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IBM Business Automation Workflow vs WebRatio comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 18, 2024

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 Business Automation Wor...
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
14th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WebRatio
Ranking in Business Process Management (BPM)
38th
Average Rating
7.0
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Business Process Management (BPM) category, the mindshare of IBM Business Automation Workflow is 1.2%, down from 1.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WebRatio is 1.1%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Business Process Management (BPM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Business Automation Workflow1.2%
WebRatio1.1%
Other97.7%
Business Process Management (BPM)
 

Featured Reviews

IsmailEl Dahshan - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at Exact Holding NV
Automation has transformed financial workflows and has improved revenue tracking and compliance
Regarding Watsonx, I am uncertain whether it is fully complied and fully integrated with IBM Business Automation Workflow yet. Currently, we use some AI in Enterprise Content Management, particularly when searching documents. Archiving snapshots would be very beneficial. It would be good to reduce the administration effort required to archive snapshots, as this is a main issue with the product. I would also recommend that IBM engage with customers more deeply. Rather than sending URLs or documentation for customers to solve problems independently, the support team should be more involved in addressing the client's specific issues in a targeted manner, providing clear guidance on what actions need to be taken.
reviewer1485573 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Services Consultant at a consultancy with self employed
Little coding needed and speeds development time but lacks documentation
The maintenance aspect is too heavy. Moving from one version to the other made the solution change, and not in a way that we liked. Typically there are documents about the release of new versions and a set of activities required to migrate from one to the other. This time, it was very messy. There were issues surrounding the management of the release. This could potentially be due to the fact that WebRation, in the past, had started to make some choices regarding the framework and architecture that were changed later. In the past, we'd use a strategy as the environment, as an architectural pattern for the application. Now, it's moving more on the spring framework and this initiated some change that obviously had an impact on our application. It's caused a problem with maintenance. The solution seems to have changed its approach. Now, it's more related to a federative application environment in a monolithic aspect. While the solution was interesting at one point, everything is moving towards the cloud. WebRatio should be moving also in the web approach. Currently, you have to install an environment inside the desktop. The future is the cloud. Normally with a low code environment, there is a VPN notation - maybe a WebML or FML notation. If they can move in to have an environment that has a running machine at the end, it would be great. Obviously, some components on the server-side should be deliberate. Normally it's the model you control that's step-by-step and has a very simple flow. In the digital environment, in the organization, the process is more complex. The quality of the documentation and the community surrounding the product are poor. They need to give users more documentation and build up the surrounding community. As it isn't a well-known product, it's hard to find professionals to work with it.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"After being acquired from Lombardi by IBM, BPA was only workflow-related, and over a period of time it evolved with a lot of capabilities added to the product, like rules, business decision-making, and now a more enhanced toolkit to build applications very rapidly."
"The solution reduces the time to the resolution which is essential for businesses."
"This product is tightly integrated with the RPA automation process."
"It gives us the ability to create toolkits and use them across many different applications. It allows us to write things one time, instead of having to write a diary for every single different application. We can write at once and reuse it."
"The product is suitable for knowledge management processes."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow provides a seamless streamlined collaboration within the organizations."
"The most important aspect is that it helped us focus on the business process perspective."
"IBM has spent a lot of time on the connections between the rules engine and its other product, the core BPM platform. They've really centralized the suite as one offering now."
"The product is low-code, which means you need less knowledge to do tasks and a company can still speed up the development process."
"I chose to settle for an academic solution (WebRatio) that meets my licensing requirements at a very low cost while still providing solid local support via partner."
"The initial setup isn't too complex."
 

Cons

"I would like to see more streamlined install and provisioning; preferably containerized IBM BPM would be helpful."
"In terms of improvement, it could be less complex; it is quite a complicated software."
"Sometimes, we feel like we are not getting the full features of the content management capabilities."
"Improvements could be made in debugging and troubleshooting."
"While everything is integrated into one platform, I'd like guidelines on when and how to use ODM. This applies not only to implementation but also to automation processes. Additionally, proper instructions should be provided when installing on the cloud."
"The main areas which need improvement are specifically around reporting and analytics."
"However, on Windows, I believe considerable administration tasks are required to maintain environment stability."
"Every client is moving to the cloud. We are still a little behind with IBM, but we are catching up from my point of view."
"The maintenance aspect is too heavy."
"Interfaces are still not very well developed. Scripts on the same web page conflict with each other and this requires careful consideration of the process and application logic, which should not be the case."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"When you compare with Laserfiche and M-Files, IBM is expensive."
"There is still a relatively high total cost of ownership to actually implement, support, and stand up solutions."
"The solution has saved us time."
"IBM Business Automation Workflow has a flexible pricing mode, but the price is expensive. The price of the solution reflects the quality of the solution which is very high. The technical support is an additional cost."
"Our license is on a three-year term."
"The product is expensive."
"While it can be quite costly, it offers significant benefits for users."
"It is on the expensive side, but it provides excellent supportability and an ecosystem that is proven to be a great fit for our organization."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
20%
Outsourcing Company
12%
Construction Company
8%
Insurance Company
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise17
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better, IBM BPM or IBM Business Automation Workflow?
We researched both IBM solutions and in the end, we chose Business Automation Workflow. IBM BPM has a good user interface and the BPM coach is a helpful tool. The API is very useful in providing en...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Business Automation Workflow?
The price of IBM Business Automation Workflow is on the higher side compared to the features it offers.
What needs improvement with IBM Business Automation Workflow?
Regarding Watsonx, I am uncertain whether it is fully complied and fully integrated with IBM Business Automation Workflow yet. Currently, we use some AI in Enterprise Content Management, particular...
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Also Known As

Business Automation Workflow
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Key Bank, Barclays, Control€xpert, MIR Insurance Brokers, Conqord Oil
Unicredit Leasing, Acer, Gruppo Torinese Transporti, A2A, SET Distribuzone, Dolomiti Energia, AIM Gruppo, IFC CNA_ Amsa
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Business Automation Workflow vs. WebRatio and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.