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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 (19th)
Zimbra Collaboration
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
Email Applications (10th)
 

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 0.9%, up 0.6% compared to last year.
Zimbra Collaboration, on the other hand, focuses on Email Applications, holds 6.2% mindshare, down 8.5% since last year.
Rapid Application Development Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
HCL Domino0.9%
Microsoft Power Apps7.8%
Oracle Application Express (APEX)5.0%
Other86.3%
Rapid Application Development Software
Email Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Zimbra Collaboration6.2%
Google Workspace15.9%
Amazon WorkMail9.9%
Other68.0%
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.
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

"The email system is the most valuable feature."
"The most important benefit is security. The security architecture is very good. It's the best part of the solution."
"It is an excellent solution."
"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."
"I find the HCL Domino server scalable."
"HCL Domino is the best product from a security point of view."
"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."
"It is a wonderful tool; it offers a very stable environment, the security is very good, the integration capabilities are great, it is a beautiful platform for low-code and no-code developments and offers comprehensive solution development, and the pricing is excellent."
"The most valuable feature of Zimbra Collaboration is email functionality."
"Zimbra Collaboration's sharing features are most valuable."
"The solution is easy to implement."
"I think Zimbra is more reliable and competitive than Microsoft because they offer an open-source version."
"The logs, troubleshooting, and tracking we have found to be the most valuable features, and when we have any issues with lost messages these features are useful because it is very easy to track and log."
"A lot of other products like Microsoft Exchange offer email or collaboration features, but they are not as fast as Zimbra."
"Zimbra Collaboration's best feature is its compatibility with Microsoft's ActiveSync protocol, which allows users to use Outlook on Windows or MacOS."
"Despite sticking with Gmail for over a decade in terms of business, Zimbra have impressed me with some other aspects as well; if the time comes, I would prefer Zimbra to my current solution."
 

Cons

"Many people are not very happy with its speed."
"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."
"HCL Domino needs to be more user-friendly, as end users prefer Outlook over it, because they find Outlook easier to use."
"The product's user interface is one of its shortcomings since it is outdated, making it an area for improvement."
"Scalability needs to be improved to be on the level that's required. Support could also be enhanced."
"The solution could improve Kubernetes or Dockers migration to new environments in the cloud."
"HCL Domino needs to be more user-friendly."
"For me, the one thing missing is a really good reporting engine."
"Zimbra Collaboration's video conferencing could be improved."
"Some issues cause the solution not to function correctly or to cause downtime once a month."
"There can be difficulties resolving problems on the server side when problems arise."
"The product must be more customizable."
"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."
"The installation is not straightforward, it can take two days for the full implementation."
"The tool should improve its multi-cloud feature."
"It does have a few bugs."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"HCL Domino's pricing depends on the number of users, but its license is not cheap."
"While I don't have precise pricing information at hand, my understanding is that it tends to be on the higher end."
"Price is reasonable compared to the other solutions."
"The pricing is individually determined. For us, in our current deployment, we pay $12.50 Canadian per month per user."
"HCL Domino has reasonable pricing. It's not expensive."
"HCL Domino is costly, but it still depends on how your organization views it price-wise."
"Customers have to pay for a license for the Notes Client, not for the Domino database. There is a quarter license that we use."
"The license for Domino is yearly. The price is high."
"There is an annual standard licensing fee to use Zimbra Collaboration and there is no other cost."
"The solution is not expensive compared to other products."
"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 price of the solution is low."
"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."
"Zimbra Collaboration is expensive, and there is no perpetual license option."
"The solution is competitively priced."
"We pay yearly licenses for Zimbra Collaboration."
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Top Industries

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

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, Oracle and others in Rapid Application Development Software. Updated: August 2026.
908,402 professionals have used our research since 2012.