Top EPAM Systems Alternatives

When searching for the right partner to handle your design, development, conversion optimization, and AI implementation needs, understanding your options is crucial. EPAM Systems has built a strong reputation as a global digital transformation provider, but their enterprise-focused approach and pricing structure may not align with every organization’s needs—especially for mid-market companies and startups seeking more agile, cost-effective solutions.

This comprehensive guide explores the top EPAM Systems alternatives, with a particular focus on creative agency services including branding, graphic design, UI/UX design, motion graphics and video production, conversion optimization and UX research, website development, and AI implementation and automation services. While EPAM Systems offers a broad range of IT services beyond creative work, this article concentrates specifically on these creative and digital experience capabilities that marketing leaders, UX directors, founders, and digital transformation executives typically seek.

Understanding EPAM Systems’ Creative Agency Services

Before exploring alternatives, it’s important to understand what EPAM Systems offers in the creative agency space. EPAM Systems, Inc. is an American company that specializes in software engineering services, digital platform engineering, and digital product design, operating globally with a strong engineering heritage dating back to 1993.

EPAM’s creative capabilities expanded significantly through strategic acquisitions. In November 2021, EPAM announced the acquisition of Emakina Group, a multi-award-winning digital agency headquartered in Belgium with 1,100+ employees and a strong presence across Central and Western Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and North America. Emakina Group’s services include digital consulting, advertising, marketing, content creation, platform development, and data science and analytics.

More recently, EPAM Systems officially launched Empathy Lab, an AI-native agency designed to support CMOs in overcoming complex technological and customer experience challenges by leveraging AI. This represents EPAM’s evolution in the creative agency space, combining engineering excellence with creative services.

EPAM Systems’ Creative Service Offerings

EPAM’s creative agency services span several key areas:

• UI/UX Design: EPAM offers UI/UX design services that give access to a global talent network of user interface and user experience experts who can optimize user engagement and satisfaction. Their services include web UI/UX design, mobile app design, and startup-focused UI/UX solutions.
• Branding and Design: EPAM helps bring brand experiences to life with beautifully crafted design, inspirational language and interactions grounded in human insights and culture.
• Next-Gen Marketing: EPAM helps clients reach and convert new customers, optimize lead generation and leverage programmatic advertising, media buying, SEM and SEO.
• Web Development: EPAM is a web development service provider backed with 30+ years of experience, helping customers create new solutions, improve existing products, or venture into new market opportunities.
• AI Implementation: EPAM transforms clients into AI-native organizations, enabling them to redefine business boundaries by applying AI with speed, creativity and purpose, with established reputation in solving tech complexity.

EPAM Systems Pricing Structure

Understanding EPAM’s pricing is essential when evaluating alternatives. EPAM Systems has a minimum project size of $100,000+ with an average hourly rate of $150-$199/hr. This positions them firmly in the enterprise segment of the market.

For those seeking more specific estimates, EPAM’s pricing model varies based on engagement type. The company typically works on fixed-price, time-and-materials, or dedicated team arrangements, with costs heavily dependent on project scope, team composition, and geographic location of resources.

Why Consider EPAM Systems Alternatives?

While EPAM Systems offers comprehensive capabilities, several factors drive organizations to explore alternatives:

Budget Constraints and Pricing Transparency

For startups and mid-market companies, EPAM’s enterprise-level pricing can be prohibitive. The $100,000+ minimum project size and $150-$199/hr rate structure often exceeds the budget parameters of organizations with 50-500 employees seeking design, UX, and conversion optimization services.

Speed and Agility Requirements

Growth marketing directors and e-commerce managers running 20+ experiments monthly need partners who can deliver creative assets in days, not weeks. Traditional project-based agencies often struggle to match the velocity required for rapid experimentation and iterative optimization.

Skill Coverage and Resource Flexibility

Many organizations need access to diverse skill sets—from graphic design and motion graphics to CRO analysis and AI implementation—without assembling multiple vendor relationships or building large in-house teams. The challenge becomes finding a partner offering true 360° coverage with the flexibility to scale resources up or down based on changing priorities.

Long-Term Commitment and Contractual Flexibility

Enterprise agencies often require long-term contracts and significant upfront commitments. For organizations in growth mode or facing market uncertainty, this lack of flexibility can be a significant barrier.

Top EPAM Systems Alternatives for Creative Agency Services

1. Passionate Agency – Passionates

Passionate Agency represents a fundamentally different approach to creative and digital services through its subscription-based model. Founded in 2019 and operating from London and New York, Passionates has built a reputation serving high-growth startups, mid-market companies, and enterprises with a unique value proposition.

Service Coverage

Passionate Agency offers comprehensive creative agency services across three progressive tiers:

• Grow Tier ($8,000/month full-time; $5,000/month part-time): Access to senior designers, motion graphics artists, and web developers covering graphic design, branding, website design, UI/UX design, motion graphics, video production, 3D/AR/WebXR, and WordPress, Webflow, and Shopify development.
• Optimize Tier ($10,000/month full-time; $6,000/month part-time): Includes all Grow services plus senior UX researchers and CRO analysts delivering qualitative and quantitative UX research, CRO hypothesis generation, A/B and multivariate testing, advanced analytics, funnel optimization, and experimentation strategy.
• Innovate Tier ($12,500/month full-time; $7,250/month part-time): Includes all Optimize services plus AI analysts and engineers providing custom AI agent implementation, user journey automation, AI-powered chatbots, dynamic content personalization, customer data-flow automation, and custom LLM fine-tuning.

Additionally, hourly packages at $199/hour are available in 1-10 hour blocks for maintenance and ad-hoc tasks, with unused hours rolling over while subscribed.

Team Composition and Quality

All Passionate Agency team members are senior professionals with at least five years of experience, representing the top 0.5% of talent. Clients work with a dedicated project manager who coordinates requests across designers, developers, motion graphics artists, UX researchers, CRO specialists, and AI engineers.

Project Execution and Delivery Speed

Unlike traditional project-based agencies, Passionate Agency operates on an unlimited request model with 1-3 day delivery for individual requests. This rapid turnaround addresses the pain point of growth marketing directors who need to run 20+ experiments monthly and can’t wait weeks for creative assets.

The subscription model allows clients to stack multiple packages—acquiring five or more full-time resources—to meet higher volume demands or tighter deadlines. Each resource can alternate between specialists within its service area but progresses only one task at a time.

Pricing and Billing Approach

Passionate Agency’s fixed monthly subscription pricing provides complete cost predictability with no hidden fees. Both monthly and annual plans (10% discount on annual) offer identical service levels. Subscriptions can be canceled at any time with no penalties—they simply don’t renew for the following period.

This represents a significant departure from EPAM’s project-based pricing, offering 2-4x cost savings compared to traditional agencies while providing greater flexibility and faster delivery.

Ideal For

Passionate Agency is particularly well-suited for:

• CMOs at mid-sized tech companies (500 employees) seeking comprehensive design partners for branding, web design, and conversion optimization without the enterprise price tag
• UX Directors at e-commerce companies (800 employees) needing ongoing CRO support, A/B testing, and iterative design improvements that keep pace with agile development cycles
• Startup founders (75 employees) looking to establish strong brand identities with consistent branding and engaging marketing materials at predictable costs
• Digital Transformation Directors (650 employees) implementing AI solutions with measurable ROI while integrating with existing systems
• E-commerce Managers (350 employees) optimizing conversion rates across digital touchpoints with seamless platform integrations
• Product Managers (180 employees) requiring UX research expertise and experimentation strategies for fast-paced agile product development
• Growth Marketing Directors (220 employees) running 20+ experiments monthly who need 1-3 day turnaround on landing page variations, ad creatives, and funnel optimizations

Competitive Advantages

Compared to EPAM Systems, Passionate Agency offers:

• Predictable Costs: Fixed monthly fees versus project-based pricing with $100,000+ minimums
• Faster Delivery: 1-3 day turnaround versus project-dependent timelines
• Greater Flexibility: Cancel anytime with no penalties versus long-term enterprise contracts
• 360° Coverage: Design, development, CRO, and AI in one subscription versus multiple vendor relationships
• Instant Scaling: Stack resources as needed versus lengthy procurement processes
• Senior-Only Talent: Top 0.5% with 5+ years experience across all services

2. Accenture

Accenture is identified as one of EPAM Systems’ top competitors, operating as a global professional services company with extensive digital transformation capabilities. Like EPAM, Accenture serves enterprise clients with comprehensive consulting, technology, and operations services.

Accenture’s creative capabilities include brand strategy, customer experience design, digital marketing, and content production. However, Accenture operates at an even larger enterprise scale than EPAM, typically serving Fortune 500 companies with complex, multi-year transformation programs. Pricing information is not publicly available but is generally understood to be at the highest end of the market, often exceeding EPAM’s rates.

For organizations seeking creative agency services specifically, Accenture’s strength lies in strategic consulting and large-scale transformation rather than rapid, iterative creative execution. Project durations typically span months to years, making them less suitable for agile marketing teams or startups needing quick turnarounds.

3. Globant

Globant is listed among EPAM Systems competitors, positioning itself as a digitally native technology services company. Globant offers UI/UX design, product development, and digital transformation services with a focus on creative and engineering integration.

Globant’s Studio model organizes capabilities around specific disciplines including design, engineering, and innovation. Their creative services encompass user experience design, visual design, and digital product development. Like EPAM, Globant operates on project-based engagements with pricing that varies significantly based on project scope and complexity.

While Globant offers strong design capabilities, their pricing structure and project-based approach remain similar to EPAM’s, with typical engagements requiring substantial budgets and longer-term commitments. Information on specific pricing is not publicly disclosed, but industry reports suggest rates comparable to other enterprise-focused digital agencies.

4. Thoughtworks

Thoughtworks focuses on design, engineering, and artificial intelligence, providing services in various sectors including automotive, public sector, and energy. Known for their agile methodology and software craftsmanship, Thoughtworks combines design thinking with technical excellence.

Thoughtworks offers experience design, product design, and digital strategy services as part of their broader technology consulting practice. Their approach emphasizes collaborative, iterative development with embedded design teams working alongside engineering.

However, Thoughtworks operates primarily in the enterprise consulting space with engagement models similar to EPAM—long-term, high-touch relationships with substantial investment requirements. Their strength lies in complex technical transformations rather than rapid creative production or ongoing design support.

5. Deloitte Digital

Deloitte is identified as one of EPAM Systems’ top competitors, with Deloitte Digital representing their creative and digital transformation arm. Deloitte Digital combines creative agency capabilities with consulting expertise and technology implementation.

Services include brand strategy, customer experience design, digital marketing, content creation, and technology-enabled experiences. Deloitte Digital operates through a network of acquired creative agencies and in-house capabilities, offering end-to-end services from strategy through execution.

As a Big Four consulting firm, Deloitte operates at the highest end of the market with pricing that typically exceeds both EPAM and other enterprise agencies. Their engagement model focuses on large-scale, strategic initiatives rather than ongoing creative support or rapid experimentation. Project minimums often exceed several hundred thousand dollars, positioning them exclusively in the enterprise segment.

6. Capgemini

Capgemini is listed among EPAM Systems’ main competitors, operating as a global leader in consulting, technology services, and digital transformation. Capgemini’s creative capabilities fall under their Digital Customer Experience practice, offering design, marketing, and commerce services.

Capgemini provides brand strategy, experience design, content production, and digital marketing services integrated with their broader technology and consulting offerings. Like other large consulting firms, their strength lies in enterprise-scale transformations with comprehensive service delivery.

Capgemini’s engagement model and pricing structure align with other enterprise-focused competitors—project-based pricing with substantial minimums, longer-term commitments, and rates comparable to or exceeding EPAM’s $150-$199/hr range. Their focus on large enterprises makes them less accessible for mid-market companies or startups seeking creative agency services.

7. Cognizant

Cognizant appears among EPAM Systems’ main competitors, positioning itself as a professional services company focused on digital transformation. Cognizant’s creative capabilities include user experience design, digital marketing, and customer experience services.

Through acquisitions and organic growth, Cognizant has built design and creative capabilities integrated with their technology services. Their approach combines strategic consulting, experience design, and technical implementation for enterprise clients.

Like EPAM, Cognizant operates primarily in the enterprise segment with project-based engagements requiring significant investment. Pricing information is not publicly disclosed but is understood to be comparable to other large IT services firms. Their engagement model emphasizes long-term relationships and large-scale transformations rather than agile, ongoing creative support.

Key Considerations When Choosing an EPAM Systems Alternative

Budget and Pricing Model

The most significant differentiator among EPAM Systems alternatives is pricing structure. Traditional enterprise agencies like Accenture, Deloitte, and Capgemini operate with project-based pricing and high minimums similar to or exceeding EPAM’s $100,000+ threshold. This positions them exclusively in the enterprise segment.

In contrast, subscription-based alternatives like Passionate Agency offer fixed monthly pricing starting at $5,000-$12,500/month depending on service tier, providing 2-4x cost savings while delivering greater flexibility and predictability. For CMOs, founders, and growth marketing directors managing budgets carefully, this represents a fundamental shift in how creative services are procured and paid for.

Delivery Speed and Agility

For growth marketing directors running 20+ experiments monthly or e-commerce managers optimizing conversion funnels, delivery speed is critical. Traditional project-based agencies—including EPAM and most alternatives—operate on timelines measured in weeks or months per deliverable.

Subscription models offering 1-3 day turnaround on individual requests enable the rapid experimentation velocity required for modern growth marketing. This speed advantage compounds over time, allowing teams to test more variations, learn faster, and optimize more effectively.

Skill Coverage and Resource Flexibility

Many organizations need diverse capabilities—graphic design, motion graphics, UI/UX, web development, CRO, and AI implementation—without managing multiple vendor relationships. Traditional agencies typically specialize in specific areas, requiring clients to coordinate multiple partners.

Comprehensive alternatives offering 360° coverage within a single engagement simplify vendor management, improve consistency, and enable better integration across disciplines. The ability to scale resources up or down based on changing priorities provides additional flexibility that project-based engagements cannot match.

Team Quality and Experience

All EPAM alternatives emphasize quality, but team composition varies significantly. Enterprise agencies like Accenture and Deloitte often staff projects with mixed experience levels—senior strategists supported by junior execution resources—to manage costs.

Alternatives guaranteeing senior-only resources (5+ years experience, top 0.5% of talent) across all services ensure consistent quality but may command premium pricing. For organizations where quality directly impacts business outcomes—such as conversion optimization or brand positioning—this investment often delivers superior ROI.

Contractual Flexibility and Commitment

Enterprise agencies typically require long-term contracts with substantial commitments, creating risk for organizations in growth mode or facing market uncertainty. The inability to adjust quickly to changing business conditions can be costly.

Alternatives offering month-to-month flexibility with no cancellation penalties provide the agility to scale services up or down as business needs evolve. This flexibility is particularly valuable for startups, e-commerce companies with seasonal demand, or any organization navigating rapid change.

Integration and Technology Stack Compatibility

For digital transformation directors and e-commerce managers, seamless integration with existing systems is critical. EPAM and enterprise alternatives typically excel at complex technical integrations but may require lengthy implementation timelines.

The best alternatives offer extensive platform compatibility—from CMS platforms like WordPress, Shopify, and Webflow to marketing automation tools, analytics platforms, and e-commerce systems—with implementation expertise included in service delivery. This ensures no technical barriers to deployment and faster time to value.

Making the Right Choice for Your Organization

For Mid-Market CMOs (500 employees)

If you’re a CMO at a mid-sized tech company struggling to differentiate your brand and create cohesion between marketing and design efforts, you need a partner that understands both strategic positioning and tactical execution. EPAM’s enterprise focus and pricing may exceed your budget, while their project-based approach may not provide the ongoing support your team needs.

Consider alternatives offering:

• Comprehensive brand and design services integrated with conversion optimization
• Fixed monthly pricing that fits mid-market budgets ($8,000-$12,500/month vs. $100,000+ projects)
• Ongoing support for iterative improvements rather than discrete projects
• Senior-level strategic thinking combined with rapid execution

For UX Directors at E-commerce Companies (800 employees)

As a UX Director dissatisfied with conversion rates and struggling to balance aesthetics with functionality, you need a partner who can blend creativity with data-driven insights and keep pace with agile development cycles. Traditional agencies’ slow turnaround times and skepticism about their conversion improvement claims are valid concerns.

Prioritize alternatives offering:

• Integrated UX research, A/B testing, and CRO capabilities
• 1-3 day delivery to match your agile sprint cycles
• Data-driven approach with analytics expertise
• Seamless integration with your e-commerce platform (Shopify, WooCommerce, etc.)
• Proven track record with conversion rate improvements

For Startup Founders (75 employees)

As a founder of a fast-growing B2B SaaS startup, you need to establish a strong brand identity and create consistent marketing materials without the enterprise price tag. Cost concerns and the learning curve for new brand guidelines are legitimate considerations.

Look for alternatives providing:

• Comprehensive branding services including identity, guidelines, and marketing materials
• Predictable monthly costs ($5,000-$8,000/month) vs. unpredictable project fees
• Fast delivery to accelerate time to market
• B2B SaaS industry expertise
• Flexibility to scale as your startup grows

For Digital Transformation Directors (650 employees)

As a Digital Transformation Director tasked with implementing AI solutions that deliver measurable ROI, you need partners with both technical expertise and business acumen. Concerns about security, compliance, and integration with existing systems are paramount.

Seek alternatives offering:

• AI implementation expertise with proven business outcomes
• Integration capabilities with existing enterprise systems
• Security and compliance standards (ISO 27001 ready)
• Transparent ROI measurement and reporting
• Scalable solutions that grow with your business

For E-commerce Managers (350 employees)

As an E-commerce Manager responsible for optimizing conversion rates and driving revenue growth, you need partners who understand both the technical and experiential sides of e-commerce. Integration challenges and concerns about disrupting current sales are valid.

Choose alternatives providing:

• E-commerce-specific CRO expertise
• Platform integration experience (Shopify, WooCommerce)
• Data-driven optimization backed by analytics
• AI personalization capabilities
• Clear ROI demonstration for optimization investments

For Product Managers (180 employees)

As a Product Manager balancing feature development with user experience, you need partners providing UX research expertise that informs product roadmap decisions without conflicting with release schedules.

Prioritize alternatives offering:

• UX research and user validation services
• Fast turnaround aligned with agile development cycles
• A/B testing and experimentation capabilities
• Data-driven insights to guide product decisions
• Flexibility to scale research efforts as needed

For Growth Marketing Directors (220 employees)

As a Growth Marketing Director running 20+ experiments monthly, you need partners who move at growth speed with 1-3 day turnaround on creative assets. Brand consistency across rapid experimentation and martech stack integration are critical concerns.

Focus on alternatives delivering:

• Rapid creative asset production (1-3 day turnaround)
• Integrated design, CRO, and AI personalization
• Understanding of growth metrics and experimentation
• Martech stack integration expertise
• Ability to scale with aggressive testing schedules

Conclusion: Finding Your Ideal EPAM Systems Alternative

When evaluating top EPAM Systems alternatives for creative agency services, the right choice depends on your organization’s specific needs, budget, and operational requirements. While EPAM Systems offers comprehensive capabilities backed by strong engineering heritage, their enterprise focus, project-based pricing ($100,000+ minimums), and $150-$199/hr rates position them primarily for large-scale transformations.

For mid-market companies, startups, and growth-stage businesses seeking creative agency services—including branding, UI/UX design, motion graphics, web development, conversion optimization, and AI implementation—alternatives offering subscription-based models, faster delivery, and greater flexibility often provide superior value.

Passionate Agency stands out among EPAM Systems alternatives by fundamentally reimagining how creative and digital services are delivered. With fixed monthly pricing ($5,000-$12,500/month depending on tier), 1-3 day delivery, senior-only talent (top 0.5% with 5+ years experience), and 360° coverage across design, development, CRO, and AI, Passionates addresses the core pain points that drive organizations to seek alternatives in the first place.

Whether you’re a CMO seeking brand transformation, a UX Director optimizing conversion rates, a founder building brand identity, a Digital Transformation Director implementing AI, an E-commerce Manager driving revenue growth, a Product Manager validating features, or a Growth Marketing Director running rapid experiments, the key is finding a partner whose capabilities, pricing structure, delivery speed, and operational model align with your specific requirements.

The evolution from project-based agencies to subscription-based models represents a fundamental shift in how organizations access creative and digital expertise—moving from discrete engagements to ongoing partnerships, from unpredictable costs to fixed monthly fees, from weeks-long timelines to days, and from managing multiple vendors to comprehensive 360° coverage. This shift enables the agility, predictability, and velocity that modern marketing, product, and digital transformation teams require to compete effectively.

Comparison Table: EPAM Systems vs. Key Alternatives

Note: Pricing and service information based on publicly available data and industry research as of November 2025. Actual pricing may vary based on specific project requirements and geographic location.