IBM IMS VS z/OS_
As of 4 November 2026, z/OS is named by 257 companies and IBM IMS by 403; IBM IMS skews to companies under 200 people (34% vs 32%), z/OS to companies over 1,000 (48% vs 45%).
As of 4 November 2026 · refreshed daily · counts move as websites, DNS and career sites are re-read.
The website-and-DNS footprint is not comparable between a marketing suite and a CRM: IBM IMS's script and mail records show on hundreds of thousands of small sites, z/OS rarely leaves a trace outside its own apps. Compare on the job-posting numbers; use the footprint for reach.
- IBM IMS: 2–200 employees
- 34%
- z/OS: 2–200 employees
- 32%
- IBM IMS: 1,000+ employees
- 45%
- z/OS: 1,000+ employees
- 48%
- Postings per company, 90 days
- 3.3 · 4.1
- Website or DNS footprint
- 0 · 0
Who chooses which
Share of each tool's companies in every segment. "Leans" marks a gap of more than two points.
| Segment | IBM IMS | share | z/OS | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Self-employed | 8 | 2% | 4 | 2% | even |
| 2-10 employees | 26 | 6% | 15 | 6% | even |
| 11-50 employees | 29 | 7% | 32 | 12% | z/OS |
| 51-200 employees | 82 | 20% | 36 | 14% | IBM IMS |
| 201-500 employees | 45 | 11% | 24 | 9% | even |
| 501-1000 employees | 32 | 8% | 23 | 9% | even |
| 1001-5000 employees | 60 | 15% | 34 | 13% | even |
| 5001-10000 employees | 24 | 6% | 14 | 5% | even |
| 10,001+ employees | 97 | 24% | 75 | 29% | z/OS |
| Segment | IBM IMS | share | z/OS | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology & software | 102 | 25% | 115 | 45% | z/OS |
| Business & finance services | 80 | 20% | 98 | 38% | z/OS |
| Manufacturing & industry | 62 | 15% | 7 | 3% | IBM IMS |
| Utilities & infrastructure | 37 | 9% | 2 | 1% | IBM IMS |
| Health care | 22 | 5% | 1 | 0% | IBM IMS |
| Public, community & associations | 20 | 5% | 9 | 4% | even |
| Commerce & trade | 17 | 4% | 6 | 2% | even |
| Consumer services & leisure | 15 | 4% | 3 | 1% | IBM IMS |
| Automotive | 14 | 3% | 2 | 1% | IBM IMS |
| Media & content | 10 | 2% | 8 | 3% | even |
| Property & construction | 10 | 2% | 3 | 1% | even |
| Transport, logistics & rental | 10 | 2% | 3 | 1% | even |
| Segment | IBM IMS | share | z/OS | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 236 | 59% | 128 | 50% | IBM IMS |
| United Kingdom | 24 | 6% | 8 | 3% | IBM IMS |
| France | 17 | 4% | 24 | 9% | z/OS |
| Canada | 16 | 4% | 4 | 2% | IBM IMS |
| Germany | 16 | 4% | 14 | 5% | even |
| India | 11 | 3% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Australia | 10 | 2% | 6 | 2% | even |
| Poland | 6 | 1% | 4 | 2% | even |
| Denmark | 5 | 1% | 4 | 2% | even |
| Sweden | 5 | 1% | 4 | 2% | even |
| Austria | 3 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Belgium | 3 | 1% | 3 | 1% | even |
| Portugal | – | – | 5 | 2% | outside top 12 |
| Spain | – | – | 4 | 2% | outside top 12 |
| Segment | IBM IMS | share | z/OS | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software engineering | 318 | 19% | 457 | 28% | z/OS |
| IT operations & business systems | 262 | 16% | 567 | 35% | z/OS |
| Product, program & project management | 133 | 8% | 47 | 3% | IBM IMS |
| logistics warehouse and transport | 85 | 5% | 1 | 0% | IBM IMS |
| Engineering (non-software) | 75 | 4% | 41 | 3% | even |
| Finance & accounting | 49 | 3% | 13 | 1% | IBM IMS |
| Administration & office | 48 | 3% | 1 | 0% | IBM IMS |
| Sales | 36 | 2% | 4 | 0% | even |
| healthcare clinical | 34 | 2% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Quality, safety & environment | 32 | 2% | 1 | 0% | even |
| Data & AI | 24 | 1% | 19 | 1% | even |
| Customer service & success | 19 | 1% | 3 | 0% | even |
| Marketing & communications | 19 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Business development & strategy | 17 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| manufacturing and production | 17 | 1% | 12 | 1% | even |
| public safety and protective services | 17 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| skilled trades and field service | 14 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Legal, compliance & risk | 9 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| construction and civil | 8 | 0% | 2 | 0% | even |
| healthcare support and caregiving | 8 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| General management & consulting | 7 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| research and science | 7 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| social care and community | 7 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Education & training | 5 | 0% | 1 | 0% | even |
| Unclassified | 4 | 0% | 5 | 0% | even |
| facilities cleaning and security | 3 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| agriculture and environment | 2 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| procurement and purchasing | 2 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| arts media and entertainment | 1 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| hospitality and food service | 1 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
The companies behind each column
Companies using IBM IMS →
Companies using z/OS →
mainframe midrange ranked →
Quote the sentence with the date and the link. The numbers change daily; the link always shows the current ones.
z/OS is named by 257 companies in job postings and IBM IMS by 403; 133 name both. (Breaknorm, 4 November 2026, https://breaknorm.co/compare/ibm-ims-vs-z-os)
Read from the source, not self-reported
Every number on this page can be traced to a page we crawled or a posting we read. Full methodology →
- Job postingsRead hourly from career sites. A tool counts when the employer's own text names it as the team's system; both tools can count for one company.
- Website and DNSScripts and embeds on the company's pages, plus SPF, DKIM, MX and CNAME records of its domain that point at the vendor.
- SegmentsCountry, size and industry from the company profile built from its website.
- Not a reviewNo ratings, prices or feature claims. For those, read the vendors.
IBM IMS vs z/OS: questions
Which is more used, IBM IMS or z/OS?
By companies naming it in their own job postings, IBM IMS (403) over z/OS (257). By website-and-DNS footprint, z/OS (0 vs 0), because its scripts and mail records sit on many small company sites.
Who chooses IBM IMS?
34% of IBM IMS companies have 2 to 200 employees, against 32% for z/OS. 45% of IBM IMS companies have over 1,000 employees, against 48% for z/OS.
Do companies run both?
133 companies name both in their postings, usually IBM IMS in marketing and z/OS in sales, or during a migration.
Where do these numbers come from?
From the employer's own text in job postings read hourly from career sites, and from scripts found on company websites in our crawl. No vendor data, no surveys.
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