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IBM WebSphere BPMS vs Pega Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 20, 2025

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 BPMS
Ranking in Process Automation
33rd
Average Rating
6.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Pega Platform
Ranking in Process Automation
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
82
Ranking in other categories
Business Rules Management (1st), Business Process Management (BPM) (6th), Rapid Application Development Software (9th), Low-Code Development Platforms (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Process Automation category, the mindshare of IBM WebSphere BPMS is 0.2%, down from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pega Platform is 6.1%, down from 10.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Process Automation
 

Featured Reviews

ST
Systematic role management and flexible integration improve efficiency, but low-code capabilities and setup complexity need addressing
The most valuable feature of IBM WebSphere BPMS ( /products/ibm-websphere-bpms-reviews ) is the systematic framework it provides for building different systems. The critical component is the authorization within the workflow assignment, which is an attractive aspect of this tool. It has helped us in systematic role management within the workflow. Additionally, it offers flexible integration capabilities facilitating front-end and back-end separation practices, allowing for technologies like Angular and Spring Boot ( /products/spring-boot-reviews ).
Mallik-Kesavaraju - PeerSpot reviewer
Significantly improves the overall cycle time, and offers robotic automation, and the BPM workflow
The extensive availability of ready-made gadgets in Pega BPM is a double-edged sword. While it offers convenience, it also leads to a steeper learning curve. Our developers and business analysts need to invest significant time and effort to fully understand and utilize the platform's capabilities. In essence, it's a complex product that demands a deep understanding to be used effectively. So, it cuts both ways. This complexity can be both an advantage and a disadvantage, depending on the user's expertise. So, the learning curve is pretty high! So, it's very good if you are a professional user, but you need to be a really good professional user to use this solution effectively.

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 of IBM WebSphere BPMS is the systematic framework it provides for building different systems."
"This product is flexible in its ability to integrate processes and it can be extended and integrated with other software."
"We like the feature in which we can trace back instances."
"The UI capabilities of the solution are great. The speed of delivery is good."
"Pega BPM offers a lot of out-of-the-box functionalities."
"The stability has been good. We haven't had any issues."
"Case Management, as well as Workflow Automation, are Pega's most powerful capabilities."
"The tool reduces our costs."
"It's an end-to-end solution and a digital transformation tool."
"This solution is useful for business process management if you have any banking solutions or need to manage a process."
"Fast prototyping."
"Pega BPM has a full suite for any enterprise. It is a process orchestration platform. It has detailed features for case management and workflows."
 

Cons

"The user interface could be improved, and although integration opportunities are good, they could be improved further."
"Sometimes there are tasks that failed without any reason."
"The solution lacks acceptable stability."
"There is a need for more capabilities in low-code and no-code development to increase efficiency and make implementation simpler."
"The UI needs reworking."
"The licensing cost is very high."
"Currently, there isn't any feature I want to be added in the next release of Pega BPM because Pega always adds new features that my team welcomes and looks forward to learning. One area for improvement in the solution is the long learning curve, but after that, you'll find Pega BPM easy to use."
"I've spent some hands-on time with the platform, and you can do those things, and it is all low code, but is it as easy as they make it sound? No. That's my two cents. For example, if I want to do something, there is no way to switch from low code. I just want to do a simple If-Then-Else rule, but I have to go through their low-code tool and do dragging and dropping. I'm a development person, and in my opinion, even some business users could do this easier. There is no way to go back and forth to an editor where I can just type in an If-Then-Else rule, which would be much faster than drawing in their low-code editor. They don't support that. They lead you too much."
"In the Middle East and Africa region, Pega was not very strong from the user experience standpoint."
"The usability of the solution for developers is sometimes difficult to work with because instead of fixing the existing bugs in the previous version, there is always a rush to push out a new version leaving the bugs in the old versions unresolved."
"Lack of stronger cloud support is somewhat inconvenient for users and implementation."
"It needs more integration with other platforms."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"Licensing is expensive. You need to wisely select between per user and per case."
"Users have to pay a yearly license cost for Pega BPM, which is expensive."
"We do not have to purchase any licenses for the product."
"The price of PegaRULES is more expensive than other solutions on the market."
"They need to come up with licensing options. Right now they do have a cloud-based option, but the cloud prices I've seen are much more expensive compared to competing products."
"This upgrade process is very expensive; although I haven't been on the sales team responsible for the pricing, I know it costs millions of dollars."
"The costing model for Pega BPM is different. One is a license that you can pay yearly. Another licensing model for Pega BPM is based on the number of cases you create in production in a year. Costing based on use cases is also available for Pega BPM. I don't have information on its exact pricing or costs, though."
"Its pricing is on the higher side, but they have come up with different plans and different small products that can be used by smaller organizations that don't have that much money to spend. They have different pricing packages depending on the number of users or depending upon the number of cases created in the production or live environment."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Financial Services Firm
27%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM WebSphere BPMS?
There is a need for more capabilities in low-code and no-code development to increase efficiency and make implementation simpler. The tool currently involves a complex setup requirement, and having...
What is your primary use case for IBM WebSphere BPMS?
We use IBM WebSphere BPMS ( /products/ibm-websphere-bpms-reviews ) internally in the bank for process automation and management. Our IT department self-builds different systems to serve various use...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM WebSphere BPMS?
I recommend IBM WebSphere BPMS for large enterprises concerned with total system management. It is not ideal for SMB due to its complexity and the need for significant IT resources. I rate it seven...
Is Pega BPM easy to work with and can beginners utilize this software?
You do need some preparation to be able to use all functions of Pega BPM. However, all users of this platform are in luck as it comes with good documentation and you can learn pretty much everythin...
Have you encountered any issues while using Pega BPM and were you assisted by the company?
My company has been using this tool for years and the only issue we have had, if you can call it that, was while setting it up. When we were setting it up initially, we had some drawbacks and could...
When you consider the features and benefits of Pega BPM, would you say this product is fairly priced?
Pega BPM can be considered overpriced for some; it all depends on the size of your company and the requirements of your customers. Sure, there are products out there that do the things that Pega B...
 

Comparisons

No data available
 

Also Known As

WebSphere BPMS
Pega BPM, Pegasystems, SmartBPM, PegaRULES
 

Overview

Information not available
 

Sample Customers

Schahin Group, Korean Credit Card Company, Versicherungskammer Bayern, Biogrid Australia
The State of Maine, ANZ, Coca-Cola, Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), ME, New South Wales, OptumRx, Texas Department of Transportation, UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM WebSphere BPMS vs. Pega Platform and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.