No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Bonita vs IBM Business Automation Workflow comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 18, 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

Bonita
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
29th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
Business Process Design (17th), Process Automation (28th)
IBM Business Automation Wor...
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
14th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of Bonita is 1.7%, down from 3.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Business Automation Workflow is 1.2%, down from 2.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Business Automation Workflow1.2%
Bonita1.7%
Other97.1%
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

Paparao Nadipineni - PeerSpot reviewer
Architect at Evoke
A simple and lightweight college course automation system with third-party integrations
The initial setup is straightforward and can be completed with the environment within an hour. First, take the latest from the git repository and check the git code to the monitor studio and a bar file, a deployable Bonita archive file. Then, take that process to the Bonita server, running at runtime on another server. Finally, deploy and enable it by selecting the proper organization.
IsmailEl Dahshan - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at Exact Holding NV
Automation has transformed financial workflows and has improved revenue tracking and compliance
Regarding Watsonx, I am uncertain whether it is fully complied and fully integrated with IBM Business Automation Workflow yet. Currently, we use some AI in Enterprise Content Management, particularly when searching documents. Archiving snapshots would be very beneficial. It would be good to reduce the administration effort required to archive snapshots, as this is a main issue with the product. I would also recommend that IBM engage with customers more deeply. Rather than sending URLs or documentation for customers to solve problems independently, the support team should be more involved in addressing the client's specific issues in a targeted manner, providing clear guidance on what actions need to be taken.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"In general, Bonita is a very good solution."
"Bonita is user-friendly."
"Of the three BPM vendors I evaluated, Bonita was the best in creating forms, ease of customization of forms, and versatility of supported platforms, and it is the only BPM platform that I've seen so far that allows for versioning of artifacts."
"I find process management and user interface designing the most valuable features."
"I really enjoy using the workflow management tool."
"With Bonita BPM, you can run the process (as it will in the final stage) immediately after the design stage, giving you 100% control over the quality of your processes and flows."
"The solution is stable. Even the older versions are stable."
"The solution is easy to use."
"The most valuable feature is automation, which is quite strong and we are quite happy with it."
"The solution reduces the time to the resolution which is essential for businesses."
"It gives us the ability to create toolkits and use them across many different applications. It allows us to write things one time, instead of having to write a diary for every single different application. We can write at once and reuse it."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow is a good tool provided you can use it cross-platform where there are a lot of features."
"The dashboards are helpful because you can display reports directly on your screen."
"IBM provides long-term support and maintains a traditionally good customer-vendor relationship."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow is useful for helping us design custom user interfaces and processes we require."
"It has increased productivity on the development side, we have been able to move applications from thought to production quicker, the solution saves time in development as well as with time to deploy, and it has been able to reduce operating costs."
 

Cons

"There is a need for more components in the library and additional customization options for these components."
"I would like to improve the product's load balancing."
"The solution is stable. However, we have experienced a few bugs."
"That said, creating custom connectors for 3rd party applications and APIs is still a challenging task."
"BPMN 2.0 notations are not all supported, would love to see them all coming in (e.g. complex gateway)."
"The price is good, but I do not like the process instance annual quantity pricing base used today."
"The menus likely would be more intuitive if read in French. Things seem to be under strange headings at times."
"The community edition has limited module functionality. If they could release some of the functionality that's available in the enterprise edition that would be helpful to those learning to use the solution."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow can improve UI flexibility and integration. Additionally, the solutions from IBM have to provide a paperless solution, allowing for digital versions of documents."
"The initial setup is actually a really complicated process."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow could be more intuitive, with more advanced low-code features and services definition."
"There are several areas where improvements could be made including with engagement of OCR capabilities. We currently need to write a lot of customization code and I think if that could be reduced it would improve performance."
"Improvements could be made in debugging and troubleshooting."
"We have found it tough to get the proper support from IBM."
"Integrating the solution with existing systems can be complicated and it needs careful planning and execution."
"In terms of improvement, it could be less complex; it is quite a complicated software."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"You pay an annual fee and can have an unlimited number of processes and users."
"The Enterprise edition is very expensive."
"The price is fair for what we are using the solution for."
"The product is not cheaper, not costlier; it is reasonable. Bonita’s license is very flexible, with options to meet the needs of different customers and clients. Previously, it was less flexible, but now, many different licensing options are available."
"The Community Edition comes free of charge."
"The product's pricing is acceptable. Pricing is yearly."
"We are using the Community Version, which can be used free of charge."
"have installed the image of Bonita BPM on Amazon AWS and there is just one option to use and pay for."
"There is still a relatively high total cost of ownership to actually implement, support, and stand up solutions."
"The product is expensive."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow has a flexible pricing mode, but the price is expensive. The price of the solution reflects the quality of the solution which is very high. The technical support is an additional cost."
"Our license is on a three-year term."
"Nowadays, clients are looking at pricing as one of the major factors. For IBM products, they always think it is expensive for them. We are still educating our clients on the IBM FlexPoints licensing."
"Licensing varies by use-case."
"The solution has saved us time."
"It is on the expensive side, but it provides excellent supportability and an ecosystem that is proven to be a great fit for our organization."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Business Process Management (BPM) solutions are best for your needs.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
23%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Insurance Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise11
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise17
 

Questions from the Community

How does Bonita compare with Camunda Platform?
One of the things we like best about Bonita is that you can create without coding - it is a low-code platform. With Bonita, you can build the entire mechanism using the GUI, it’s that simple. You c...
Which is better, IBM BPM or IBM Business Automation Workflow?
We researched both IBM solutions and in the end, we chose Business Automation Workflow. IBM BPM has a good user interface and the BPM coach is a helpful tool. The API is very useful in providing en...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Business Automation Workflow?
The price of IBM Business Automation Workflow is on the higher side compared to the features it offers.
What needs improvement with IBM Business Automation Workflow?
Regarding Watsonx, I am uncertain whether it is fully complied and fully integrated with IBM Business Automation Workflow yet. Currently, we use some AI in Enterprise Content Management, particular...
 

Also Known As

Bonita BPM
Business Automation Workflow
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

With more than 1000 customers in 75 countries, and its ecosystem of more than 120,000 members, Bonitasoft is the largest provider of open-source Business Process Management, Low-code and Digital Transformation software worldwide.
Key Bank, Barclays, Control€xpert, MIR Insurance Brokers, Conqord Oil
Find out what your peers are saying about Bonita vs. IBM Business Automation Workflow and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,725 professionals have used our research since 2012.