IBM WebSphere Application Server vs WebLogic Suite comparison

IBM and Oracle are both solutions in the Application Infrastructure category. IBM is ranked #5 with an average rating of 7.8, while Oracle is ranked #11 with an average rating of 7.7. IBM holds a 12.0% mindshare in AIS, compared to Oracle’s 3.4% mindshare. Additionally, 88% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Oracle users who would recommend it.

IBM WebSphere Application S...

Read 31 IBM WebSphere Application Server reviews

2,329 Views
1,674 Comparison Views

88% willing to recommend

WebLogic Suite

Read 34 WebLogic Suite reviews

762 Views
566 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

IBM WebSphere Application S...

WebLogic Suite

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 2025

WebLogic Suite and IBM WebSphere are competing in the application server market. WebLogic Suite may have the upper hand with better integration with Oracle products, while WebSphere boasts broader support for diverse enterprise environments.

Features: WebLogic Suite is known for its cluster configuration and performance, providing robust application support and efficient deployment processes. It excels in middleware applications with seamless Oracle product integration. IBM WebSphere stands out for its stability and configurability, offering excellent connectivity with legacy systems and enterprise-level integration.

Room for Improvement: WebLogic Suite could improve transaction monitoring graphics, multi-tenancy functionality, and cloud integration. Enhancing API support and simplifying its complexity would be beneficial. WebSphere needs better support for modern technologies, a simpler licensing model, and more intuitive interfaces. Reducing hardware requirements would enhance its appeal.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Both WebLogic Suite and WebSphere support on-premises and cloud deployments. WebLogic Suite offers comprehensive features but requires skilled management, while customer service can be costly. WebSphere provides intricate deployment capabilities, and customer service may benefit from a streamlined approach.

Pricing and ROI: WebLogic Suite is considered expensive, with careful forecasting needed to maximize its potential high returns. IBM WebSphere also involves high costs, yet offers discounts to mitigate expenses. WebLogic's rapid integration with Oracle products suggests a potentially higher ROI, while WebSphere's pricing might restrict smaller organizations despite its broad capabilities.

To learn more, read our detailed IBM WebSphere Application Server vs. WebLogic Suite Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IBM WebSphere Application Server vs. WebLogic Suite

April 2025

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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 Infrastructure

5th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Server (5th)

WebLogic Suite

Ranking in Application Infrastructure

11th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of IBM WebSphere Application Server is 12.0%, up from 10.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WebLogic Suite is 3.4%, down from 3.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Infrastructure

Featured Reviews

BharathirajaSukumar

Senior Lead Analyst at Radial

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.

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Mari Pandian

Business Head - Enterprise Solutions at ImageGrafix Software FZCO

Coding flexibility with good integration but users need coding knowledge

We are an Oracle partner and work with many Oracle applications for integration purposes. WebLogic is used for integrating various Oracle applications and third-party services WebLogic allows us to do the coding as per the customer's requirements. It helps us meet their needs by integrating their…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"As compared to other applications, it has tremendous support. We have built internal capability so that we use it extensively internally. It is also easier to use with the outside data. You can write in ESQL, Java, or any other technology that you want to use for development. So, it is a lot more flexible in the language that it supports."

"It has good stability of the application server in the long term compared to other solutions."

"I find IBM support to be very nice."

"IBM WAS is extremely scalable. It is easy to add additional servers and to divide the load over servers in all kinds of ways."

"It does integrate well with the Tivoli Federated Identity Management system."

"IBM WebSphere Application Server is the best in terms of scalability and performance, as well as the support for managing distributed transactions."

"IBM WAS is the backbone for our enterprise content management suite which delivers the primary processes for our customers. Without a good application server, it would be hard to provide a secure layer of midddleware upon which the other applications run. IBM WAS improves the stability of the entire solution and provides a high quality platform for running web-based solutions."

"WebSphere Application Server's best features include the data subscription and connection viewer."

More IBM WebSphere Application Server pros

"The product is reliable."

"The program is scalable."

"The most valuable feature is that it provides one place where you can control all of the services."

"What I've been seeing as the most valuable characteristics of WebLogic Suite include robustness and scalability. It's a really good solution, and I'm not saying this because my company is a partner of WebLogic Suite. I also like that with the newer versions of the solution, you can deploy WebLogic Suite faster. Oracle also provides excellent technical support."

"A valuable feature is its integration with Oracle Database."

"This is a robust solution."

"It easily connects to other Oracle products and services."

"Scalability on the solution is great. It's very very easy to scale."

More WebLogic Suite pros

Cons

"Some things are very difficult to do, so the interface and usage could be more intuitive for those."

"Installing or configuring a WAS server instance as a Windows Service causes a lot of problems, especially when the server needs credentials to stop."

"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."

"What could be improved in IBM WebSphere Application Server is its interconnection with other products, for example, Kafka. What I'd like to see in the next release of the solution is a better graphical user interface."

"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 main issue we faced was its limited compatibility with non-Java technologies, which can result in difficulty detecting potential bugs and requiring additional integration efforts."

"The licensing could be improved, and I would like it to give the longevity of the lifespan of the visions. In the next release, I would like to be able to download and extract the files so that I can just use my application server."

"While WebSphere mostly supports IBM HTTP Server (IHS) as the web server plugin, I think it would be beneficial if it also supported Apache and NGINX web servers. That would give customers more flexibility in their choices."

More IBM WebSphere Application Server cons

"I rate the scalability of WebLogic Suite an eight out of ten."

"I think the support could be much better."

"I would like to see the licensing policy simplified."

"This solution would benefit from the inclusion of a ripple start function for clusters."

"There are sometimes issues with clusters."

"The licensing for the solution is pretty expensive. It may be the most expensive solution, if you were to compare it to the competition."

"The content search is not easy."

"I noticed a few areas for improvement in WebLogic Suite. If you use the pure play higher-availability features, then yes, it can be switched over to the other system from the high-availability point of view, but that comes with a certain price. If you prefer simpler high-availability, that requires manual intervention. I'd also recommend a tuning feature in WebLogic Suite because it's not self-tuning, and this means you need thorough expertise to do the tuning and leverage the best benefit out of it. If Oracle makes WebLogic Suite automated or self-driven, then it becomes a wonderful product, similar to what Oracle did for the Autonomous Database which is self-driven or has an autonomous operating system. If automation is added in the next release of the solution, combined with more affordable pricing, though as a technical person, I know how much goes into having automation as a feature, and it could be difficult to lower the price, but if Oracle can do it, then that would make WebLogic Suite better."

More WebLogic Suite cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's expensive."

"My company is on a perpetual or permanent license agreement with IBM WebSphere Application Server. There's also a pay-per-use option, but customers rarely choose that option. Most of the customers are on the perpetual license deal that's all-inclusive. As the license cost is quite expensive, I'm rating it two out of five."

"When you purchase Maximo, you get WebSphere for free."

"It is very expensive."

"I don't remember the price, but there are no additional costs."

"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."

"IBM WAS base is part of the deal when you purchase IBM FileNet P8 Content Engine."

More IBM WebSphere Application Server pricing and cost advice

"There is a license required for this solution and the price could be reduced."

"Scaling is costly."

"The cost of the WebLogic Suite license is a bit high."

"Technical support is very costly."

"The product comes bundled with Oracle Premier Support."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

31%

Computer Software Company

13%

Insurance Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

18%

Government

10%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

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.

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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.

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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.

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What do you like most about WebLogic Suite?

The solution is useful for centralizing data.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for WebLogic Suite?

We have an enterprise license, and the pricing is stable. The license does not apply to the current solution.

See all answers

What needs improvement with WebLogic Suite?

There is no need for improvement with WebLogic Suite, although its coherence is a bit more complicated.

See all answers

Comparisons

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Oracle WebLogic Server vs IBM WebSphere Application Server

Compared 9% of the time

SAP NetWeaver Enterprise Portal vs IBM WebSphere Application Server

Compared 1% of the time

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Compared 62% of the time

Oracle WebCenter vs WebLogic Suite

Compared 13% of the time

Azul Zulu vs WebLogic Suite

Compared 13% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM WebSphere Application Server

April 2025

Download IBM WebSphere Application Server product report

Buyer's Guide

WebLogic Suite

March 2025

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Also Known As

WebSphere Application Server

No data available

Overview

IBM WebSphere Application Server (WAS) is a middleware platform developed by IBM. It provides a range of services and tools to help organizations develop, deploy, and manage Java-based applications. WAS is part of IBM's WebSphere product family and provides a secure, scalable, and highly available platform for developing and running web-based applications. WAS provides a secure, scalable, and highly available platform, making it an attractive solution for organizations looking to develop and deploy enterprise-grade applications.

IBM WebSphere Application Server Features

IBM WebSphere Application Server has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

Application deployment: IBM WAS enables organizations to deploy and manage applications in a secure and scalable environment.

Clustering: The clustering feature can help organizations ensure high availability and improve application performance.

Load balancing: The solution Includes load balancing capabilities to distribute application workloads and improve performance.

Security: IBM WAS offers a range of security features, including authentication, authorization, and encryption, to help organizations secure their applications and data.

Monitoring and management: The solution’s range of tools for monitoring and managing applications, including the IBM WebSphere Administrative Console allows organizations to optimize application performance and resolve issues easily.

Integration: IBM WAS integrates with a range of IBM and third-party products, including IBM WebSphere MQ, IBM DB2, and more, to provide a comprehensive platform for developing and running web-based applications.

IBM WebSphere Application Server Benefits

There are many benefits to implementing IBM WebSphere Application Server. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

Improved application performance: The IBM WAS platform offers a scalable and secure platform for deploying and managing applications, enabling organizations to improve application performance and reduce downtime.

High availability: IBM WAS provides clustering and load-balancing capabilities to help organizations ensure high availability.

Improved security: With a large range of security features, including authentication, authorization, and encryption, the solution helps organizations secure their applications and data.

Simplified management: IBM WAS is designed with a set of tools for monitoring and managing applications, enabling organizations to optimize performance and resolve issues efficiently.

Increased flexibility: The solution integrates with a range of IBM and third-party products, providing organizations with a flexible platform for developing and running web-based applications.

Improved developer productivity: It supports the latest Java EE specifications, allowing developers to use the latest technologies and development methodologies when building applications.

Better customer experience: Organizations can deliver faster and more reliable applications, improving the overall customer experience.

Scalability: IBM WAS provides a scalable and secure platform for deploying and managing applications, so organizations can quickly respond to changing business requirements.

Reviews from Real Users

IBM WebSphere Application Server is a solution that stands out when compared to many of its competitors. Some of its major advantages are that it is stable, supports many languages, and is resilient.

Princewill O., Head Banking Application Customization and Reporting at a financial services firm, states, “[The solution is] very stable, supports many languages, and helpful for faster time to market.”

"What's most valuable in IBM WebSphere Application Server is its resilience. When you use the solution, you know that after the communication has been done, there will be no doubt that the data has reached its destination,” says Nicolae C., System and Solutions Architect at Seidor.

Another PeerSpot reviewer, an Enterprise Technical Leader at a tech services company mentions, “[It is an] enterprise-level product with extensive console capabilities, including the ability to control multiple JVM containers.”

IBM

Oracle WebLogic Suite is an integrated solution for building onpremise cloud application infrastructures that span web server, application server and data grid technology tiers. It includes Oracle WebLogic Server, an application server for developing and deploying applications across conventional and cloud environments, Oracle Coherence Enterprise Edition, Oracle Web Tier, Oracle TopLink, Oracle Java Mission Control and Flight Recorder, and other component technologies.

Oracle

Sample Customers

TalkTalk, Property management group, E.SUN Bank, Ohio National Financial Services, Aviarc, Cincom Systems, FJA-US, D+H, Staples, Michigan Municipal League

State Revenue Office Victoria, Colab Consulting Pty. Ltd., Reliance Commercial Finance, Center for Railway Information Systems, Sascar, Banca Transilvania, UL, Chhattisgarh Infotech and Biotech Promotion Society, MCB Bank, Pacfico Seguros Generales

Buyer's Guide

IBM WebSphere Application Server vs. WebLogic Suite

April 2025

Free Report: IBM WebSphere Application Server vs. WebLogic Suite

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