IBM ECM vs SharePoint comparison

IBM and Microsoft are both solutions in the Enterprise Content Management category. IBM is ranked #14 with an average rating of 7.5, while Microsoft is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.0. IBM holds a 2.5% mindshare in ECM, compared to Microsoft’s 11.8% mindshare. Additionally, 94% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 79% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

IBM ECM

Read 17 IBM ECM reviews

928 Views
900 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

SharePoint

Read 164 SharePoint reviews

9,522 Views
4,856 Comparison Views

79% willing to recommend

IBM ECM

SharePoint

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

SharePoint and IBM ECM are competing in the enterprise content management category. SharePoint seems to have the edge with more favorable pricing and customer support.

Features: SharePoint includes integrated collaboration tools, scalability, and easy integration with Microsoft products, useful for team collaboration. IBM ECM offers advanced document management, robust compliance, and enhanced security, essential for industries with strict regulations.

Room for Improvement: SharePoint could improve customization options and mobile interface robustness. Documentation can also be improved for custom coding. IBM ECM may require simplification in its deployment process and user interface; more intuitive navigation would benefit users considerably. A focus on reducing initial setup complexity would enhance its appeal.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SharePoint utilizes a cloud-based deployment, simplifying installation, with excellent support services from Microsoft. IBM ECM, offering both on-premise and hybrid deployment options, requires more complex setup but provides dedicated support services, suitable for large-scale operations.

Pricing and ROI: SharePoint is a cost-effective solution with flexible pricing plans, providing high ROI through enhanced collaboration efficiency. IBM ECM, though demanding a higher initial investment, promises substantial long-term ROI due to its extensive feature set and scalability, particularly advantageous for handling large volumes of sensitive data.

To learn more, read our detailed IBM ECM vs. SharePoint Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IBM ECM vs. SharePoint

December 2025

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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 ECM

Ranking in Enterprise Content Management

14th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

2.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SharePoint

Ranking in Enterprise Content Management

1st

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

164

Ranking in other categories

Web Content Management (2nd), Corporate Portals (Enterprise Information Portals) (1st), Enterprise Intranet (1st)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Enterprise Content Management category, the mindshare of IBM ECM is 2.5%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SharePoint is 11.8%, down from 17.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Content Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
SharePoint	11.8%
IBM ECM	2.5%
Other	85.7%

Enterprise Content Management

Featured Reviews

Thinh Tran

BPM Consultant at TECHCOMBANK

Has supported enterprise document storage but lacks cloud readiness and AI capabilities

The new version of IBM ECM is at the end of support, and we need to migrate to a new version to get open support. We need AI capabilities from IBM ECM for additional functionalities in the next release. Specifically, AI is needed for finding documents. The trend is moving toward AI, and for managing many documents effectively, we need AI capabilities. Currently, IBM ECM only handles physical files, not unstructured files. IBM needs to work alongside customers and share best practices for IBM ECM. Reading the IBM Redbook alone is not sufficient for the knowledge we need to build the best architecture for my company. IBM ECM needs to improve the cloud version, such as compatibility with Amazon Cloud, not only IBM Cloud, to make their product more competitive.

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AnjneyBhardwaj

Senior Market Research Analyst at IDC Corporate

Collaboration has improved through simplified document access and controlled sharing

SharePoint is definitely used to keep a record of our files and data. The capability is quite good because it is time-saving. I have used it only four or five times, but it has been very helpful to keep all my information in a consolidated manner. The search feature is one of the most beneficial factors that we use to filter out the latest data or the latest file as per our convenience and use case. When you have a large repository, this feature is particularly valuable. Role-based access control has been helpful while developing the knowledge platform. The roles were defined clearly, which made it easy for the four or five of us to work simultaneously and collaborate on our project in a similar manner.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The vertical scalability, as we can use it across some of our applications."

"The tool is a very stable solution with high availability and no information leakage. It has built-in API integration on-site. You can integrate with other components and applications like SAP, Microsoft, Oracle, etc."

"I am going to continue using it because it is a good product for enterprise document management."

"The scalability is a valuable feature, that we're able to display our documents to so many people."

"The content management is all about you as you can make the same content for minimal purpose solutions applications."

"What I like about SharePoint is that they keep up with a lot of updates, and they bring out new features. I also like that the system is integrated with the Microsoft 365 suite of apps."

"Ability to store files of any type."

"The most valuable aspect of SharePoint is its integration with Teams. T"

"It has good integration with other MS products."

"OneDrive and SharePoint provide a secure, fully auditable way of storing information."

"I do like the collaboration around documents. The versioning history has proven useful in some instances as well."

"No code and low code, scalable, and stable collaboration platform. Straightforward to set up. Its support system is good and offers fast issue resolution."

"The ability to have version control and co-editing is vital to our workflows."

More SharePoint pros

Cons

"I think it's already getting away from Java applets. A lot of our users struggle with keeping up to date with Java versioning, so a lot of the functions they're doing, like printing, emailing, and even some of the viewing, they're struggling with."

"The development platform is not local. For example, you need 100 days in IBM, whereas other platforms, like ServiceNow, need only 20 days."

"I would recommend not going with ECM 8 and going with FileNet instead. It seems like that is the future of the lower-volume repository. It seems like they are moving away from ECM 8.5 so I think we're going to have some challenges coming up, getting off of that technology."

"Currently, IBM ECM only handles physical files, not unstructured files."

"I would like to see seamless application integration."

"I would like it to be more compliant with global regulations. There are certain features which could be included that currently are not there, such as compliance and record management capabilities."

"It is not really better; we use the same solution as before with Google Drive and the Google App solution."

"The areas of this solution that need improvement are the relationships between lists, cross-site web parts, and page-building tools."

"SharePoint’s scalability could be improved."

"Annoyingly, many new Office 365 apps always end up being only US locale for the first year of their life. Microsoft needs to realise that most of their customers are not in the USA."

"It will fully use your system resources."

"SharePoint sometimes cannot handle the amount of co-editing that we do."

"We do sell Hyland OnBase, which is probably a competitor to SharePoint and does a lot more. In our own organization, we haven't had a need for it, but certainly, for our customers, we are finding that to be a better fit. In terms of the technical reasons for that, I'm not involved much on that side, so I can't give specifics, but there is certainly room for them to improve or add on certain features that clearly are not available in SharePoint, but they are available in Hyland OnBase."

More SharePoint cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Reach out to local IBM partners."

"The pricing works for us."

"Licensing can be by server or by seat."

"The cost is expensive, but worthwhile."

"The platform has medium pricing."

"For this type of solution, it is not wise to buy it without Software Assurance."

"SharePoint is included with our Microsoft license."

"The data classification and search elements are cheap."

"As usual, Microsoft’s licensing structures don’t really seem to fit the needs of their products. This leads to always paying for a project you will never use fully or always be adding to."

More SharePoint pricing and cost advice

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Aug 23, 2013

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

31%

Computer Software Company

Outsourcing Company

Government

12%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	1
Large Enterprise	16

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	80
Midsize Enterprise	38
Large Enterprise	81

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM ECM?

The tool is a very stable solution with high availability and no information leakage. It has built-in API integration on-site. You can integrate with other components and applications like SAP, Mic...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM ECM?

The product is expensive and has a perpetual license.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM ECM?

See all answers

What do you like most about SharePoint?

The search feature is valuable.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SharePoint?

I do not know the difference between the prices of the two solutions; I did not work on this project.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SharePoint?

It is not really better; we use the same solution as before with Google Drive and the Google App solution. Sometimes I have to refresh pages more than with Google, but it does not charge; the page ...

See all answers

Comparisons

Alfresco vs IBM ECM

Compared 16% of the time

IBM FileNet vs IBM ECM

Compared 13% of the time

Nuxeo vs IBM ECM

Compared 12% of the time

OpenText Content Management vs IBM ECM

Compared 9% of the time

Answerbase vs IBM ECM

Compared 5% of the time

More IBM ECM Competitors

OpenText Documentum Content Management vs SharePoint

Compared 8% of the time

Box vs SharePoint

Compared 6% of the time

DocuSign vs SharePoint

Compared 6% of the time

OpenText Content Management vs SharePoint

Compared 5% of the time

IBM FileNet vs SharePoint

Compared 4% of the time

More SharePoint Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM ECM

January 2026

Download IBM ECM product report

Buyer's Guide

SharePoint

January 2026

Download SharePoint product report

Also Known As

No data available

SharePoint 2007, SharePoint 2010

Overview

IBM Content Foundation on Cloud

IBM Content Foundation on Cloud allows organizations to deliver extensive enterprise content management capabilities to their users very quickly. IBM Content Foundation is powered by the FileNet content and process platform and IBM Content Navigator user experience. This cloud offering can be leveraged for a variety of use cases including collaborative document management, imaging solutions, social content management, archiving, and more. It also offers a platform for developing Enterprise Content Management (ECM) solutions in the cloud.

IBM Case Manager on Cloud

IBM Case Manager on Cloud is a solution platform that engages people with business content, provides contextual insight through real-time analytics, and enhances teamwork through collaboration tools and flexible workflow. Enables Business and IT to work together to create solutions across the enterprise that enables an organization to make smarter decisions for better business outcomes, while balancing the need for security and compliance in a world of heightened risk.

IBM

SharePoint is a Microsoft-based platform for building web applications. It covers a widerange of capabilities and while it is appropriate for experienced webdevelopers, even non-technical minded users can easily navigate through thesystem and execute functions such as collaborating data, managing documents andfiles, creating websites, managing social networking solutions, and automatingworkflow.

Major areas that SharePoint deals with are websites,communities, content, search, insights, and composites. The purpose is to give usersthe ability to create or develop these key business components on their owneven without technical knowledge of, for example, how to build a website or howto integrate coding. Configuring SharePoint into a business's system is meantto cut out all of the complicated steps, and pave the way for easierimplementation all around.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

KeyBank, Standard Chartered Bank, Union Bank, Sistema Tecnol‹gico de Monterrey, Illinois Department of Human Services, UnitedHealth Group

Toyota, Aeroports de Paris, ASBBank Ltd., Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals, CambridgeshireConstabulary, D&M Group, NPL Construction Company, and The Regional Municipality of Niagara.

Buyer's Guide

IBM ECM vs. SharePoint

December 2025

Free Report: IBM ECM vs. SharePoint

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