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Oracle Application Express (APEX) vs Pega 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

As of May 2025, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of Oracle Application Express (APEX) is 8.1%, down from 9.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pega Platform is 6.3%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ServiceNow is 10.9%, up from 10.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

Rodrigo-Mesquita - PeerSpot reviewer
Rapid application development empowers big projects in months
The ability to quickly develop applications without needing to code a lot is very valuable. It is very quick to create a page, and one can use AI to speed up software development. It is easy to learn. In my company, we could develop a very big application in a couple of months.
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.
Somnath Kand - PeerSpot reviewer
Custom integration and reporting lead to efficient ticket management
There is a need for bug or error tracking in ServiceNow. Although there are child incidents or tickets, tracking primary issues or bugs within enhancements is not present. The reporting features in the new portal could be more user-friendly. While it provides options to minimize chart and image sizes, actual implementation doesn't always reflect these changes.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This is a good application for quickly creating public applications."
"It helps us create web pages quickly."
"The database is super easy to use for creating tables."
"One standout feature of Oracle APEX is its seamless integration with backend procedures, allowing for quick updates without changing the front-end interface."
"It's low code, or even no code. It's very flexible, allowing you to achieve what you want. You can customize applications with very little code, which is the best part."
"It has a well-designed architecture and is a simple 3rd party application."
"What's most valuable in Oracle Application Express (APEX) is its secure coding functionality, and the solution also has good features."
"It has many ready modules that can be used and developed."
"The most valuable features of Pega BPM are low code, no code, functionality, and easy development."
"The solution is able to support the size and scale required."
"The case management functionality of this solution has been most valuable."
"It's not too expensive."
"The solution has very helpful technical support."
"There are a lot of frameworks in the product. I use Pega PRPC the most."
"Pega BPM's most valuable feature is the use of CDX to solve problems."
"The solution's most valuable feature is its quick setup. Nowhere else you can create a good-looking application this quick. It's a fairly robust system."
"Some of the valuable features I have found the solution to have are it can serve many different types of businesses, it has strong platform capabilities, provides application development, built-in predictive intelligence, and performance analytics reports."
"The analytics - we like to keep track of how much work everyone is doing."
"It's great to do statuses or to review tasks."
"ServiceNow is easy to use."
"​The workflow capability for easy setup is powerful."
"Change management is most valuable."
"The return on investment is good when implementing for ourselves and for other clients."
"One feature of ServiceNow that is important is the workflow engine. From my perspective [as a consultant] the power to be able to structure processes, represent workforce management for organizations, and the visibility provided by the reporting are additional top features."
 

Cons

"The collaboration and the workflow engine could use some improvement."
"It can be modern and more user-friendly."
"Currently, APEX doesn't have a building workflow engine. I think that's the most important improvement that could be made at this point."
"The grid reports contain a lot of bugs."
"The solution does not include a default or custom template like other products."
"It can only be deployed on Oracle Database."
"Oracle Application Express would be improved if you could use it on a mobile platform."
"It should have the functionality to develop mobile applications. It would also be good if they can improve development in videos and other formats."
"Pega BPM could be improved by including token-based authentication and extending its integration options."
"Implementation is a challenge due to the handling of the code"
"Containerization should be improved in relation to Pega because Camunda is deployable in the containerization deployment process."
"The UI needs reworking."
"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."
"It should have integration with non-relational databases. A lot of databases are non-relational, and as a company, we are planning to move to NoSQL or open-source databases. It would be good if we are able to install and use Pega on a NoSQL database. They can also try to tailor or organize the company a bit differently and go more towards the microservice concept. I would like Pega to develop machine learning and intelligent AI algorithms. They have a good foundation in terms of the model and the stuff that we are using for some customers, and it will be good to onboard as many machine learning algorithms as possible."
"If it could also be integrated with robotics, it could help with a lot of things, even if we don't have APIs, we could still talk to other applications. If it could invoke a bot, for example."
"The local development approach is good in Pega, however, cost-wise, it's getting expensive. That needs to be addressed."
"I am interested to see the firm's strategic plans for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), and how the particular areas it will expand on from its existing investments (that feature, for example, in its ITSM Pro and CSM Pro modules)."
"I would like the reporting aspect to be better, including the graphs. It could have some way for us to easily to export to a csv or spreadsheet so that if a graph cannot be provided by ServiceNow itself, we would be able to use other applications to create them. Also, if there was a feature that enabled us to interact with end users directly from ServiceNow, like an instant-messaging type of feature, that would be great."
"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. I couldn't find the models I needed at the time."
"The technical support SLA can be improved because sometimes they take a long time to answer our queries."
"Licensing costs are very high."
"There is room for improvement in price."
"The challenge with ServiceNow lies in its expansive portfolio of services. It can be complex, and users may find it expensive and challenging to understand. There is a need for a configurator within ServiceNow that guides users on how to utilize the tool effectively. This configurator should provide insights into licensing, team requirements, and the best licensing model based on whether companies prefer ownership or consumption-based models."
"From an HR standpoint, if users can have a very integrated onboarding or offboarding process between ServiceNow and Workday, then it can give a very good employee experience."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"To my understanding, my organization is using the free version of Oracle Application Express (APEX), but I'm unsure because I haven't checked the pricing or licensing cost for it."
"It's a free solution with no additional costs."
"The tool is free with the Oracle Database license."
"The tool is not expensive."
"The product is completely free of cost."
"APEX itslelf is a free product, but you will need to license peripheral components."
"If you have a license to Oracle database, you can access APEX."
"I believe that the solution's pricing is high."
"The price could be lower."
"They're very cagey in giving out prices, and it is very difficult to find out the real price any organization is going to get. It is almost never their list price, if you can find it, and there are a lot of factors that go into the whole pricing."
"The product pricing is considered reasonable compared to other solutions in the market."
"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."
"The solution could be less expensive according to my customers. However, I think the price of the solution is fair."
"Pega is expensive."
"Licensing is expensive. You need to wisely select between per user and per case."
"There are multiple Pega licensing models, including outcome- and revenue-based licensing models"
"In Tunisia, the companies find the licensing costs to be expensive."
"The price is okay for us. It's reasonable."
"I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten. The pricing for ServiceNow is based on a SaaS platform with annual contracts. However, it may not offer much flexibility for adjusting usage in the short term."
"It's sold as a less expensive solution, but it has to be highly modified. That's where you get into the cost."
"We are happy with the pricing."
"Initially, the licensing model ServiceNow came up with was very good. But now, from a licensing perspective, they are changing their model day by day. It is becoming a bit expensive for customers."
"The licenses are expensive."
"ServiceNow tends to be a little bit more expensive as compared to BMC Helix ITSM."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
29%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Financial Services Firm
28%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Educational Organization
27%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
Oracle APEX is part of our on-premises solution included in our agreement with Oracle E Business Suite, though I don'...
What needs improvement with Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
Using AI to analyze data without needing much code would be better. Also, although the interface is easy to change, i...
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 ...
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 sett...
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 y...
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

Oracle APEX
Pega BPM, Pegasystems, SmartBPM, PegaRULES
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Hepart AG, pharmasol, SATLOG, Collège Bois-de-Boulogne
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
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 Microsoft, ServiceNow, OutSystems and others in Rapid Application Development Software. Updated: March 2025.
850,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.