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IBM Maximo vs IFS Cloud Platform vs ServiceNow 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

Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Maximo15.2%
Oracle Enterprise Asset Management8.5%
IFS Cloud Platform7.3%
Other69.0%
Enterprise Asset Management (EAM)
ERP Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IFS Cloud Platform2.5%
SAP ERP10.4%
SAP S/4HANA6.3%
Other80.8%
ERP
IT Service Management (ITSM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
ServiceNow15.8%
JIRA Service Management7.3%
BMC Helix ITSM5.7%
Other71.2%
IT Service Management (ITSM)
 

Featured Reviews

Antony Mishra - PeerSpot reviewer
Java Software Engineer at GPA
Asset management has become streamlined and decision-making is now driven by lifecycle data
The best features IBM Maximo offers are that it is very simple to deploy on OpenShift using Ansible playbooks. It also has excellent support for integration, is simple to configure, and the asset register is very straightforward. Work management and managing inventory are seamless. In terms of integration support, I have used preventive maintenance, work generation, accurate work execution planning, tracking actuals, and I can easily integrate with other tools and systems. IBM Maximo Suite gives me a single place where service cycles are standardized and tied to compliance. IBM Maximo has positively impacted my organization as it has been a very useful tool. It reduced human error by moving away from pen and paper-based scheduling. It saved cost by minimizing unexpected downtime of assets, with approximately 50% of time being saved. We have also reduced overwork among staff by removing redundant information and smoothing task flows. It helps us scale our team without micromanaging small issues.
Thangaraj Ramasamy - PeerSpot reviewer
Consultant at Arcwide
Has supported project management and business customization through strong modular flexibility
The cloud feature in IFS Cloud Platform is predominantly valuable, especially the enterprise asset management module, which IFS has very good business into, along with strong finance, project management, and supply chain management modules; these are the major modules that are performing well with IFS, and the cloud options along with user-friendly customizations for any technical developments are additional advantages. The integration of IoT with IFS Cloud Platform is performing well, enabling us to integrate with predominantly any third party through the standard inbuilt connectors that are readily available, and if we need to customize the integration, we can certainly do that too.
MT
Manager of Security Engineering & Architecture at a outsourcing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Seamless data integration and advanced automation improve service delivery efficiency
I think that nothing needs to be improved with the product; you just need the user to commit and spend appropriate time to overcome that learning curve. Once that is done, the product itself is pretty wonderful. I've seen a very nicely built interface with ServiceNow, and I've also seen the ugliest version that feels outdated. ServiceNow does allow that team to exist. They should modernize their fonts and their layout, the UI friendliness. They did introduce AI, chatbots, and AI on the back end, so that's wonderful and extremely useful if you train it. If you don't train it, it's pretty useless. Assessing the impact of ServiceNow's automation on service delivery times is complicated. The engineers who operate on ServiceNow find it isn't straightforward because the data set is accessible by everybody. The problem is that understanding how to manage that data set requires an enormous amount of engineering skill set to run the product. I would not hand the key to the customer; I would highly recommend that ServiceNow take control of that. Instead of offering support for the software, they should offer administrative support for the software. They should provide professional service or some kind of support system that allows us to use their product at a faster pace. I'm sure they offer something, but it's often outrageously expensive, or they rely on another company to resell their product and offer professional service. It makes no sense in my opinion, and they should offer the team at the front to help customize the product to fit each company's needs, as every company has different demands and forms of submitting a request that need adjustment over time.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Our measurable results show that unplanned downtime decreased by a minimum of 15 to 20%, work order processing time decreased by 30%, data consistency across sites significantly improved, and preventive maintenance compliance increased by 20 to 25%."
"We are very thankful to have IBM integrated with our own Legacy cloud-based system"
"The most valuable aspect is the level of flexibility Maximo provides because it is more code-based and more Java-based, so our development team and support partners are able to customize and relatively easily tailor it to our needs."
"For what it represents and what it gives you, it is a very powerful tool."
"The most valuable features of IBM Maximo are the overall power and interface, and there are a lot of different modules that we use that are helpful. Additionally, it's an integrated solution and it has a lot of capabilities."
"Reliable, very configurable, and it's all integrated in the same database."
"If it's not the best EAM product, it is one of the best out there."
"Preventive maintenance management."
"The solution overall is very versatile and flexible, especially compared to other products."
"Apart from the pressures of meeting 14 go-live dates, this has been a very positive experience and has led to a streamlined and effective business."
"The platform is reliable and stable."
"The product is quite flexible."
"One of our favorite features is the "Info-Zone", which provides operational intelligence in flight and in context to guide both business users and support teams to productivity."
"The financial posting controls are quite handy. The user interface is really friendly, highly flexible, and pretty intuitive for end users."
"The most valuable feature is the distribution module."
"The most valuable features of IFS Applications in the latest version are the new user Arena interface. It's from Apps 9, but it brings more flexibility in usage, especially around different devices, such as mobile usage, which doesn't restrict you from using a computer. We are it for the HR side, and it's proving quite good. It has a new modern feel to it similar to a standard cloud application which enhances the user experience."
"If it is a high priority, they will respond very quickly. If it is a low priority issue, it might take some time, some three or four days. I would rate the technical support as a 10 out of 10."
"Year after year they have implemented more functionalities and come out with more enhancements, as well as new modules."
"I think realistically, it helped us better our processes."
"I have found the workflows and integration the most valuable in this solution."
"It has the ability to consolidate different areas of the service desk into one solution."
"It is easily configurable and has a good developer society online, available for any issues from the backend."
"The solution has very good automation tools."
"It enables us to meet SLAs, track issues across the environment, and report those issues."
 

Cons

"The standard reports that shipped with the package need to be enriched with more advanced reports, especially for the Inventory Management sections."
"I feel that the interface is a little too complicated with a large number of fields to enter."
"It was very slow due to the lagging issues. So that was kind of frustrating, considering how slow it was while functioning."
"The initial setup was complex, because it is a complex product."
"There are always ways to improve and make things better."
"IBM is a big company and they have a lot of products. Level One, the first level of tech support, is the one that is used to stop the tsunami. For everyone, it's always work to get past that."
"IBM Maximo is similar to an ARP. Because it's so massive, you can easily get lost using the application."
"IBM Maximo can improve the financial support and financial application, to make it more similar to an ERP as opposed to an EAM. Overall they can improve the financial processes."
"The integration is a bit complex, and post-implementation support services need to be improved. They have a service center based out of Sri Lanka. The support aspect is good, but the response time is a little slower than we anticipated. In the next release, it would be better if Warehouse Management could be improvised. They have a product line that's a data warehouse management system, but it's still premature and requires a bit of enhancement."
"The CRM was shaky and although this improves in Apps 10, there is room for improvement."
"The user interface can be improved. When you're clicking through the screens, there are some icons or symbols that really need updating and would be more useful and noticeable if they are aesthetically pleasing."
"Pricing is comparatively or sufficiently higher than maybe all other IT solutions."
"The solution's initial setup process was complex...The technical support my company receives from the implementation partners of the solution is not that great."
"IFS Applications is not robust enough to handle high-volume transactions, so it's not suitable for larger enterprises."
"It would be ideal if, in the future, the product could incorporate IoT and blockchain elements. We'd like to explore more of these types of features going forward."
"There are some stability issues."
"Before implementing this solution, you should have the ITSM model in place for chain management requests. That is a prerequisite because you cannot perform tasks without it."
"Their user interface is old-fashioned and outdated, and it can be more friendly for the eye."
"A new user does need training or time to learn the solution before jumping in. It was very hard in the beginning to understand everything."
"The standard UI is very restricted. It doesn't look as good, compared to Remedy."
"Before implementing this solution, you should have the ITSM model in place for change management requests. That is a prerequisite because you cannot perform tasks without it."
"This solution needs to be improved for global use."
"I have enjoyed all the features. There is not any feature that I have missed or didn't have."
"Local solutions have lower costs."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I do not know about the price of the solution. However, this has been an expensive project overall."
"$USD700 per agent user."
"The price of IBM Maximo could reduce, it is expensive."
"IBM has changed the licensing policy. As I understand now, they are going from a complex way of licensing to a more simple way of licensing."
"You pay for what you get. There are lots of options depending on how you would like to implement Maximo."
"IBM Maximo offers a licensing application, and you have to comply with the license."
"The concurrent user license is much more effective in management and cost-wise, as it is more suitable for maintenance management."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is low and ten is high, I rate the pricing a nine. The price is very high."
"Ask for all-inclusive pricing, as they are pretty flexible if you ask for custom models."
"There are varying license levels that you can purchase."
"The additional cost that comes with the solution includes the overhead of the people who are trying to fix the tool issues. These people are trying to reproduce the issue and report it to the technical support and testing with them which is huge. It is the cost of quality in the end."
"I consider it to be a well-priced solution compared to other mid-range or high-end ERP solutions."
"There's an additional yearly cost for support."
"IFS Applications are competitive in terms of pricing compared to other vendors, such as SAP, Oracle, and Epicor. They are generally cheaper, especially for licensing costs."
"Compared to SAP, the pricing for IFS Applications was very affordable. People using the solution would find that it's worth the money."
"Pricing is an area that could be improved. They could be more competitive."
"We are happy with the pricing."
"I know that it's not too bad because people continue to use it and they are happy to renew up their contract."
"The CapEx version is great."
"The licensing cost is based on your partnership with ServiceNow and what you have selected for implementation. There is an annual license cost which is calculated based on your number of devices."
"The licensing expenses are excessively high."
"ServiceNow tends to be a little bit more expensive as compared to BMC Helix ITSM."
"I'm not aware of any additional costs. I'm pretty sure that the current client is paying just the licensing fee per user. I do know that they've got some support agreement with ServiceNow, but I don't think that is broken out or specific to Project Management. It is just inclusive."
"We know that ServiceNow is not cheap, it's more expensive than other solutions. But we are trying to increase our ability to handle tickets so that the cost per ticket is less."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
9%
Energy/Utilities Company
8%
Computer Software Company
6%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Computer Software Company
12%
Construction Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise22
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business55
Midsize Enterprise35
Large Enterprise169
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM Maximo?
The only thing that I need from IBM Maximo is more simplicity. The application has been designed in a way that it is ...
What is your primary use case for IBM Maximo?
There are different use cases for IBM Maximo that I work with mostly. We use it for complete asset management. Anythi...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Maximo?
AWS is more recommended for IBM Maximo. You can go into Microsoft as well, but AWS is preferred. IBM also has their o...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IFS Applications?
The product is reasonably priced. The costs are justified by the value provided, considering the comprehensive featur...
What needs improvement with IFS Applications?
When it comes to AI, I feel that is the area where we expect something more from IFS Cloud Platform. They are working...
What is your primary use case for IFS Applications?
Currently, I am working with Arcwide, which is a service industry that predominantly focuses on IFS consulting, inclu...
Which solution is better for developing non-ITSM applications: OutSystems or Service Now?
The short answer is that OutSystems is far better for 2 main reasons. Firstly, with Service Now you are locked into t...
Would you choose ServiceNow over Microsoft PowerApps?
Hi Netanya, I will choose ServiceNow because ServiceNow is a very good tool compared to Microsoft PowerApp. Because ...
What do you like most about ServiceNow?
The solution has a user-friendly interface.
 

Also Known As

Maximo
IFS Applications, Assyst, IFS Cloud
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V., DTE Energy, Swedish Match, Projetech, Fingrid, East Coast
China Airlines, Electrolux Group, Babcock, Cimcorp, Sky, Multiplex, Veolia. 
AAA, AstraZeneca, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Broadcom, Christus Health, Epicor, Equinix, GE Capital, Intuit, KPMG, Loyola Marymount University, OshKosh, Quantas, RedHat, Royal Bank of Scotland, Swiss Re, U.S. Department of Energy, Safeway, Yale University, and Zillow    
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM, Infor, Prometheus Group and others in Enterprise Asset Management (EAM). Updated: March 2026.
885,789 professionals have used our research since 2012.