It is relatively straightforward to parallelize a number of steps in ABC algorithms based on rejection sampling and sequential Monte Carlo methods. It has also been demonstrated that parallel algorithms may yield significant speedups for MCMC-based inference in phylogenetics, which may be a tractable approach also for ABC-based methods. Yet an adequate model for a complex system is very likely to require intensive computation irrespectively of the chosen method of inference, and it is up to the user to select a method that is suitable for the particular application in question.