Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

ARIS BPA vs IBM Rational System Architect comparison

 

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

ARIS BPA
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
66
Ranking in other categories
Business Process Design (4th), Business Process Management (BPM) (9th)
IBM Rational System Architect
Average Rating
7.4
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (19th)
 

Mindshare comparison

ARIS BPA and IBM Rational System Architect aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. ARIS BPA is designed for Business Process Design and holds a mindshare of 7.7%, down 9.2% compared to last year.
IBM Rational System Architect, on the other hand, focuses on Enterprise Architecture Management, holds 1.7% mindshare, down 2.5% since last year.
Business Process Design
Enterprise Architecture Management
 

Featured Reviews

Libor Černý - PeerSpot reviewer
I can usually find an answer to my issue on ARIS Community
From the start, there were some difficulties on how to create outputs since there wasn't a repository tool in version 6. However, in version 7, there has been a tool for creating standards for a company, and that tool has been very intuitive. While I have been using this tool for several years, other people just starting to use it find the learning curve steep. This tool is very robust and accommodates many roles, where people can participate from compliance, IT designers, etc. This can create problems for users who have no experience with similar tools. It took me a year before I felt comfortable with this tool, because when I came from university it was the first or second tool that I worked on. It took me a year to run every feature or use it for every possibility since this tool is very robust. We sometimes have to create the link to the server and the repository twice because it is deleted once for some unknown reason. Though, this is not a big problem. There should be a more intuitive tool when creating reports.
it_user951237 - PeerSpot reviewer
Modeling is useful, but many features need improvement and technical support is lacking
I find that almost every feature related to the models requires improvement. For example, I would like to see more trendy models, the look and feel of the models can be improved. This solution can be more user-friendly and easier to use, with better dashboards. The impact analysis feature is in need of heavy improvement. The is a standalone product that lacks integration with a business process automation engine. I would like to see the workflow improved, where it integrates seamlessly with the artifacts.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Objects can be reused across different BPMNs and processes, so we can design new processes quicker and easier.​"
"​The matrix model makes building relations easier.​"
"In general, the users really like it and they can get started using it very easily."
"The maintenance capabilities of ARIS BPM and the strong underlying database are particularly valuable."
"Good at controlling the workflow and relevant key processes."
"The most valuable features of ARIS BPA are its flexibility and reporting."
"Fully-reportable database over Visio."
"Collaboration and governance over enterprise artifacts."
"There are a lot of features I find valuable, but I think that the metamodel customization is one of the best features that the solution offers."
"The solution is pretty stable."
"We have seen ROI with this solution over the years that we have used it."
"The user interface is good. It's both clear and comprehensible. It's easy to work with."
 

Cons

"We should have the ability to download ARIS EPCs to Visio."
"I could use more icons and other graphical elements.​"
"Migration to the next release is very tricky. You can't do it without support from ARIS or from a software kit. And it takes a lot of time and a lot of money to migrate. My impression is that a lot of companies do not migrate regularly because of that issue."
"It would be helpful if ARIS BPA could have a simple database to get the extract of various attributes."
"The pricing of the solution can be improved and the initial setup should be made easy."
"ARIS BPA’s usability could be improved."
"​The usability. Others tools are easier to manage without same complexity that ARIS has.​"
"It needs external API and the ability to navigate back, similar to "Back" in web browser."
"The reverse engineering of the database is already there, but in the next release I would like to see some pilot supplied with the solution in order to address any database."
"The solution needs to better integrate with other products, like Microsoft."
"This solution can be more user-friendly and easier to use, with better dashboards."
"There needs to be more information at the outset about how to use the solution and how to deploy it. The deployment process needs improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The setup cost and pricing depend on the license (Modeler, Viewer, Administrator)."
"Usually, our company buys technical support from the Software AG site. We bought the technical support for the first year of usage for ARIS version 6 and 7. So, when we migrated to ARIS version 7, we bought support only for the first year. Then, we didn't use it the next year. Our experience was that we use it only one to three times during the first year. Therefore, there wasn't much value for us to buy this service because we have no problem with using ARIS after the first year."
"​It is on the higher side."
"You will never get a fixed price for this product because they will go in and ask you what kind of environment would you like to set up? How many people will you work with? How big is your organization? Today, they have a fixed price to say, "Okay, just to start the business area, buy two licenses for modeling and eight people that can look into the product." They have this kind of fixed price. It's 50,000 Danish Krone. If you divided that by about six, then you get the pricing in dollars. Still, when you are going out, negotiate and find the right price. You will never get a fixed price: "It costs this and, if you take ten of these, seven of these and eight of these, and then it costs this." No, you negotiate every time."
"If you can afford it, it's the best so far."
"The solution has a fair price for the value it delivers."
"It is well worth the investment in the enterprise."
"ARIS is quite expensive."
Information not available
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Business Process Design solutions are best for your needs.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about ARIS BPA?
The most valuable features of ARIS BPA are its flexibility and reporting.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ARIS BPA?
Pricing for ARIS BPA is average, not cheap or expensive. It's cost-effective and worth the money we pay.
What needs improvement with ARIS BPA?
I find it difficult to access the database as I want with direct querying. I must write scripts, which requires specific knowledge. Software AG could improve this by making the database more open. ...
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Also Known As

ARIS, ARIS BPM
Rational System Architect
 

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.
Wuxi Lake Cloud, Nationwide, ETI, IDS Scheer
Find out what your peers are saying about Camunda, Microsoft, SAP and others in Business Process Design. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.