BizTalk Server vs IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services comparison

Microsoft and IBM are both solutions in the Business-to-Business Middleware category. Microsoft is ranked #8 with an average rating of 6.8, while IBM is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.5. Microsoft holds a 4.6% mindshare in BBM, compared to IBM’s 15.1% mindshare. Additionally, 75% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM users who would recommend it.

BizTalk Server

Read 16 BizTalk Server reviews

1,168 Views
561 Comparison Views

75% willing to recommend

IBM Sterling B2B Integratio...

Read 9 IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services reviews

1,564 Views
1,251 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

BizTalk Server

IBM Sterling B2B Integratio...

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 27, 2025

BizTalk Server and IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services compete in the B2B integration solutions market. IBM Sterling appears to have the upper hand due to its extensive features and flexibility.

Features: BizTalk Server is known for its robust message handling, extensive enterprise connectivity, and deep integration with Microsoft technologies. IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services offers advanced trading partner capabilities, high scalability, and comprehensive security features.

Room for Improvement: BizTalk Server could improve its capabilities in scaling beyond Microsoft environments, enhance its trading partner management, and advance its security features. IBM Sterling might focus on providing more cost-effective solutions, improving ease of integration with non-IBM ecosystems, and simplifying the initial setup process.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: BizTalk Server provides straightforward deployment within Microsoft environments, utilizing familiar tools. IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services presents a cloud-based deployment model with global compliance support, making it suitable for international integrations.

Pricing and ROI: BizTalk Server generally offers a lower setup cost, making it appealing for organizations seeking efficient ROI within a Microsoft environment. IBM Sterling tends to require higher initial investment but promises substantial ROI through its scalability and advanced features.

To learn more, read our detailed BizTalk Server vs. IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

BizTalk Server vs. IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services

September 2025

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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

BizTalk Server

Ranking in Business-to-Business Middleware

8th

Average Rating

7.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Process Automation (14th)

IBM Sterling B2B Integratio...

Ranking in Business-to-Business Middleware

4th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Business-to-Business Middleware category, the mindshare of BizTalk Server is 4.6%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services is 15.1%, up from 13.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Business-to-Business Middleware Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services	15.1%
BizTalk Server	4.6%
Other	80.3%

Business-to-Business Middleware

Featured Reviews

Vignesh Kumar Sekar

Senior Analyst at Sword Group

Enables message routing and provides a secure way to communicate between two systems

The AS2 communication protocol is one of the most advanced processes. It enables a handshake with the source and target systems using certificates. It is the most secure way of communicating between two systems. It is an advantage. We can do a lot of message routing. If we want to handle large data, we can put the data into different patterns to process it. We can do it through sequential convoy or parallel convoy orchestration. BizTalk comes with SQL Server. We can load temporary data in the database and use the batch process from BizTalk. It is an added advantage. Creating agreements is a manual job, but it's quite easy in BizTalk. Even a fresh college graduate can configure AS2 certificates and partner profiles and communicate with other systems. It is easy.

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Joshua Rule

Senior Integration Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees

Comes with real-time integration suite and best security

We use the product in an integrated environment where the client needs a variety of different file transfer protocols as well as an integrated file translation service IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services offers the best security. The product's most valuable feature is the real-time…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The BizTalk Server business rule engine was very useful for us and has helped us for the last 12 years."

"Compared to the current solutions I use, like Azure Logic Apps and other cloud services, BizTalk was far better and more reliable."

"The most valuable feature is its reliability and stability. The first version of BizTalk was released in 2000, and many companies still use it. It was stable until 2013 when we had support."

"The most valuable feature of BizTalk Server is that it will turn XML into flexible transactions."

"Boomi has advantages over BizTalk Server because it is more flexible, low-code, no-code, easy to implement, and has a fast go-to-market."

"Essentially, you can do whatever you like with these systems, and you do not have to take care about the scaling because if one server is overloaded, it just forwards the message to the next server, even if it were designated to a specific server. It weeds out the messages according to the load. If you want to scale it, you just add new servers."

"BizTalk Server offers workflow functionality that I find very effective for process automation."

"The AS2 communication protocol is one of the most advanced processes."

More BizTalk Server pros

"We are able to monitor all B2B messages, and we are able to see or track each message on it from an error perspective. That's a good side of it. It is working well, and we're able to do our current job."

"The product's most valuable feature is the real-time integration suite."

"The solution is extremely scalable."

"They have multiple features for each kind of task and issue. The company has different channels to give information to the administration. Security and integration capabilities are also important. This product has helped to replace a lot of other solutions, saving time and cost."

"IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services is a stable and scalable product."

"They have best-in-class, quality support."

Cons

"It's an on-premises system, requiring physical servers for deployment. This is different from Azure; you don't need any servers with Azure. If you have a subscription, you can do whatever you want. There are unit restrictions based on the environment (like non-production vs. production) in BizTalk. You need physical servers and databases. In Azure, those are not required – it's all in the cloud."

"BizTalk lacks native cloud support. BizTalk doesn't offer in-built support for cloud. We need to use third-party adapters to connect it to cloud services."

"BizTalk Server is an outdated legacy system that does not support messaging."

"The deployment could be simplified."

"The product could be improved in monitoring, managing, and support functionalities."

"We want to get rid of BizTalk Server, as there is unnecessary license cost, and there are some limitations, so we might go for Azure Integration Services."

"BizTalk is in the past, Microsoft is not going to evolve it any further or add any new features."

"Updating things in BizTalk is a headache."

More BizTalk Server cons

"They can improve APIs because they are still lagging behind in API connectivity. With non-API connectivity, they're market leaders, but API connectivity, they're still in the immature space."

"Onboarding on the solution is complex. It's hard to onboard partners and customer suppliers. It's one aspect that is not that straightforward."

"It can be now classified as a legacy system because there are no more updates. From what I know, there will be no updates for the current version, which is an issue. Therefore, we are looking for a compatible new software that we can use. We're currently researching what is there in the market. We would consider something that would give us better speed on our current processor. There is also room for improvement in terms of its scalability and GUI. It is an old system, and its scalability can be improved. Its GUI can also be more appealing."

"The only weaknesses they have different governance for each task and different channels for communication which are hard to maintain. The relation of the company with other companies can be improved. We have a lot of customers who this platform for the interchange of information which can also be improved. The compliance information about banks can also be updated."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Based on the knowledge, it is relatively cheaper than Azure Identity Services and cloud services in general."

"BizTalk Server is cheap. I would rate its pricing a two out of five."

"The cost will depend on the client's requirements."

"It was not cheap, but it was affordable."

"BizTalk Server is not freeware. There's a significant licensing cost involved. Be sure you will actually utilize its features fully."

"The solution is expensive."

"The tool is expensive because of its rich features."

"Pricing is a little bit on the higher side because they give you the best support. Out of ten, I would rate pricing at seven or eight."

"They have a good pricing system, in relation to powerful features."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

13%

Computer Software Company

10%

Healthcare Company

Manufacturing Company

16%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Media Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	7
Large Enterprise	9

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	5

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about BizTalk Server?

The tool's most valuable feature is its integration with the banks. Its messaging and routing capabilities are good.

See all answers

What needs improvement with BizTalk Server?

I am generally satisfied with BizTalk Server, but there are some gaps, as we have multiple integration tools. Thus, there is associated cost, operation cost, license cost, and CapEx, so we are tryi...

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What advice do you have for others considering BizTalk Server?

I have not worked with Amazon API Gateway or Mule ESB; I am just testing them. I am using Boomi iPaaS and WebMethods. I did not purchase it on AWS Marketplace; those are product API systems, and in...

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services?

The product's most valuable feature is the real-time integration suite.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services?

The tool is expensive because of its rich features.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services?

IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services does not have specific issues that need improvement. While each product, like SeeBurger and IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services, has its own advantages and d...

See all answers

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

BizTalk Server

October 2025

Download BizTalk Server product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services

October 2025

IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services report

Download IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services product report

Overview

Connects systems both inside and across organizations, exchange data and orchestrate business processes across multiple systems.

Microsoft

IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services are designed to alleviate the burden on internal resources by providing secure connectivity and collaboration with your customers, suppliers, and business partners. The solution is built on the cloud-based B2B integration and visibility capabilities of IBM Sterling B2B Collaboration Network and provides comprehensive service offerings for partner onboarding, B2B process management, and trading partner support.

Facilitate growth by rapidly growing and adapting your B2B community without burdening internal resources and capital
Reduce B2B total cost of ownership by reducing the cost and increasing the reliability of B2B operations

Accelerate B2B collaboration with global customers and suppliers by leveraging our B2B expertise.

IBM

Sample Customers

Centrebet, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, QualCare, Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, DTEK, Allscripts, United BioSource, Hogg Robinson

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

BizTalk Server vs. IBM Sterling B2B Integration Services

September 2025

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