IceWarp vs Microsoft Exchange comparison

IceWarp and Microsoft are both solutions in the Email Applications category. IceWarp is ranked #7 with an average rating of 8.3, while Microsoft is ranked #3 with an average rating of 7.8. IceWarp holds a 5.2% mindshare in EA, compared to Microsoft’s 11.3% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of IceWarp users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

IceWarp

Read 17 IceWarp reviews

2,423 Views
1,963 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Microsoft Exchange

Read 94 Microsoft Exchange reviews

3,524 Views
2,890 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

IceWarp

Microsoft Exchange

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

Microsoft Exchange and IceWarp compete in the enterprise communication solutions category. Microsoft Exchange maintains an edge with its comprehensive enterprise-level integrations and features, demonstrating strong capabilities in providing robust solutions for large businesses.

Features: Microsoft Exchange offers extensive integration capabilities, calendar synchronization, and email retention management. Its robust toolbox for third-party integration and seamless collaboration tools stand out. IceWarp is known for its cross-platform compatibility, cost-effective communication solutions, and features such as team chat, file sharing, and conferencing collaboration.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Exchange needs to improve storage management, integration with non-Microsoft products, and simplify its complex licensing. Enhancing its security features would also be beneficial. IceWarp could improve its mobile integration, mailing list function, and enhance security features while simplifying its administrative processes.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Exchange offers a variety of deployment options including on-premises, cloud, and hybrid models, though it requires comprehensive technical support. IceWarp provides similar deployment flexibility and is noted for its ease of use but faces challenges with customer service consistency and documentation.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Exchange's pricing is higher, reflecting its enterprise capabilities and comprehensive feature set. This pricing structure is generally suited for larger organizations. IceWarp provides aggressive and flexible pricing appealing to smaller enterprises, offering essential features within a budget-friendly framework. This makes IceWarp an attractive option for smaller companies concerned with costs.

To learn more, read our detailed IceWarp vs. Microsoft Exchange Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IceWarp vs. Microsoft Exchange

September 2025

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Helped 867,497 peers since 2012

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

IceWarp

Ranking in Email Applications

7th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Microsoft Exchange

Ranking in Email Applications

3rd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Wireless Email (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of IceWarp is 5.2%, down from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 11.3%, down from 11.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Email Applications Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange	11.3%
IceWarp	5.2%
Other	83.5%

Email Applications

Featured Reviews

AvinashLotke

Delivery Head at Team Computers

Useful for collaboration and storage but improvement is needed in API integration

The solution has traditional SSL integration, SAML, and Federation Services. In its latest version, it added SAML integration. However, it needs to work on API integration, especially for dashboards or integration with SAP for log and data system management. It doesn't yet have the kind of API that Google and Microsoft provide for synchronizing users with Active Directory. I think IceWarp needs to improve in a few areas. They have two types of admin consoles - a web-based one and a remote one. I'd like to see these combined into a single web-based admin console. The log reading and information system also needs improvement. The current way of showing incoming and outgoing logs isn't very clear. For new users, it's hard to understand these logs, especially compared to Office 365 and other systems with easier-to-read logs. They should also add an export option to get all logs with a single click whenever we need them.

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AnikIslam

Senior Executive at Lakdhanavi Limited

Has a straightforward setup process, but the functionality for replying to conversations needs enhancement

One major area for improvement is the need for repeated authentication when running a meeting. This requirement for users to sign in and authenticate their mail each time they access the service is complicated, as employees need to be able to access their accounts anytime, anywhere. Additionally, the functionality for replying to conversations using a link has deteriorated in the newer version of Outlook, an issue that needed to be present in previous iterations.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"An effective, functional, very good tool for controlling resources."

"It's scalable and stable."

"IceWarp has multiple applications that are easy to use for many people."

"The product is used very extensively in my company since we have around 1,500 users using it. Also, there is no requirement for any administrators to manage the product by the people who own the solution."

"The TeamChat feature has been really good for our email management. It lets us collaborate, share files, and invite guests like Google Spaces or Microsoft Teams. I like the two-factor authentication for security. However, they need to improve their document collaboration tools, as their Word, Excel, and PowerPoint features are basic compared to Microsoft and Google."

"Its price is the most valuable. It is definitely one of the lowest price solutions."

"The groupware module is the most valuable feature."

"It has great communication capabilities for team chatting and web conferences."

More IceWarp pros

"With the cloud coming in, scalability is not an issue even for Microsoft."

"The initial setup is very simple."

"Exchange's best feature is single sign-on access using the Microsoft Identity framework."

"The integration of Microsoft Exchange with other tools allows for seamless collaboration and increased productivity within teams."

"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Exchange is its ease of use."

"Exchange is easy to use. It also has a built-in calendar for all the stuff I'm supposed to be looking at and doing. Exchange tells you if you have a doctor's appointment or a scheduled call. It also has a place to store and manage your contacts. If I want to add a new contact, it will put in information about that contact stored anywhere within the Microsoft Suite."

"It's very well integrated with OneDrive and Teams Calendar."

"Exchange is very scalable, it's one of the most important things about this software."

More Microsoft Exchange pros

Cons

"The solution should improve the mailing list feature. Google has a similar feature where you can automate sending files to different people in a sequence, but that feature is no longer available in the current version of IceWarp. Other features may also have been removed in the current version."

"The exchange compatibility mode is rather limited. Their technical support can also be better. They only provide online support, and there should be some option for escalating."

"I would like to have a trial for mobile applications and more documentation similar to Google Drive with mobile applications."

"With multiple databases for VOIP, chat and web IMAP, maintenance is cumbersome."

"Support should be improved. Most of the time, the queries are not resolved within the SLA."

"The solution has traditional SSL integration, SAML, and Federation Services. In its latest version, it added SAML integration. However, it needs to work on API integration, especially for dashboards or integration with SAP for log and data system management. It doesn't yet have the kind of API that Google and Microsoft provide for synchronizing users with Active Directory."

"Although the documentation is extensive and in depth, you must familiarize yourself with it before taking full advantage of the product."

"The tool's configuration capabilities are not straightforward. Apart from that, if I want to archive emails into a vault so that they can be retrieved again later, the integration doesn't work, and IceWarp crashes."

More IceWarp cons

"We are not able to use Microsoft Teams due to connection issues. Thus, the product integration with Teams could be improved."

"Microsoft Exchange is highly stable. However, after receiving some updates it can be unstable."

"The support needs to be more knowledgeable."

"We would prefer to be able to manage the solution on the cloud."

"The solution is stable, but it could improve. It's crashing if there is a big mail database. The Zimbra solution is better in this area."

"In the version we have, I would like to see better communication between the end device and the Exchange server."

"Microsoft could improve on Exchange's hybrid deployment or HCW. They need to improve on that because I was having many issues with HCW in our environment at times."

"More AI features would be good."

More Microsoft Exchange cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is definitely one of the lowest price solutions."

"Pricing and licensing is very competitive and in some cases, cheap."

"I would rate the pricing and eight out of ten."

"Our licensing is on a yearly basis. There were no additional costs."

"I don't see any challenges for the Indian market. For example, 1 GB is available for around 399 INR, and 2 GB for 499 INR. They offer a range of plans, from basic to professional and enterprise, with multiple features. IceWarp's aggressive pricing is competitive compared to other market solutions like Zoho and Microsoft. One significant advantage is that IceWarp does not impose user capping like Google and Microsoft, which allows for substantial cost savings and flexibility in user conversion."

"There are various licensing plans available based on geographic zone."

"The solution is priced well."

"Costs far less than other solutions."

More IceWarp pricing and cost advice

"It would be nice if it used less resources to run on-premise."

"We renew the product license with Microsoft every three years. The cost is included within a bundle of services. It's an enterprise agreement with Microsoft."

"Its price is fair."

"The solution's pricing is fine...I do think the tool offers value for money."

"Microsoft Exchange is a very well-priced solution."

"Licensing costs for Microsoft Exchange have increased, but are still fair. For some users, the cost is high considering the number of functions and features they will use."

"The product is quite cheap."

"This solution is expensive."

More Microsoft Exchange pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

19%

Comms Service Provider

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Media Company

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	12
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	5

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	41
Midsize Enterprise	27
Large Enterprise	35

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IceWarp?

It's scalable and stable.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IceWarp?

IceWarp was very cost-effective, offering services at a significantly lower cost than Google, which was appealing for our organization.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IceWarp?

The solution needs improvements in security, particularly regarding document management. Users currently have the rights to delete smart documents, which poses a challenge for administrators. A mor...

See all answers

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...

See all answers

What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?

The initial setup was straightforward and fast.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?

Microsoft Exchange is costly, and its licensing model can be expensive over time as more users require licenses.

See all answers

Comparisons

Zoho Mail vs IceWarp

Compared 32% of the time

Google Workspace vs IceWarp

Compared 15% of the time

Zimbra Collaboration vs IceWarp

Compared 14% of the time

Microsoft Exchange Online vs IceWarp

Compared 9% of the time

KerioConnect vs IceWarp

Compared 7% of the time

More IceWarp Competitors

Open-Xchange vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 17% of the time

KerioConnect vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 16% of the time

Zimbra Collaboration vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 15% of the time

HCL Domino vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 12% of the time

OpenText GroupWise vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 3% of the time

More Microsoft Exchange Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IceWarp

September 2025

Download IceWarp product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Exchange

August 2025

Download Microsoft Exchange product report

Also Known As

No data available

Exchange, MS Exchange

Overview

IceWarp helps thousands of organizations streamline all areas of business communication and become more profitable by providing Mail Server complete with GroupWare, Calendaring and Document Management, accessible through an intuitive WebClient, simple to setup in WebAdmin. Customize with add-ons: spam and virus protection, Instant Messaging with video calls, mobile sync and more.

IceWarp

Built to deliver the enterprise-grade security and reliability that businesses require, Microsoft Exchange provides email, calendar and contacts on your PC, phone and web browser.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Marriott, Toyota, Sony, Wendy's, Canon

Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting

Buyer's Guide

IceWarp vs. Microsoft Exchange

September 2025

Free Report: IceWarp vs. Microsoft Exchange

Find out what your peers are saying about IceWarp vs. Microsoft Exchange and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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