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ARIS BPA vs PTC Windchill 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
68
Ranking in other categories
Business Process Design (6th), Business Process Management (BPM) (8th)
PTC Windchill
Average Rating
6.4
Reviews Sentiment
4.9
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (19th), Engineering Process (1st), PLM Tools (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

ARIS BPA and PTC Windchill aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. ARIS BPA is designed for Business Process Design and holds a mindshare of 7.0%, down 8.9% compared to last year.
PTC Windchill, on the other hand, focuses on Enterprise Architecture Management, holds 0.9% mindshare, up 0.5% since last year.
Business Process Design Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
ARIS BPA7.0%
Visio12.5%
Camunda11.3%
Other69.2%
Business Process Design
Enterprise Architecture Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
PTC Windchill0.9%
LeanIX13.1%
Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect11.3%
Other74.7%
Enterprise Architecture Management
 

Featured Reviews

Tamer Eldamanhouri - PeerSpot reviewer
Empowers teams with robust business process modeling capabilities
They should examine competitor solutions to identify differentiators. One issue related to ARIS BPA is its integration with AI; it has AI features for cloud solutions, yet many in the government sector in Kuwait do not view the cloud as viable. Software AG should focus on developing AI models for ARIS BPA on-premises, particularly in user interfaces, as well as creating predefined business processes for common areas such as HR and finance. This aspect is crucial for adapting to the market's needs and streamlining custom solutions. While they have been helpful regarding pricing, I cannot compare ARIS BPA to other business process modeling tools because I understand some competitors have significantly lower costs than ARIS BPA. To maintain market share, good discounts should be provided to customers.
CW
Effective lifecycle management improves with strong version control and deep integration needs
There is room for improvement in implementing features fully. The user interface is inconsistent and outdated. It appears that different departments or locations have implemented features differently, leading to inconsistency. There is a significant need for improved integration, particularly using OSLC for connecting with other tools like SAP ERP or ALM tools. The version control, while consistent, lacks flexibility regarding changes in CAD data and requires manual intervention for BOM management analysis.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The shared repository allows for cross-functional cooperation instead of doing things in a silo. You can operate cross-functionally and really work end-to-end, instead of dividing everything up on a functional basis."
"ARIS BPA covers many or all blueprints and functions that I need."
"The capability to integrate all information of the business and to generate simulations of processes. It can analyze the model of operations quickly."
"ARIS is probably the most mature product in terms of modeling an enterprise architecture so that it has context."
"It has the ability to scale up, as well as integrate with other systems within the organization to get real-time information from dashboards and reports."
"you want to do modeling with the old notation form, ours was EPC, you can use the same object in the BPMN because the database is built in a way that you can use both things. So you only have to define it once, and if the notation form is BPMN and those kind of activities, you can use the same EPCs, so there is a connection between them."
"We also have relationships specified with our IT systems and our organizational chart. That makes it possible to analyze things from the systems point of view and regarding the organizational part of the company. It all comes together in one tool and that is what gives us the most value at the moment."
"In general, the users really like it and they can get started using it very easily."
"I like how the product integrates with other technical solutions."
"The strong point of Windchill is its close connection between the CAD structure and the bill of materials structure."
"The version control maintains consistent versions, which is beneficial."
 

Cons

"The tool must provide more documents."
"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."
"I find it difficult to access the database as I want with direct querying."
"The solution's processes are huge and it is not easy to get an overview of how things work. It needs to improve the interface. I would like to see the product include a better overview of processes and improve search."
"Since this is a design tool, seamless interface to make the process flows executable."
"It needs external API and the ability to navigate back, similar to "Back" in web browser."
"Some improvements have been done, after Software AG acquired ARIS, but I don't believe it's still integrated with the other tool WebMethods in a perfect way."
"The tool's installation and configuration part needs to improve."
"Some parts of the system are exclusive, so we can't work with them."
"There is room for improvement in implementing features fully."
"I would not recommend doing business with PTC regardless of the product."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would recommend the product to only enterprise companies because of the pricing."
"It is well worth the investment in the enterprise."
"The pricing and licensing costs are available on their website. They will assign a relationship manager to assist if you show further interest in their products."
"Pricing is a bit on the higher side."
"Pricing for ARIS BPA is average, not cheap or expensive. It's cost-effective and worth the money we pay."
"The price of the solution is reasonable."
"ARIS has different licensing mechanisms for different modules, but they are perpetual licenses. So you pay once."
"The setup cost and pricing depend on the license (Modeler, Viewer, Administrator)."
"I rate PTC Windchill's pricing a seven out of ten since it is pricey."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
28%
Healthcare Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise8
Large Enterprise47
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?
ARIS BPA needs to be more accurate when generating documents. While it covers many blueprints and functions that I need, the document generation feature could be enhanced for better accuracy.
What needs improvement with PTC Windchill?
There is room for improvement in implementing features fully. The user interface is inconsistent and outdated. It appears that different departments or locations have implemented features different...
What is your primary use case for PTC Windchill?
I am using Windchill for managing CAD data and document data, specifically for product lifecycle management.
What advice do you have for others considering PTC Windchill?
I would not recommend doing business with PTC regardless of the product. Although Windchill has a commendable core functionality, it lacks refinement and complete feature implementation. On a scale...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

ARIS, ARIS BPM
Windchill, Atego Artisan Studio, Integrity Modeler, Intralink
 

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.
Bose, Valliant Group
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Camunda, Bizagi and others in Business Process Design. Updated: October 2025.
869,513 professionals have used our research since 2012.