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Avolution ABACUS vs MEGA HOPEX vs Sparx Systems Enterprise 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:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Enterprise Architecture Management category, the mindshare of Avolution ABACUS is 3.6%, down from 4.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MEGA HOPEX is 6.8%, down from 7.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is 12.7%, down from 17.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Architecture Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect12.7%
MEGA HOPEX6.8%
Avolution ABACUS3.6%
Other76.9%
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…
JorgeValdez - PeerSpot reviewer
A simple and intuitive tool that provides more features than other tools in the market
The solution can be used to model customer journeys and business processes I use the solution for my customers to model banking products. I also model and define business capability. The biggest value of the product is that we can use it to work in different industries like government,…
Milan Sterba - PeerSpot reviewer
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

"You can design using a diagram tool installed on your desktop, a key difference from other vendors."
"There are plenty of features available such as the ability to test applications for issues and a user-friendly dashboard."
"It's more than just an enterprise architecture tool as it has a lot of nice features, e.g. messaging, simulation, etc."
"Avolution ABACUS allows for flexible enterprise architecture analysis."
"If you face new challenges or issues then you can dynamically customize according to the business needs."
"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 with other tools like BI, Power BI, or Grafana requires setting up pipelines between them."
"The product is easy to use and well-structured for the integrations we need it to make."
"The most valuable feature is that it has a customizable meta-model, which is key."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the reuse of common enterprise components and entities."
"The main feature I find crucial in MEGA HOPEX is the catalog view, which provides a comprehensive visualization of all artifacts in one repository. Another valuable aspect is the availability of out-of-the-box outcomes, such as strategy maps and BPA models, eliminating the need for additional configuration. MEGA HOPEX allows users to focus on specific business areas, like risk management or data governance, providing a high-level overview while enabling deep dives into specific areas of interest. For risk management, MEGA HOPEX allows users to assess impacts, create recovery plans, and track action plans."
"What I find the most valuable is the process workflow. It is really good."
"What's most valuable in MEGA HOPEX is that it follows the reference model where each component is defined. I also like the diagram consistency in MEGA HOPEX."
"Its availability is very good."
"The most valuable feature of MEGA HOPEX is the publication method for static websites. You can generate the whole database into a static website. Additionally, in the new tabular entry, you don't have to put objects or links, you can go and fill a tab and the MEGA HOPEX will generate an object for you in a simple way."
"I find the process modeling and value chain features valuable. The application portfolio management functionality and workflow management capabilities are also nice. It provides a holistic view for stakeholders and helps align IT with business strategies. It facilitates collaboration across the organization and covers all domains, including business, applications, technology, and data."
"It's excellent for supporting decision-making."
"The solution saved a lot of time, about 30%."
"It's easy to search within the solution."
"Large variety of profiles and frameworks available out-of-the-box without the need for customization."
"I like Sparx's BPM features and the way it lets you create the diagram."
"The stability has been good and satisfactory. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"Provides a single repository for all architecture work."
"I like that there is support for software patterns."
"Sparx technical support is good."
 

Cons

"The reporting could be easier to configure."
"The company needs to update the UML version they are using for the product as it is quite old."
"It is vastly scalable but you can't run it on a Mac or Linux so it has limitations."
"The tool doesn't have any intelligence built in. We have to design the dashboards ourselves, which is a challenge because we have to depend on the vendor for customizations."
"The most valuable features are the catalog and the diagram."
"While Avolution ABACUS is flexible, it can be complex to work with as it requires knowledge of specific configurations to customize the product."
"Having more control over page size is lacking in this product. Print utilization also needs to be improved."
"They should take more initiative to implement things that competing products have already come out with."
"MEGA HOPEX's problem is that it is expensive, but it's a fantastic tool."
"The training materials and learning process need improvement."
"The tool needs to have a viewer portal. Currently, we have to use a custom solution to display information, which requires additional effort and tracking of data on a daily basis. Having a built-in viewer dashboard portal would be beneficial."
"The product must improve integration with other tools."
"The data layer might be the weakest point for MEGA HOPEX."
"MEGA HOPEX can improve process simulation in the BPA module. If the solution was better we would not have to use another solution for this purpose. Simulating scenarios in the future for the to-be processes is in demand. If we can have the simulation engine built inside MEGA HOPEX, we would not have to purchase another license or solution to integrate them with each other. This would be a great improvement."
"Better documentation and training would be helpful."
"I cannot recall coming across any missing features."
"The documentation could be better. Where I work, we speak French and we don't speak English, so we don't have anything in French. It's perfect in English, but we need something in French."
"The elements of the modeling sets can have better customization and visual representation. It would be great to have a mobile version."
"If you just want to create some diagrams with shapes and arrows, then use Visio."
"Insufficient control of metadata and standards."
"More challenging than other tools to maintain documents and document versions for an architecture board review."
"From a practical point of view, we need speed and reliability for creating a model and doing some really meaningful tasks such as application landscape, refactoring, etc. These are two primary criteria. Sometimes, when you import something, it creates the object duplicates, or it allows you to do something that you're not supposed to do. For example, validation is missing. This could be frustrating because when you work at a high speed, you need to come back and start fixing things that the tool allowed you to go with, which is not quite good. So, there should probably be some internal mechanisms to advise you about what you're doing and what is probably not the best idea."
"It really did not work for logical modeling. The look is very old-fashioned. You can't make the diagrams easy on the eye, so we ended up drawing them again in Visio anyhow."
"The UI is a little bit outdated. It should be more fresh and clean."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This solution is expensive for some people's budgets and they need to offer a Lite version at a cheaper price"
"My company makes annual payments toward the licensing costs of the solution. Considering the product's capabilities, its prices are very reasonable."
"It is expensive."
"The pricing is quite good compared to the competition and it is part of the reason we chose the product."
"The cost of Avolution ABACUS is reasonable, given the features they offer in comparison to other tools."
"I'm paying on a yearly basis. I don't know whether it's a highly expensive tool or not. I'm getting a single version of it, and I don't have the enterprise part on it because I don't need the server component, and I don't need a web browser component. My estimate would be that it's a very reasonably priced tool given that you don't need to have licenses with everyone in order to get the information and the decision support capabilities out of the tool. You use the enterprise edition on top of the studio, which is the heart of the tool. I am not aware of any additional costs."
"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."
"The solution's pricing is not an issue."
"The price of the MEGA HOPEX license could improve, it is expensive. The license key for business process analysis and IT architecture is approximately €10,000. This price is fixed, it's not a subscription or cloud-based version. It is a one-time price."
"MEGA HOPEX's licensing costs are yearly."
"The product is reasonably priced for the value it offers. There's a good balance between cost and features."
"It is very expensive."
"The tool is relatively expensive."
"If you want to use additional features, such as the Risk Management capability, then it is a little too expensive."
"The product has a high cost."
"The pricing depends on the number of licenses purchased."
"We had a yearly license."
"It's reasonably priced for large organizations."
"We have an annual license, and it's very affordable."
"The pricing for ultimate version is steeply high."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"It’s the best deal in town, by far."
"I rate the solution's pricing a five out of ten."
"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."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Government
16%
Computer Software Company
6%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
20%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Insurance Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Government
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise9
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise24
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business38
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise58
 

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...
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 de...
What needs improvement with Avolution ABACUS?
While Avolution ABACUS is flexible, it can be complex to work with as it requires knowledge of specific configuration...
Any experience with Strategic Project Portfolio Management Solutions?
Hi @Cheryl Joseph ​Looking at the crossover between Project and Portfolio management with EA, then Planview could be ...
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...
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 stra...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Barclays
Aetna, Fannie Mae, M&T Bank, Glatfelter Insurance Group, Zions Management Services Company, The College Board, Baxter Credit Union, AXA Financial, Missouri Department of Conservation, New York State OTDA, MEG Energy Corp, Walgreens, Procter & Gamble, Biogen Idec, Gilead Sciences, Organic Valley, Trinity Health, Nissan and Ford
OmniLink
Find out what your peers are saying about SAP LeanIX, Sparx Systems, MEGA International and others in Enterprise Architecture Management. Updated: August 2025.
866,286 professionals have used our research since 2012.