and we can experiment with it."
"Appian RPA is super easy to use, offering low code, no code capabilities."
"The best feature of Appian RPA is that it is highly integrated into the Appian platform itself and is very easy to configure in the end-to-end Appian automation solution."
"I am satisfied with the technical support."
"The initial setup is very easy."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to automate mundane tasks. This improves efficiency, reliability, etc. You can form critical operations which can be highly automated."
"We are aiming, by the end of the year, to record about $10,000,000 in savings just by automating the processes that we have identified so far."
"The good stuff about IBM is the fact that it's very easy to use, there are very nice and smart AI tools within the licensing that you don't have to pay any access. Moreover, it's more precise and more secure."
"The quality is great! It's very strong and has a very strong platform."
"One of the most impactful features of IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has been its one-time setup capability."
"The solution’s performance is good."
 

Cons

"It may sound a little funny or weird, but one thing that we are thinking is we have to go to various websites and pick up relevant data from various websites using the bot."
"We have used the technical support. I am quite unhappy with the support part."
"Improving on the ease of use and user experience of Automation Anywhere (AA) could help."
"What I am suggesting, when using A2019, if there are any additional features to exclude those antivirus scans until after my task is completed, then the antivirus can start scheduling. Then, I can easily tell the client that the priority are running and the Automation Anywhere scans can wait until after the release."
"I am looking into IQ Bot, but I wanted more out of it. I am dealing with a lot of scanned documents. I want to see if Automation Anywhere can scan client emails for us because our clients send emails with some incidents and issues. We want to see how automation can automatically do the processing and create some structured data or automate bots to get work done."
"As a developer or user, I feel that the performance of the overall package could be made a little better or reliable."
"However, the AI Sense Recorder is too slow, so they can enhance its features for easier user experience."
"As of now IQ Bot only takes/fetches the record of the places that we have marked. e.g. Invoices fields that are dynamic in nature are very difficult to fetch the data from the scan copy. If this feature gets added, it will save a lot of time for developers."
"There are many competitive products in the market right now, for example, UiPath and Automation Anywhere. These competitive products are now coming up with features which Appian RPA currently does not have."
"In my opinion, Appian RPA can be improved."
"There are not any areas that need improvement off the top of my head."
"Stability could be better."
"There are certain limitations in the solution for screen reading."
"One of the things I would definitely like to see is more of the machine-learning and cognitive capabilities."
"One of the things I would definitely like to see is more of the machine-learning and cognitive capabilities. For example, now that we're starting to automate more and more tasks, there are some things that still require us to go back and modify the robots when we need to. But if we had more of the machine-learning integrated into it, I believe it would be easier to maintain, so that we wouldn't have to go back and adjust every time."
"The scalability of the solution can be challenging."
"Capturing GUI operations is very easy, but capturing IBM Logistics automation is hard. It does not always work with browsers or automotive applications like SAP."
"IBM RPA is an unstable solution."
"I would like it to do pretty much everything out-of-the-box without any need for any customization. However, that is not the case right now. We absolutely have to do some amount of customization with the solution in order to use it out-of-the-box as-is."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is fantastic. It has been great. It is perfectly priced for the quality received. When paying for quality, that is exactly what you get."
"We have saved a lot of money on taxes based on the stuff that we run."
"It looks like it will be right around $115,000, not counting IQ Bot, which we won't renew until later."
"It saves me around $100,000 a year."
"One of the things that will be good for the community will be to get the free version to download, which came out just a month ago called Community Edition. So, you can actually download it and try it for yourself."
"There is an annual subscription for Automation Anywhere."
"They're very flexible around pricing and licensing."
"The product starts at $10,000 and then it's up to you regarding how much you can consume."
Information not available
"The pricing is reasonable for this solution."
"There is a free trial for one month, so you can use it to run your payloads or proof of concept. After that, you can pay for the license on a monthly or annual basis."
"The product is reasonably priced compared to other tools."
"The license is paid annually."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"IBM RPA is cheaper than other tools."
"I rate the pricing ten out of ten. So, the pricing is very good for me."
"The product has a yearly licensing fee."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Robotic Process Automation (RPA) solutions are best for your needs.
915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Construction Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Insurance Company
9%
Outsourcing Company
13%
Computer Software Company
10%
Construction Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business161
Midsize Enterprise85
Large Enterprise561
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise10
 

Questions from the Community

How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?
It depends on your use case. Is it simply to automate a couple of processes? Is it to augment a human team? AA is ver...
How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?
From my experience using AA tool, it depends on the applications that you want to automate, because there some applic...
How good is Automation Anywhere for RPA processes?
It is a highly preferred RPA tool. You can check my Automation Anywhere Review to know more.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Appian RPA?
I didn't handle payments or costs. We recommended infrastructure stacks to our clients, who implemented them, and we ...
What needs improvement with Appian RPA?
In my opinion, Appian RPA can be improved. We are planning to conduct a proof of concept on volume because we are sti...
What is your primary use case for Appian RPA?
We have been working with Appian RPA along with the entire workflow case management suite. Recently, Appian released ...
What needs improvement with IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?
To improve IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for the next release, there should be more integration with external ...
What is your primary use case for IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?
My customers' main use cases for IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) are especially in the banking industry, particu...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA)?
I recommend starting with the Academy to check the features and compare them with other competitors to choose the bes...
 

Also Known As

Automation Anywhere, Testing Anywhere, Automation Anywhere Enterprise, Agentic Process Automation System (Now Certified for WorkSpaces)
Jidoka RPA
IBM RPA
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Google, Linkedin, Cisco, Juniper Networks, DellEMC, Comcast, Mastercard, Quest Diagnostics
empark, talan, liverpool, ayesa, aeromexico, teknei
The Hanover Insurance Group
Find out what your peers are saying about Appian RPA vs. IBM Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.