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ARIS Architect and Designer vs Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

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

ARIS Architect and Designer
Ranking in Business Process Design
11th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...
Ranking in Business Process Design
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
99
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Business Process Design category, the mindshare of ARIS Architect and Designer is 1.1%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is 8.0%, down from 11.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Design Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect8.0%
ARIS Architect and Designer1.1%
Other90.9%
Business Process Design
 

Featured Reviews

BM
Consultant at KAFD DMC
Has raised concerns about pricing while expressing satisfaction with its contribution to optimizing internal processes
Considering the integration capability of the product, it contributes to data-driven decision-making in our case. We see some impact of reporting tools on performance tracking or strategic planning. We do different kinds of analysis in regard to due integration controls, risk, and how we can strengthen the processes and the activities. We use it for various purposes. Regarding the process visualization framework, it helps to improve communication and collaboration in the company in a positive way. Architect is managing all the library management and with regards to the filter management. It's always a positive side that if you want to use anything further, we know that we can reach out to the Architect to add those objects and those attributes. It's really good.
Milan Sterba - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Enterprise Architect at Deepview S.r.o.
Efficient documentation generation through organized model structure with a good price-performance ratio
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not easy for even experienced users to find their way without guidance. This is not the most user-friendly solution.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The support team is very responsive."
"The user interface is easy to work with."
"Its user interface is highly regarded, especially when compared with Visual Paradigm."
"Considering the integration capability of the product, it contributes to data-driven decision-making in our case."
"Considering the integration capability of the product, it contributes to data-driven decision-making in our case."
"I would rate the solution overall a ten out of ten."
"We use the product for modeling, conducting process checks, doing process flow, running, and analyzing the report."
"The most important feature is ARIS's ability to turn a process design into data to analyze anything you want. For example, we have some analysis reports in ARIS that can guide us when we want to change a system. It shows us how this change will affect all of the organization's processes."
"The best thing about the tool is that its database is open."
"We use it to develop and maintain the Enterprise Conceptual Model, migrated from erwin a couple of years ago."
"I like that there is support for software patterns."
"Large variety of profiles and frameworks available out-of-the-box without the need for customization."
"Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is very flexible and it is simple to define the metamodel. Additionally, it is lightweight on resources."
"Scalable solution for modeling, project sharing, and collaboration. Support for it is good."
"This is a useful tool for IT people who need to design their solution architecture."
"Simplified our task at maintaining architecture information and traceability with requirements."
 

Cons

"Sometimes, it's not easy to convince customers to use this methodology because it's a bit rigid."
"The support team takes a long time to respond to our queries."
"Currently, we don't have any metrics to measure the success of ARIS Architect and Designer."
"Currently, we don't have any metrics to measure the success of ARIS Architect and Designer."
"Sometimes we feel that the designer needs more usability. I understand that the web module or the cloud version is much more user-friendly and easier to work on compared to the client that we download."
"This product could be improved by lowering the licensing cost. More organizations could use ARIS if they slashed the licensing costs even a little bit."
"Currently, we don't have any metrics to measure the success of ARIS Architect and Designer."
"The customer service of ARIS Architect and Designer was disappointing. It took forty days to conclude that partial data restoration was not possible, and it was suggested that the data might have been accidentally deleted, despite evidence to the contrary."
"The elements of the modeling sets can have better customization and visual representation. It would be great to have a mobile version."
"It can be improved in the area of shared documentation. The idea is that the architecture tool can call back to an enterprise asset, pull that information, and link that as a sub-artifact."
"The initial setup of the Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect It's very complicated. It's very difficult to start with the right templates because there are many possibilities. The deployment took approximately two days."
"Its usability needs to be improved. For non-technical users, it is a little difficult to understand how Enterprise Architect works. Users who are not engineers find it difficult to understand how this tool works. This is something they need to work on. They can develop a BPM model to simulate processes."
"No way to implement data integrity and referential integrity constraints."
"The automatic creation of reports based on the model elements could be improved."
"The solution's interface could be more straightforward."
"Not visually appealing."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is expensive."
"The tool is a little bit expensive."
"Many customers find the licensing configuration confusing. There are many different sub-details in the licensing, making it very difficult for us to understand what we are buying and what we are using with what."
"The licenses are very costly. I've seen many people who are hesitant or not able to use ARIS Suite just because of the license cost. Even though they like all the functionalities and understand the value of everything ARIS provides, they aren't able to implement it."
"Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is priced well. The price we pay is approximately $20 per month. Other solutions I have found to be much more expensive."
"There is no license required for this solution."
"In terms of cost, Sparx EA is probably one of the cheapest tools I have ever used."
"It's affordable. The only additional cost that we haven't yet figured out is the floating license. If you buy a floating license, you have to have a license management server, which comes at an additional cost that's not discussed. So, we haven't yet used the floating license. That’s because I haven't had a chance to figure that out."
"It is cheap."
"This product has a paid license, with a yearly subscription option."
"It is cheaper than other solutions. Its cost is around $686 per year. There are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."
"Pricing and licensing is very attractive, simple, and straightforward."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
10%
Insurance Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business38
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise58
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with ARIS Architect and Designer?
Currently, we don't have any metrics to measure the success of ARIS Architect and Designer. We would appreciate it if you could share anything with us that we can do to find out the impact.
What is your primary use case for ARIS Architect and Designer?
We spoke with you about ARIS Architect and Designer. We already have two architect licenses, I think three architect licenses, and we have, I think, six or seven designer licenses. Architect is bas...
What do you like most about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
The stability has been good and satisfactory. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
One of the reasons many public sector institutions in the Czech Republic use it is that it provides a very good price-performance ratio. While it might be cumbersome to learn, it still delivers exc...
What needs improvement with Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not ...
 

Also Known As

ARIS Architect & Designer, ARIS Architect, ARIS Designer
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

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, 10 million users worldwide, from 1 user companies to the Fortune 500.
OmniLink
Find out what your peers are saying about ARIS Architect and Designer vs. Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.