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Hyland OnBase 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

Hyland OnBase
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
14th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Content Management (6th), Low-Code Development Platforms (15th)
IBM Business Automation Wor...
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
13th
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 March 2026, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of Hyland OnBase is 1.3%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Business Automation Workflow is 1.5%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Business Automation Workflow1.5%
Hyland OnBase1.3%
Other97.2%
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

Arjurn Dakash - PeerSpot reviewer
Project Manager at Deloitte
Workflow automation has transformed case management and reduced errors across our processes
Hyland OnBase is a great tool for document storage and retrieval, automating business processes using workflow, and building applications in WorkView. It saves a lot of time, reduces human errors, and is very cost-effective. Hyland OnBase has drastically improved our business processes and made everyone's jobs easier. Hyland OnBase is a fantastic system that does a lot for my organization. We use it for indexing and storing documents as the main reason we use Hyland OnBase, but it also has many features that we use every day. Workflows are the most common way that our employees interact with Hyland OnBase. We also ingest thousands of documents every day, and with our continued rate of growth, we do not see Hyland OnBase having any trouble handling the added traffic. It is very scalable. The best features Hyland OnBase offers include workflows, document retention and security, document ingesting and indexing, and document retrieval and storage. The user-friendly interface makes it very easy to use and provides a smooth learning curve for new users. Workflow is used to quickly and easily configure and improve business processes. We also have automation through workflow, which saves time and cost. Reporting dashboards allow us to create useful reports to keep personnel informed, making data-driven decisions easier. While we have grown a lot over the past five years, Hyland OnBase has allowed us to maintain our existing workflows rather than hiring additional employees, requiring fewer employees thanks to Hyland OnBase. Since Hyland OnBase is our central repository for all documents, our documents are more secure, allow greater work flexibility, especially for remote work, are more easily accessible, and are smarter. It has changed the way we as a company work. Through workflow automation, we have been able to save a lot of time, with forty to fifty-five percent of time being saved currently.
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

"With Hyland OnBase, every document is unique, and access can be restricted and audited depending on user permission, allowing a company to take control of their information and be more productive."
"The most valuable features are that it's very secure and provides audit trails for our documents."
"OnBase is a remarkable tool. It is a well-done product. Hyland has a lot of experience in building it and looking for new things for clients in terms of functionalities. It has amazing stability, and it can grow horizontally and vertically. It is built for growth. Their technical support is also quite good and available throughout the year."
"OnBase provides high-value solutions for organizations with much less cost in comparison to other ECM solutions."
"A single platform with multiple capabilities to orchestrate processes, complex business rules and all types of business content."
"I like the cloud and its integrability."
"Hyland OnBase is valued for its security, especially for those in the finance domain who require data confidentiality."
"Its most valuable aspect is its flexibility"
"IBM Business Automation Workflow is a good tool provided you can use it cross-platform where there are a lot of features."
"It has had a positive effect on decision-making in my organization. It helps us with our dispute process."
"It helps develop applications very quickly. Once clients get used to it and familiar with the methodology, then they don't feel so locked in. It is able to add this element of agility to our clients' software development lifecycle. That is my favorite thing about it: You're not so locked in as you used to be when developing applications."
"One of the most valuable features is the way that they are adapting to the market. Initially, it was doing only workflow. Now it has started bringing all the other components like rules within the workflow and then the integration with RPA."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow is useful for helping us design custom user interfaces and processes we require."
"The solution's most valuable aspect is the fact it is highly configurable. We can do configurations very easily."
"No matter what somebody's technical experience level is, the tool can start adding value immediately."
"It's a flexible solution."
 

Cons

"The application could potentially be more open-source, allowing integration with more solutions."
"An area for improvement would be the training - getting our people up to speed on how to use it required more training than we expected due to the complexity of the solution."
"The dashboards do have some room for improvement as compared to the other vendors which are there in the market."
"An area for improvement would be the training - getting our people up to speed on how to use it required more training than we expected due to the complexity of the solution."
"Hyland OnBase can be improved because Report Services is an additional license and should be included with the base product."
"I find OnBase's monolithic architecture to be expensive, and adopting microservices could be beneficial."
"Hyland OnBase could be improved in terms of service support response time."
"As the system grows in terms of number of modules, features, and functionality, options can be confusing and they can conflict with other options that you enable."
"I would like to see more streamlined install and provisioning; preferably containerized IBM BPM would be helpful."
"The UI of the solution is not good. They should work to update the solution and make it better and fresher."
"Code management lacks merging capabilities. If parallel development requires merging, improvements in this area would be beneficial."
"The development UI is sometimes a little slow."
"The setup and installation process could be made easier."
"In terms of improvement, it could be less complex; it is quite a complicated software."
"Requires a lot of customization code writing which could be reduced."
"Sometimes, you need an integrated solution. Customers don't want to have to say, "Oh, I'm acquiring this product, now I have to go build up that product. I have to go and build something else in another product and integrate.""
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution costs around $6,000 per month."
"There are a number of different types of licenses. There are concurrent licenses, individual licenses and imaging licenses."
"The tool's price is high."
"OnBase is reasonably priced."
"They can do better in terms of the pricing model. It is a really expensive tool in Latin America. They should have different prices for different regions."
"Our license is on a three-year term."
"The solution has saved us time."
"The product is expensive."
"When you compare with Laserfiche and M-Files, IBM 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."
"While it can be quite costly, it offers significant benefits for users."
"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."
"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."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Healthcare Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
27%
Computer Software Company
8%
Insurance Company
7%
Construction Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise13
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise17
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Hyland OnBase?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that it is very cost-effective and affordable.
What needs improvement with Hyland OnBase?
Hyland OnBase could be improved in terms of service support response time. More timely updates to solution software support documentation also should be improved.
What is your primary use case for Hyland OnBase?
Hyland OnBase is used across the entirety of the organization in a variety of different ways, and its primary use is as a document storage solution that is used in conjunction with other systems su...
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

OnBase
Business Automation Workflow
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Honda France Industries, Hill County Texas, Hylant Group, ING Lease France, State of South Carolina, Syracuse University, Swindon College, Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Rochester Institute of Technology, Moen, Odense University Hospital
Key Bank, Barclays, Control€xpert, MIR Insurance Brokers, Conqord Oil
Find out what your peers are saying about Hyland OnBase vs. IBM Business Automation Workflow and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
885,376 professionals have used our research since 2012.