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BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on zOS vs Toad for Oracle comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 23, 2025

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

BMC Data Management for IMS...
Ranking in Database Development and Management
22nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Toad for Oracle
Ranking in Database Development and Management
7th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Database Development and Management category, the mindshare of BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on zOS is 0.6%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Toad for Oracle is 4.3%, down from 5.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Database Development and Management
 

Featured Reviews

RS
Improves disaster recovery processes and offers an efficient CPU cycle optimization
Using BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on z/OS has greatly improved our database administration tasks. Although we don't test the database before production, we have experienced benefits in disaster recovery situations and capacity management. For instance, when facing capacity issues during peak transaction times, I've been able to quickly allocate additional resources to ensure smooth operations. This has been crucial, especially during times when the demand surges, such as peak flight hours.
Bikramjeet Singh - PeerSpot reviewer
Advanced query optimization and tuning features
Sometimes when I write a query, it gives an unusual error code. Toad for Oracle does not have a particular resolution within the application. Then, I have to search for the code and find a solution. I would like Oracle to implement error codes so that we don't have to search for solutions on Google. It would be more convenient if the error codes were included within the application.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"BMC Data Management improved our data recovery process by simplifying it."
"I have worked with DB2's great features in the last five years. The IDAA feature transformed the vision of warehousing, business analytics, and big data at my bank. Besides the mainframe, I saw that this solution was evolutionary. It gives real-time information."
"The most valuable feature is the navigation within the UI, where you can right-click on an object in an SQL query and go right to it, versus going through all of the menus to find what you are looking for."
"Oracle has advanced query optimization and tuning features that help improve the performance of SQL queries."
"I find Toad easy to use and I love the Workspace feature, which allows me to set up projects so that I can open SQL files applicable to what I am working on at any particular time."
"The most valuable feature of Toad for Oracle is the fashion browser and the Schema browser. It is very complete."
"It is very easy to manage all of the objects."
"The tool evaluates non-optimized queries and generates the queries in a way that is more optimal - in addition to giving us some good practices for code development."
"A quite simple feature that I have not encountered elsewhere is the "Make Code" feature. I can easily export a complex SQL statement to a programming language. This is a great timesaver as I do not have to type in all of the escape/concatenation characters just to create a SQL statement in C# or C++."
"One of the most valuable features of Toad for Oracle is its ability to manage sessions by killing those that are hung or blocking other sessions."
 

Cons

"One area for improvement with this product could be in providing clearer guidance and tools for disaster recovery planning and execution."
"DB2 is a hard tool to grasp. It's hard for users to learn how to use it. It's not easy to see how it works."
"Toad for Oracle does not have a particular resolution within the application."
"Toad for Oracle could improve code completion, it is very slow."
"It would be better if they had an online option allowing me to connect from anywhere on any device. Sometimes I face some errors, depending on the network and setup. It's not a big issue."
"Improvement wise, for the user it should show the minimum features on the screen and not all the features. Toad has a lot of features, but most users will use only 5 or 10 based on their role. Nobody needs all the features, and they should provide the option to choose only the required features. Only minimum requirements should be enabled by default. When all the features are shown, the performance is not good; it loads slowly and has hundreds of popups and unnecessary questions."
"I'd like reporting to be more available. If it was a feature that was already installed, more people would take advantage of it."
"Query optimization is still very resource-intensive."
"An area where the solution could use some improvement is in terms of user-friendliness. During the initial setup phase, the solution was not very intuitive when attempting to establish connections."
"Once in a while, I may encounter a memory exception and have to abort the application. On a few occasions, the file that stores the saved connections for the New Connection window will become corrupt and I will lose all of my saved connections. I am not sure if that is a Windows or TOAD issue, but it has happened to all of my developers at some point or another."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"I would rate it six, where one is a low price, and ten is a high price."
"The pricing is okay, it's reasonable."
"There are paid and free-for-use versions of the product."
"Toad for Oracle has a relatively high cost compared to other similar tools."
"The product's pricing is just right because if it were slightly higher, it would not have been as widely adopted as it currently is in our organization."
"My advice is to try to use the three-year maintenance agreement if possible."
"The professional edition is about $1,000 AUD ($700 USD) and the developer version is about twice that much."
"In my opinion, this solution is a little expensive, but I understand that good programs cost more money."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
26%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Government
9%
Insurance Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
19%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
11%
Performing Arts
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on zOS?
BMC Data Management improved our data recovery process by simplifying it.
What needs improvement with BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on zOS?
One area for improvement with this product could be in providing clearer guidance and tools for disaster recovery planning and execution. As someone involved in managing infrastructure, understandi...
What advice do you have for others considering BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on zOS?
From my perspective as an infrastructure guy, the most valuable aspect of BMC's data management solutions was their ability to optimize CPU cycles, improving IMS performance without directly impact...
What do you like most about Toad for Oracle?
The product's most valuable features are UI and monitoring.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Toad for Oracle?
The licensing cost for Toad for Oracle is relatively high, with their license and DPA suite totaling around five thousand dollars.
What needs improvement with Toad for Oracle?
It would be beneficial if Toad for Oracle could incorporate OEM features, as having monitoring capabilities in the same interface would simplify workload and management tasks.
 

Also Known As

BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on z/OS, Data Management for IMS and DB2 on z/OS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Airline Tariff Publishing Co (ATPCO), AtTask, MetaScale
intel, ebay, uber, mars, microsoft
Find out what your peers are saying about BMC Data Management for IMS and DB2 on zOS vs. Toad for Oracle and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.