Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

HCL Verse 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 Verse
Ranking in Email Applications
13th
Average Rating
9.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Zimbra Collaboration
Ranking in Email Applications
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of HCL Verse is 1.4%, down from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zimbra Collaboration is 9.1%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

MR
Stable, scalable, and good interface
HCL Verse has a nice interface and it is a practical email solution. There are a diverse set of features, such as the search bar on top of the screens. The usability from the old applications to the new version has been very good. It was great that we were able to migrate applications from the older version to the new one.
Muhammad Talha Baig - PeerSpot reviewer
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

"HCL Verse has a nice interface and it is a practical email solution. There are a diverse set of features, such as the search bar on top of the screens."
"The most valuable feature is the mail server."
"Zimbra Collaboration's best feature is its compatibility with Microsoft's ActiveSync protocol, which allows users to use Outlook on Windows or MacOS."
"Zimbra Collaboration has integrated a lot of their party tools and they have good documentation available."
"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 most valuable feature of Zimbra Collaboration is email functionality."
"Zimbra Collaboration's sharing features are most valuable."
"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."
"The most valuable feature is sending messages as well as text and documents. It's a big solution for us since internal communication is a must in our organization."
"Zimbra Collaboration has a good web interface."
 

Cons

"The solution could improve by allowing us to use a color that we want in the editing boxes."
"Security is very important to us, so improvements to this functionality are welcome."
"They should enhance its online meeting features."
"There are some security issues."
"I can confidently say that Zimbra is good enough for 2,000 client users. But, at the same time, if my client needs more than that and we have two options—Zimbra or Microsoft—I'm going with Microsoft because many admins will speak to Microsoft's ability to handle that many."
"Zimbra must improve its solution to make it easy so that the users don't have to use webmail to connect to their accounts and log in to webmail every time. This is something that is lacking in Zimbra Collaboration. They should provide a better way to easily connect email applications on the desktop to the Zimbra server. They should also try to have more functionality for storage management, like Microsoft Exchange. Currently, the management of the email data must be done manually in Zimbra Collaboration, which we are finding very difficult. They should provide a way to save emails so that you can have more space on the server and storage. Because of the lack of this functionality, we are planning to migrate to Microsoft Exchange. Microsoft Exchange provides a better way to manage storage than Zimbra Collaboration. You cannot have a mail solution without storage management because emails will always increase. Zimbra Collaboration also needs tools for management. More back-office tools are required to manage the whole mailbox and space. You don't only manage emails but also the documents attached to the emails. Therefore, you require tools to select and decide what do you want to save or how do you want to free up space in your infrastructure."
"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."
"The support was lacking in my experience. However, recently the support I received was good. Perhaps they have improved."
"It would be great if a group chat feature were created to allow for a team environment."
"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."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the solution is reasonable."
"This is an affordable solution but the price could be improved."
"The solution is not expensive compared to other products."
"We do not pay for licenses to use this solution."
"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."
"Zimbra Collaboration is expensive, and there is no perpetual license option."
"The solution is competitively priced."
"It's very expensive. When we compare the cost with Google Workspace, it's so expensive."
"We pay yearly licenses for Zimbra Collaboration."
"The price of the solution is low."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Email Applications solutions are best for your needs.
842,296 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
19%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Healthcare Company
8%
Computer Software Company
19%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
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 Zimbra Collaboration?
The most valuable feature of Zimbra for our team's productivity is its efficiency in handling email communication.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Verse, IBM Verse
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Canon Marketing Japan Inc., Australian Trade Commission, BTC, Havas, Canal Barge Co.Inc., RAVInvest, Elemental Path, WDR mediagroup
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 HCL Verse vs. Zimbra Collaboration and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,296 professionals have used our research since 2012.