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IBM BPM vs Oracle BPM 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

IBM BPM
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
111
Ranking in other categories
Application Infrastructure (8th), Process Automation (4th)
Oracle BPM
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
15th
Average Rating
7.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of IBM BPM is 7.3%, down from 7.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle BPM is 1.9%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

Muhammad Kamran - PeerSpot reviewer
Has efficient processes and intuitive workflow with many valuable features
You will have access to make any needed changes. Additionally, the review will be published on PeerSpot.com in written or audio format, available to other people. You can stay anonymous if you wish. Notifications and the use of the review are subject to PeerSpot's terms of use, which you can find at PeerSpot.com/TOS. I would give the solution an overall rating of ten out of ten points.
SatyajitSethy - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides a complete workflow from testing to production and can handle a million concurrent requests
The user interface is very good. Once you understand it, it's easy to define rules and do any configurations. It comes with an embedded WebLogic application server, which you have to deploy automatically. Once you run the given binary, it will automatically keep everything on the backend. You'll have to create an instant database, and maintain or manage it based on the rules engine. After that, your system is ready to test. The most valuable feature is the complete workflow through the BPM, from making it available as a generated code based on the backend, deploying it in the test environment, and then going to production. Throughout the testing, everything was good. Many customers are interested in the rules engine. A lot of requests pass through BPM because it's integrated with a lot of other applications or sub-applications.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like the APIs and the BPM coach is a good tool. But if I had to pick one, it would be the API."
"Some of the features that I like the most are team management and process performance. They are both very useful and very powerful with regard to the workflow."
"There is information during the process that the analyst will look at, their procedures. We created a part of the application such that the business can change those procedures as needed, on a daily, weekly, monthly basis. As the reps go through the process, they don't necessarily know it's changing, they just know they have to refer to some documentation, and the business can keep that up to date."
"The performance is fine."
"This is one of the best tools to support the business and the way we work, and the numerous processes we need to implement."
"There is a component of this BPM pool - I can't recall the name. What it does is, it allows you to create various scenarios and then run them quickly, before actually putting them onto a tool. So I think that part of the tool is really fantastic, because that enables you to create scenarios, create simulations, before actually going out and putting it into the tool itself"
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"Responsive Portal + Process Federation Server. This set of solutions offers a unified worklist to our customers."
"I find the data lineage features most valuable."
"One of the most valuable features is its user-friendly API, which simplifies the implementation of workflows, such as managing inbox tasks for specific users within BPM profiles."
"The default Workspace does not meet all our needs and sometimes you need to create your own custom Workspace."
"Our company is based around Oracle processes. It provides a lot of flexibility in its processes."
"It is quite scalable and can be applied to enterprise-level organizations effectively."
"The support is good."
"It is easy and cheap."
"The benefit from the tool is we can develop it quickly and easily use it for middleware services. We can publish the services so other applications can consume them. This is providing us some reusability and a type of security."
 

Cons

"They should incorporate an API gateway functionality within it to simplify integrations."
"It is not user-friendly."
"The initial setup process is complex for basic users."
"We had hoped that the product would provide us with plug-ins like Salesforce. Its development environment needs to improve. We expect to see elastic features like containerization. We don't just need an on-prem virtual machine."
"We had a weird problem that whenever the database would go down, even for a few seconds, it broke the connection. It would not come back up as it was supposed to. However, working with IBM, we were able to figure out a fix, then it came back up, even after an interruption of the database."
"It might not be suitable for entry level clients because it comes with a huge number of modules for processing that at times might not be necessary for upcoming clients."
"The price and the overall installation process could be improved."
"There needs to be better documentation for IBM BPM in a central place. There is not any standard documentation for each component available and has been a barrier for developers."
"The solution's licensing cost is very high."
"You have to maintain it manually."
"Oracle BPM could probably be improved with respect to the cost. When you are using this product, it'll be a bit costlier for the ROA. I think they should do some discounts on these products, especially for the licenses."
"There are delays in offering the latest technology, so there is a need to be more responsive to technological changes."
"There is room for improvement in the pricing structure."
"Existing APIs in the product need to be fine-tuned, made more robust and flexible for adoption."
"Overall, the engine and the UI both have to be made lighter."
"From my knowledge of this solution, I don't see that the Oracle BPM includes features such as the growth of discovery and process mining."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is highly-priced."
"It's expensive. All software is always extremely high. The manufacturing cost that we have compared to the selling cost, it's not like you're building a house or building a car. But putting that aside, considering that it's expensive, it's a lot of money. If you compare it with some of the other alternatives in the market, it's a similar price. For instance, if you compare it with Pegasystems, it's a similar price."
"We chose to purchase IBM BPM because it was bundled with the actual RPA program/solution that we decided to purchase. We decided to use Automation Anywhere tool (RPA), and it is was bundled with IBM BPM."
"The product is expensive considering the hardware and software costs."
"IBM BPM cannot be considered a cheaply priced product. IBM BPM is a really expensive product compared to other companies. One needs to opt for the perpetual licensing model offered by IBM."
"I wish it was less expensive. I don't know why their pricing model is so high for a piece of software that could benefit so many. It just seems to me that they could have a lower cost, maybe with fewer features or whatever, but it should be possible to do a lower cost workflow software that uses the same interface and underlying engine but does not cost so much that you have to be a Fortune 50 company to buy it. It is annoying to me. There are a lot of solutions that IBM has that are really powerful but nobody can afford them. They know their business, but I still feel that there are a lot of customers who would benefit from this sort of thing. I don't know what this elitism is all about. I am sure they have people doing the money numbers, but it seems like you can make a lot more money by selling it to way more people for a little bit less."
"​We have definitely seen ROI. When we first kicked it off, we said it had to pay for itself within three years, and it did."
"The pricing is very high."
"The pricing is very expensive."
"It's pried high, this solution is expensive."
"As with all Oracle products, the licensing over VMware is an issue."
"Oracle is good, but they're still expensive compared to other vendors."
"We received the product packaged into the Oracle database solution."
"The pricing is significantly high, particularly for Brazil where fluctuations in the exchange rate between the dollar and the real can further increase the cost of Oracle licenses."
"I don't have information on the exact cost of Oracle BPM because a different team handles that, but it's pretty high. Oracle products are very costly. I would rate pricing for Oracle BPM three out of five. Though the pricing is high, the solution has a lot of features."
"This solution is very expensive. You are charged per license and an additional 20% for support."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
31%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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 BPM?
Once it is installed, maintaining it is not a big issue.
What do you like most about Oracle BPM?
The solution provides extensive functionalities.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle BPM?
The licensing is expensive. It needs to be more affordable, especially in the Kenyan market.
What needs improvement with Oracle BPM?
Oracle BPM should ensure its product is aligned with current technology by keeping up with advancements like AI. There are delays in offering the latest technology, so there is a need to be more re...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

WebSphere Lombardi Edition, IBM Business Process Manager, IBM WebSphere Process Server
Oracle Business Process Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Barclays, EmeriCon, Banca Popolare di Milano, CST Consulting, KeyBank, KPMG, Prolifics, Sandhata Technologies Ltd., State of Alaska, Humana S.A., Saperion, esciris, Banco Espirito Santo
State Revenue Office Victoria, New South Wales Health, REDISA, Panduit, Total E&P Indonesie
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM BPM vs. Oracle BPM and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.