No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

HCL Domino vs Zimbra Collaboration comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
Rapid Application Development Software (18th)
Zimbra Collaboration
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
Email Applications (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

HCL Domino and Zimbra Collaboration aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. HCL Domino is designed for Rapid Application Development Software and holds a mindshare of 1.0%, up 0.6% compared to last year.
Zimbra Collaboration, on the other hand, focuses on Email Applications, holds 6.7% mindshare, down 8.6% since last year.
Rapid Application Development Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
HCL Domino1.0%
Microsoft Power Apps7.8%
Oracle Application Express (APEX)4.9%
Other86.3%
Rapid Application Development Software
Email Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Zimbra Collaboration6.7%
Google Workspace15.0%
Microsoft Exchange Online9.3%
Other69.0%
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

FN
Owner at Prodej a Správa Nemovitostí s.r.o.
Long-term platform has supported secure mail, custom workflows, and reliable on-premise apps
I have noticed some weak points and downsides. HCL Domino is a Swiss army knife, which is the downside as well. It does many things, which is an advantage. The biggest downside is that it is a good product, but there are not that many applications for it. There are not that many ready-made applications. When they do exist, they tend to be somewhat pricey. I have not actually used HCL Domino's low-code tools. There are no low-code tools. HCL says there are, but frankly speaking, I have tried it and I always come back to the classic, the original HCL Domino. I do not see it as truly low-code. They call it Leap. Even when you want to do something more specific or more complex, you do need programming logic and then it stops being low-code. I would say that there are much better low-code platforms. N8N, for instance, looks nice with nice diagrams, especially for workflow and automation, which is where HCL Domino is lacking. The evaluation of the security features of HCL Domino in handling sensitive business information is that it has a peculiar security model, which I view as acceptable. Sometimes it may get in your way, but sometimes it simplifies things. It depends.
Vidya Shree - PeerSpot reviewer
CTO at Molecular Connections Private Limited
Deploys quickly and has a good web interface
Zimbra Collaboration has a good web interface 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 solution’s forums don't have much information or…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This solution can be used for workflow application so that applications can be easily developed."
"I find the HCL Domino server scalable."
"The most valuable feature of HCL Domino is how robust it is."
"For people or companies who need a workflow application, this is one of the best in the world."
"We can scale it if we want to."
"The best feature of HCL Domino is that you can use Notes for messaging plus application, not just for messaging."
"HCL Domino is an application development and collaboration platform with strong stability and security. Deployment of this platform is easy and takes only 10 minutes."
"We use HCL Domino for collaboration; it is important for our company and customers."
"VMware Zimbra is an enterprise-class E-mail, calendar, and collaboration solution, built for both public and private clouds."
"The most valuable feature of Zimbra for our team's productivity is its efficiency in handling email communication."
"A lot of other products like Microsoft Exchange offer email or collaboration features, but they are not as fast as Zimbra."
"The configuration is simple."
"The product is easy to set up."
"For a small company, Zimbra Collaboration is good because it is simple, inexpensive, and not very difficult to deploy."
"We can control all the data in my IT infrastructure."
"Zimbra Collaboration is light to manage. It works on the Linux operating system, which is far better to manage than Microsoft Windows. Microsoft Exchange works only on the Windows server. We prefer working on the Linux server for security reasons and ease of management. Zimbra Collaboration also has some integrated tools for security. It some modules to fight malware. These modules are not very powerful but are still doing a great job. Microsoft Exchange doesn't have a basic module. You have to purchase a security solution and add it to the solution. The cost of Zimbra Collaboration is one more reason for liking it. It is also very simple to migrate from Zimbra Collaboration to another email solution."
 

Cons

"I would say that there are much better low-code platforms. N8N, for instance, looks nice with nice diagrams, especially for workflow and automation, which is where HCL Domino is lacking."
"One challenge I faced with HCL Domino was fully understanding its capabilities because initial use may lead to misconceptions based on simpler platforms."
"Scalability is also an issue. We have problems with large databases."
"When you compare with Microsoft Exchange, the UI could be more user-friendly."
"The product's user interface is one of its shortcomings since it is outdated, making it an area for improvement."
"The speed of the Notes client is an area that could be improved."
"The solution is expensive."
"The biggest problem for us is the performance. We have been working with this product for a long time and our database now contains approximately two million documents."
"The solution could use more integration with third-party tools."
"File sharing permissions with Nextcloud integration need improvement."
"Zimbra is not very stable, but it's okay."
"It would be great if a group chat feature were created to allow for a team environment."
"Zimbra Collaboration does not have a solution roadmap as aggressive as the new collaboration mail solutions. Additionally, they can have a better interface and integration with single sign-on."
"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 solution’s forums don't have much information or documentation on administration tasks."
"There are some security issues."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"For 30 licenses, we pay $1,500 every year. It is not an expensive product."
"We're happy with the price of our license — it's pretty standard."
"The pricing is subjective and contingent on the intended usage."
"I'd rate it a seven out of ten in terms of price."
"We chose to pay for our licensing fees annually."
"The pricing is individually determined. For us, in our current deployment, we pay $12.50 Canadian per month per user."
"Customers have to pay for a license for the Notes Client, not for the Domino database. There is a quarter license that we use."
"HCL Domino is costly, but it still depends on how your organization views it price-wise."
"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."
"I use Zimbra Collaboration's community version. We may move to the enterprise version since prices are affordable."
"The price of the solution is low."
"Zimbra Collaboration offers a good price-to-feature ratio."
"Zimbra Collaboration is less expensive than Microsoft Exchange. Zimbra works for small companies because it is not expensive. Zimbra Collaboration has more security tools than Microsoft Exchange. If you are choosing between Zimbra Collaboration and Microsoft Exchange, you have to take into account the cost of security tools with Microsoft Exchange. When you purchase Microsoft Exchange, you will also have to purchase tools for security, which adds to the cost. The migration from Zimbra Collaboration to another email solution is very simple and easy. Migration from Microsoft Exchange to another email solution is very difficult. Microsoft doesn't allow migration that easily. In fact, you have to pay for tools to do that. You have to buy some expensive tools to migrate."
"The solution is not expensive compared to other products."
"On a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the price a four"
"We do not pay for licenses to use this solution."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Rapid Application Development Software solutions are best for your needs.
904,748 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
10%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
10%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Construction Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

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?
I am not missing anything significant from HCL Domino at the moment. There are some smaller things that can be improved, but these have already been posted on the HCL website where we can submit ou...
What is your primary use case for HCL Domino?
I have been using HCL Domino products since 1992, when it was known as Lotus Notes. I use it myself and also work as a consultant. We are an IBM Business Partner and HCL Business Partner. We are no...
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 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

IBM Lotus Domino, Lotus Domino
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

A1 Telekom, Acubiz, Afrisam, E. A. Juffali & Brothers, Fiducia & GAD, and Pakistan State Oil
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, ServiceNow, Mendix and others in Rapid Application Development Software. Updated: June 2026.
904,748 professionals have used our research since 2012.