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Microsoft Exchange vs Zimbra Collaboration comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Exchange
Ranking in Email Applications
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
95
Ranking in other categories
Wireless Email (2nd)
Zimbra Collaboration
Ranking in Email Applications
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 10.2%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zimbra Collaboration is 6.9%, down from 9.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange10.2%
Zimbra Collaboration6.9%
Other82.9%
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

SJ
Manager IT Support at Naubahar Bottling Company (Pvt.) Ltd. Gujranwala Pakistan
Efficient email management with seamless integration
We previously used Microsoft Exchange but have moved to an MDN email solution due to cost and user growth Microsoft Exchange is a user-friendly and easy-to-deploy solution, which is beneficial for handling emails even without professional support. It is effective in managing email integration…
Muhammad Talha Baig - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Analyst and Associate Project Manager at SAMI Pharmaceuticals
One of the premium features was customized rooms tailored to the collaboration needs
Zimbra's strength lies in its individuality, and it should focus on leveraging its unique features rather than trying to emulate competitors. My organization has certified Zimbra technicians, so we believe we can utilize Zimbra certification. However, I was recently informed by Zimbra that no such certification exists. I have recently completed the test kit, and after the training, I will gain access to tickets. Therefore, if any clients are experiencing issues, we have a certified technical team available to provide support 24/7. This is how we can cater to our client's needs. I recommend Zimbra to small-scale and enterprise customers. Anyone, even those with 5 users, can opt for Zimbra. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It is user friendly."
"Provides unlimited storage for our mailbox."
"All features are useful; they meet the purpose of an email server."
"Microsoft Exchange has good performance and is user-friendly."
"The technical support services are good."
"The tool's most valuable feature is associated with the fact that it stands out for being beneficial for managing emails."
"It ensures high availability and resilience, allowing seamless recovery from potential failures and making it a reliable option for business-critical operations."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Exchange is its ease of use."
"The Zimbra Collaboration's most valuable feature is web access."
"One of the most valuable features involves the solution's automatic backup, which I find to be pretty simple and straightforward, and obviates the need for additional software."
"The most valuable feature of Zimbra Collaboration is the cost."
"Zimbra Collaboration's sharing features are most valuable."
"The most valuable feature of Zimbra Collaboration is email functionality."
"The logs, troubleshooting, and tracking we have found to be the most valuable features. We have any issues with lost messages the features are useful. It is very easy to track and log."
"The solution is easy to implement."
"Good email solution and it's open-source."
 

Cons

"Microsoft Exchange and other Microsoft solutions like Office 365 need to provide more detailed information for customers regarding the features and functionalities included in their plans, as some features are only available at an additional cost."
"Microsoft Exchange could improve the price."
"I would like to see Microsoft Exchange improve their documentation."
"In terms of what should be improved, they should probably move to a cloud option like Office 365. We would like to get this functionality without the need to deploy complex hardware and software solutions. This should be the next thing, making Exchange more related to Office products, which are more cloud-oriented, less on-premise or desktop-oriented solutions, like the direction Google is strongly moving towards."
"Nothing is perfect, that's why I am giving Microsoft Exchange a nine."
"I do not have any notes for improvement."
"The licensing model could be improved."
"From a security point of view, Microsoft should enhance the new features. Technical support could also be better."
"In the next release, Zimbra Collaboration should include a security feature to allow access for mobile device administrators."
"It would be great if a group chat feature were created to allow for a team environment."
"There are some security issues."
"It does have a few bugs."
"Zimbra Collaboration's video conferencing could be improved."
"Zimbra should provide a desktop client. Right now, we are using a web browser for accessing our emails. There should also be a desktop client."
"Zimbra Collaboration could improve the migration from a basic solution to a more containerized solution. For example, the installation should be able to extend to the containers and manage them with some solution, such as OpenShift or Kubernetes."
"The tool should improve its multi-cloud feature."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Exchange is better for medium to large businesses because it can be quite costly for SMB, which may not need all the options the product provides."
"Microsoft's licensing structure is too complex, but its prices are affordable, though not cheap."
"It is not expensive."
"The price of Microsoft Exchange is reasonable."
"Since my company is on Microsoft Cloud, we pay for the licenses per user. Compared to volume licensing, I would say the present licensing cost is not expensive."
"Compared to the other options in the market, the licensing costs attached to Microsoft Exchange seem reasonable."
"The product is quite cheap."
"I have Outlook 365 Professional, and Exchange comes in the bundle with other solutions, such as Word and OneDrive. I pay for the use of the bundle monthly and I can imagine if you are a company with many licenses the pricing model would be a lot different."
"The solution is not expensive compared to other products."
"We do not pay for licenses to use this solution."
"I use Zimbra Collaboration's community version. We may move to the enterprise version since prices are affordable."
"When it comes to the licensing of Zimbra Collaboration, my license covers the servers and I find its terms to be much simpler than those of Microsoft Exchange."
"The price of the solution is low."
"The solution is competitively priced."
"Zimbra Collaboration offers a good price-to-feature ratio."
"On a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the price a four"
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business41
Midsize Enterprise28
Large Enterprise35
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

How does Zimbra Collaboration compare with Microsoft Exchange?
Zimbra is a free, open source collaborative software suite. The features I like best are the ease of integration and the email, calendar, and collaboration server with web interface. In addition, I...
What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?
The initial setup was straightforward and fast.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?
I am aware of pricing aspects, and I would say it is affordable for what it is.
What do you like most about Zimbra Collaboration?
The most valuable feature of Zimbra for our team's productivity is its efficiency in handling email communication.
What needs improvement with Zimbra Collaboration?
When it comes to administration tasks like configuring specific filters or group signatures, I have to dig into the configuration since there's nothing in the graphical or web interface. The soluti...
 

Also Known As

Exchange, MS Exchange
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting
NEC Biglobe, City of Ventura, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Hola Publishing, BIG, Sleepwell, LaFayette College, Xmission, DNA, Ring Line, Future Group, TIGC
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Exchange vs. Zimbra Collaboration and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
882,606 professionals have used our research since 2012.