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IBM Datacap vs Python RPA comparison

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Executive Summary

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

Automate
Sponsored
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) (5th)
IBM Datacap
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) (7th)
Python RPA
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) (17th)
 

Featured Reviews

Anabel Marco - PeerSpot reviewer
Automates processes efficiently with cost-effective scaling and robust customer support
Web scraping is quite good since it offers a lot of possibilities. Another important feature for me is its compatibility with MBI, the Power that is ISEQUADO Centers. I appreciate the ability to scale and increase the number of bots or studios without additional expense. Automate's non-reliance on additional orchestrators makes it quite cost-effective.
DeekshithShetty - PeerSpot reviewer
High-accuracy document processing with easy integration and good image enhancement
The OCR extractions are very good, almost 100% accurate now. The integration with other tools is very easy, with inbuilt actions to configure and directly export to multiple depositories. It is also good at image enhancement, including the removal of lines, which is helpful in processing and automation and ensures very little user intervention, thus saving time.
Natalia  Raffo - PeerSpot reviewer
Robust and good for data processing while being helpful for building data science use cases
The processing of data is good. We can use many different types of data, including images and videos. We can use different libraries to do better preprocessing of different types of data. We can do different models in recommendation systems for things like videos and sales strategy. We can do language processing or sentiment analysis to predict things for our clients. We can design and develop machine learning applications that can predict events. We can use these on libraries to solve complex problems when we have a lot of data. It's possible to use the solution with other tools. It's very agile. In the financial advisory and portfolio management space, several budget management applications are now available in the market. These have machine learning based functionality. In Python, I use different machine learning algorithms to enable customers to keep track of their expenses and provide recommendations on better savings. These are machine learning algorithms that customize financial portfolios by looking at income rate tolerance and preferences, et cetera.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I actually quite liked the no-coding functionality."
"The product effectively handles all the tasks we require."
"I find the ease of use from a programming perspective very valuable."
"It's very easy to use. That's a big selling point for it. It has got a drag-and-drop interface, so you can quickly deploy bots."
"Fortra's Automate performs the job effectively and has the capability to alert us of any issues."
"This product is quite easy to install, learn, and use, with our new employees being able to start using it in projects for clients after only two weeks of internal training."
"I find it very user-friendly. Our IT department and other departments can seamlessly collaborate without requiring extensive training. As a business department, we particularly value this aspect, as our team doesn't consist of many IT users. However, we couldn't solely rely on a drag-and-drop approach to implement and utilize the solution within our departments."
"I would recommend Automate because it has made my work much easier."
"The OCR extractions are very good, almost 100% accurate now."
"The OCR extractions are very good, almost 100% accurate now."
"Both Datacap Studio and Datacap Navigator are great features."
"It is the best solution for scanning purposes."
"It's resiliency. There are multiple ways of identifying what you are looking for. There are multiple export formats."
"At the forefront of my thoughts, the standout feature of this intelligent product is its remarkable capability. This project we're currently engaged in revolves around streamlining workflows within both our company and the customer's company. It entails handling information from various documents with diverse formats and types, even when they contain the same data. The ability to connect this information with the appropriate database and recognize it irrespective of the format or source is an extremely valuable feature. Moreover, leveraging machine learning is crucial since our customer deals with an extensive archive of over five million documents. Machine learning can significantly alleviate the backlog by becoming well-versed in various scenarios they might encounter during their work once we've completed our application."
"It helps companies figure out how to use advanced imaging techniques, processes, best practices, and other tools."
"The most valuable feature is its ability to capture data, which changes all the time into different formats."
"Instead of writing multiple lines of code, we can do it in a single statement."
"It's possible to use the solution with other tools. It's very agile."
"Keyword-driven automation has been beneficial in streamlining operations."
 

Cons

"Error messages should be better. For error status, there should be better documentation because a lot of times, error messages that you get are quite vague. For example, you get a message saying that the workflow has run into an unknown status, which is vague. It just tells you that it failed, but you don't know how or why it failed. It makes debugging difficult."
"The intelligent automation feature could be improved. It's interesting because it's simple, but the automation quality isn't always good. It's easy to use, but sometimes you need to make a slight improvement to the automation, and that's not so easy."
"I believe we need to test various OCR tools that assist in evaluating, let's say, six different customer resyncs. We analyze their spending patterns and documentations, but current OCR support has limitations, requiring highly standardized documents, which isn't always the case. With a more advanced OCR system, we could improve processes related to credit risk management and legal matters. We're exploring how to integrate Fortra's Automate with our CRM platform, taking cues from instances where Salesforce seamlessly merged with Automate. However, we use a different CRM, Insight for New Enterprise, and we're seeking ways to connect the automation process within our CRM. We aim for the automation to continue smoothly, even in instances where traditional automation methods might face hurdles."
"I would prefer not having to log in to update a ticket; being able to respond via email would be beneficial."
"The documentation for errors needs improvement as many of the error messages we receive are very vague."
"I would like to see some better web automation, a wizard like the one in the product WinAutomation would be very nice."
"The solution has a very weak knowledge base."
"Fortra's Automate is not as reliable as I would like it to be."
"I would like to see the product have the ability to process more documents in parallel. Right now, it is a single queue. Therefore, if you want to really test the load and stress test it, having multiple instances and the ability to scale it up would be great."
"The user interfaces for exception processing can be tweaked. I commonly find that we try to tweak and customize some of those components to more of what the industry standard is. The product is still trying to play catch-up a little bit in those areas."
"Recognition between certain numbers and letters could be improved. Sometimes this solution misreads five with an "S" for Singapore."
"It can take some time to implement."
"Speed of OCR is one issue. It's a challenge because we have customers that have millions and millions of pages that they want this solution to crank through. In order to do that you have to have a large infrastructure in place, and that directly impacts licensing based on the core count."
"Datacap's technology seems a little behind the industry. It's still using the old .NET framework. They should move to .NET Core and start integrating some machine learning. You can do some integration yourself, but you expect a solution to include the latest machine-learning approaches if you're paying reasonable money for it."
"The interface can be more intuitive."
"The IBM Datacap site actually is on the newer inside. They will give it as a plugin only."
"Support could be improved."
"It can be expensive to deploy a lot of models in the cloud, especially if there are large amounts of data."
"When we call an API and there is an error, it doesn't tell you what the error is."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Once you buy the software, you just pay for the support for backend help."
"It has gone up in price. The price of Fortra's Automate has increased since we first started using it. It does a lot but also costs a lot. It was a lot more affordable before Fortra owned the software."
"Compared to other products, the pricing model for this solution is much more convenient, flexible, and adaptable to the Portuguese reality."
"From a distributor's side, one of the biggest selling points is its price point. Without going into any numbers, compared to UiPath, Automation Anywhere, and Blue Prism, we're significantly cheaper. The main difference is that other competitors usually charge you per process. However, in Automate's case, it's priced per bot. So, a bot can run multiple processes at the same time, but you are only priced for a single bot."
"While solutions like UiPath and Blue Prism cost around $11,000-$12,000 for each license, this product costs around $7,000 and you can keep it forever."
"The cost is a bit high for a small business like ours, but we manage with Fortra's Automate."
"I like the way this solution is priced because you can buy a license, or you can buy the software outright."
"I'm only involved in running the product and maintaining the systems, so I can't speak to the cost."
"This solution is the most expensive in the market."
"IBM could offer more competitive pricing. This would allow them to attain more users. Some of our clients are considering moving to a different solution called Encapture which is similar but offers more competitive pricing."
"It is an expensive solution."
"Pricing depends on how much we use it. We pay per bulk quantity. We pay as you go. Therefore, it sort of depends on our usage of it."
"It varies, and it depends on the client's requirements and negotiations. Nowadays, Datacap is also included in the IBM Cloud Pak for Business Automation."
"In Egypt, we have exchange rates that change year to year, and currently, we're facing an increase in the exchange rate between our Egyptian pound and the dollar. Since we have been using IBM DataCap two years ago we had a good price, it was not expensive. However, I cannot say now if it is expensive or not because of the exchange rate. Additionally, I don't have the data of other competitors and I don't know the prices."
"This solution offers seamless integration with other enterprise products, which is my area of responsibility, focusing on government sector projects. Larger enterprise projects don't pose problems. It might be suitable for small businesses as well."
"Pricing needs to stay competitive."
"The tool is not expensive."
"I am using an open-source solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Performing Arts
6%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Government
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
19%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HelpSystems AutoMate?
We use it for specific cases, mainly secure file transfers, which are vital for us. And it works for us.
What is your primary use case for HelpSystems AutoMate?
The main purpose is for automation. That has been the purpose why I have been using it so far.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortra Automate?
Regarding pricing, it is very friendly. I would not say that it is really cheap or very expensive, but it fits within...
What do you like most about IBM Datacap?
The installation of the solution is very simple.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Datacap?
Pricing is in the mid-range but could be more affordable, rated at four point five.
What needs improvement with IBM Datacap?
IBM needs to improve on scanning and reading accuracy for unstructured documents. Additionally, an important missing ...
What do you like most about Python RPA?
Keyword-driven automation has been beneficial in streamlining operations.
What needs improvement with Python RPA?
I've worked with file detection for secure transactions. I use a machine learning model to predict events related to ...
 

Also Known As

HelpSystems Automate, Automate
Datacap
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aldergrove Financial Group, Preferred Health Professionals, Mindbeam Technologies, First Credit Union in British Columbia, Vestcom International, Prime Liberty Benefits, University of Tampa, CNLBancshares, World Precision Instruments, BJ's Restaurants, Globe Pequot Press, Accudata Technologies, Norton Healthcare, Pacific Toxicology Laboratories
Turkcell, PowerSouth Energy Cooperative, Central Nacional Unimed, Conqord Oil
Home Credit, Silimed, Hilton, Al Hilal Bank, Baskin and Robbins
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Datacap vs. Python RPA and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.