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IBM Power Systems vs Intel Server System comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 11, 2026

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 Power Systems
Ranking in Rack Servers
4th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
73
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Intel Server System
Ranking in Rack Servers
9th
Average Rating
6.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of IBM Power Systems is 7.5%, down from 9.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Intel Server System is 3.7%, down from 5.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM Power Systems7.5%
Intel Server System3.7%
Other88.8%
Rack Servers
 

Featured Reviews

Foluso  Jibowo - PeerSpot reviewer
Product Manager at Hiperdist Ltd
Has empowered enterprises with secure and cost-effective solutions
When discussing disadvantages, I do not see many areas for improvement because we have received good testimonies from every client. IBM gives customers peace of mind. One challenge, which I would not really call a challenge, is that initially people have the notion that IBM Power Systems is quite expensive. However, IBM does not lose deals based on price. This is a message we need to keep communicating to people who feel that IBM is on the high side in terms of cost. We encourage them to have a discussion with us about their total cost of ownership over three or five years. There is a notion in the market that IBM is expensive, which is false. However, once we engage and show them their return on investments and their total cost of ownership savings, they tend to embrace IBM.
SA
Servers Senior Network Administrator at Dukat d.d.
A stable product that constantly enhances its functionalities like multithreading and caching
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is more stable than AMD for VMware. Intel Server System has a good track record for the last 20 years. Multithreading and caching are areas where improvements keep increasing. If you look at the last four years, you will see a big difference when it comes to the area concerning processors.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"BM Power Systems get updated every two years and are scalable and stable."
"Power Systems' best features include its user-friendliness and self-checking/self-healing abilities."
"The most valuable feature of IBM Power Systems is its performance."
"The solution does not require any maintenance."
"From a reliability standpoint it has provided us with excellent performance."
"The main feature that I have found most valuable is PowerVM - its virtualization feature which is the most powerful."
"When it comes to reliability, availability and profitability, nothing can beat IBM Power Systems."
"Power Systems' best features are that it's reliable, stable, and easily available. It's also really scalable and can be virtualized without third-party software support."
"It is stable and easy to manage."
"It uses well known architecture and it's easy to develop for."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is more stable than AMD for VMware."
 

Cons

"Its price can be improved. It is too high."
"Unfortunately, the hardware models and all those things have gone down a little bit, and there's no such diversity of models, and again, IBM is getting more and more expensive."
"One of the main challenges with IBM Power Systems is the functionality of live partnership mobility."
"I think IBM needs a little more work on managing the overall environment with eliminating Systems Director."
"It would be ideal if the solution was more simple to work with."
"There are improvements that can be made on the technical side."
"There is a notion in the market that IBM is expensive, which is false."
"Its pricing could be better."
"We have to scale it ourselves but it scales. It depends on the software because it's mostly the hardware platform that Intel is managing."
"When you have an Intel Server System, the prices may be much higher since it is a different processor, making the solution's pricing part one of its shortcomings where improvements are required."
"The shipment time can be improved. When we order Intel products, we have to wait for a long time. They can increase the local services and engineers in China. Local engineers will be able to know and understand customer problems much better."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution's pricing is very, very high compared to other platforms."
"Power Systems is very cheap and provides good value for money."
"The price of the solution could be somewhat better and this is what lowers my rating of it to a seven or eight out of ten."
"The cost model is great. There is so much built in to the technology, that if you know how to use it you can save yourself a lot of money."
"Its price depends on the sizing."
"Its price is too high."
"The pricing of the solution is very good because we can beat any other competitor with the pricing. Lately, they have offered good pricing for their customer."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"It is not expensive."
"I rate the pricing a ten on a scale from one to ten, where one is inexpensive, and ten is very expensive."
"The price is competitive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
9%
University
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
15%
University
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise42
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Power Systems?
IBM Power Systems provides very good performance and stability compared to other brands or processors.
What needs improvement with IBM Power Systems?
When discussing disadvantages, I do not see many areas for improvement because we have received good testimonies from every client. IBM gives customers peace of mind. One challenge, which I would n...
What is your primary use case for IBM Power Systems?
IBM Power Systems are used mainly in large organizations, generally in the financial industry, government, telecommunications, oil and gas sectors for their high availability environment. These sys...
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Also Known As

IBM OpenPOWER LC
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Cipher
Emerson, Baosight, Pentamaster
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Power Systems vs. Intel Server System and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.