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IBM WebSphere Application Server vs SAP NetWeaver Enterprise Portal [EOL] comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 15, 2026

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

IBM WebSphere Application S...
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.4
Number of Reviews
32
Ranking in other categories
Application Server (4th)
SAP NetWeaver Enterprise Po...
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
18th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of IBM WebSphere Application Server is 5.5%, down from 12.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP NetWeaver Enterprise Portal [EOL] is 2.3%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Infrastructure Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM WebSphere Application Server5.5%
SAP NetWeaver Enterprise Portal2.3%
Other92.2%
Application Infrastructure
 

Featured Reviews

CF
Senior Manager, MW & DB Automation at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Has worked seamlessly in complex clustered environments and supports long-term development efforts
IBM WebSphere Application Server is currently at version 9.0.5.23. In recent months, they released fix 23, as they periodically release fixes. Previously, they frequently increased versions, but now they maintain 9.0.5 with different releases. It's based on Java J2EE 7 and Java SDK 1.8. Oracle announced that 2030 will be the last year when Java SDK 1.8 will be supported. Oracle currently deploys Java 2.x in parallel, with the latest being version 25. The future of IBM WebSphere Application Server remains uncertain since it's based on Java 1.8 and Java 7. I haven't found any white papers or official documentation from IBM outlining their trajectory post-2030.
reviewer1582677 - PeerSpot reviewer
CTO / Executive Director for Information Technology at a logistics company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Improves business processes, highly stable, and reliable
We are in Serbia and we are providing data center services for other countries, such as Montenegro, Bosnia, and Hercegovina. We are using this solution as an ERP at the moment. This covers all of our business processes, this includes sales, distribution, data management, finance, and compliance…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The only reason why we're currently using WebSphere is that the integration of the authentication with Azure is very quick. WebSphere has something that can immediately connect with Azure Active Directory."
"It is very stable, safe, and secure."
"The technical support from IBM is very good and responsive."
"The only reason why we're currently using WebSphere is that the integration of the authentication with Azure is very quick."
"We have about 3,000 users concurrently using this application, and it has achieved more than 99.9% up time which has resulted in increased productivity and efficiency."
"This solution is very good in terms of stability."
"Once you deploy your application, it will be very stable with no issues at all."
"One of the most valuable features might be the stability of the IBM WebSphere Application Server."
"Internal workflow approval around ESS and MSS leave days, capex approval as well as internal communication to the business have improved the way my organization functions."
"From the use of this solution, we have been able to establish better processes and have greater management of our company."
"The technical support is good."
"The technical support is good."
"They integrated it with the SAP router."
"Workflow functionality and internal portal capabilities are the most important features."
"Internal workflow approval around ESS and MSS leave days, capex approval as well as internal communication to the business have improved the way my organization functions."
"From the use of this solution, we have been able to establish better processes and have greater management of our company."
 

Cons

"It should be able to serve more concurrent requests like Oracle. Oracle has more powerful stability, availability, and real-time serving."
"Stability is frustrating. It goes down after a specific number of user connections."
"The computing resources required to run WAS could be reduced so that we can use a smaller virtual machine to run the application."
"The future of IBM WebSphere Application Server remains uncertain since it's based on Java 1.8 and Java 7."
"The support could be a bit more responsive."
"They should make the solution more lightweight and not bundle everything into a single product."
"WebSphere is very cumbersome and not user-friendly. It used to have its own JVM, which presented challenges such as different architecture and memory leaks."
"When we run into memory or locking issues, we resort to using third-party tools. However, it would be preferable to have native tools for debugging this type of problem."
"Our customers expect that a page will open within one second, and I doubt this will happen. Also, opening documentation takes time. Fixing this will help the customer and help to meet their expectations."
"Due to our business, some setups were very complex."
"The cost of this solution is high."
"Our customers expect that a page will open within one second, and I doubt this will happen. Also, opening documentation takes time."
"The user interface could be improved by making it more user-friendly."
"External portal functionality with suppliers and customers needs improvement."
"We encountered stability issues, especially on external functionality around its RFP capabilities."
"Our customers expect that a page will open within one second, and I doubt this will happen. Also, opening documentation takes time."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I don't remember the price, but there are no additional costs."
"When you purchase Maximo, you get WebSphere for free."
"The licensing cost is 1,000 of euros for a 30-year table."
"Room for improvement would only be in the licensing. As with all IBM products the licensing can be complex and expensive. Bargain well and try to get as much discount as possible. Discounts of 85% are possible. Without the discount, I think the product is overrated."
"IBM WAS base is part of the deal when you purchase IBM FileNet P8 Content Engine."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"We used to pay about $100,000-$120,000 US or somewhere around there. That was a bit cost-prohibitive for us to continue."
"The licensing policy is based on the PVU base."
"​SAP is not for every business. It depends on what is required. SAP is always going to be expensive​."
"Because India is so competitive in the IT world, people will start to move away from SAP's pricing because they have a market monopoly. Soon, they will start losing the monopoly part to open source and other things. I don't think their monopoly will run for more than three to four years because people are getting away from these monopolies."
"The cost of this solution is high."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
32%
Computer Software Company
8%
Insurance Company
7%
Government
5%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise23
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM WebSphere Application Server?
Network Deployment is the most useful feature for scalability. It has many features within the standard WebSphere Application Server edition.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM WebSphere Application Server?
At Royal Bank, which is a major IBM customer with mainframes and numerous IBM products, they have a specific agreement regarding pricing. The pricing structure for large enterprise customers differ...
What needs improvement with IBM WebSphere Application Server?
IBM WebSphere Application Server is currently at version 9.0.5.23. In recent months, they released fix 23, as they periodically release fixes. Previously, they frequently increased versions, but no...
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Also Known As

WebSphere Application Server
NetWeaver Enterprise Portal, SAP Portal
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

TalkTalk, Property management group, E.SUN Bank, Ohio National Financial Services, Aviarc, Cincom Systems, FJA-US, D+H, Staples, Michigan Municipal League
Alliander N.V.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, IBM, F5 and others in Application Infrastructure. Updated: April 2026.
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