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IBM InfoSphere MDM vs Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC) 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
Data Management Platforms (DMP)
Master Data Management (MDM) Software
 

Featured Reviews

SoumikDolui - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Raj Sethupathi - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers profiling and address standardization but can be complicated
Informatica Data Quality has its data warehouse, primarily using Oracle and some SQL databases. You need a database to host the data. The cleansed version of the data is stored in the data warehouse. It integrates with PowerCenter and other Informatica tools. The integration details can be complex, but a regional setup is involved in this process. Profiling smaller datasets, such as 10,000-50,000 records, worked fine. However, unexpected issues could arise with larger datasets, such as thousands of records or more, especially with tables containing many columns. Handling tables with fifty or more columns can be challenging, even in Excel. A mismatch in data types could cause the entire system to crash. Continual enhancements are being made to address these issues, which can be unique to specific industries like finance and healthcare.
Satyam Saxena - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced data management and cost effective with flexible integration capabilities
If Microsoft MDS were part of Azure, it would be significantly more helpful. Additionally, integrating fuzzy duplication within MDS itself, rather than relying on SSIS, would streamline operations. The current requirement to store data in Azure tables after processing it in MDS, due to its lack of direct Azure integration, is a drawback.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"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."
"The advantage is that the matching engine is very good, so that's why customers generally prefer it. From the inbuilt data model perspective, IBM MDM is good."
"The features that are most valuable are the governance, the end-profiling and the ETL which allows you to see the metadata repositories."
"There are not really many areas of the product that need improvement because the product stays up-to-date with data management needs."
"Informatica MDM has data quality, mastering the data's capability."
"The Provisioning tool is something that is really handy for everyone. It is my pick as the best feature."
"It is a very stable solution...It is a scalable solution."
"The ability to clean out data and improve the data quality is the best feature."
"Informatica is good for integrating data and cloud applications. We have connectors for integrating cloud applications like Salesforce. You can quickly integrate anything with an exposed API or a REST API. The industry is increasingly shifting to the cloud, so we need more products that can connect to cloud-based applications. The integration is seamless and works in real time. It's also secure because you don't need to expose databases or tables."
"New tools are coming out that will enable you to achieve 90 percent of use cases with the out-of-the-box configuration, but I would like to keep Informatica tight here. Otherwise, you need a Java user edit course and other things to do multiple things that you cannot configure out of the box. They have to go through those use cases to do something if those can also be configured rather than coded."
"It has improved our organization because it has made our data more reliable. Data is the most important asset these days, and in order to trust your data, you need these tools to make sure that your data is clean and reliable."
"The valuable feature is metadata management. If you want to trace sensitive data, you can auto-classify them. You can search for sensitive information through EDC. Using Discovery, you can identify if there is any type of data set."
"The ease of use is valuable."
"The solution is easy to install."
"It has been a long-standing tool in our organization since it was free."
"The backup and restore functionality are the solution's most valuable aspects."
"Unlike specialized tools, MDS is adaptable for various industries, making it a versatile choice for master data management."
"The tool is easy to use."
"It's very easy to use."
"It is very easy to deploy and provision a machine."
 

Cons

"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."
"IBM InfoSphere MDM's UI is complicated. It also needs to improve its on-prem configuration."
"The tool is difficult to understand from a customer perspective and for developers."
"The product is really only created for large organizations."
"The integration with other data management tools can be enhanced. For instance, there is no integration with tools like Collibra or Hubview."
"One thing Informatica could improve is the way IPUs are used. Each customer purchases a certain amount of IPUs per month, but you can use more or less than that defined quantity. The only problem is if you don't use the all your IPUs, they don't carry over into the next month. I think customers should have the ability to transfer unused IPUs into the next month or year. This improvement could help give customers more flexibility, especially since cloud solutions need flexibility in how we use and pay for them."
"There are various areas for improvement in IDMC. Enhancements on the UI front, such as multiple templates and improved grid views, would be beneficial."
"The biggest pain point for us is the documentation. Typically, you have to go through knowledge forums and knowledge groups to find out about the syntax issues for interfacing with new products. Typically, you've got to deal with someone who has been through the pain before. Their documents are not really up to date with current innovations happening in the industry. As big as they are, you can't really expect it, but that's our pain point."
"The error information provided is not informative, as compared to Power Center."
"It would be great if the cloud version could match the full range of capabilities available on-premise."
"Informatica MDM can improve the data catalog and data marketplace."
"The advertising makes promises about data analytics that it does not keep."
"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."
"If Microsoft MDS were part of Azure, it would be significantly more helpful."
"There are occasions when the solution maintains SD and we get duplications of MDS."
"Most of the Microsoft partners, especially digitally, are separate. Personnel are business people, and they do not have technical expertise, so you end up as a company spending a lot of money training your staff and your engineers."
"The solution could be better integrated into Microsoft's other products."
"Stability can be fragile at times. If you are not attentive or make a mistake, it can cause problems."
"Microsoft MDS is outdated and lacks modern capabilities."
"The Microsoft license cost could be lower."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It may be costly for small organizations but adds value for large organizations with demanding workflows."
"The price is comparable."
"The price is very high and has become a big concern for our customers who require the solution in order for their business to function smoothly."
"My understanding is that Informatica is quite expensive compare to other tools that are available in the market."
"It is expensive. That's probably the biggest drawback. The business has heartache paying the license, but that's mainly because they don't realize what value it brings. The key thing about the MDM solution is that it is in the backend, and no one sees what it is actually doing. You don't know it is a problem until it is not there."
"I rate the licensing cost of Informatica MDM a five out of ten."
"You can purchase licenses for this solution at different intervals. For example, annually or every three years. They recently changed their terms for licensing and now it is more flexible."
"The platform has a premium cost. I rate the pricing as seven out of ten."
"I'm not sure about the most recent pricing trends, but I don't believe it's significantly different from PowerCenter. I believe it is nearly the same."
"MDS is a part of the SQL Server enterprise license. I am not aware of any additional costs."
"The solution does require a license and we have enterprise licenses."
"SAP is more expensive than Microsoft."
"Microsoft MDS is an expensive solution."
"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."
"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
26%
Healthcare Company
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Insurance Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Insurance Company
6%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM InfoSphere MDM?
When users update their information on one product, the data is sent to a database. My approach was to maintain a mas...
What needs improvement with IBM InfoSphere MDM?
IBM InfoSphere MDM's UI is complicated. It also needs to improve its on-prem configuration.
What is your primary use case for IBM InfoSphere MDM?
When users update their information on one product, the data is sent to a database. My approach was to maintain a mas...
How does Azure Data Factory compare with Informatica Cloud Data Integration?
Azure Data Factory is a solid product offering many transformation functions; It has pre-load and post-load transfor...
Which Informatica product would you choose - PowerCenter or Cloud Data Integration?
Complex transformations can easily be achieved using PowerCenter, which has all the features and tools to establish a...
What are the biggest benefits of using Informatica Cloud Data Integration?
When it comes to cloud data integration, this solution can provide you with multiple benefits, including: Overhead r...
What do you like most about Microsoft MDS?
More generic related things can be included in the services.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft MDS?
Microsoft MDS is free. Currently, there is no pricing concern with the tool.
What needs improvement with Microsoft MDS?
Microsoft MDS is outdated and lacks modern capabilities. It is too slow and does not support automated mapping or AI-...
 

Also Known As

InfoSphere MDM, InfoSphere Master Data Management
ActiveVOS, Active Endpoints, BPM, Address Verification, Persistent Data Masking, Cloud Test Data Management, PIM, , Enterprise Data Catalog, Data Integration Hub, Cloud Data Integration, Data Quality, Cloud API and App Integration
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
The Travel Company, Carbonite
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 SAP, Microsoft, TIBCO and others in Master Data Management (MDM) Software. Updated: May 2025.
855,080 professionals have used our research since 2012.