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IBM InfoSphere MDM vs IBM Master Data Management on Cloud vs Microsoft MDS 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

Master Data Management (MDM) Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM InfoSphere MDM4.9%
Semarchy xDM11.2%
TIBCO EBX9.2%
Other74.7%
Master Data Management (MDM) Software
Cloud Master Data Management (MDM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Master Data Management on Cloud1.7%
Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC)18.7%
Semarchy xDM13.6%
Other66.0%
Cloud Master Data Management (MDM)
Master Data Management (MDM) Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft MDS8.1%
Semarchy xDM11.2%
TIBCO EBX9.2%
Other71.5%
Master Data Management (MDM) Software
 

Featured Reviews

SoumikDolui - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Consultant at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Provides inbuilt data model and good matching engine
It's a tough tool for developers. Right now in the market, I think Informatica MDM is number one and is used a lot. IBM MDM was developed by some other company and IBM developed it more. There are definitely some flaws. The tool is difficult to understand from a customer perspective and for developers. Generally, customers can understand Informatica MDM and its functionality easily. If a developer is facing issues with IBM MDM, then a customer will definitely not understand most of the functionality. That is the main concern. IBM is introducing some Next-Gen MDM, where they are using a lot of current technologies and machine learning. Most of the problems we may be facing right now are probably solved in that version.
reviewer1507302 - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr Solution Architect - Enterprise Storage and Virtualization at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
Effective service consolidation, new features frequent added, and beneficial centralized management
My advice to others would be IBM Master Data Management on Cloud should be considered as one of the solutions in comparison with other cloud providers in that area. Compare other solutions, such as Azure or AWS Endure data management. Based on some of the projects that we have had most customers have been extremely satisfied, I rate IBM Master Data Management on Cloud a nine out of ten.
NA
Data Management Consultant at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Centralized master data has improved data quality but now requires a clearer future roadmap
An area where Microsoft MDS can be improved is that Microsoft has announced Microsoft MDS is being removed from SQL Server two thousand twenty-five. The future of the product is genuinely uncertain, and that's something any organization evaluating it needs to factor in seriously. Microsoft MDS is still supported on SQL Server two thousand twenty-two and earlier, but the trajectory is clear that Microsoft is not investing in Microsoft MDS going forward. I would also say that the cloud story is a gap because there's no native cloud version of Microsoft MDS. For clients who are moving workloads to Azure, that's an increasingly awkward conversation. Microsoft's direction for MDM in the cloud is through other capabilities like Azure Purview and Dataverse, but those are different products with different feature sets.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"There are not really many areas of the product that need improvement because the product stays up-to-date with data management needs."
"When users update their information on one product, the data is sent to a database. My approach was to maintain a master data record, ensuring that each platform loads the latest updated record. Instead of having three separate records, the system keeps one master data record, storing the historical records for reference."
"For the company I work for, not having MDM is not an option."
"Flexibility Web services"
"The advantage is that the matching engine is very good, so that's why customers generally prefer it, and from the inbuilt data model perspective, IBM MDM is good."
"The ability to standardize and match names using a combination of global name recognition and an MDM server is a valuable feature for us."
"The stability is fine, as it is built for large-scale industrial usage and worked without a problem at Lloyds Bank where we were dealing with 300 million transactions a day."
"The features that are most valuable are the governance, the end-profiling, and the ETL which allows you to see the metadata repositories."
"IBM Master Data Management on Cloud has been valuable because it has helped in the consolidation of services and lots of the cost of administering and centralizing all the management and automation. Additionally, new features are frequently added."
"The beauty with Master Data Services is that it's centralized in one place and the problem with other solutions is that most of them have been created in house."
"It's very easy to use."
"More generic related things can be included in the services."
"It has been 200% useful in our organization."
"The ROI is terrific and it means you can avoid building or purchasing a solution."
"Compared to other databases, it is easier to manage and administer."
"Enables non-technical people to directly interact with the BI system."
"It is very easy to deploy and provision a machine."
 

Cons

"The master data, and the reference data management in the toolset are not good."
"It needs a better database."
"However, it needs to mature in several areas including, UI, DAM, lighter out-of-box features, and simplify the currently complex technical footprint."
"Though probabilistic search is supported, this feature is not an out of the box API."
"It's complex because of the poor quality of the documentation."
"IBM InfoSphere MDM's UI is complicated. It also needs to improve its on-prem configuration."
"The stack architecture seems too complicated as a result of having too many components that needed to be built together."
"We also want better cloud integration, so we could do things in the cloud if we needed to. This would be a good feature to add in a future release."
"The solution is continually being improved by adding features. They should continue to improve the solution in the future."
"If Microsoft MDS were part of Azure, it would be significantly more helpful."
"The future of the product is genuinely uncertain, and that's something any organization evaluating it needs to factor in seriously."
"Microsoft MDS' language should be simple so everyone can use it easily."
"From my understanding, MS, as of 2021, will not maintain the product going forward."
"The program's navigation tools could be improved."
"The version that I work with is on-premises and it required an additional virtual machine on the cloud. It would be a better option to have an on-cloud version."
"There are occasions when the solution maintains SD and we get duplications of MDS."
"I do not like using Silverlight and Internet Explorer. The new 2019 version gets rid of that, which is one of the reasons why we are looking to switch."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It may be costly for small organizations but adds value for large organizations with demanding workflows."
Information not available
"I would like to see better pricing."
"The pricing of this solution is good."
"With Microsoft, we buy everything though an agreement, so we purchase volume licensing every year."
"The solution does require a license and we have enterprise licenses."
"SAP is more expensive than Microsoft."
"MDS is a part of the SQL Server enterprise license. I am not aware of any additional costs."
"Microsoft MDS is an expensive solution."
"Product licensing is very complicated. It would be helpful to have an online calculator to estimate the cost of a license."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Healthcare Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
No data available
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Media Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise8
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business10
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise15
 

Questions from the Community

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft MDS?
Microsoft MDS was pretty affordable. We implemented the solution without a problem.
What needs improvement with Microsoft MDS?
I cannot really give specifics about disadvantages. From what we have seen, speaking to customers, Microsoft MDS was ...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft MDS?
I used only those two products within one year when I was still working with other products. I used to work with Wind...
 

Also Known As

InfoSphere MDM, InfoSphere Master Data Management
No data available
Microsoft Master Data Services, Microsoft MDM, Microsoft SQL Server Master Data Services, MS MDS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

L'Oreal S.A., Kingland Systems, Oncor, Farmaceuticos Maypo, Volkswagen Financial Services
Zions Bancorporation, London Borough of Camden, Government of Odisha, 1-800-Flowers.com, Nordea Bank, Sonoma County, California, Localiza
ETA a.s., Apeejay Surrendra Group, Blue Star Infotech, Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation, The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network, New Belgium Brewing
Find out what your peers are saying about TIBCO, SAP, Qlik and others in Master Data Management (MDM) Software. Updated: June 2026.
899,204 professionals have used our research since 2012.