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Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs Visual Paradigm comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 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

Sparx Systems Enterprise Ar...
Ranking in Business Process Design
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
99
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Architecture Management (2nd)
Visual Paradigm
Ranking in Business Process Design
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Business Process Design category, the mindshare of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect is 9.1%, down from 12.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Visual Paradigm is 5.1%, down from 6.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Design Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect9.1%
Visual Paradigm5.1%
Other85.8%
Business Process Design
 

Featured Reviews

Milan Sterba - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient documentation generation through organized model structure with a good price-performance ratio
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not easy for even experienced users to find their way without guidance. This is not the most user-friendly solution.
Angie Ibrahim Eissa - PeerSpot reviewer
A software application designed for software development teams to model business information systems and manage development processes
Setting up Visual Paradigm is easy. There's hardly any configuration needed, unlike some other tools. You just choose your method and diagram type, and you're good to go. As for improvements, integrating project management features with diagrams could be better. Viewing outputs could also be smoother, especially when working with multiple files.Deployment is quick and painless. It practically takes no time at all to set up. And because I also teach at the university, I use Visual Paradigm for my classes and case studies. It's easy to switch between products, and my students have no trouble using it on their own.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is an EA tool that is approved by Open Group. It is in the tool register of Open Group."
"I like Sparx's BPM features and the way it lets you create the diagram."
"Scalability is not a problem. You can always increase the footprint of what the thing can do because it's so powerful."
"Its most valuable feature is the Zachman Framework."
"The solution allows us to quickly present designs and concepts to customers and get their feedback, thereby moving the project forward step by step."
"Scalable solution for modeling, project sharing, and collaboration. Support for it is good."
"Features good reporting facilities coupled with a concrete database."
"The solution is easy to use, supports SysML and UML, and is able to connect to MATLAB. This is very important for us."
"The Visual Paradigm business process forms for designing we good. There was not a lot of configuration for the process diagram."
"Stable design software with multiple functions and features. It's simple to install and easy to use."
"Some of the most valuable features of this process modeling tool are process simulation and process animation."
"The initial setup is extremely straightforward."
"It is a scalable solution since it can be used at an individual level as well as for enterprise-sized businesses."
"Visual Paradigm is simple and easy to use."
"It is easy and intuitive to use, not excessively rigid, and quite flexible."
"I like the fact that this solution is complete."
 

Cons

"The solution needs to offer better support for the mobile-based system. Right now, it's not working."
"What should be improved are the integration capabilities of the solution with Bizagi."
"This solution has some limitations from a business perspective."
"It would be great if we could decrease the use of different parts of the Toolbox."
"There used to be that feature in ArchiMate Modeling of Enterprise Architect called inherited relationships. Now it's gone."
"The templates for documentation should be enhanced to include complex documents such as template RFP, or Non functional requirements template."
"When many users are accessing the system at the same time, Sparx slows down. It can't easily support a large team."
"If you just want to create some diagrams with shapes and arrows, then use Visio."
"Takes up a lot of resources."
"For me, what needs improvement in Visual Paradigm is the limited features included in the $99 license, which is the cheapest option. If more features could be included in the cheapest licensing package, Visual Paradigm would be better, especially for businesses that have a limited budget for buying software."
"The product's versioning capability needs improvement."
"More flexibility when choosing the type of diagram would be nice."
"I would like to see the ability to easily export to groupware, such as Atlassian Confluence."
"I would like to see something for visualizing innovation work maps."
"Visual Paradigm's initial deployment was difficult since we did it for the first time. It is challenging to learn to use the product."
"Visual Paradigm can improve by having better process mining tools and model integration."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is reasonable."
"We had a yearly license."
"Its price is very good for the value that you get with it."
"The pricing for ultimate version is steeply high."
"Enterprise licensing is competitive. What would be helpful if they load the pricing for consultants, you know, people who are consultants for clients. So the license is fine for end-user organizations. Still, they should consider lowering the license to support this adoption, particularly for people who are consultants like myself."
"I think our license costs roughly $1,000 a year, but I could be wrong."
"We paid 1200 euros as a once-off cost. All add ons and integrations come at an additional cost."
"It's reasonably priced for large organizations."
"You can use Paradigm on a subscription basis and you can choose from different tiers of subscription."
"This is an open-sourced solution, it is free to use."
"Pricing for Visual Paradigm is a four out of five for me. I'm happy with its pricing."
"This product is fairly cheap, but if you want more complex features, e.g. integration with other products, it does require an additional cost."
"I rate Visual Paradigm's pricing a five out of ten."
"Visual Paradigm's pricing is not expensive."
"In terms of pricing, I find Visual Paradigm's subscription services reasonable, especially for the modern and standard editions. However, the premium products can be a bit pricey, especially considering our location in the Middle East. Currently, paying around a hundred dollars per user translates to almost six hundred Egyptian pounds, which can add up. For enterprise licensing, I think the perpetual license option could be more affordable. If it were cheaper, say around five hundred dollars, I would have invested in multiple perpetual licenses long ago. Sometimes, to manage costs, we share accounts among team members or switch access on and off for certain members who aren't actively working on projects. As for additional costs, there are charges for cloud services, which I'm considering because I've already exceeded the free capacity."
"You can move between the tiers from month to month so you are not restricted to one pricing model."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Government
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Educational Organization
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business38
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise58
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
The stability has been good and satisfactory. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
One of the reasons many public sector institutions in the Czech Republic use it is that it provides a very good price-performance ratio. While it might be cumbersome to learn, it still delivers exc...
What needs improvement with Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect?
Whenever I begin a new project with Sparx, I have to spend time training people on how to use it since it is not straightforward. Although it's a powerful product with plenty of features, it's not ...
What do you like most about Visual Paradigm?
The solution is the best application for data modeling. It helps to architect business processes. Its best features are pricing and functionality.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Visual Paradigm?
I purchased Visual Paradigm on my own, and it was competitively priced, so I was fine with the pricing.
What needs improvement with Visual Paradigm?
The product can always get better as the industry changes, however, I didn't necessarily feel it was lacking for what I did with it.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

OmniLink
Adobe, Apple, at&t, Caterpillar, Intel, NASA, Nokia, Toyota
Find out what your peers are saying about Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect vs. Visual Paradigm and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,566 professionals have used our research since 2012.