# Enterprise architecture tools for small business buyers: what AI models recommend, November 2026 Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. Asked as "enterprise architecture tool" and as "application portfolio management tool", six framings each, to fourteen models with search on, on behalf of a small B2B company. Added to the November 2026 Edition. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/operations/enterprise-architecture-tools/2026-11/smb **Standing:** Archi leads with 31% of first choices; verdict contested. 55 first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts. ## First-choice share | Rank | Product | Share | Negative rate | Labels | |---|---|---|---|---| | 1 | [Archi](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/archi/index.md) | 31% | 2% | 45 | | 2 | [Ardoq](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/ardoq/index.md) | 9% | 24% | 37 | | 3 | [Sparx Enterprise Architect](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/sparx-enterprise-architect/index.md) | 5% | 28% | 32 | | 5 | [SAP LeanIX](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/sap-leanix/index.md) | 5% | 52% | 33 | | 6 | [Draw.io](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/draw-io/index.md) | 4% | 9% | 23 | | 7 | [BlueDolphin](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/bluedolphin/index.md) | 4% | 0% | 13 | | 8 | [Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/sparx-systems-enterprise-architect/index.md) | 4% | 29% | 21 | | 10 | [Lucidchart](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/lucidchart/index.md) | 2% | 12% | 16 | | 24 | [Avolution ABACUS](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/avolution-abacus/index.md) | 2% | 50% | 10 | | 25 | [LeanIX](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/leanix/index.md) | 2% | 60% | 20 | | 26 | [Miro](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/miro/index.md) | 0% | 9% | 22 | | 27 | [Excel](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/excel/index.md) | 0% | 15% | 13 | Rank is by share of first choices among all 133 products named; products with the same share are tied, and the order among them carries no meaning. The table lists those with at least 10 labels. ## Each model's first choice on the direct prompt - Claude Haiku 4.5: no first choice - GPT-5.4 mini: The Essential Project; alternatives Ardoq, Sparx Enterprise Architect - Gemini 3.5 Flash: Catio, UrbaHive; alternatives Archi, IcePanel, Lucidchart, Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect - Perplexity Sonar: Sparx Enterprise Architect; alternatives Catio, OrbusInfinity, SAP LeanIX - Grok 4.20: Archi, Draw.io; alternatives Ardoq, Miro, SAP LeanIX, ServiceNow Enterprise Architecture - Mistral Small: BlueDolphin, Scientrix; alternatives Ardoq, Innoslate, Wrike - DeepSeek V4 Flash: SAP LeanIX; alternatives Archi, BlueDolphin, Sparx Enterprise Architect - Llama 4 Maverick: BlueDolphin; alternatives Sparx Enterprise Architect, The Essential Project - Qwen 3.7 Flash: Archi; alternatives Ardoq, Prolaborate - Kimi K2: Archi; alternatives Albumi, Ardoq, Sparx Enterprise Architect - GLM 4.7 FlashX: Ardoq, Sparx Enterprise Architect; alternatives ADOIT EA Suite, Enterprise Architect, Essential Open Source, Scientrix - MiniMax M2.5: Archi; alternatives BlueDolphin, Innoslate, LeanIX, Wrike - GPT-6 Luna: Lucidchart; alternatives Ardoq, Sparx Enterprise Architect - Muse Glimmer 30B: Archi; alternatives LeanIX, Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect ## Sources the answers cite 71 of 84 answers came back with a source list, from 14 of 14 models. Sites named in the most answers: - g2.com: 32 answers, 47 citations - globalaea.org: 31 answers, 44 citations - softwareadvice.com: 31 answers, 39 citations - getapp.com: 23 answers, 29 citations - superblocks.com: 20 answers, 20 citations - us.fitgap.com: 19 answers, 19 citations - useful-ea.com: 17 answers, 18 citations - guideflow.com: 17 answers, 17 citations Pages named in the most answers: - https://globalaea.org/blogpost/956055/519735/Visual-Enterprise-Architecture-on-Any-Budget (30 answers) - https://softwareadvice.com/enterprise-architecture/small-business (27 answers) - https://getapp.com/development-tools-software/enterprise-architecture/org/small-business (20 answers) - https://superblocks.com/blog/enterprise-architecture-tools (20 answers) - https://us.fitgap.com/search/enterprise-architecture-tools/small-business (19 answers) - https://guideflow.com/blog/enterprise-architecture-tools (17 answers) - https://useful-ea.com/resources/low-cost-enterprise-architecture-tools (15 answers) - https://globalaea.org/blogpost/956055/AEA-Blog?tag=Architecture+Communication (14 answers) - https://capterra.co.uk/directory/31008/enterprise-architecture/software (13 answers) - https://capstera.com/knowledge-hub/articles/enterprise-architecture-tools-guide (12 answers) ## Warned against - Bizzdesign Horizzon: 18 of 26 labels negative. "heavyweight traditional EA platforms (e.g., ... high-tier LeanIX/Bizzdesign) are usually overkill, expensive, and risk becoming "shelfware."" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, scale prompt) - SAP LeanIX: 17 of 33 labels negative. "Tools like SAP LeanIX, MEGA HOPEX, Bizzdesign, iServer, and Sparx Enterprise Architect are excellent for big organizations, but they are often over-priced, over-complex" (GLM 4.7 FlashX, negative prompt) - MEGA HOPEX: 13 of 17 labels negative. "heavyweight traditional EA platforms (e.g., Software AG Alfabet, MEGA HOPEX...) are usually overkill, expensive, and risk becoming "shelfware."" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, scale prompt) - ServiceNow Enterprise Architecture: 8 of 12 labels negative. "Very expensive with complex implementation. Widely regarded as "overkill for SMBs"" (Kimi K2, negative prompt) ## Movement since October 2026 Floor: 11 points of share, measured on the calibration repeat. Same leader: Archi at 31%. - Archi: 20% to 31%, +11. Inside the floor by 0 points · rank 1 of 133, unchanged. - Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect: 14% to 4%, −10. Inside the floor by 1 point · rank 2 → 8 of 133. - LeanIX: 9% to 2%, −7. Inside the floor by 4 points · rank 3 → 25 of 133. - Draw.io: 0% to 4%, +4. Inside the floor by 7 points · rank 36 → 6 of 133. - BlueDolphin: 0% to 4%, +4. Inside the floor by 7 points · rank 26 → 7 of 133. - Sparx Enterprise Architect: 3% to 5%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 8 → 3 of 133. - UrbaHive: 2% to 4%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 12 → 9 of 133. - Lucidchart: 0% to 2%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 33 → 10 of 133. - Avolution ABACUS: 0% to 2%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 120 → 24 of 133. - Ardoq: 8% to 9%, +1. Inside the floor by 10 points · rank 4 → 2 of 133. - SAP LeanIX: 5% to 5%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 7 → 5 of 133. - Miro: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 62 → 26 of 133. ## Record - Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/methodology - License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, November 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/it.