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IDERA ER/Studio vs Redgate SQL Toolbelt Essentials comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 23, 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

IDERA ER/Studio
Ranking in Database Development and Management
8th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
38
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (7th)
Redgate SQL Toolbelt Essent...
Ranking in Database Development and Management
9th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Database Development and Management category, the mindshare of IDERA ER/Studio is 2.5%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Redgate SQL Toolbelt Essentials is 4.8%, down from 5.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Database Development and Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IDERA ER/Studio2.5%
Redgate SQL Toolbelt Essentials4.8%
Other92.7%
Database Development and Management
 

Featured Reviews

KP
Works at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
Enables large teams to collaborate seamlessly with comprehensive integration and strong versioning support
ER/Studio is excellent for large teams; it scales well to teams of over one hundred plus people. It has strong versioning support and can even integrate with third-party versioning tools like GitHub. It has a rich set of integration options with various products in the market. The tool also supports both logical and physical data modeling, and it has out-of-the-box support for data vault methodologies. ER/Studio allows the enforcement of naming conventions, which is beneficial for maintaining standards within the organization.
CS
Director, Enterprise Data Management at Glatfelter Insurance Group
SQL Search and change automation functionality help us manage our code repository and databases
The biggest problem with the Redgate SQL Toolbelt is just how heavy it is; it seems to take a lot of resources. It takes a lot of memory and a lot of processing power to run, and that tends to slow things down a bit. Making it a little more lightweight while still doing the same thing, as much as possible, is what we would like to see in the future. I've noticed that Microsoft SSMS runs much quicker without RedGate installed than it does with it installed. From bootup of the app to opening query windows and connections, SSMS is quicker without Redgate than with, by a significant margin. The other area for improvement is regarding licensing. Every month or two my SSMS loses it's redgate license key and I need to re-enter the key to continue using Red Gate, even though the license is annual.

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 features are... those that enable me to represent the database to the development community and the business users."
"We can track changes to our data models and tie those changes back to specific tasks or efforts that we identify."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is generating DDL (data definition language)."
"Data lineage tracking: It allows us to identify upstream and downstream systems using data."
"My overall rating for the solution is ten out of ten."
"IDERA keeps up with the versions of Oracle and SQL Server that I'm using. I mostly use SQL Server and when there are new features, a new type of index, for example, IDERA also includes them in upgrades of the data modeling tool."
"Modeling with Data Architect: We can quickly reverse-engineer a database from an existing database or create a model from scratch."
"We found a lot of duplication, a lot of non-conformity in the way our databases were designed. By identifying these situations, we're able to go back in and try to create a more standardized solution."
"The most valuable feature is SQL Search."
"It is easy to track the reports, this is what is most valuable for me."
 

Cons

"The number of options can be overwhelming at times. That is not necessarily a bad thing but for a newbie, it can be daunting."
"There was no specific mention of areas needing improvement."
"The solution's reporting could be improved because the report writer is terrible."
"I would like to see better documentation/help for the Data Architect tool. Creation of tutorials would be nice, as there are some features which are not as clearly defined as they should be."
"ER/Studio lacks a pure cloud option for deployment."
"When building the relationships there should be a little more flexibility."
"The visual presentation is a little too colorful and seems that it is dumbed down."
"The only thing I had an issue with was licensing, and the support was very good."
"The biggest problem with the Redgate SQL Toolbelt is just how heavy it is; it seems to take a lot of resources."
"I would like to see the bandwidth increase allowing me to easily analyze more data."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of this product is okay."
"The solution’s pricing is high."
"Pricing is on point, but do your due diligence - not every developer needs the tool."
"At my previous company using ER/Studio, a database compare took four hours before using the product and 15 minutes after using the product."
"I'm a firm believer that all software is overpriced these days but, comparatively speaking, I think ER/Studio is worth the money."
"Pricing is expensive and on the higher-end."
"I use the product's trial version."
"I feel the product's pricing is a good value."
"The cost is about $3,500 USD per individual to buy, and then it's about 20% per year for renewal."
"Our fees are paid on an annual basis."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Energy/Utilities Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Insurance Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise11
Large Enterprise26
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IDERA ER Studio?
In terms of pricing, ER/Studio is slightly more expensive compared to Erwin, by about five to ten percent.
What is your primary use case for IDERA ER Studio?
I have been working with data modeling tools. Personally, I have been working with Erwin for many years now. ER/Studio is something I am currently trying to evaluate for acquiring it for our organi...
What advice do you have for others considering IDERA ER Studio?
I would strongly recommend ER/Studio for large teams. Erwin is a very stable product, but for smaller teams, it's okay. If I had to rate ER/Studio, I would give it nine out of ten because the absen...
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Also Known As

IDERA ER Studio, ER/Studio, ER/Studio Enterprise Team Edition
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Newmont Mining, Entrust, Accolade, TalkTalk, Catalina, Protective Life, NTT Data, dir systèmes, Microsoft; American Express, Astellas Pharma, AstraZeneca, Coriant, Fedex, GlaxoSmithKline, PepsiCo, Prudential, Wells Fargo
Thinger.fi, Churchill College Univeristy of Cambridge, Margin Business Solutions Ltd., 4Penny.net, Sportinginsider.net, Lockheed Martin, Phillip Securities Pte Ltd, Nmbrs
Find out what your peers are saying about IDERA ER/Studio vs. Redgate SQL Toolbelt Essentials and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,986 professionals have used our research since 2012.