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Avolution ABACUS vs IBM Rational System 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

Avolution ABACUS
Ranking in Enterprise Architecture Management
9th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
IBM Rational System Architect
Ranking in Enterprise Architecture Management
19th
Average Rating
7.4
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Enterprise Architecture Management category, the mindshare of Avolution ABACUS is 3.6%, down from 4.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Rational System Architect is 1.8%, down from 2.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Architecture Management
 

Featured Reviews

JoseCamacho - PeerSpot reviewer
Supports evaluating architecture through corporate objectives
I conducted an evaluation of enterprise architecture at the European Court in Luxembourg, reviewing and analyzing existing implementations to identify potential improvements and providing recommendations I conduct evaluations to identify potential improvements and make recommendations, forming a…
GM
Lots of valuable features, especially the metamodel customization
In terms of what could be improved, we did not take the whole package with all the modules, and I think that the integration with other platforms like Office could be better. 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.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Avolution ABACUS allows for flexible enterprise architecture analysis."
"Scalable and stable tool for roadmapping and modeling, with a good dashboard, end-to-end impact analysis, and portfolio management."
"The technical support is very good. They are responsive and the answers they provide are detailed."
"Avolution ABACUS allows for flexible enterprise architecture analysis."
"There are plenty of features available such as the ability to test applications for issues and a user-friendly dashboard."
"There are a lot of different features, but the business/decision-maker feature, visibility, and dashboards are most valuable."
"If you face new challenges or issues then you can dynamically customize according to the business needs."
"You can design using a diagram tool installed on your desktop, a key difference from other vendors."
"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."
"The user interface is good. It's both clear and comprehensible. It's easy to work with."
"We have seen ROI with this solution over the years that we have used it."
 

Cons

"It doesn't have the simulation capability, which would be helpful in doing some business process analysis and improvements."
"While Avolution ABACUS is flexible, it can be complex to work with as it requires knowledge of specific configurations to customize the product."
"The most valuable features are the catalog and the diagram."
"The company needs to update the UML version they are using for the product as it is quite old."
"They should take more initiative to implement things that competing products have already come out with."
"I use reference models, which are taxonomies, in my EA work. It is a reference model/taxonomy of things with capabilities, sub capabilities, and sub-sub capabilities, so you're working it down. I haven't yet found a simple way to implement that in Abacus. It could be that it is there, but I don't know how to do it."
"The reporting could be easier to configure."
"Their local presence in the Middle East could be scaled more, particularly in customer service. It would be good if they'd also have mobile dashboards for executive management out of the box."
"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."
"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."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The cost of Avolution ABACUS is reasonable, given the features they offer in comparison to other tools."
"The pricing is quite good compared to the competition and it is part of the reason we chose the product."
"It is expensive."
"The solution's pricing is not an issue."
"To get a fairly extensive license for Enterprise Architects from Spark is approximately US $400.00, maybe less, but with Avolution Abacus it was approximately US $2000.00 per year, and that includes maintenance with the Abacus tool."
"My company makes annual payments toward the licensing costs of the solution. Considering the product's capabilities, its prices are very reasonable."
"There is a subscription for this solution. We are on an annual subscription because you sometimes receive special offers the longer you subscribe."
"It is competitive. It is not chump change. I am just using the studio version. I am not using the full enterprise version, which would probably cost me three times more for single-use, but it gives a lot more capability and analysis. It is server-based as well, and it is reasonably priced compared to a lot of the other tools. There are other tools that have other sorts of capabilities, but in order to use them, you'd really have to have like 50 users for the price to become justifiable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
18%
Government
16%
Computer Software Company
9%
Educational Organization
6%
Manufacturing Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Government
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Avolution ABACUS?
The tool's implementation is straightforward as everything is readily available. For instance, setting up a portal is seamless, allowing easy publishing and access to data. However, integrating wit...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Avolution ABACUS?
It's pricey compared to Essential, Deltek, or Essential Cloud. However, its diagramming capabilities and metamodel design make it worth it. But it's not for large user bases. It has modules for app...
What needs improvement with Avolution ABACUS?
While Avolution ABACUS is flexible, it can be complex to work with as it requires knowledge of specific configurations to customize the product. It would be beneficial to have seminars or other met...
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Also Known As

No data available
Rational System Architect
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Barclays
Wuxi Lake Cloud, Nationwide, ETI, IDS Scheer
Find out what your peers are saying about Avolution ABACUS vs. IBM Rational System Architect and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.