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HCL Domino vs Oracle Application Express (APEX) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

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

HCL Domino
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
19th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Oracle Application Express ...
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Development Platforms (2nd), Low-Code Development Platforms (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of HCL Domino is 0.5%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Application Express (APEX) is 8.2%, down from 9.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

FrederickLim - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides mobile email systems with solid stability and easy deployment
The initial setup is easy. You need to sign up. It depends on the scope. It will take longer if there are more than one or more applications. The project usually includes infrastructure and deployment may take anywhere from one month to six months. I rate the initial setup an eight out of ten, where one is difficult and ten is easy.
Rodrigo-Mesquita - PeerSpot reviewer
Rapid application development empowers big projects in months
The ability to quickly develop applications without needing to code a lot is very valuable. It is very quick to create a page, and one can use AI to speed up software development. It is easy to learn. In my company, we could develop a very big application in a couple of months.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"HCL Domino is the best product from a security point of view."
"This solution can be used for workflow application so that applications can be easily developed."
"I find the HCL Domino server scalable."
"The full-text searching capabilities are great."
"For workflow applications or general applications, the rapid development capability is what we value most."
"The most important benefit is security. The security architecture is very good. It's the best part of the solution."
"Domino's dual functionality as both a messaging and application solution is a standout feature compared to Exchange, which solely focuses on messaging."
"Overall, I would rate HCL Domino as eight out of ten. I would recommend HCL Domino and Notes applications for small and medium-sized companies since it offers a good return on investment."
"The database is super easy to use for creating tables."
"Oracle APEX is very easy to use and comes with a lot of ready-made components that speed up the process of creating reports and dashboards."
"It's low code, or even no code. It's very flexible, allowing you to achieve what you want. You can customize applications with very little code, which is the best part."
"The valuable features are charts, reports, and search engines."
"I particularly enjoy the web builder capabilities, especially the Page Designer. It offers so many elements or components to choose from, which is a major plus for me."
"You can customize the solution to create a console where only business users can access and download files if they want to extract the data."
"The most valuable feature of Oracle APEX is its comprehensive set of features for creating user-friendly and visually appealing applications."
"Oracle APEX is very easy to use and comes with a lot of ready-made components that speed up the process of creating reports and dashboards."
 

Cons

"An area for improvement in HCL Domino is security. New enhancements in the IT industry mean that security should be improved. The HCL Domino GUI also needs improvement."
"HCL Domino could have a better interface."
"The solution is expensive."
"Its performance and integration could be better. It has capabilities for large deployment with several servers, but in the latest interface, running with different servers isn't supported."
"Designing a new template could provide a refreshed visual experience for users without significant changes to the underlying functionality."
"Scalability is also an issue. We have problems with large databases."
"HCL Domino needs to be more user-friendly."
"For me, the one thing missing is a really good reporting engine."
"It has been reported that the technology is very hard to learn, and the service is expensive."
"Connecting with Oracle and the relation with Oracle at the database as a procedure needs improvement."
"The problem of sending emails arises when Oracle Application Express (APEX) is inside Oracle Cloud Infrastructure since it is a bit complicated or difficult to understand where to take care of the setup part to be able to just send out emails properly."
"I don't like the URL syntax."
"Oracle is more of a database-oriented solution and is not very flexible in app development."
"There is one disadvantage. When facing problems, it can be difficult to find solutions online (Google/YouTube), unlike with Java coding, where solutions are readily available on Google."
"Visual Builder and APEX should meld in one product."
"Apex has effectively incorporated new market trends into its features. The platform's user-friendly nature is notable, guiding developers through the development process. While advanced customization of the user interface with HTML and CSS is possible, the out-of-the-box options often suffice, providing 80-90% of the required functionality. The IDE is commendable, yet an enhancement in the Page Designer to allow a real-time preview of layout changes would be beneficial. Currently, running the page is necessary to visualize layout adjustments, but an immediate preview during the design phase would be a valuable improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"For 30 licenses, we pay $1,500 every year. It is not an expensive product."
"The license for Domino is yearly. The price is high."
"The pricing is individually determined. For us, in our current deployment, we pay $12.50 Canadian per month per user."
"My company's customers need to make monthly or yearly payments towards the license charges of the product."
"We pay annually for the use of this solution and it is only a standard fee."
"Price is reasonable compared to the other solutions."
"We're happy with the price of our license — it's pretty standard."
"While I don't have precise pricing information at hand, my understanding is that it tends to be on the higher end."
"We have a full Oracle E-Business Suite license, and we use that license to develop applications. There's no license required for developing Oracle applications."
"The tool is not expensive."
"The pricing is mid-range so is neither expensive nor cheap."
"I would rate it around an eight in terms of price, with one being low and ten being high."
"I rate the product's price as ten on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low price."
"Oracle Application Express (APEX) is free, so this is another magic of the solution. You just get charged for the database license, which I don't need."
"If you have a license to Oracle database, you can access APEX."
"The solution is free if you are using on Oracle database."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Educational Organization
30%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HCL Domino?
The most valuable features of the solution are security and integration.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HCL Domino?
The Notes client is very expensive, costing around $105 per client. Overall, HCL Domino is a costly product.
What needs improvement with HCL Domino?
The speed of the Notes client is an area that could be improved. Many people are not very happy with its speed. Additionally, in-line editing of documents and a document viewer are functionalities ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
Oracle APEX is part of our on-premises solution included in our agreement with Oracle E Business Suite, though I don't know the cost specifics. Power BI is licensed by the user.
What needs improvement with Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
Using AI to analyze data without needing much code would be better. Also, although the interface is easy to change, it could have more features.
 

Also Known As

IBM Lotus Domino, Lotus Domino
Oracle APEX
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

A1 Telekom, Acubiz, Afrisam, E. A. Juffali & Brothers, Fiducia & GAD, and Pakistan State Oil
Hepart AG, pharmasol, SATLOG, Collège Bois-de-Boulogne
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL Domino vs. Oracle Application Express (APEX) and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,190 professionals have used our research since 2012.