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

IBM Informix vs Oracle Database 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

IBM Informix
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
24th
Average Rating
8.6
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
Embedded Database (9th)
Oracle Database
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
288
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of IBM Informix is 1.8%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Database is 13.0%, down from 15.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Relational Databases Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Nazzareno Maria Rezzini - PeerSpot reviewer
Supports multiple business intelligence tools, but the technical support services need improvement
IBM Informix is a central database solution across various environments, supporting multiple applications and business intelligence tools The key areas for improvement revolve around understanding the current customer trends and demands, particularly in software and database requirements. The…
Duy AnhMai - PeerSpot reviewer
Good storage and reliable but needs a better dashboard
I use Oracle Database just for storage of the corporate database data and the finance data I use Oracle Database just for storage of the corporate database data and the finance data. However, I find the dashboard to be complicated and not user-friendly. The dashboard is not user-friendly, and I…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This solution has made financial reporting possible by allowing financial people the opportunity to set Informix to "Auto Pilot" so that they can attend other duties."
"The stability is incredible. I have customers with uptimes of several years."
"The most valuable feature is concurrency and locking because my customers usually use databases in OLTP mode. So, for a large number of competitive users. Other features that are well valued are quick large-scale data types. It is better than Oracle."
"The solution's stability, performance, enhanced functionality, and replication are all great features."
"It supports in-house-built applications in .NET and VB6"
"Replication is a valuable feature and easy to use."
"The scalability is very good."
"Replication, all levels of replication, query charting, and the MongoDB embedded are the most valuable features of this solution."
"All of the features offered by Oracle, more than meet the expectations."
"Technical support is great."
"The solution has every security aspect that needs to be there in enterprise software."
"The support is always very helpful and responsive."
"We find the solution to be stable."
"The ease of use has been great."
"Oracle is a good database with decent performance, which is fortunate because we are required to use this database for our ERP system. Even if we thought Oracle was the worst database in the world, we would still have to use it."
"Using the product, we make less mistakes, are more organized and faster than if we did it any another way."
 

Cons

"I experienced poor input/output (IO) performance."
"It would be helpful to have IBM salespeople know that Informix exists, and sell it. Currently, it is completely ignored by IBM."
"This product could be made easier to use for beginners."
"The support team could include local engineers to establish efficient communication. It will help us speed up the escalation process."
"In my opinion, the packages could be improved. The version I use doesn't allow for packages. I can do some general procedures, but no packages like in Oracle. So, develop separate modules in SQL language. This would be most beneficial for me."
"The technical support services need substantial improvement."
"This solution is in need of more current tools."
"The solution lacks some functionality."
"Integration with big data would be helpful since we are planning to load a lot of big data."
"The pricing is the one sticking point for the solution because it is very expensive."
"How you implement or deploy the product can be an area of concern that can be made a bit easier."
"The initial setup should be improved."
"The solution could be cheaper."
"There are good dashboards and other features, but it was previously included in licensing. They are now charging for each and every feature. It was previously bundled."
"When it comes to Oracle, the only complaint that I have is their support. For business-critical cases, finding support is a little bit difficult because of the timezone difference. They should provide faster support to resolve issues on time."
"The initial setup is a bit complex."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The free edition can be enough to handle moderate-size implementations, but you may want a pay for edition to benefit from more functionality, such as replication."
"For me, it's always too expensive."
"The product has reasonable pricing. We purchase its yearly license."
"I am not aware of the licensing costs or terms."
"Oracle Database is expensive."
"I do not have first-hand knowledge of the price of the support. However, I have heard from my seniors or the experienced people who work on the pricing and scaling, the price of Oracle is a bit higher. The reason is Oracle provides enterprise-level applications, only large enterprises can afford Oracle applications or tools."
"The price of the solution is expensive compared to other database solutions. We are on an annual subscription."
"There are licensing costs."
"​The license cost need to be optimized. The licensing cost is very high compared to other RDBMS."
"The pricing should be cheaper."
"Pricing for this solution is on the high side. Their licensing policy also needs to be improved."
"For us as a bank, the price is not too high, but for a small business, it would be an expensive solution."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Relational Databases Tools solutions are best for your needs.
838,640 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
66%
Financial Services Firm
4%
Computer Software Company
4%
Retailer
3%
Financial Services Firm
22%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Informix?
It supports multiple applications and business intelligence tools.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Informix?
The product has reasonable pricing. We purchase its yearly license.
What needs improvement with IBM Informix?
The key areas for improvement revolve around understanding the current customer trends and demands, particularly in software and database requirements. The product's performance could be better com...
How do you run Oracle Database at your organization and why?
My company has been using Oracle Exadata Database Service for some years now, and we are happy with it. I will allow myself to answer your questions about why and what benefits it provides us with ...
Do you know of any disadvantages of Oracle Database?
Undoubtedly, Oracle Database is a top product in its category. But it does have its disadvantages, and for me and my organization, that has been the limitations of the product. When it comes to Ora...
What is the best use for Oracle Database?
Oracle Database is flexible and can be used for many things. My company's main use case for this product is for storing data. We benefit from its high level of security as well as from the fact tha...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Informix
Oracle 12c, RDBMS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Shaspa, Hildebrand, Kaifa, Ranhill Powertron, Federaci‹ Farmacutica (FedeFarma), Camden Council, The German Aerospace Center (DLR), Myers, Votorantim Group, Doosan Infracore, GreenIvory
Agncia Nacional de guas, Anbima, Aria Systems, Asiana Airlines, Astelit LLC, Australian Finance Group, Banco Occidental de Descuento, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, BT, Caja de Seguros S.A., Casas GEO S.A.B. de C.V., Comic Relief UK, Corsair Components Inc., CSAM Health AS, CSOB Group, Datacraft Solutions, DenizBank A.S., Department of Treasury and Finance WA, Office of State Revenue, Deutsche B_rse AG, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Deutsche Messe AG, Digicel Haiti, DPR COSEA, Essar Group, Essatto Software Pty Ltd, Farmšcia e Drogaria Nissei Ltda., Fomento Econ‹mico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (FEMSA), FundaÊo Petrobras de Seguridade Social, Future Group, GFKL Financial Services AG, Grupo Posadas S.A.B. de C.V., Grupo Sinosserra, Guerra S.A. Implementos Rodovišrios, Hanatour International Service, Hays plc, Henan Mobile Co. Ltd, Hochschule Hof, Hong Kong and China Technology (Wuhan) Co. Ltd (Towngas Technology), Industries Corpa_al C.A., Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited, Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatstica, Instituto Mexicano de la Propiedad Industrial, Kcell, LinkShare Corporation, MercadoLibre Inc., MetLife Inc., Nextgen Distribution, €BB-IKT GmbH, Octagon Research Solutions, Pacific Lutheran University, Paragon Data GmbH, Ping ltd., PJSC Trustbank, Prodaub _ Processamento de Dados de Uberl_ndia, Purdue University, Redknee Inc., Robi Axiata Limited, Shanghai Infoservice Technology Co. Ltd, Shanghai Sihua Technologies Co. Ltd, Sistema de Aguas de la Ciudad de M_xico, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Suddenlink Communications, Suprajit Engineering Limited, Tallink Grupp, Terminales Ro de la Plata S.A., Therap Services LLC, Think Passenger Inc., Trafigura, Transmed S.A.L Lebanon, ValeShop, VelQuest Corporation, Vodafone Group plc, West Virginia Network, WIND Hellas Telecommunications S.A
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Informix vs. Oracle Database and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,640 professionals have used our research since 2012.