Blue Prism vs IBM Datacap comparison

SS&C Blue Prism and IBM are both solutions in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) category. Additionally, 88% of SS&C Blue Prism users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 89% of IBM users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Blue Prism and IBM Datacap based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Robotic Process Automation (RPA) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Blue Prism vs. IBM Datacap Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Blue Prism vs. IBM Datacap

September 2025

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Helped 869,785 peers since 2012

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

Automate

Featured Reviews

Jane Rachma Kiniti

IT Project Manager at Labo des histoires

Automate has streamlined workflows and increased efficiency with powerful automation

The best features of the solution are the flexible automation features, it is rich with beautiful connectors, and it is easy to use with little to no coding knowledge required to get started, so anybody can use the tool. The intuitive interface of Automate has an intuitive design, which makes it easy to learn and use even without a strong technical background, and it has a drag-and-drop interface, which makes everything so easy and straightforward. The error handling capabilities in complex automation tasks are powerful, as it handles all types of tasks, whether complex or simple. I've never faced any problems even when dealing with complex tasks, so everything is super smooth and highly reliable, even when dealing with big tasks, as it has never slowed down. Automate's compatibility with existing IT infrastructure has impacted our business operations positively by providing smooth integration with other software that we use, such as Gmail, Jira, and Microsoft 365 apps, which gives us a unified platform instead of having to keep switching from one software to another, saving a lot of time and streamlining the whole workflows. The automated analytics have helped improve our business processes since it has increased our efficiency by automating our everyday tasks, freeing up time for us to focus more on strategic activities such as analyzing data and developing new business strategies. It is also cost-saving. By minimizing manual labor, it decreases human errors that can lead to costly mistakes. By automating the tasks, it helps to save costs, and it also improves our accuracy by reducing these errors to ensure that tasks are done almost perfectly.

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Pavan-Sharma

Senior Consultant at Ernst & Young

Impressive flexibility and support enhance integration and performance

The best feature of Blue Prism that I value the most is the simplicity of their pricing and licensing model, which is easy to understand. The tool is very robust and, being a pioneer in the sector, it is also very stable, particularly in finance where many companies rely on Blue Prism for its reliability and security standards. From a developer perspective, I find developing on Blue Prism simple, clean, and intuitive, making maintenance considerably easier compared to other tools. These AI features have helped in developing scalable and flexible solutions for my customers, as I worked on use cases that involved natural language processing to turn free text into structured data, enabling automation of previously unautomatable tasks. Additionally, I processed voice feedback for sentiment analysis and information extraction, making interactions more intuitive and voice-driven for customers.

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DeekshithShetty

Software Development Senior Specialist at NTT Data

High-accuracy document processing with easy integration and good image enhancement

The OCR extractions are very good, almost 100% accurate now. The integration with other tools is very easy, with inbuilt actions to configure and directly export to multiple depositories. It is also good at image enhancement, including the removal of lines, which is helpful in processing and automation and ensures very little user intervention, thus saving 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 solution is continuously adding more integrations to help with workflows and bot and task creation."

"The peace of mind I have using Automate for scheduling tasks allows me to focus on other responsibilities without worrying about operational issues."

"A great feature that you seldom see in these kind of systems is the ability to use a database as trigger to launch a task. This is something I asked for a few years ago and that was added."

"The most valuable feature is the drag-and-drop interface, which is very Windows-like."

"The most valuable features for my client are timing and scheduling."

"I find the ease of use from a programming perspective very valuable."

"We have found the pricing to be very reasonable."

"I would rate the technical support as a nine out of ten because it is quite fast and courteous."

More Automate pros

"The integration has improved a lot in terms of SAP, and other screens."

"The most valuable features are the exception handling and embedded control room."

"It offers assessments by way of a robotics or automation readiness assessment tool, which was quite helpful."

"All of the processes that we've automated have been completed successfully, and the bots are able to process them as expected."

"One of the most powerful features in Blue Prism is exception handling. It's one of the features that really differentiates it from other platforms."

"One key feature is the workflow design is able to be customized according to the way that you want the automation to work."

"Technical support has been responsive when we have needed their assistance."

"With Blue Prism, you automate the back-end processes. Blue Prism is more like service-side automation. It is not off-circuit automation. It is more like attended automation."

More Blue Prism pros

"The OCR extractions are very good, almost 100% accurate now."

"I like Datacap's integration with FileNet because financial companies use that export. The second part is web services integration, which is effortless to implement."

"While we are doing indexing, we tag the document type. It's programmed inside of Datacap to automatically detect the document based on a given template. It auto-indexes that document, which means that it automatically tags the correct document type to the scanned document."

"The feedback from our clients that this solution has increased their efficiency and their turnaround time on opening any account for end users, thus attracting more customers."

"The OCR extractions are very good, almost 100% accurate now."

"One valuable feature of IBM Datacap is the OCR capability, along with its ability to read fields from documents."

"The solution offers many features that are beneficial for customers."

"It is the best solution for scanning purposes."

More IBM Datacap pros

Cons

"The interface could be more user-friendly and easier to navigate."

"The documentation for errors needs improvement as many of the error messages we receive are very vague."

"I believe we need to test various OCR tools that assist in evaluating, let's say, six different customer resyncs. We analyze their spending patterns and documentations, but current OCR support has limitations, requiring highly standardized documents, which isn't always the case. With a more advanced OCR system, we could improve processes related to credit risk management and legal matters. We're exploring how to integrate Fortra's Automate with our CRM platform, taking cues from instances where Salesforce seamlessly merged with Automate. However, we use a different CRM, Insight for New Enterprise, and we're seeking ways to connect the automation process within our CRM. We aim for the automation to continue smoothly, even in instances where traditional automation methods might face hurdles."

"I would like the updates to be easier to deploy. Integration with Amazon S3 is somewhat lacking."

"I would like to see some better web automation, a wizard like the one in the product WinAutomation would be very nice."

"There is room for improvement regarding cloud functionality; there are a few missing features, and the logging could be better, especially air logging. We can go into logging events and create our own task, but it would be nice if this were more detailed."

"The technical support could be better. We suffer from language barriers, as we are in Argentina."

"Sometimes when we communicate with the ERP system and there is an issue, we are not always aware of the specifics of Automate and the source of the problem."

More Automate cons

"We've found some challenges with Blue Prism, particularly when interacting with certain applications. The element inspection feature could be improved, especially for more complex applications."

"Its pricing is sometimes higher. Its price can be better. Its presale support should be increased. Currently, its presale support is very less. System integrators generally position Blue Prism in front of customers. Though they have an ecosystem, they don't have people who can train for the partner ecosystem. They have to increase the presales consultants for partners. In addition, their L1 and L2 support can also be improved."

"User interface could be improved and a web interface included for easy access to robot information."

"In terms of improvements for Blue Prism, I would suggest enhancements in user-friendliness, particularly in searching for features, which currently lags behind competitors."

"We would like to see intelligent process automation that integrates RPA and machine learning."

"The upgrades could be managed better. I would also like to see more true AI development and machine learning."

"They should incorporate more functionalities in the analytics tool."

"Blue Prism could be more scalable."

More Blue Prism cons

"The user interfaces for exception processing can be tweaked. I commonly find that we try to tweak and customize some of those components to more of what the industry standard is. The product is still trying to play catch-up a little bit in those areas."

"It can take some time to implement."

"Speed of OCR is one issue. It's a challenge because we have customers that have millions and millions of pages that they want this solution to crank through. In order to do that you have to have a large infrastructure in place, and that directly impacts licensing based on the core count."

"Its weaknesses are primarily tied to the lack of available resources and expertise in the market to effectively support and provide solutions and services to each customer for seamless implementation. Expertise in this specific product is rare throughout the market. One key reason is the product's limited downloads. Additionally, archiving solutions are often perceived as complex and challenging, dissuading many companies from venturing into this domain. Consequently, partners who specialize in archiving solutions are always seeking straightforward, uncomplicated options that are easy to manage and meet customer expectations."

"IBM needs to improve on scanning and reading accuracy for unstructured documents. Additionally, an important missing feature is the ability to merge documents and present data across different UI screens."

"Reporting and analytics seem to often be something of an afterthought. With Datacap, they've started building out some dashboards, but one thing we hear from our clients a lot is, "Well, gee, we really love reports. What Datacap has is not really helpful. We'd like something better. We'd like more dashboards." That's one area where we've seen some feedback that the product could do better."

"The IBM Datacap site actually is on the newer inside. They will give it as a plugin only."

"Recognition between certain numbers and letters could be improved. Sometimes this solution misreads five with an "S" for Singapore."

More IBM Datacap cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It has gone up in price. The price of Fortra's Automate has increased since we first started using it. It does a lot but also costs a lot. It was a lot more affordable before Fortra owned the software."

"It comes with a package that costs approximately $20,000 USD per year."

"Compared to other products, the pricing model for this solution is much more convenient, flexible, and adaptable to the Portuguese reality."

"I'm only involved in running the product and maintaining the systems, so I can't speak to the cost."

"The cost is a bit high for a small business like ours, but we manage with Fortra's Automate."

"I like the way this solution is priced because you can buy a license, or you can buy the software outright."

"The pricing is quite reasonable. We can run the process with one bot. The limitation is at the server level because they have some resources, and sometimes that is enough. It isn't too expensive, so you can get a good return off of one, and you can also have a pack of five bots that is quite competitive."

"From a distributor's side, one of the biggest selling points is its price point. Without going into any numbers, compared to UiPath, Automation Anywhere, and Blue Prism, we're significantly cheaper. The main difference is that other competitors usually charge you per process. However, in Automate's case, it's priced per bot. So, a bot can run multiple processes at the same time, but you are only priced for a single bot."

More Automate pricing and cost advice

"The licensing is approximately $1,100."

"The billing is on a yearly basis. They send us the bill every year. My business unit is billed by the technology team, so I don't know exactly how much they pay. In my business unit, we have our first-year license costs, and then we have our ongoing costs. Our bots cost projected per license is $8,600. Our projected support cost for every year is about $38,000. Our operation agent costs anywhere between $50,000 to $55,000, so the saving is there, but it is still kind of expensive for us, but I'm looking at it from the technology kind of billing us for it. This is the cost that we have for our technology team, which is different from the licensing of Blue Prism."

"I don't have an idea about Blue Prism, but I have an idea about UiPath. UiPath is scaling its business in different products. It has got products for intelligent document processing (IDP) to test or log integrations for chatbots. If you want to work on something like a true test automation, you have to buy a test book. In such cases, they have a predefined way of working with, implementing, or running things. This is where I see that UiPath might be a bit costly or expensive when compared to Blue Prism because UiPath charges for each and every product."

"The pricing is really good for an enterprise-level solution. It's quite scalable and it's quite comparable with the market."

"We have a three-year contract that is paid on a yearly basis."

"They work on a big partnership kind of program with our organization, and they also give us a lot of discounts. Its price is pretty much comparable to the other solutions like UiPath and Automation Anywhere."

"Blue Prism is pretty steep compared to the others, much more than Automation Anywhere."

"I give the price of the solution a seven out of ten."

More Blue Prism pricing and cost advice

"Pricing needs to stay competitive."

"In Egypt, we have exchange rates that change year to year, and currently, we're facing an increase in the exchange rate between our Egyptian pound and the dollar. Since we have been using IBM DataCap two years ago we had a good price, it was not expensive. However, I cannot say now if it is expensive or not because of the exchange rate. Additionally, I don't have the data of other competitors and I don't know the prices."

"IBM could offer more competitive pricing. This would allow them to attain more users. Some of our clients are considering moving to a different solution called Encapture which is similar but offers more competitive pricing."

"It is an expensive solution."

"Pricing depends on how much we use it. We pay per bulk quantity. We pay as you go. Therefore, it sort of depends on our usage of it."

"You save a lot of time and money, but the benefit is you have people who are able to run the systems, check to see if there are any errors at all, and there are a lot less errors than a human system."

"It varies, and it depends on the client's requirements and negotiations. Nowadays, Datacap is also included in the IBM Cloud Pak for Business Automation."

"This solution offers seamless integration with other enterprise products, which is my area of responsibility, focusing on government sector projects. Larger enterprise projects don't pose problems. It might be suitable for small businesses as well."

More IBM Datacap pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Performing Arts

Financial Services Firm

21%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Insurance Company

Financial Services Firm

17%

Government

11%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	18
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	18
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	73

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	12
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	12

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HelpSystems AutoMate?

We use it for specific cases, mainly secure file transfers, which are vital for us. And it works for us.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for HelpSystems AutoMate?

My main use case for Automate is to deliver enterprise-scale script execution jobs, which means we are using Automate...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra Automate?

Until now, I have not specified any other tech products except Microsoft Power Automate, N8N, and Make.com that I've ...

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Should I choose Blue Prism or Microsoft Power Automate?

Hello Netanya, it depends on your needs and your expertise. In my humble opinion you can start a big RPA project imp...

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I am evaluating Blue Prism and UiPath for RPA for my company. Which one do you recommend?

I'm very familiar with UiPath and the RPA industry: was hired by Daniel Dines in 2015 when there were 35 employees an...

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What do you like most about Blue Prism?

It is a stable solution.

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What do you like most about IBM Datacap?

The installation of the solution is very simple.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Datacap?

Pricing is in the mid-range but could be more affordable, rated at four point five.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Datacap?

IBM needs to improve on scanning and reading accuracy for unstructured documents. Additionally, an important missing ...

See all answers

Comparisons

UiPath Platform vs Automate

Compared 21% of the time

Nintex RPA vs Automate

Compared 16% of the time

Microsoft Power Automate vs Automate

Compared 14% of the time

Redwood Software - Finance Automation Edition vs Automate

Compared 9% of the time

Automation Anywhere vs Automate

Compared 7% of the time

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Microsoft Power Automate vs Blue Prism

Compared 35% of the time

UiPath Platform vs Blue Prism

Compared 26% of the time

Automation Anywhere vs Blue Prism

Compared 13% of the time

SAP Build Process Automation vs Blue Prism

Compared 3% of the time

Tungsten RPA vs Blue Prism

Compared 2% of the time

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ABBYY Vantage vs IBM Datacap

Compared 36% of the time

Tungsten TotalAgility vs IBM Datacap

Compared 19% of the time

Amazon Textract vs IBM Datacap

Compared 18% of the time

OpenText Capture vs IBM Datacap

Compared 16% of the time

Microsoft Power Automate vs IBM Datacap

Compared 12% of the time

More IBM Datacap Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Automate

October 2025

Download Automate product report

Buyer's Guide

Blue Prism

October 2025

Download Blue Prism product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM Datacap

October 2025

Download IBM Datacap product report

Also Known As

HelpSystems Automate, Automate

No data available

Datacap

Overview

Automate offers a user-friendly solution with a drag-and-drop interface for efficient task automation and integration with major platforms like SAP and Azure, making it ideal for quick deployment with minimal coding and training.

Automate provides powerful features for businesses seeking efficient automation, offering compatibility with databases, email integration, and cloud platforms. Its simple interface supports both beginners and experienced users, simplifying tasks like invoice processing, HR automation, and data transformation. Cost-effective pricing and flexible licensing enhance its appeal while integration capabilities and scheduling tools ensure smooth workflow automation.

What are Automate's Key Features?

Drag-and-Drop Interface: Simplifies automation with intuitive design.
Integration Capabilities: Connects with platforms like SAP and Azure for seamless data flow.
Database and FTP Triggers: Enhances automation potential through direct data interaction.
Efficient Scheduling: Automates tasks with precise timing and control.
Web Scraping: Automates data extraction for quick analysis and reporting.

What Benefits and ROI Should Users Expect?

Rapid Deployment: Minimizes coding efforts for quick implementation.
Cost-Effectiveness: Offers flexible pricing models to suit budget constraints.
Operational Efficiency: Reduces manual workloads and enhances productivity.
Comprehensive Integration: Facilitates improved data management across systems.
Scalability: Adapts to growing business needs with ease.

In industries such as healthcare, banking, and logistics, Automate is used for tasks like invoice payment automation, data transformation, and task automation. This leads to streamlined processes and reduced manual workload, illustrating its value in enhancing operational efficiency through diversified workflows.

Fortra

Blue Prism is an intelligent, business-developed, no-code automation platform for SaaS deployments as well as for on-premises, public cloud, multi-cloud, and hybrid environments. Unlike other automation technology, Blue Prism combines robotic process automation with expanded artificial intelligence and cognitive capabilities. Blue Prism gives users instant access to the tools you need for building and delegating automations, as well as a digital workforce that is already AI-equipped.

With Blue Prism’s code-free RPA, deployed through use of their Robotic Operating Model, your business can scale efficiently, improve customer satisfaction, reduce costs, and augment its talent to take on new responsibilities. Blue Prism helps to accelerate operational agility and efficiency by making it easy to automate the most important processes. Allocating everyday tasks to your Digital Workforce gives you immediate increased capacity and allows your teams to focus on their strategic goals. In addition, it delivers a return on investment, increases efficiency gains, and can even introduce new revenue streams.

“Workforce of the Future”

Blue Prism’s all-in-one intelligent automation platform consists of:

Design Studio with drag-and-drop process automation building, reusable “objects” across your business, and updates to objects and processes saved throughout the process library.
Control Room where you can assign processes to digital workers, scale digital worker and task volume ondemand, and gain real-time transparency of process proficiencies.
Digital Workforce of autonomous software robots that can learn and mimic business processes like humans and are equipped with six intelligent automation skills:
1. Knowledge and Insight - The ability to harvest, understand, and deliver insights from multiple disparate data sources.
2. Visual Perception - The ability to read, understand, and contextualize visual information.
3. Learning - The ability to derive contextual meaning and adapt to evolving process patterns.
4. Planning and Sequencing - The ability to optimize workloads and identify opportunities for better outcomes.
5. Problem-solving - The ability to autonomously solve system, logic, and business problems.
6. Collaboration - The ability to seamlessly work with both people and systems.

Reviews from Real Users

Blue Prism stands out for its enterprise-level functionality, which is why many companies choose it over its competitors. PeerSpot users note that the solution is easy to use, stable, and robust scalability-wise. The security is also top-notch. One user pointed out that "One of the most powerful features in Blue Prism is exception handling. It's one of the features that really differentiates it from other platforms." Blue Prism helps businesses with everything from compliance to quality control and error-avoidance.

SS&C Blue Prism

IBM Datacap helps you streamline the capture, recognition and classification of business documents and extract important information. Datacap supports multiple-channel capture by processing paper documents on scanners, mobile devices, multi-function peripherals and fax. It uses natural language processing, text analytics and machine learning technologies, like those in IBM Watson, to automatically identify, classify and extract content from unstructured or variable documents. The software can reduce labor and paper costs, deliver meaningful information and support faster decision making.

IBM

Sample Customers

Aldergrove Financial Group, Preferred Health Professionals, Mindbeam Technologies, First Credit Union in British Columbia, Vestcom International, Prime Liberty Benefits, University of Tampa, CNLBancshares, World Precision Instruments, BJ's Restaurants, Globe Pequot Press, Accudata Technologies, Norton Healthcare, Pacific Toxicology Laboratories

Coca-Cola, Walgreens, American Express, Royal Bank of Canada, Pfizer, Shop Direct, O2, Siemens, Ascension Healthcare, Jaguar Land Rover

Turkcell, PowerSouth Energy Cooperative, Central Nacional Unimed, Conqord Oil

Buyer's Guide

Blue Prism vs. IBM Datacap

September 2025

Free Report: Blue Prism vs. IBM Datacap

Find out what your peers are saying about Blue Prism vs. IBM Datacap and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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