IBM Blueworks Live vs. Microsoft Visio

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
IBM Blueworks Live
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Blueworks Live is cloud-based business process management software that provides users with a collaborative environment for documenting, analyzing, and building business process mapping.N/A
Microsoft Visio
Score 7.6 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft offers Visio, a diagramming tool for building flowcharts, diagrams (e.g. network diagrams), org charts and floor plans, available online as a subscription and also in enterprise level packages (e.g. Visio Professional).
$5
per month per user
Pricing
IBM Blueworks LiveMicrosoft Visio
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Visio Plan 1
$5.00
per month per user
Visio Plan 2
$15.00
per month per user
Visio Standard 2024
$309.99
one-time fee On-premises diagramming solution, licensed for one PC
Visio Professional 2024
$579.99
one-time fee On-premises diagramming solution, licensed for one PC
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
IBM Blueworks LiveMicrosoft Visio
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
IBM Blueworks LiveMicrosoft Visio
Considered Both Products
IBM Blueworks Live
Chose IBM Blueworks Live
I have infrastructure in IBM hence integration with IBM Blueworks Live was very easy.
There were inbuilt tools in IBM Blueworks Live where as Visio didn't support IBM platform much.
If you have your infrastructure in Microsoft then Microsoft Visio can be a good choice else IBM …
Chose IBM Blueworks Live
When compared to Google Sheets it's far better. I won't recommend visio, I have used it for month and then I switched to IBM Blueworks Live, IBM Blueworks Live suited my use case better. It has been around a year using IBM Blueworks Live and I am not switching it to any other …
Chose IBM Blueworks Live
Blueworks Live was part of a project deal. We did not keep it after the project. We found there are many solutions offering similar or superior capabilities - the fact that Blueworks does not fully support the universal BPMN standard was a big letdown for us. The pricing also …
Microsoft Visio

No answer on this topic

Features
IBM Blueworks LiveMicrosoft Visio
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
IBM Blueworks Live
8.1
36 Ratings
4% above category average
Microsoft Visio
-
Ratings
Dashboards8.018 Ratings00 Ratings
Standard reports8.835 Ratings00 Ratings
Custom reports7.632 Ratings00 Ratings
Process Engine
Comparison of Process Engine features of Product A and Product B
IBM Blueworks Live
7.8
36 Ratings
6% below category average
Microsoft Visio
-
Ratings
Process designer8.435 Ratings00 Ratings
Process simulation8.331 Ratings00 Ratings
Business rules engine6.232 Ratings00 Ratings
SOA support7.729 Ratings00 Ratings
Process player8.232 Ratings00 Ratings
Support for modeling languages7.634 Ratings00 Ratings
Form builder8.016 Ratings00 Ratings
Model execution7.716 Ratings00 Ratings
Collaboration
Comparison of Collaboration features of Product A and Product B
IBM Blueworks Live
8.6
37 Ratings
3% above category average
Microsoft Visio
-
Ratings
Social collaboration tools8.637 Ratings00 Ratings
Content Management Capabilties
Comparison of Content Management Capabilties features of Product A and Product B
IBM Blueworks Live
6.6
33 Ratings
21% below category average
Microsoft Visio
-
Ratings
Content management6.633 Ratings00 Ratings
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User Ratings
IBM Blueworks LiveMicrosoft Visio
Likelihood to Recommend
8.8
(40 ratings)
8.5
(71 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(6 ratings)
Support Rating
8.3
(5 ratings)
7.3
(14 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
IBM Blueworks LiveMicrosoft Visio
Likelihood to Recommend
IBM
Pharmacies are subject to several regulatory obligations, including FDA and HIPAA rules. Pharmacy teams may record and view compliance-related procedures in a uniform format with IBM BLueworks Live. This facilitates Audit tracking, ensures process compliance at every stage, and keeps audits running smoothly.
Read full review
Microsoft
If I wanted to produce best-in-class deliverables, particularly for an external-facing document where presentation quality matters, I would use Visio. For an organization that wants to standardize and ensure consistent deliverables across teams, I consider Visio a strong option. However, if I need a quick illustration of a process flow or architecture, I would use another tool to avoid spending more time than necessary.
Read full review
Pros
IBM
  • Easy to create process diagrams quickly, while collaborating with others.
  • Create linkages to sub-processes and other workflows.
  • Track activities using metadata such as which IT systems are utilized.
  • Use the glossary terms to find where different roles or systems are involved in processes throughout your org.
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Microsoft Visio is excellent for organizing thought processes related to our more complex research.
  • The diagrams created with Microsoft Visio are ideal for graphically displaying the internal organization of work and research groups through flow diagrams.
  • Microsoft Visio is a great tool for managing our students' activities by creating flowcharts that help us graphically visualize the steps of their group work.
Read full review
Cons
IBM
  • In particular, we have had problems with the availability of the service because the platform frequently crashed.
  • Is not easy to pull some indicators.
  • We would like to be able to see a different interface, long ago with the same.
  • Payment process is not easy.
Read full review
Microsoft
  • When navigating through swim lanes, the user must be careful between switching from the point to the connection features as it can be difficult to remember which mode you’re in.
  • When drawing “decision points,” it can be difficult to type words like “yes” or “no” between the connection lines.
  • The exporting options aren’t ideal. They are hard to create in PDF format.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
IBM
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
We use Microsoft Visio to keep our diagrams updated and to that end we will need the subscription to keep using the software. Otherwise we will be left with PDF versions of the diagrams.
Read full review
Usability
IBM
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
Microsoft Visio's overall usability for me, it is a 9/10 because it is really easy and intuitive to use. Sometimes it's not easy to find a particular template, because there are a lot of them; but that is not a huge problem. Additionally, the presence of many standard icons for technical diagrams is really useful in my daily activities.
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Support Rating
IBM
I have gotten great response for the very few times I needed support.
Read full review
Microsoft
Overall, I feel that Microsoft's support is weak. They are now such a behemoth that their model of putting documentation online for their users to sift through is totally outgrown. Given the amount of money you pay for these licenses, Microsoft should provide easy one-on-one support for their products via email or chat. The idea of paying their rates for support incidents is ridiculous. If you have an enormous amount of time on your hands, use their support websites and you will eventually find a solution most of the time.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
IBM
Blueworks Live was part of a project deal. We did not keep it after the project. We found there are many solutions offering similar or superior capabilities - the fact that Blueworks does not fully support the universal BPMN standard was a big letdown for us. The pricing also did not make sense as a standalone solution.
Read full review
Microsoft
Even though it’s a more expensive solution, Vizio is built for the enterprise. Therefore, it integrates perfectly with our existing Microsoft stack, and quite frankly, because it’s such a more mature product, it provides exactly the functionality we need and expect.
Read full review
Return on Investment
IBM
  • It has helped us reduce miscommunication between our departments, such as production, inventory, and shipping, thus reducing delays.
  • Now, most things are automated; we can quickly know when a product will be in low stock.
  • With the help of custom charts, we are easily able to determine our best-selling product of the month and week, which helps us market according to stats.
Read full review
Microsoft
  • Reduces the amount of time I need to create process flow diagrams. In the past I would use Powerpoint or Word which required a lot more effort and time and never looked as good. Visio just takes that headache away.
  • Only negative is that I personally believe it should always have been part and parcel of the Office suite, thus giving more users the opportunity to use it rather than specifically having to justify its separate purchase within our organisation. Different now with Office 365 of course!
Read full review
ScreenShots

IBM Blueworks Live Screenshots

Screenshot of the IBM Blueworks Live interface which fosters real-time communication and feedback, allowing users to work together on process models. It is used to track changes, share insights, and refine workflows with instant messaging directly within the platform.Screenshot of the Library feature in IBM Blueworks Live, which offers a hierarchical view of spaces, blueprints, decisions, and policies. Users can navigate and categorize processes to streamline business operations, ensuring teams have access the right information at the right time.Screenshot of the Discovery Map in IBM Blueworks Live, a tool used to map out complex workflows with drag-and-drop simplicity, making it easy to capture every step of a processes in a structured and clear format. Users can optimize operations by turning insights into action, aligning teams on what truly matters.Screenshot of the Process Diagram view in IBM Blueworks Live, a feature used to transforms Discovery Maps into standardized, swimlane diagrams that clearly outline roles, responsibilities, decisions, systems and process flows. Users can streamline process design with an interactive interface that simplifies complex tasks, enabling the delivery of results faster and more efficiently.Screenshot of the Details Panel in IBM Blueworks Live, used to access critical information such as cycle time, cost, and involved systems. This feature enables users to connect process details across workflows, make data-driven decisions, optimize resources, and enhance business processes, all while keeping stakeholders aligned.