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IBM Power Systems vs Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 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
Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Ser...
Ranking in Rack Servers
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of IBM Power Systems is 6.5%, down from 9.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers is 8.9%, down from 15.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Power Systems6.5%
Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers8.9%
Other84.6%
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.
Mike Bellemans - PeerSpot reviewer
Project manager at Sopraco NV
One of the products in the market that is the easiest to set up and maintain
Performance and scalability-wise, there are certain areas where the product lacks and needs improvement as it does not provide a lot of fancy features presently. In general, it is a normal product that is good enough for our company. For the time being, my company does not need any extra features.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I think the Power system uniquely positions our company with the speed it has, and the processing power."
"It is a very scalable solution."
"When the other platforms are going down, and they're working on them all the time, mine's always up."
"Power uniquely positions our company in the industry because of the unlimited growth."
"We are very happy with Power's performance."
"Speaking from the IBM i perspective, it's a very well-integrated database, a well-designed power system."
"In terms of the upgrades from previous versions, we definitely see a return on investment, as we get more processor, more CPW, and it's basically the same price."
"I consider IBM a market leader in the server sector, compared to Dell and Lenova, because they have more robust, faster hardware that can be deployed and implemented a lot faster than Intel, even with VMware."
"I like everything about this solution. It is a very good server, with excellent availability. The size of the power is adequate and the low heating is beneficial."
"It is a scalable product."
"It is stable and reliable, and we find the performance to be good."
"It's very power-efficient and allows you to access the rack server directly without accessing the operating system on that server."
"They have taken a lot of technology from IBM, and IBM always delivered very powerful hardware to the IT industry compared to Dell EMC or anyone else."
"The installation and configuration are a bit difficult but the product's performance is unbeatable."
"It's very easy to set up and energy-efficient; it's very compact and has enough connections on the front and back of the rack."
"We appreciate the stability and easy mountings of all the machines."
 

Cons

"I would rather have gum surgery than get on the phone and talk to somebody to try to put me with a technical consultant."
"I think the cost should be cheaper."
"The pricing of the product could always be lowered."
"The number of times IBM refreshes its operating system appears to be very slow."
"I would say the cost. They need to work on the cost because I think it's quite expensive and that's a changing trend in the industry, to be more focused on the product."
"Software testing and the compatibility of software products that are available in the market should be addressed."
"IBM changes licensing, so to speak, with the wind. You never know what they're going to go with."
"Licensing is always going to be a problem, because it used to be based on, "This is a CPU, this is the memory, this is your footprint." Now, with virtualization, that one CPU can be carved up 100 different ways, so why should I be charged for that use rather than a single CPU, a single socket?"
"The solution can be a bit expensive in that there are other cheaper options. While I do not know the exact pricing, I can say that the functionality is expensive."
"Its price could be better. Its price is sometimes an issue for our clients. XClarity Controller is a very good feature, and Lenovo should include the XClarity Controller license without any additional cost. It should be integrated within the product."
"Upgrading firmware is easier in Dell than in Lenovo."
"For the price my company pays for Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers, we can have more from other vendors offering the same functionalities that are present in Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers at a lower price."
"It should have tools for integration with the cloud. We should be able to transmit data from our on-premises server to the servers in the cloud."
"I definitely suggest potential users skip Lenovo and go for Dell EMC, which has good hardware, and great internal security components."
"From a user's perspective, it not so straightforward if you want to add some features."
"I have a few notification alerts about PCI cards but it's rare."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Why should I be charged for that use rather than a single CPU, a single socket?"
"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 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 machine is good and has a comparatively good price."
"When there is an error in the SAS drive of 10,000 RPM, my company buys support for 1,500 USD."
"It is designed for a large workload, as opposed to a small workload. For our circumstances, and even as an independent, I can't buy a Power system to experiment on. It can't happen. You cannot buy them."
"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."
"The price of the solution is very expensive when compared to other solution like HP or Dell."
"Its pricing is very competitive."
"I don't know the exact amount of money, but when I compared it to Dell or HPE, Lenovo was the best when it comes to price and equipment."
"Your budget determines the scalability."
"As the costs got high, we had to use the virtualization feature to consolidate the server farm.​"
"In India, the solution is cheap compared to its competitors."
"It is the cheapest solution we have seen on the market."
"The price of Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers is competitive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
7%
University
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise42
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise9
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM Power Systems?
In my opinion, the product can be improved by maintaining it and not sunsetting it; that would be my recommendation for IBM. I used to work for IBM for nineteen years, and I know, unfortunately, I ...
What is your primary use case for IBM Power Systems?
I am an architect and system administrator, and I'm responsible for anything related to IBM Power Systems. In IBM Power Systems, I have found a lot of valuable features such as LVM, TCP, ODM, RSCT,...
What advice do you have for others considering IBM Power Systems?
I would recommend IBM Power Systems to others. I have given this review a rating of ten out of ten.
How do Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers compare with HPE ProLiant DL servers?
Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers offer flexibility and efficiency in order to meet mission-critical demands. I like that Lenovo blends outstanding performance, reliability, and manageability. The bi...
When shopping for a rack server, would you go with Dell EMC Poweredge or Lenovo Thinksystem?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether the Dell EMC Poweredge or Lenovo Thinksystem rack servers were the better fit for us. We ultimately decided to go with Dell EMC Poweredge....
 

Also Known As

IBM OpenPOWER LC
SR Series, Lenovo SR Series, ThinkSystem Rack Servers, IBM Rack Servers, ThinkSystem SR Series, Lenovo Rack Servers,
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Cipher
immixGroup, Komsomolskaya Pravda, SRG Global, Seekr, Infiniti Red Bull Racing, jKool, Tennis Australia, VEKA, Netpoints, Gamma Powersports
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Power Systems vs. Lenovo ThinkSystem Rack Servers and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,838 professionals have used our research since 2012.