ARIS Cloud vs Appian comparison

Appian and Software AG are both solutions in the Business Process Management (BPM) category. Appian is ranked #12 with an average rating of 7.9, while Software AG is ranked #22 with an average rating of 7.2. Appian holds a 5.7% mindshare in BPM, compared to Software AG’s 0.9% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Appian users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 87% of Software AG users who would recommend it.

Appian

Read 63 Appian reviews

4,778 Views
2,020 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

ARIS Cloud

Read 14 ARIS Cloud reviews

630 Views
156 Comparison Views

87% willing to recommend

Appian

ARIS Cloud

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 2025

Appian and ARIS Cloud compete in the business process management category. Appian appears to have the upper hand due to its rapid development capabilities and low-code platform.

Features: Appian offers rapid development with low-code, seamless business process management, and a cohesive architecture that enhances user experience. ARIS Cloud provides flexible process modeling, robust collaboration tools, and an intuitive user interface. Both platforms cater to different aspects of enterprise needs with distinct features.

Room for Improvement: Appian faces challenges with customization limits and reliance on its proprietary SAIL language. Enhancements in team collaboration, DevOps integration, and mobile capabilities are needed. ARIS Cloud's flexibility can lead to complexity, necessitating user-friendly updates and improved on-premises stability to address UI customization concerns.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Appian provides multiple deployment options across public, private, and hybrid clouds, offering excellent customer service and strong technical support. ARIS Cloud offers similar deployment options but has average customer support, requiring further improvements to match Appian's dedicated support community.

Pricing and ROI: Appian is considered more flexible and cost-effective with a competitive pricing model, supporting rapid ROI due to faster development times. In contrast, ARIS Cloud, while feature-rich, is perceived as expensive for companies not utilizing extensive modeling features. Both platforms deliver ROI differently through their functionality and operational efficiency.

To learn more, read our detailed ARIS Cloud vs. Appian Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

ARIS Cloud vs. Appian

June 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:

Categories and Ranking

Appian

Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)

12th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Process Automation (7th), Rapid Application Development Software (10th), Low-Code Development Platforms (5th), Process Mining (8th)

ARIS Cloud

Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)

22nd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Business Process Design (15th)

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of Appian is 5.7%, down from 6.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ARIS Cloud is 0.9%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Business Process Management (BPM)

Featured Reviews

Nitin-Agarwal

Delivery Manager (Intelligent Business Automation) - Pega at Persistent Systems

Seamless integration enhances workflows while memory optimization can improve complex processes

I am working with all of these products: Pega, Appian, and OutSystems. I use Appian as a process orchestrator for workflow and rule-based routing, and it is preferred when I am developing an enterprise-wide application. The application is mobile-friendly, allowing me to use it across any device…

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BPMexp67

BPM Expert at a consultancy with 1-10 employees

The dynamic and flexible approach, akin to outsourcing, is beneficial for both small and large enterprises

Security is a consideration when migrating to the cloud. It's crucial to address potential risks and include security measures in the contract with the cloud provider. While there haven't been issues so far, acknowledging the risks is essential, especially when dealing with applications like ARIS. With the increasing capabilities and advancements in technology, many current challenges are likely to be resolved in the future. Despite security concerns, utilizing opportunities in the cloud and the internet offers significant advantages. Regarding areas for improvement, security remains a key consideration, especially when deploying ARIS in the cloud. However, this is not solely a product-specific concern but also pertains to the cloud environment. Beyond security, the strength of ARIS lies in its ability to serve as a unified repository for enterprise architecture. Having all information in one place facilitates alignment with the company's vision, strategy, and business objectives. Reducing redundancies across departments is crucial for maintaining service quality and minimizing costs. It ensures that everyone is on the same page, fostering collaboration and preventing discrepancies in information and services. While I currently use Guardis for this purpose, the concept of enterprise architecture is applicable, and ARIS stands as a valuable tool to support business processes and technology alignment within the company.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Appian is easy to install and set up, and it does not come out with your audit. It has accessible process orchestration and process management. With Appian, the time to market is much faster."

"The product's most valuable feature is the low code aspect of development. We can develop an end-to-end VPN solution using a single platform."

"We appreciate the drag and drop functionality and the easy to access plug and play features."

"It has very flexible adaptation and the ability to save and automate processes."

"Another advantage of this tool is its reports and records. You can maintain dashboards, layouts. If you with a Java solution, it takes six months time. If you use this tool, you can finish in one or one and a half months' time."

"The low code functionality and being able to get applications faster to customers or to the market are valuable."

"Rapid development with low-code makes it easier to quickly get apps implemented and the time to break-even and ROI is much faster."

"There is no need to worry about vulnerabilities in the system, because Appian built a secure system."

More Appian pros

"In terms of using the cloud version, if you're somebody who, like myself, has got a lot of experience and understands measures and notations and things, basically it's unrestricted. You can do so many things. You can do your Archimaze, you can do BPMN. There's lots of stuff you can do in there and if you're a good field person and you cause yourself re-using things or whatever, then it's very nice, it's very easy to use."

"ARIS Cloud offers easy query writing for retrieving information and includes a user-friendly Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) part that aids risk managers effectively."

"Signavio is more intuitive, allowing users with no prior knowledge to navigate and understand its functionality more readily."

"In the end, what stands out to me is the ease of using the cloud. I don't see any distinct or unique advantages in business process modeling software compared to other application software. The cloud simplifies operations and removes many operational complexities, which is a significant benefit."

"The most valuable feature is GUI; it is very intuitive and easy to use."

"From a total cost of ownership perspective, running this on the cloud is more efficient than having someone in the company take care of the infrastructure."

"It's very easy to collaborate with. It's very user-friendly"

"This solution has improved the way our organization does training."

More ARIS Cloud pros

Cons

"Native mobile capabilities or hybrid mobile app capabilities are very limited. Things like offline sync, offline storage, access to smartphone device features, etc. are not supported by the Appian platform yet."

"There are four areas I believe Appian could improve in. The first is a seamless contact center integration. Appian does not have a contact center feature. The second is advanced features in RPA. The third would be chatbot and email bot integration—while Appian comes with chatbot and email bot, it's not as mature as it should be, compared to the competition. The fourth area would be next best action, since there is not much of this sort of feature in Appian. These are all features which competitors' products have, and in a mature manner, whereas Appian lacks on these four areas. I see customers who are moving from Appian to Pega because these features are not in Appian."

"There should be more flexibility for the developers to choose the look and feel of the UI. They should have a better ability to design their widgets and customize them with different colors, shapes, and sizes. That is a limitation that could be improved upon."

"They should provide more flexibility so designers can create a more picture perfect device."

"I would like to see more complete university tools. For example, with UiPath, I have had a good experience related to a free course in order to provide some users some different levels of knowledge. This extra training helps users not only use the solution but to develop further within the tool."

"I wouldn't say their response time is long, but it could be quicker."

"My only request is that they decrease the license costs."

"It would be useful if they could create an academy or forum in the future to help active users answer questions they have about the solution."

More Appian cons

"On an enterprise level, the ability to onboard somebody quickly is cumbersome because it just has too many things in it. It's got something like a hundred or more techniques and things in it."

"The stability was poor, with frequent outages."

"The trial version of this solution does not give you enough time to learn how to use it, so it should be extended to one year."

"The price is quite high. This is one weak point of the solution."

"ARIS' flexibility and power add a certain complexity. And if ARIS could be more streamlined, I think customers would have a better handle on what to do with it in the end. So if you're not a tech geek, you might struggle to understand what you should do with it as a customer because it's that powerful."

"The stability was poor due to frequent outages."

"There is room for improvement in the support."

"The price of ARIS Cloud is relatively high and not every firm can afford it, especially if the company is not mature enough to require such extensive process modeling and optimization."

More ARIS Cloud cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"If you're doing an enterprise-wide digital transformation, Appian is worthwhile, but not for just one or two use cases because the license costs are higher."

"The cost depends on the number of users, although I recommend taking an unlimited license."

"Product pricing compared to some of the earlier vendors, like IBM, CA, and Oracle, is quite well-priced. Although, we do feel that as we increase the number of users and the workload increases, we will have to spend more."

"I'm sure it is cost-effective, but right now, we're just toying around with it. So, I don't have any hard numbers."

"Appian is very flexible in their pricing. In general, Appian's pricing is much, much lower when compared to competition like Pega or other products. Appian also has a flexible licensing model across geographies. Pega usually goes with a single licensing cost—which is a US-based cost—for all global customers, and it's costly. Whereas Appian has a different regional licensing cost model and it can be cheaper, depending on geography. So Appian's licensing is very flexible, and cheaper when compared to other competition."

"The cost is a bit higher than other low-code competitors, OutSystems and Mendix. The price needs to be more competitive."

"You can't really test the software properly without actually buying the license first."

"When it comes to pricing, it's definitely not affordable. However, it really depends on the requirements that you're seeking from the solution."

More Appian pricing and cost advice

"The cloud deployment is not more expensive. In the cloud, you pay for what you use, and there's no need for maintaining infrastructure or additional personnel, making it cost-effective. On-premises deployment, on the other hand, involves infrastructure costs and maintenance expenses."

"There is a student version of this solution that can be used for free."

"The licensing model of ARIS Cloud is leaner and more beneficial to the customer. The new license model is great. With the on-premise, you needed to subscribe to many more types of licenses. Now there are licensed bundles available on the cloud."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

21%

Educational Organization

12%

Computer Software Company

10%

Government

Financial Services Firm

18%

Computer Software Company

15%

Insurance Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

Which do you prefer - Appian or Camunda Platform?

Appian is fast when building simple to medium solutions. This solution offers simple drag-and-drop functionality with easy plug-and-play options. The initial setup was seamless and very easy to imp...

See all answers

Is Appian a suitable solution for beginners who have no additional preparation?

Appian is actually pretty big on educating its users, including with courses that reward you with certifications. There is a whole section on their company’s website where you can check out the edu...

See all answers

Is it easy to set up Appian or did you have to resort to professional help?

We had some issues when we were setting up Appian. It was quite surprising, since this is a low-code tool which, in its essence, means it is meant for business users and inexperienced beginners. So...

See all answers

What do you like most about ARIS Cloud?

The solution's most valuable feature stems from its being very easy to use, making it a very user-friendly tool.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ARIS Cloud?

The price of ARIS Cloud is relatively high and not every firm can afford it, especially if the company is not mature enough to require such extensive process modeling and optimization.

See all answers

What needs improvement with ARIS Cloud?

It would be beneficial for ARIS Cloud to add more customization options, such as having a landing page. Improving the importation script from Microsoft Visio ( /products/visio-reviews ) would also ...

See all answers

Comparisons

ServiceNow vs Appian

Compared 11% of the time

OutSystems vs Appian

Compared 10% of the time

Salesforce Platform vs Appian

Compared 10% of the time

Camunda vs Appian

Compared 9% of the time

Pega Platform vs Appian

Compared 7% of the time

More Appian Competitors

IBM Blueworks Live vs ARIS Cloud

Compared 19% of the time

SAP Signavio Process Manager vs ARIS Cloud

Compared 19% of the time

ARIS Architect and Designer vs ARIS Cloud

Compared 14% of the time

Salesforce Platform vs ARIS Cloud

Compared 8% of the time

iServer vs ARIS Cloud

Compared 8% of the time

More ARIS Cloud Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Appian

April 2025

Download Appian product report

Buyer's Guide

ARIS Cloud

July 2025

Download ARIS Cloud product report

Also Known As

Appian BPM, Appian AnyWhere, Appian Enterprise BPMS

Process Live, ARIS Simulation, ARIS Aware, ARIS Connect

Overview

Appian is a unified low-code platform and solution used by businesses to build enterprise applications and workflows. This product adapts to the needs of clients and the technologies they are already using to combine their data in a single workflow and maximize resources. The platform has four main components through which it transforms the work process for companies of various sizes. They are:

Complete automation: Through complete automation, companies are able to coordinate and manage employees, existing systems, bots, data, and artificial intelligence (AI) in a single workflow. The solution offers a way to centrally manage all third-party automation vendors as well.
Low-code applications: Appian offers the ability to build applications faster with visual development and low-code tools. All applications are ready-made to be suitable for mobile.
Low-code data: Appian lets companies source data from multiple types of sources, eliminating the need for data migration. Through no-code and low-code solutions and industry-standard connectors, the platform also eliminates the need for data silos.
Enterprise ready: The platform offers options for companies to scale their businesses to an enterprise level without complications.

Appian is utilized across a diverse set of industries, including automotive and manufacturing, energy and utilities, education, financial services, telecom and media, transportation, retail, insurance, healthcare, and life sciences. The most frequent use cases of Appian are customer journey, governance, risk and compliance, operational efficiency, supply chain, distributed order management, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) management.

Appian Features

Appian has various features that allow users to create solutions for their businesses. These features can be separated into a few groups according to function, including automation, low-code application development, and integrations and data. Some of the most frequently used features of Appian include:

Robotic process automation (RPA): Users of Appian can assign software bots to perform rules-based tasks that need to be repeated over a set course of time. This can improve efficiency and performance within an organization while saving human resources.
Intelligent document processing: The tool offers a feature for quick and accurate extraction and structuring of data. This can reduce time and costs for organizations because it eliminates the need for outsourcing such services.
AI: Appian utilizes artificial intelligence to enhance applications, workflows, and automation. AI is also used to address complex processes and unique situations.
Business rules: Organizations can automate and simplify work processes while adhering to their operating procedures.
Application development: Appian provides a low-code development feature that allows users to deploy applications over ten times faster than through conventional approaches. This feature not only allows for quick application building, but also applications that run on multiple types of platforms, seamless data integration, and business scalability.
Integrations and data: Appian allows for data integration from a wide array of sources without the need for migration. This contributes to easy access to data across systems, real-time data insights, improved user experience, and accelerated development.

Appian Benefits

The benefits of using Appian include:

The solution ensures seamless organization growth, as it supports various UX patterns, common data schemes, and upgrades, used to facilitate application development on a bigger scale.
Appian can increase process speed and deliver applications considerably faster compared to conventional development.
The platform is easy to use and suitable for complete beginners to build applications and workflows.
Appian offers a variety of design tools that facilitate development and deployment.
Appian offers detailed real-time data insight which allows organizations to access relevant information about their processes as they are developing.
The solution offers clients the ability to move data between the cloud, on-premise, and hybrid configurations.
The platform is easy to optimize, which allows businesses to utilize it according to their personal needs.
Appian offers connectivity across web, mobile, email, voice, and chat, providing a multi-channel experience for companies and their clients.

Reviews from Real Users

A practice leader - digital process automation at a computer software company values Appian highly because the product is easy to develop, low-code, and has a good user interface.

Alan G., an advisory board member at Codecon VR, Appian offers a clear application life cycle, easy to learn documentation, and comes with a fundamentals course.

Appian

ARIS is the market-leading solution for professional business process management and modeling. Whether you want to document the "as-is" state of your operations for quality or certification reasons or design the "to-be" in terms of continuous improvement in your transformation program, ARIS is the best choice for establishing a single source of truth regarding all process excellence topics in your organization. It is for any organization looking to digitally transform their business, increase operational excellence and customer experience and ensure compliance in execution. ARIS helps you to make the most out of your processes with Process Mining, Risk & Compliance Management, RPA and much more.

What makes the difference?

The most comprehensive platform for process excellence in the market

Easy to use

Covers business & IT architecture from all angles

Full flexibility and >100 diagram types

Customer-driven development based on best practices

Strong partner ecosystem

ARIS is the market-leading solution for any organization and ideally suited to digitally transform the organization, increase operational excellence and customer experience and ensure compliance in execution.

Software AG

Sample Customers

Hansard Global plc, Punch Taverns, Pirelli, Crawford & Company, EDP Renewables, Queensland Government Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning (, Bank of Tennessee

Tesco, Weifu, Airbus, Siemens, Proximus, Alicorp, Sekerbank, Bancor, Philips,Sky, Emirates NBD, Dubai Municipality, Suva, U.S. Army, Australia Post, Westfalen Weser Energie - ARIS serves customers across all industries and of every size worldwide. Companies trust ARIS as the market leader for process excellence with more than 30 years of experience in the market and 10 million users worldwide, from 1 user companies to the Fortune 500.

Buyer's Guide

ARIS Cloud vs. Appian

June 2025

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