Softwr

Manufacturing · head to head

GENESIS Version 11 vs LabVIEW

GENESIS Version 11 logo

GENESIS Version 11

Manufacturing

Iconics SCADA and visualisation under Mitsubishi Electric, now sold with unlimited tag licensing

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
LabVIEW logo

LabVIEW

Manufacturing

Graphical dataflow programming for automated test, measurement and instrument control

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: GENESIS Version 11 the name has changed twice, from GENESIS64 to GENESIS Version 11 with an Iconics-to-Mitsubishi ownership shift, so documentation, forum answers and integrator experience are split across three product identities.; LabVIEW nI is now part of Emerson, completing in 2023, so LabVIEW sits inside an industrial automation conglomerate rather than being the flagship of a dedicated test company; roadmap priorities and support pricing follow the parent, not the user base.
  • They diverge on capability: GENESIS Version 11 covers Unlimited tag licensing, LabVIEW covers Graphical dataflow programming.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which GENESIS Version 11 and LabVIEW actually diverge.

Attributes where GENESIS Version 11 and LabVIEW differ
AttributeGENESIS Version 11LabVIEW
PlatformsWindows, Web, iOS, AndroidWindows, Linux, macOS

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Manufacturing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in GENESIS Version 11

  • Unlimited tag licensing
  • GraphWorX
  • Hyper Historian
  • AnalytiX
  • Web and mobile clients
  • BACnet and building protocols
  • Alarm and notification
  • Energy AnalytiX

Only in LabVIEW

  • Graphical dataflow programming
  • Front panels
  • Instrument driver library
  • Hardware integration
  • Real-time and FPGA targets
  • Analysis and signal processing
  • Application builder
  • Nigel AI assistant

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

GENESIS Version 11

  • A university or hospital estate adding buildings every year that no longer wants a licence negotiation for each expansionnot LabVIEW
  • A data centre operator needing power and cooling status overlaid on a 3D floor model rather than a line diagramnot LabVIEW
  • A water utility wanting pump station status on a GIS map alongside historised flow and pressure datanot LabVIEW
  • A Mitsubishi Electric factory automation site wanting supervisory visualisation from the same vendor as the controllersnot LabVIEW

LabVIEW

  • An automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial numbernot GENESIS Version 11
  • A semiconductor lab characterising devices across a PXI chassis where deterministic timing between instruments mattersnot GENESIS Version 11
  • A medical device manufacturer needing a validated, documented test system with an operator front panel a technician can run unsupervisednot GENESIS Version 11
  • A research group prototyping a control loop on CompactRIO where part of the logic must compile down to an FPGAnot GENESIS Version 11

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

GENESIS Version 11

  • The name has changed twice, from GENESIS64 to GENESIS Version 11 with an Iconics-to-Mitsubishi ownership shift, so documentation, forum answers and integrator experience are split across three product identities.
  • Unlimited licensing sets a high floor: a small site with a few hundred points pays for capacity it cannot use, and tag-priced competitors remain cheaper below a few thousand points.
  • It is a Windows and Microsoft-stack product, depending on SQL Server and Windows services, so Linux-first or containerised deployment strategies do not apply to it.
  • Mitsubishi Electric now owns it outright, and roadmap priorities follow that group’s factory automation strategy rather than the independent building-automation direction Iconics previously set.
  • The 3D and GIS visualisation that distinguishes it takes real modelling effort to populate, and estates that skip that work end up with an expensive licence driving conventional 2D screens.

LabVIEW

  • NI is now part of Emerson, completing in 2023, so LabVIEW sits inside an industrial automation conglomerate rather than being the flagship of a dedicated test company; roadmap priorities and support pricing follow the parent, not the user base.
  • No prices appear anywhere on the NI site for commercial editions; Base, Full, Professional and the LabVIEW+ suite are all quoted through NI or a reseller, so a buyer cannot compare cost against a Python-plus-PyVISA alternative without opening a sales conversation.
  • Graphical source code diffs badly. Merging two engineers’ changes to the same virtual instrument in git is impractical without NI’s own comparison tools, so team development on LabVIEW is slower and more serialised than on text-based languages.
  • The pool of engineers who write LabVIEW is small and ageing relative to the pool who write Python, so hiring a replacement for the person who built your test rig is materially harder and more expensive than replacing a general software engineer.
  • The environment pulls you toward NI hardware and NI add-on toolkits, and licences for real-time, FPGA and vision modules are sold separately on top of the base edition, so the quoted LabVIEW price is rarely the delivered cost of a working test system.

Pricing, plan by plan

GENESIS Version 11

On request
  • GENESIS Version 11$undefined/year
    • Unlimited tags, users and connected devices within a licence
    • Licensed by product module rather than by point count
    • Sold and configured through Mitsubishi Electric and Iconics system integrators

LabVIEW

On request
  • LabVIEW Community EditionFree
    • Free for personal, non-commercial use only
    • Full LabVIEW feature set for hobbyists
    • No commercial deployment rights
  • LabVIEW Base$undefined/year
    • Core acquisition, control and user interface capability
    • Suited to simple test and measurement applications
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence
  • LabVIEW Full$undefined/year
    • Adds advanced analysis and signal processing
    • Recommended where mathematics and filtering are required
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence
  • LabVIEW Professional$undefined/year
    • Adds application builder, source control and deployment tooling
    • Includes the Nigel AI assistant
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence

Which should you pick?

Choose GENESIS Version 11 if

  • You need unlimited tag licensing.
  • You work on Windows, Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want graphworx.
GENESIS Version 11 review

Choose LabVIEW if

  • You need graphical dataflow programming.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, macOS.
  • You also want front panels.
LabVIEW review

Questions people ask

Is GENESIS Version 11 or LabVIEW better?
Neither clearly leads. GENESIS Version 11 starts at On request and LabVIEW at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, GENESIS Version 11 or LabVIEW?
GENESIS Version 11 starts at On request and LabVIEW at On request.
Does GENESIS Version 11 or LabVIEW run on more platforms?
GENESIS Version 11 runs on Windows, Web, iOS, Android. LabVIEW runs on Windows, Linux, macOS.
What is GENESIS Version 11 best used for?
GENESIS Version 11 is most often used for a university or hospital estate adding buildings every year that no longer wants a licence negotiation for each expansion, a data centre operator needing power and cooling status overlaid on a 3d floor model rather than a line diagram, a water utility wanting pump station status on a gis map alongside historised flow and pressure data, a mitsubishi electric factory automation site wanting supervisory visualisation from the same vendor as the controllers. Of those, a university or hospital estate adding buildings every year that no longer wants a licence negotiation for each expansion and a data centre operator needing power and cooling status overlaid on a 3d floor model rather than a line diagram are not what LabVIEW is typically brought in for.
What can GENESIS Version 11 do that LabVIEW cannot?
GENESIS Version 11 covers Unlimited tag licensing, GraphWorX, Hyper Historian, AnalytiX. LabVIEW covers Graphical dataflow programming, Front panels, Instrument driver library, Hardware integration.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

GENESIS Version 11: Is GENESIS64 discontinued?

It has been superseded. GENESIS Version 11 is the current release and the name GENESIS64 is retired.

LabVIEW: Who owns LabVIEW now?

NI, formerly National Instruments, was acquired by Emerson in an acquisition that completed in 2023. LabVIEW is now an Emerson product.

GENESIS Version 11: Does version 11 really have no tag limits?

Yes, tag, user and device counting was removed in version 11. Licensing is by module instead.

LabVIEW: Can I still buy a perpetual licence?

Yes. NI offers both subscription and perpetual licences and states there are no functional or feature-level differences between them.

GENESIS Version 11: Who owns Iconics now?

Mitsubishi Electric, which took full ownership. Iconics continues to operate under its own name from Massachusetts.

LabVIEW: Is there a free version?

LabVIEW Community Edition is free for personal, non-commercial use. It carries no commercial deployment rights.

GENESIS Version 11: Can it act as a building management system on its own?

It is the supervisory and analytics layer. It reads BACnet and building controllers but does not replace field-level plant controllers.

LabVIEW: How much does it cost?

NI does not publish commercial edition prices. Base, Full, Professional and LabVIEW+ are all quoted through NI or a reseller.

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