Hyland OnBase vs IBM ECM comparison

Hyland and IBM are both solutions in the Enterprise Content Management category. Hyland is ranked #5 with an average rating of 7.7, while IBM is ranked #13 with an average rating of 8.0. Hyland holds a 6.5% mindshare in ECM, compared to IBM’s 2.5% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Hyland users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Hyland OnBase

Read 13 Hyland OnBase reviews

3,080 Views
1,971 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM ECM

Read 16 IBM ECM reviews

675 Views
641 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Hyland OnBase

IBM ECM

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

IBM ECM and Hyland OnBase are competitors in the enterprise content management space. While IBM ECM excels with robust analytical features, Hyland OnBase stands out for its adaptability and integration ease, appealing to flexible business needs.

Features: IBM ECM provides advanced data analytics, process automation, and comprehensive workflow management. It stands out for its ability to enhance operational efficiency with extensive process automation. Hyland OnBase offers strong integration capabilities, intuitive navigation, and a flexible platform supporting diverse business applications. This helps businesses streamline processes across various systems.

Room for Improvement: IBM ECM can be improved by simplifying its complex deployment process and reducing initial resource requirements. Increasing out-of-the-box integrations could also enhance its flexibility. Hyland OnBase might improve by expanding its analytical tools and enhancing reporting functionalities. Addressing performance issues related to keyword overuse and enhancing documentation could further improve its usability.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM ECM's deployment involves complexity, requiring dedicated resources, yet its support offers detailed guidance to navigate this. Hyland OnBase allows quicker deployment, demanding fewer resources, and provides responsive customer service, beneficial to firms aiming for rapid implementation.

Pricing and ROI: IBM ECM tends to have a higher initial setup cost justified by extensive features, offering strong long-term ROI. Hyland OnBase presents a more competitive pricing structure, appealing to budget-conscious organizations, with ROI attributed to its adaptability and quicker returns.

To learn more, read our detailed Hyland OnBase vs. IBM ECM Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Hyland OnBase vs. IBM ECM

July 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

Hyland OnBase

Ranking in Enterprise Content Management

5th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Business Process Management (BPM) (17th), Low-Code Development Platforms (13th)

IBM ECM

Ranking in Enterprise Content Management

13th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Enterprise Content Management category, the mindshare of Hyland OnBase is 6.5%, up from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM ECM is 2.5%, up from 2.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Content Management

Featured Reviews

Srinivas Rao Kagitha

Senior Onbase Developer & Administrator at HTC Global Services (INDIA) Private

Offers good dashboards and reports but fails to offer better migration features

The migration is a bit difficult in the tool. Whenever we make certain changes to workflow or other stuff, migrating the code from one environment to another is a bit tedious. The tool has an option for export and import, which is not robust. Most of the time, we need to do things stuff manually. For example, if we make any changes in the existing life cycle or any queues, we have to move those changes manually. There is no robust way to migrate code from one environment to a lower environment, like prod. When it comes to the product's technical support, the turnaround time is a bit longer than expected. The issue may be because there are a number of issues or a large number of customers who are reaching out to the support team for help. I believe that the solution's technical team can provide a solution more quickly.

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Omar_Ismail

ECM, Archives and Digital Preservation Consultant at DataServe

A stable solution for automation with high availability

Moving to the cloud with IBM ECM is not allowed. In Saudi Arabia, the cloud infrastructure is still non-operational, potentially for the next two to three months. Static clouds are prevalent among foundational enterprises such as IBM and Oracle. IBM offers its cloud insights, maintaining its cloud ecosystem. IBM's efforts to enhance the user experience within its ECM platform are lacking compared to competitors like OpenText. Progress in implementing new technologies and features seems sluggish. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

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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

"Its most valuable aspect is its flexibility"

"Integrating Hyland OnBase with our systems enabled us to automate document designs and templates, which was extremely helpful in the finance and banking industry."

"The retention module is one of the most valuable features. Whatever we scan onto the system can be identified and we are notified when the records are due to be disposed."

"The solution's most valuable features are integration and flexibility."

"The product's initial setup phase is not difficult."

"Hyland OnBase is valued for its security, especially for those in the finance domain who require data confidentiality."

"The most valuable features are that it's very secure and provides audit trails for our documents."

"We found the setup process to be okay since they do offer a troubleshooting guide."

More Hyland OnBase pros

"The vertical scalability, as we can use it across some of our applications."

"The tool is a very stable solution with high availability and no information leakage. It has built-in API integration on-site. You can integrate with other components and applications like SAP, Microsoft, Oracle, etc."

"The scalability is a valuable feature, that we're able to display our documents to so many people."

"The content management is all about you as you can make the same content for minimal purpose solutions applications."

Cons

"The application could potentially be more open-source, allowing integration with more solutions."

"I find OnBase's monolithic architecture to be expensive, and adopting microservices could be beneficial."

"We found the size of images to be a restriction, though this may have been due to the API used rather than the Hyland application."

"The dashboards do have some room for improvement as compared to the other vendors which are there in the market."

"The migration is a bit difficult in the tool."

"For user experience, they would have to do more with the interface. It is not easy to work with and is a little messy. It is getting better, but it is not yet good enough. Other products are comparatively doing better in terms of the user interface. I have been hearing about Box, which is very easy to use and learn for the users. OnBase has to work on this aspect. It should have BPM capabilities. We compete with tools that provide the BPM feature and support those standards. 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."

"The look and feel could be better. The integration with the user could be better. It could also be more user-friendly."

"Software malfunctioning usually occurs when we receive documents from external sources."

More Hyland OnBase cons

"I would like to see seamless application integration."

"The development platform is not local. For example, you need 100 days in IBM, whereas other platforms, like ServiceNow, need only 20 days."

"I think it's already getting away from Java applets. A lot of our users struggle with keeping up to date with Java versioning, so a lot of the functions they're doing, like printing, emailing, and even some of the viewing, they're struggling with."

"I would recommend not going with ECM 8 and going with FileNet instead. It seems like that is the future of the lower-volume repository. It seems like they are moving away from ECM 8.5 so I think we're going to have some challenges coming up, getting off of that technology."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"OnBase is reasonably priced."

"There are a number of different types of licenses. There are concurrent licenses, individual licenses and imaging licenses."

"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."

"The solution costs around $6,000 per month."

"The tool's price is high."

"Reach out to local IBM partners."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Government

14%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Computer Software Company

Insurance Company

Financial Services Firm

33%

Government

10%

Computer Software Company

Energy/Utilities Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Hyland OnBase?

The solution is very developed and we are not taking full advantage of its functionalities.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Hyland OnBase?

I find pricing to be on the higher side due to its monolithic architecture. I would rate it six out of ten. Transitioning to microservices, allowing users to pay for only what they use, could reduc...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Hyland OnBase?

I believe the reporting features need improvement, as other competitors in the market provide better analytics. Hyland is working on a new platform (HXP) to integrate features from all products, ad...

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM ECM?

The tool is a very stable solution with high availability and no information leakage. It has built-in API integration on-site. You can integrate with other components and applications like SAP, Mic...

See all answers

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

The product is expensive and has a perpetual license.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM ECM?

The development platform is not local. For example, you need 100 days in IBM, whereas other platforms, like ServiceNow, need only 20 days.

See all answers

Comparisons

Alfresco vs Hyland OnBase

Compared 16% of the time

OpenText Documentum Content Management vs Hyland OnBase

Compared 13% of the time

SharePoint vs Hyland OnBase

Compared 11% of the time

OpenText Content Management vs Hyland OnBase

Compared 8% of the time

More Hyland OnBase Competitors

IBM FileNet vs IBM ECM

Compared 21% of the time

Alfresco vs IBM ECM

Compared 14% of the time

SAP Extended Enterprise Content Management vs IBM ECM

Compared 10% of the time

OpenText Content Manager vs IBM ECM

Compared 9% of the time

SharePoint vs IBM ECM

Compared 7% of the time

More IBM ECM Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Hyland OnBase

July 2025

Download Hyland OnBase product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM ECM

July 2025

Download IBM ECM product report

Also Known As

OnBase

No data available

Overview

Hyland OnBase is acclaimed for its robust document management, automating workflows, and improving organizational efficiency across various industries. Praised for its ability to manage records compliantly, especially in regulated sectors like healthcare and finance, the tool also integrates smoothly with other enterprise systems. Users benefit significantly from streamlined processes, reduced manual tasks, and enhanced data accuracy, boosting productivity and customer satisfaction.

Hyland

IBM Content Foundation on Cloud

IBM Content Foundation on Cloud allows organizations to deliver extensive enterprise content management capabilities to their users very quickly. IBM Content Foundation is powered by the FileNet content and process platform and IBM Content Navigator user experience. This cloud offering can be leveraged for a variety of use cases including collaborative document management, imaging solutions, social content management, archiving, and more. It also offers a platform for developing Enterprise Content Management (ECM) solutions in the cloud.

IBM Case Manager on Cloud

IBM Case Manager on Cloud is a solution platform that engages people with business content, provides contextual insight through real-time analytics, and enhances teamwork through collaboration tools and flexible workflow. Enables Business and IT to work together to create solutions across the enterprise that enables an organization to make smarter decisions for better business outcomes, while balancing the need for security and compliance in a world of heightened risk.

IBM

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

KeyBank, Standard Chartered Bank, Union Bank, Sistema Tecnol‹gico de Monterrey, Illinois Department of Human Services, UnitedHealth Group

Buyer's Guide

Hyland OnBase vs. IBM ECM

July 2025

Free Report: Hyland OnBase vs. IBM ECM

Find out what your peers are saying about Hyland OnBase vs. IBM ECM and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.

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