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Atlassian Confluence vs IBM FileNet 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.5
Atlassian Confluence is a cost-effective tool improving time efficiency, knowledge sharing, and quality of life for users.
Sentiment score
4.3
IBM FileNet improved efficiency, reduced errors and costs, saving clients up to $30,000 annually with enhanced automation and accuracy.
Cost savings come from re-engineering the business processes using IBM FileNet and related strategies.
Consulting CTO at a tech consulting company with 1-10 employees
There is a significant ROI from IBM FileNet because before its introduction, the company needed to do all the work manually.
Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.5
Atlassian Confluence support is responsive but limited, with users often seeking help elsewhere due to cost and complexity issues.
Sentiment score
7.0
IBM FileNet customer service is praised for responsiveness but faces challenges with time zones and specific expertise issues.
This team manages all queries and uses various plugins, such as Tempo for time tracking.
Manager QA at [x]cube LABS
The Atlassian technical support team is reachable through different platforms.
Project Manager at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
People come from all over the world, and they have specialists at the other end of the world to help if needed.
Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
IBM has a different division that provides consultation to end users, and most customers utilize consultation from IBM, which costs approximately $100k USD to $200k USD.
Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN
The consulting experts that IBM provides sometimes do not understand the tool very well.
Consultor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Atlassian Confluence scales efficiently for diverse organizations, though cloud performance and cost concerns exist; integration boosts flexibility.
Sentiment score
7.6
IBM FileNet excels in scalability and adaptability, effortlessly handling growth, integration, and large-scale operations, meeting diverse business needs.
The bigger products like IBM FileNet can handle billions of documents and thousands of users.
Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
With Kubernetes, we can simply add instances of the worker, CPU, or memory without needing deployment.
Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN
We have about 80 transactional systems connected to IBM FileNet.
Consultor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Atlassian Confluence is reliable and stable, despite occasional server-related disruptions, with performance improving consistently over time.
Sentiment score
8.0
IBM FileNet is praised for stability and reliability, though some clients face issues with high-volume ingestion or outdated APIs.
I have never encountered a problem of data corruption, losing data files, insecure access, or anything of that nature.
Consulting CTO at a tech consulting company with 1-10 employees
FileNet was restricted to DB2's enterprise edition instead of the standard edition, causing complications.
System integrator at Indépendant
In terms of stability, we haven't experienced any big technical issues or downtime with IBM FileNet.
Senior Consultant EIM and ECM at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Atlassian Confluence faces criticism for poor search, inadequate editing features, inflexible pricing, and scalability issues for large enterprises.
IBM FileNet users seek improved cloud integration, enhanced usability, automation, analytics, modern interface, and better integration with existing systems.
The software does not currently have any kind of AI integration.
Manager QA at [x]cube LABS
This chart used AI to offer users the option to create it based on the data.
Sr Consultant at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Ease of use with IBM FileNet is a disadvantage of this tool. It is complex and hard to use.
Consultor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
The response time and resolution of issues by technical support need improvement.
Assistant Vice President at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
From the beginning, we cannot use a REST API; we have to use the IBM FileNet native API, which is quite outdated.
Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN
 

Setup Cost

Atlassian Confluence costs vary by users and add-ons, potentially increasing annually, with complex licensing affecting price perception.
IBM FileNet is costly, with high licensing and setup fees; negotiation can reduce prices, yet remains expensive for smaller enterprises.
It streamlines license management and renewal processes, which can otherwise lead to complications or lapses in access.
Manager QA at [x]cube LABS
Money is a factor because Atlassian Confluence is not free.
Project Manager at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
We are living in a world where the minimal license from IBM costs anywhere from seventy-five thousand to one hundred thousand US dollars.
Consulting CTO at a tech consulting company with 1-10 employees
The product has become more expensive and requires significant investment for enterprise solutions.
System integrator at Indépendant
The price is high, with yearly subscriptions increasing day by day.
Assistant Vice President at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
 

Valuable Features

Atlassian Confluence enhances collaboration with customizable templates, content sharing, and secure integration with Jira and external tools.
IBM FileNet offers scalable document management, seamless integration, automation, strong security, and high performance for efficient business processes.
This tool provides a single repository for interacting with the entire team.
Sr Consultant at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
I use Atlassian Confluence for task management and other project management tasks, such as reporting, visualization of tasks, tracking the progress of tickets, and understanding how work is progressing.
Project Manager at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
There is a significant ROI from IBM FileNet because before its introduction, the company needed to do all the work manually.
Chief Architect at NEUSOFT JAPAN
The impact when using IBM FileNet is the faster retrieval of documents and how end users are happy with the ability to retrieve documents faster than before in an easier way.
Development Lead at Public Authority for Civil Information
The main features we find impactful are the workflow and document management along with FileNet file stores.
Assistant Vice President at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Atlassian Confluence
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
107
Ranking in other categories
Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) (2nd), Enterprise Social Software (3rd), Knowledge Management Software (1st)
IBM FileNet
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
105
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Content Management (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Atlassian Confluence and IBM FileNet aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Atlassian Confluence is designed for Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) and holds a mindshare of 13.6%, down 16.4% compared to last year.
IBM FileNet, on the other hand, focuses on Enterprise Content Management, holds 6.5% mindshare, down 10.0% since last year.
Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Atlassian Confluence13.6%
SharePoint26.7%
Liferay Digital Experience Platform17.8%
Other41.900000000000006%
Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals)
Enterprise Content Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM FileNet6.5%
SharePoint11.8%
OpenText Content Management8.4%
Other73.3%
Enterprise Content Management
 

Featured Reviews

Rabindra K Maharana - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr Consultant at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Editing features improve document accessibility
There is a holiday calendar, however, I need to install an app or add something to it. The add-on feature is not readily available or well-documented. Guidance on this should be available in a forum. Recently, I used a feature in another tool—perhaps GitHub—where it helped prepare a chart. It involved listing resources, like having fifteen people in the X team, ten in the Y team, and seven in the Z team. It created a bar chart showing these numbers. This chart used AI to offer users the option to create it based on the data. It was then created on a separate page and made available.
Shankar-Kambhampaty - PeerSpot reviewer
Consulting CTO at a tech consulting company with 1-10 employees
Business workflows have been automated and document processes are streamlined at large scale
I believe IBM FileNet could be improved or enhanced in the future, specifically the user interface development support, which, despite all the improvements, still feels from the 2010s or 2000s. The current state of the user interface development support and the ability to customize it leaves much to be desired. The backend engine, process engine, and object engine are fantastic. However, the user interface, which is required to provide an impressive experience to the user, is difficult to build. IBM will need to do something about this area. Over time, IBM has made improvements with enhancements through CP4BA and other tools, with which user interfaces can be built. But there is much more is needed. The initial setup process for IBM FileNet requires specialists. IBM FileNet is not a click-click-click deploy kind of product. It has several components that need to be installed in different versions and in a particular order. Additionally, IBM Cloud does not provide a proper experience. The problem is I cannot use IBM Cloud easily. I cannot even get a membership easily. With AWS, I just use my credit card, sign up, and I am done. With IBM Cloud, that is not how it is. They go through all validation processes, and it is a nightmare at times. There are problems around IBM FileNet, not exactly with IBM FileNet itself, but the point is that it is not a click-click-click deploy either on the cloud or on-premise. It requires specialists, and there is a big learning curve toward deploying and managing the whole infrastructure as well as the software. I communicate with the technical support of IBM frequently. I have communicated several times, and frankly, there is much to be desired on that side. When you raise a ticket, it takes 24 to 48 hours for them to respond. We live in a time where business moves at the speed of light. Twenty-four hours is a very long time. You need to be able to get technical support instantaneously. It is not like the more contemporary support models where you get turnaround in minutes, not days.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
6%
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
9%
Insurance Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business38
Midsize Enterprise26
Large Enterprise52
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise74
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Atlassian Confluence?
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from its document-controlling feature. In Atlassian Confluence, controlled documents cannot be edited by anyone else.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Atlassian Confluence?
Money is a factor because Atlassian Confluence is not free. I need to purchase extra components when adding new projects or employees.
What needs improvement with Atlassian Confluence?
Currently, I have no suggestions for improvements. There are no issues with stability or downtime with Atlassian Confluence.
What do you like most about IBM FileNet?
The product is robust and can process a lot of documents for enterprise content management.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM FileNet?
From the company's perspective, the licensing cost for IBM FileNet is still affordable. Though the license cost is somewhat expensive, it remains manageable. The company rates it between 3 and 5 be...
What needs improvement with IBM FileNet?
We almost do not utilize the automation capabilities of IBM FileNet to streamline our business processes. The process automation and business automation features are barely used. Currently, we prim...
 

Also Known As

Confluence
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Facebook, Skype, Microsoft, NASA, Netflix, Adobe, Bonobos, LinkedIn, Pfizer, Citi.
Suncorp Group Limited, St. Vincent Health, Citigroup, SRCSD, and UK Dept for Work and Pensions.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Atlassian, Liferay and others in Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals). Updated: January 2026.
880,685 professionals have used our research since 2012.