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IBM WebSphere Application Server vs IIS comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 2, 2025

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 WebSphere Application S...
Ranking in Application Server
5th
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
5th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
IIS
Ranking in Application Server
4th
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
1st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Application Server category, the mindshare of IBM WebSphere Application Server is 12.4%, up from 11.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IIS is 6.9%, down from 7.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Server
 

Featured Reviews

BharathirajaSukumar - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient load balancing and the clustering, achieved by using the deployment manager, is valuable
I believe that the system is already good. However, for improvement or enhancement, it is user-friendly, but it could offer better choices on the front end for different aspects or options. Sometimes, I have to search extensively for features, as there are no upfront tabs. There is a lack of visible, easy, user-friendly, and straightforward options for the number of features.
VikramSingh6 - PeerSpot reviewer
A simple and easy-to-use solution but not recommended for public apps
I would rate the overall solution a six out of ten. We have around five to six developers and engineers for the solution’s deployment and maintenance. You can use the solution if your website is not too big or complicated. However, if it is big and complicated, then you need to use Apache or Red Hat. This tool can be used for internal purposes. But if you plan to host a public app, then I wouldn’t recommend the tool.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We needed this type of integration and WebShepere is the best tool for it."
"The performance is good."
"This solution is easy to use with a GUI that is intuitive and very helpful."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is Portal Virtualization."
"The integration between IBM tools and applications is very well executed."
"Security: It is compatible with the latest Java 8 security features, supports FIPS 140-2 and NIST SP 800-53 with strong ciphers and cryptography keys, and supports TLS 1.2 completely. Also, configuring client and server certificates is relatively easy."
"It has good stability of the application server in the long term compared to other solutions."
"The scalability of the product is quite good."
"IIS is useful for the deployment of web applications...Its stability is good."
"IIS is easy to configure in terms of websites and other solutions."
"IIS works natively with Windows Server without any issues in publishing certificates."
"The interface, simplicity, and ease of management are all good features that make this user-friendly."
"The product's most valuable features are performance and security."
"The solution is very easy to use and offers a quick deployment."
"It's good and offers good usability."
"All the features of Microsoft IIS are valuable."
 

Cons

"WebSphere is very cumbersome and not user-friendly. It used to have its own JVM, which presented challenges such as different architecture and memory leaks."
"IBM WebSphere Application Server hasn't changed much. It's still a heavyweight for any company compared to what you get. Unless your code base is deeply linked with it, I don't think it's a great idea to go with this solution. The current trend is toward modularity and containerization, and given the product's requirements, containerization will be difficult. There is a memory requirement as well."
"The footprint could be reduced so that we can use a smaller virtual machine to run the application. We could also use more scripts. I would like this solution to be more script oriented, rather than GUI oriented."
"IBM needs to pay attention to market changes more quickly. We now have Java 9 and very soon Java EE8. We do not want to wait for two or three years after their release until they are supported by the new version."
"I find the server okay, however, using the Maker instance, the Moving instance, and the Change instance is a little bit complicated without WebSphere knowledge."
"When we run into memory or locking issues, we resort to using third-party tools. However, it would be preferable to have native tools for debugging this type of problem."
"The security could be better."
"WebSphere is very cumbersome and not user-friendly."
"IIS could improve the error logging. There are times we are not able to see the errors. More details would be helpful. Additionally, the configuring of the IIS should be allowed through coding instead of the classic view."
"The solution should improve the cluster environment and load balancing."
"The solution's black box is not fast."
"IIS has some stability issues and needs restarting."
"Scalability issues and security concerns need attention from Microsoft."
"The level of technical support the solution offers could be improved."
"The solution is slow and could have better performance."
"The only issue I've encountered is with certificates not working fine sometimes."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is quite expensive."
"The pricing is a little expensive."
"The price of IBM WebSphere Application Server could be less expensive and there is an annual license required for this solution."
"The licensing policy is based on the PVU base."
"When you purchase Maximo, you get WebSphere for free."
"WebSphere Application Server is expensive, so it may not be a good option for small companies."
"If your application is just a web app that does not need to scale big, you can obtain a single core license of WAS Express edition, which has almost the same features with limited processing cores. If you manage a very big application farm (i.e. need to run 10 or more WAS servers) it is better to get IBM WAS Hypervisor Edition."
"The price of this product is higher than that of competitors."
"The solution provides multiple licensing options."
"I didn't need to get an additional license for the solution since it was included in my server."
"IIS's pricing is not expensive."
"The tool's pricing is on a yearly basis."
"The cost for IIS is already included in Windows services. We don't have to pay anything extra."
"I give the price of the solution a five out of ten."
"I was using the trial version of IIS inside my virtual machines."
"The yearly licensing cost is very high. The solution is very expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
30%
Computer Software Company
14%
Insurance Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
15%
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 WebSphere Application Server?
Network Deployment is the most useful feature for scalability. It has many features within the standard WebSphere Application Server edition.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM WebSphere Application Server?
In Korea, when you buy IBM iOS, the WebSphere base version is included with iOS. That means no additional cost.
What needs improvement with IBM WebSphere Application Server?
I find the server okay, however, using the Maker instance, the Moving instance, and the Change instance is a little bit complicated without WebSphere knowledge.
Which is better - IIS or NGINX Plus?
IIS is a flexible, secure, and manageable web server to host anything on the web. IIS’s scalable and open architecture can handle the most demanding tasks. From media streaming to web applications,...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IIS?
They offer a one-time payment model for the product license, and we pay annually for support. I rate the pricing an eight out of ten.
 

Also Known As

WebSphere Application Server
Windows Server IIS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

TalkTalk, Property management group, E.SUN Bank, Ohio National Financial Services, Aviarc, Cincom Systems, FJA-US, D+H, Staples, Michigan Municipal League
Erste Bank Group, NJVC, Samsung Electronics, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Tata Steel Europe, Urban Software Institute
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM WebSphere Application Server vs. IIS and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
839,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.