Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs Windows 10 comparison

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56,997 views|17,616 comparisons
96% willing to recommend
Microsoft Logo
15,821 views|8,068 comparisons
90% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary
Updated on Jan 9, 2023

We performed a comparison between Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and Windows 10 based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

  • Ease of Deployment: Users of both solutions agree that their initial setup is straightforward.
  • Features: Users of both products are happy with their stability and scalability.

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) users like the solution’s robust integration capabilities and its powerful security software. Reviewers say that it could be much more user friendly.

    Windows 10 users like its firewall and say the solution is flexible and user friendly. Several Windows 10 users mention that it requires a high amount of resources, and that its security needs to be improved.
  • Pricing: Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) users say the solution is expensive. Most Windows 10 users feel that the price of the solution is fair.
  • Service and Support: Users of both solutions report being satisfied with the level of support they receive.
  • ROI: Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) users report a positive ROI. Windows 10 users do not mention an ROI.

Comparison Results: Windows 10 wins out in this comparison. The main difference between the two solutions is that Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is not user friendly, while reviewers say that Windows 10 is. Windows users are also happier with its pricing.

To learn more, read our detailed Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs. Windows 10 Report (Updated: March 2024).
771,157 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"The security, ongoing support, and ease of taking a system and getting authorization from a government agency have helped the way our organization functions.""The most valuable features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux are the mobile applications and getting real-time notifications.""The solution’s security feature is the most valuable feature for my company.""Red Hat Enterprise Linux has a good file system type and good kernels.""Support is most valuable. If a customer has a problem with a feature or a bug, we can open a support case for that, and the issue is resolved or taken care of. That's the main benefit of the product.""Copious documentation is probably the best feature of the solution.""The security it provides is one of the most important features, as are the support and the documentation. The latter helps me to do everything.""The integration with Oracle is the most valuable feature."

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"The solution has been issue-free.""Windows 10 is quite stable.""I like the stability, the performance and the ease of use.""The usability is satisfactory.""The solution is versatile and allows for easy installation.""Technical support is available 24/7 and we find them to be helpful.""The product is powerful and fast.""The install was easy for this solution."

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Cons
"I really think that the upgrade policies between the major versions, like from from RHEL 5 to RHEL 6, should be much easier, similar to what is in place for upgrading from RHEL 6 to RHEL 6.8.""Red Hat Enterprise Linux should modernize its UI to make navigating the screens easier.""The biggest thing that the solution could introduce is an even slimmer version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.""The product should be made available on Oracle Cloud.""It is mostly better than other solutions. However, it is sometimes difficult for disaster recovery, so we have to plan accordingly.""It is a bit on the pricier side. However, due to the stability and support that they provide to my management and me, we really don't see a reason to choose another way to go. It is hard to get good support.""The cost of this solution could be improved.""Although the price is reasonable, there is room for improvement in order to stand out from other open-source solutions."

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"Microsoft must realize that it's operating in Africa. We cannot pay US dollars. For the cost of Microsoft Windows 10, it's just not affordable for the majority of the population in South Africa. Who's going to spend that amount of money when people are barely affording to live? It's costly.""In terms of what could be improved, I would say the security patches. The security patches do not come very frequently with the operating systems.""The negative is that the OS has made the room heavier, so it requires much more hardware than before.""The on-premise product is costly.""I'm currently facing an issue on Windows 10 related to pop-up notifications. The problem is identifying which specific application requires attention when the taskbar notifies about an important event. For instance, when working on an application, the taskbar appears with a notification but doesn't indicate which application needs attention. I have to minimize the active application windows to identify it, which can be inconvenient.""The solution could improve by making the update process faster.""One of my colleagues said Microsoft doesn't have a good record for the license. If the license gets lost, there isn't a dashboard where I can register my license and use it via the dashboard. We are looking for a dashboard like that.""In general, the price could always be cheaper."

More Windows 10 Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "The pricing is a bit on the expensive side, mainly because of the support they provide. However, it is quite affordable if you are an organization. If, as a small company or individual, this is an expensive option, I would recommend CentOS, which is an exact replica of RHEL, minus the customer support."
  • "In terms of the solution’s single subscription and install repository for all types of systems, we can have as many RHEL installations as we want because we have a specific subscription that entitles us to have as many RHEL services as we want. We pay for a subscription and with that we get RHEL and Satellite as well."
  • "Red Hat Linux is inexpensive. Linux solutions are generally inexpensive."
  • "RHEL is expensive."
  • "Because it is a subscription, you can go elastic. This means you can buy a year, then you can skip a year. It is not like when you buy something. You don't buy it. You are paying for the support on something, and if you don't pay for the support on something, there is no shame because there are no upfront costs. It changes the equation. However, we have such growth right now on the Linux platform that we are reusing and scavenging these licenses. From a business standpoint, not having to buy, but just having to pay for maintenance, changes a lot of the calculations."
  • "We have a site license on a yearly basis. Generally, we're okay with its price, but everything could be cheaper."
  • "The licensing with Red Hat is on par with other organizations like Microsoft. We have a site license, which gives us a certain number of servers, perhaps 25,000, for the type of license that we have. That works really well for us."
  • "We are an educational institution and as such, what we pay is less than the average company."
  • More Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Windows 10 is licensed. It was included with the purchase of my laptop."
  • "For my home computer it's a lifetime license, only purchased once."
  • "I think it is fair. I haven't bought it on my own because our laptops are from the company, and our company pays for it."
  • "Windows 10 came with the computer when I bought it, so it was already licensed."
  • "The basic operating system of any hardware should be free. Therefore, it should be free. They should charge only for the enterprise level or enabling the hypervisor. They should charge for Professional Windows 10, but the basic OS should be free."
  • "I have never bought this solution myself, I generally get it with my Notebook for free. I think they are competitively priced at this moment."
  • "When we purchase a new machine, it comes with it, and we don't pay separately for the license."
  • "This solution could definitely be a little cheaper."
  • More Windows 10 Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Comparison Review
    Anonymous User
    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Red Hat Enterprise Linux is fantastic. It is an inexpensive solution that has excellent security, performance, and stability, and also lots of features. I specifically like that the solution has… more »
    Top Answer:It is open source. We can customize it as per our requirements.
    Top Answer:We use open source. We only have a subscription for support.
    Top Answer:I get updates continuously. The product must send updates less frequently. The copy speed changes depending on the size of the file.
    Top Answer:It is an operating system. I need it to access applications and services. I use the tool for personal purposes.
    Ranking
    Views
    56,997
    Comparisons
    17,616
    Reviews
    137
    Average Words per Review
    762
    Rating
    8.7
    Views
    15,821
    Comparisons
    8,068
    Reviews
    42
    Average Words per Review
    310
    Rating
    8.3
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Red Hat Enterprise Linux, RHEL
    Learn More
    Overview

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux is a stable and reliable open-source operating system for running application servers, databases, web servers, and production systems. It is also used for cloud infrastructure services, BI, and disaster assistance. Its valuable features include support and subscription, ease of management and troubleshooting, integration with existing infrastructure, security updates and hardening tools, scalability, and flexibility. 

    Red Hat has helped organizations accelerate deployment, provide stability, control, and reliable updates, and enable the deployment of current applications and emerging workloads across different environments.

    Windows 10 is one of Microsoft’s most advanced operating systems for personal computers (PCs), tablets, and other similar devices. To date this operating system is active on more than 1.3 billion personal computers worldwide.

    Windows 10 has many features that make it arguably the most popular operating system for PCs on the planet. Included in these are a wealth of security features designed to stop malware from compromising both devices and networks. It has integrations for various multifactor authentication as well as non-password-reliant login technologies such as iris scanning. These keep networks safe from the moment that a user logs in. It also has security tools which not only identify, isolate, and remove threats, but also limit the damage that they can cause.

    Benefits of Windows 10

    Some of the benefits of using Windows 10 include:

    • A wide array of security features that proactively protect your system from malware of all kinds. The Windows Defender Exploit Guard feature constantly scans your system’s background for threats. It identifies, isolates, and removes the malware from your infected network. It can also quarantine infected devices to stave off an outbreak of infection across your network.
    • Allows you to browse the web in a way that protects your network from cyber-threats, enabling you to browse the internet from the confines of a virtual machine. If your device becomes infected, the malware will be unable to spread beyond the virtual machine that it has already infected.
    • The ability to synchronize multiple devices so that you can work from anywhere at any time. Windows 10’s Timeline feature enables you to save your work in a Microsoft application. You can then access this saved work on another Windows 10 device and continue from wherever you left off.

    Reviews from Real Users

    The Windows 10 operating system stands out from the competition for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its ability to secure users from digital threats and its main app management screen, which gives users the ability to easily manage their applications.

    One PeerSpot user who is the founder, president, and COO at an analyst firm, noted Windows 10’s impressive security suite when they wrote, “My impression is that the security via Windows Defender is good enough that I no longer feel a need for another third-party security solution, which had always been the case in the past. I think that perception still holds true.”

    Mike K., a collaboration specialist at a comms service provider, takes note of the main app management screen when he writes, “I like the main window pane where you can sort your mostly used and different types of apps, such as OneDrive, Google Chrome, and Access. I can just open up the main window, and those apps are right there at my fingertips.”

    Sample Customers
    Travel Channel, Mohawk Industries, Hilti, Molecular Health, Exolgan, Hotelplan Group, Emory University, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, HCA Healthcare, Paychex, UPS, Intermountain Healthcare, Brinker International, TransUnion, Union Bank, CA Technologies
    Information Not Available
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm28%
    Government13%
    Computer Software Company11%
    Manufacturing Company9%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company14%
    Manufacturing Company10%
    Government9%
    Financial Services Firm9%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company17%
    Manufacturing Company12%
    Financial Services Firm11%
    Comms Service Provider7%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company12%
    Educational Organization9%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Government8%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business23%
    Midsize Enterprise11%
    Large Enterprise67%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise66%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business40%
    Midsize Enterprise22%
    Large Enterprise39%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business25%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise58%
    Buyer's Guide
    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs. Windows 10
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs. Windows 10 and other solutions. Updated: March 2024.
    771,157 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is ranked 1st in Operating Systems (OS) for Business with 167 reviews while Windows 10 is ranked 7th in Operating Systems (OS) for Business with 255 reviews. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is rated 8.8, while Windows 10 is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) writes "Highly stable, good knowledge base, and reasonable price". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Windows 10 writes "User-friendly, easy to setup and manage domain ". Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is most compared with Windows Server, Ubuntu Linux, SUSE Linux Enterprise, CentOS and Oracle Linux, whereas Windows 10 is most compared with Windows Server, Ubuntu Linux, Oracle Solaris, openSUSE Leap and Rocky Linux. See our Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs. Windows 10 report.

    See our list of best Operating Systems (OS) for Business vendors.

    We monitor all Operating Systems (OS) for Business reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.