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IBM InfoSphere DataStage vs IBM InfoSphere Information Server vs Oracle Data Integrator (ODI) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Data Integration category, the mindshare of IBM InfoSphere DataStage is 3.7%, down from 5.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM InfoSphere Information Server is 0.9%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Data Integrator (ODI) is 3.5%, down from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Data Integration Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM InfoSphere DataStage3.7%
Oracle Data Integrator (ODI)3.5%
IBM InfoSphere Information Server0.9%
Other91.9%
Data Integration
 

Featured Reviews

Swetha S - PeerSpot reviewer
The solution streamlines design, development, and deployment with effective ETL features
The support has been really good. Typically, if we have any issues, we raise a ticket with IBM, and they help us resolve the issues if required. We also have the flexibility to submit a feature request to be included as part of the wishlist, potentially becoming a product feature in subsequent releases.
UmeshKumar1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Prompt support, reliable, but lacking scalability
IBM InfoSphere Information Server has multiple tools in that product suite. However, we mainly use it as an integration tool I have been using IBM InfoSphere Information Server for approximately five years. IBM InfoSphere Information Server is stable. IBM InfoSphere Information Server should be…
Hafiz Mannan - PeerSpot reviewer
Facilitates complex data integration with ease and flexibility
It would be great if ODI could link the designer, mapping, and workflows in a more simplified manner, maybe in one combined interface. It would be excellent not to have to go into different areas to perform different activities but rather have a user-defined interface where we can configure a job, run it, monitor it, link packages, and link subprocesses all in one frame instead of having the designer separately, mapping separately, and monitoring and session management separately. With respect to data quality challenges, it would be great to give an option to fix data quality issues based on AI. Integrating AI with ODI that provides recommendations on how to fix those data quality issues after analyzing and profiling business data would be excellent. One of the main disadvantages of the Oracle Data Integrator (ODI) is that it sometimes takes a lot of resources when handling multiple jobs. The scalability and the ability to handle multiple workloads of several parallel ETL jobs could use improvement, and certain parallel threads should be added along with the ability to configure multiple jobs from the same data directory structure.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the data integration for data warehousing."
"Once you have Infosphere up and running properly, it is stable."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to transfer information via notes."
"The solution has improved the time it takes to perform tasks related to batch applications."
"In IBM DataStage, the Transformer is the most valuable feature for me. It enables me to apply complex transformations, generate the gateway key, and map source tables into the session table."
"IBM InfoSphere DataStage is a stable tool with active support from IBM."
"It works with multiple servers and offers high availability."
"It generates highly efficient backend code to write data onto IBM systems, which I find valuable."
"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"IBM InfoSphere Information Server is stable."
"This solution is extremely flexible and scalable."
"The integration with different technologies is the most valuable feature."
"I do not have to maintain a separate ETL instance. I can change the SQL when something is not performing correctly."
"It uses the power of the database system efficiently."
"In our DW/BI solution, ODI is the main tool to integrate the data in a daily batch way."
"​All our systems can be widely integrated by ODI, such as transactional systems, our data warehouses, and B2B integration."
"All ETL code is stored in repositories in underlying database schemas. The number of users can access and work on the same solution using a client tool. So distributed teams can work on this tool in an efficient manner."
"The product has an ELT approach."
"Easy to understand, very developer-friendly, and has a big forum community and lots of documentation for support."
"Oracle provides great documentation."
 

Cons

"We would be happy to see in next versions the ability to return several parameters from jobs. Now, jobs can return just one parameter. If they could return several parameters, that would be great."
"The response time from support is slow and needs to be improved."
"Currently, the solution does not support cloud migration."
"The documentation and in-application help for this solution need to be improved, especially for new features."
"It would be useful to provide support for Python, AR, and Java."
"Working with some of the big data components is good, but I can see improvements are needed."
"I really like this tool, but the administration should be on the same client application because a lot of administration features are not on the client-side, and they usually need to have administrative access. It's quite complicated to force IT teams to have separate administrative access from the developers."
"I'd like to be able to do more with the data and metadata, including copy and pasting, et cetera."
"IBM InfoSphere Information Server should be more scalable. It should have the option to change the configuration to run on a single, non-multiple node, or multi-threading processing."
"This solution would benefit from the engine being made more lightweight."
"Their technical support needs improvement."
"There are certain shortcomings in the cloud side of the solution, where improvements are required."
"It needs easier security."
"It would be really good if Oracle considered enabling the tool to integrate with some other platforms that are deprecated simply for commercial reasons"
"The initial setup is complex, especially if you also have to install a console."
"An area for improvement would be the lack of SQL compatibility - ODI has no ability to interact with SQL unstructured types and data types."
"In our company, we haven't tried consuming services from IoT in our company yet, and I would like to know if the solution will support IoT services in the next release."
"Overall the product is fine, but sometimes its reports unknown errors while we compile ETL scripts."
"​The stability of the software could be improved. Sometimes, the software just crashes. ​"
"ODI could improve the ease of use. There is a steep learning curve to use the solution."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is expensive."
"I have no information on the exact pricing for IBM InfoSphere DataStage because the solution is usually procured by the clients my company works with, though the pricing is higher compared to other solutions, so many clients choose to go with a different solution rather than IBM InfoSphere DataStage."
"The cost is too high."
"It's very expensive."
"Small and medium-sized companies cannot afford to pay for this solution."
"High-cost of ownership: They could take a page from open source software."
"The pricing is competitive but on the higher side of the pricing scale."
"Pricing varies based on use, and it is not as costly as some competing enterprise solutions."
"The licensing cost of IBM InfoSphere Information Server depends on how many users there are."
"The solution is very expensive."
"ODI comes included when buying the cloud version of the Oracle database license."
"I have yet to determine the exact figure for Oracle Data Integrator (ODI) pricing, but it has lower pricing than Informatica."
"The solution is expensive because of the model they use. The cost is for the license and for support."
"The license can be costly, but in certain complex cases, ODI proves to be the optimal solution."
"Being an ODI developer, I never had to pay for this product. I know that the pricing/licensing is not really low, but the product is really good."
"We found that the cost compared to other integration tools is a little high, but the solution works great."
"The Oracle Data Integrator (ODI) pricing isn't expensive, but it's not cheap, so it's in the middle. I'd rate the pricing as three out of five."
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Comparison Review

it_user99375 - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 31, 2014
Oracle GoldenGate vs. Oracle Active Dataguard
As an Oracle DBA, while working upon high availability of your database you may stumble upon various Oracle strategic capabilities that fall into categories of Oracle Replication. Oracle provides various technologies for replication like GoldenGate, streams, and Active Dataguard. Replication…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
28%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
22%
Government
16%
Insurance Company
9%
Healthcare Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise25
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise43
 

Questions from the Community

Would you upgrade to more premium versions of IBM InfoSphere DataStage?
My company currently uses the free version of the product, and we are definitely switching to a paid one. We needed ...
Is IBM InfoSphere DataStage more difficult to use compared to other tools in the field?
I think the tool may cause some difficulties if you have not used other data integration solutions before. I have wo...
Do you rely on IBM Cloud Paks for your data? Have you utilized this product, or do you use IBM InfoSphere DataStage without it?
IBM Cloud Paks makes a big difference in your data integration. My company has been using it alongside IBM InfoSphere...
What do you like most about IBM InfoSphere Information Server?
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
What needs improvement with IBM InfoSphere Information Server?
There are certain shortcomings in the cloud side of the solution, where improvements are required. In our company, we...
What is your primary use case for IBM InfoSphere Information Server?
I use IBM InfoSphere Information Server in retail banking for transformation purposes.
What's the difference between Oracle Integration Cloud Service and Oracle Data Integrator (ODI)?
Oracle Integration Cloud Service has a fairly easy initial setup, and Oracle offers initial support and guidance for ...
What do you like most about Oracle Data Integrator (ODI)?
In comparison with other products of the same range, licensing mode is really attractive, no need to license accordin...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Data Integrator (ODI)?
If I use the whole Oracle system, it can be cost-effective. ODI is cheaper compared to Informatica PowerCenter ( /pro...
 

Also Known As

No data available
InfoSphere Information Server, IBM Information Server
ODI
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Dubai Statistics Center, Etisalat Egypt
Canadian National Railway Company, Chickasaw Nation Division of Commerce, Swedish Armed Forces, BG RCI, Janata Sahakari Bank Ltd., University of Arizona, Biogrid Australia
Griffith University, Kansas City Power & Light, Keste, Raymond James Financial, Valdosta State University
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Informatica, Talend and others in Data Integration. Updated: August 2025.
866,685 professionals have used our research since 2012.