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Magic xpa Application Platform vs SAP Mobile Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 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

Magic xpa Application Platform
Ranking in Mobile Development Platforms
9th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
Application Server (8th), Application Infrastructure (14th)
SAP Mobile Platform
Ranking in Mobile Development Platforms
11th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Mobile App Platforms (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Mobile Development Platforms category, the mindshare of Magic xpa Application Platform is 3.9%, up from 2.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP Mobile Platform is 3.4%, up from 2.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Mobile Development Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

Mylsamy T. - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables us to develop more than 90 applications in-house, which are used across our organization
It's a bit difficult to work with purely web-based applications to get the data and display it. There have been a few times when the connection was disconnected between the server and your browser. The connectivity on browser-built applications needs to be improved. The mobile application development could be easier. They could include different external applications, like finger sensors. I'm not sure whether it's in version 3.8 or not.
Kumar Saurav - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers a robust set of tools for developing, deploying, and managing mobile apps securely and efficiently
In a recent project, we integrated SAP Mobile Platform with various SAP systems. Most companies store their data on-premises or in SAP systems. Our task was to sync this data with the mobile platform hosted in the cloud. We used integration tools to connect seamlessly with these on-premises systems, ensuring data synchronization. Additionally, we connected to satellite systems like Jira for specific functionalities such as ticket management, requiring robust integration capabilities. The security model of SAP Mobile Platform has positively impacted our mobile applications by addressing initial reluctance and highlighting its suitability for certain tasks like approvals and on-site data entry, especially for industries like oil and gas, utilities, and manufacturing. This enables remote approval processes and real-time data entry, improving efficiency and accessibility for users who are not always at their desks. SAP Mobile Platform supports our cross-platform mobile app development needs by enabling the conversion of SAP transaction codes into mobile-friendly interfaces. This allows users to access SAP functionalities from their mobile devices, increasing flexibility and productivity, especially for departments like sales who need to input data on the go. Overall, I would rate SAP Mobile Platform as an eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution makes the managing and adapting of the software very easy."
"The best feature of Magic is the development time. The time it takes to develop something is incredibly fast if you compare Magic with, for example, Java."
"Magic’s unique approach to development ensures that the programmer stays focused on the objective of the program (i.e. display all customers in California), instead of the repetitive tasks that surround it (i.e. connect to database, open customers table, create the query to retrieve records within the specified criteria, fetch the result of the query, connect it to a data grid, etc.)."
"Being able to make changes to existing programs to comply with last minute changes in requirements, and/or being able to fix, test, review, and deploy new code in a manner of hours instead of days, definitely gives us a huge advantage over our competitors and this is only possible thanks to Magic’s speed of programming."
"The ability to use the same development environment for both Windows and Android applications. Magic xpa also supports iOS applications."
"Magic’s Database Gateway allows the logic of the program to be isolated from the underlying database. This provides the flexibility not only to move existing programs to different database environments without the need to change the logic in the program but also allows the programmer access to different databases without the need to know how to "talk" to them."
"Speed of development and database connectivity (MS SQL, Oracle, DB2, Btrieve/Pervasive PSQL, ODBC, MySql, and SQLite)."
"Without the need to compile code, the time spent in the development cycle is greatly reduced, allowing the programmer to test modifications to a program immediately after they have been saved."
"Technical support is helpful."
"Two of the very fascinating features that make SAP Mobile Platform stand out from other platforms are its offline capability and integration capability."
"If we work with the mobile extension of the ERP platform, we save time."
"It's not that difficult to set up."
"The initial setup is not overly complex."
"Both platforms, the SAP Mobile Platform, and SAP, are highly valuable for our company because they facilitate integration, which can be expensive. It's very convenient to connect and create billing accounts through the SAP Mobile Platform."
"One valuable feature of SAP Mobile Platform is its enterprise-grade standard and maintained APIs, available out of the box for easy integration with various systems."
 

Cons

"When you have several tasks, you open a screen in a task in developing mode, and you don't see the parent screens. Debugging lacks the effects to solve problems. You have to do it first in a kind of studio. Then you have to be sure that you can do it in Magic because there is almost nothing to debug it. It's practically impossible to debug. You have to be sure before you put your snippets."
"They want to be one toolbox for everything, but primarily, we are using xpa to develop desktop applications, and in that area they're lacking functionalities, flexibility, and modern stuff."
"The user interface could be improved to be more friendly for developers."
"The Android environment is missing a number of functions for file/folder manipulation, sending receiving text messages (SMS) and the menuing options are limited. For now, it is left to the developer to write his/her own Java functions to include in the APK."
"The configuration of the xpa RIA mobile environment is complex and a discouragement to new developers. Also, Magic's documentation can be less than complete at times which leads to frustration for new developers. (I encourage new Magic developers to join the Magic Users Group)."
"In the next version of the Magic xpa Application Platform, I want tables or small programs where I can directly add expressions. I can do it on SQL, but it would make life much easier if that specification were added to the platform."
"There is room for improvement in Magic's marketing and licensing. I would like to see more integration of web functionality."
"Magic has a tradition, when it adds new technologies/features to the Magic development tool, to provide either no documentation or documentation that does not provide an organized approach for bringing this new technology/feature to experienced Magic programmers."
"The toolkit to develop front end applications, especially native applications, is not that good."
"The tool is not easy or simple to integrate with other infrastructures."
"The licensing model is a bit dated."
"The cost of the SAP Mobile Platform is high, and there is room for improvement in its pricing."
"One drawback is that SAP Mobile Platform apps are only available through the browser, making offline capability more challenging to implement."
"If it was low code or no code it would be ideal."
"SAP has announced that they'll be ending the support on the SAP platform."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Magic is not the cheapest IDE out there. If you are considering Magic xpa, you should do a cost-benefit analysis to feel comfortable with your decision. The Magic sales staff is very helpful in providing pricing."
"My clients have to purchase additional licenses in order to use what I built. It's not a fair approach."
"The main problem with the Magic xpa Application Platform is pricing. You have to pay a lot of money for development, and you also have to pay a lot for the deployments and runtime, while in most competitors, you have to pay a lot for one of the two and not both."
"There are different licenses, we have the application and the online application. There are two different licenses for two different program sites for the Magic xpa Application Platform."
"It's not cheap. The licenses are not cheap. Not at all. They cost much money. There are other tools with free licenses but Magic asks for a lot of money."
"The licensing is too costly."
"The cost for developers is high because you have to pay for licenses as well as runtime."
"The licensing cost varies because nowadays Magic has tailor-made offerings for clients. I think the solution is worth the money."
"The tool is expensive. I rate the tool's price as an eight or nine out of ten."
"The cost of SAP is extremely high, and it's not affordable for everyone."
"If you already paying for an SAP license and have SAP products that you are using, the price for SAP Mobile Platform is negligible."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Insurance Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Retailer
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Consumer Goods Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What do you like most about SAP Mobile Platform?
One valuable feature of SAP Mobile Platform is its enterprise-grade standard and maintained APIs, available out of the box for easy integration with various systems.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP Mobile Platform?
The tool is expensive. I rate the tool's price as an eight or nine out of ten.
What needs improvement with SAP Mobile Platform?
For a couple of years, SAP deployment and updates were not fair and simple. After the last evolution of mobile development in SAP, I need to check the latest features of the tool. At the company wh...
 

Also Known As

uniPaaS
SAP Syclo Agentry Mobile Platform, Sybase Mobile Development Platform, Sybase Unwired Platform
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ADD, Cape plc, Adecco, Kuno Kinzoku Industry Co., GE Capital, Dove Tree, CBS Outdoor, Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Center, Allstate Life Insurance Company, Titan Software Systems
Swarovski, CareFusion Corp., Adarsh Credit Co-operative Society Ltd.
Find out what your peers are saying about Magic xpa Application Platform vs. SAP Mobile Platform and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.