IIS vs Zend PHP Engine comparison

Microsoft and Zend are both solutions in the Application Infrastructure category. Microsoft is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.3, while Zend is ranked #15 with an average rating of 8.0. Microsoft holds a 12.5% mindshare in AIS, compared to Zend’s 1.6% mindshare. Additionally, 89% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Zend users who would recommend it.

IIS

Read 56 IIS reviews

2,756 Views
2,058 Comparison Views

89% willing to recommend

Zend PHP Engine

Read 11 Zend PHP Engine reviews

503 Views
210 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IIS

Zend PHP Engine

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 2025

Zend PHP Engine and IIS are competing in the web server technology category. Zend PHP Engine has the upper hand in offering flexibility and developer-centric features, while IIS may be superior for businesses reliant on Microsoft technologies.

Features: Zend PHP Engine provides compatibility and performance enhancements in PHP development, seamless PHP execution, and an extensive library of extensions. IIS stands out with strong integration within Windows Server, native support for multiple languages, and exceptional management capabilities.

Room for Improvement: Zend PHP Engine could refine its centralized support options and improve documentation. IIS could enhance flexibility beyond Windows environments and streamline the complexity in non-Windows server integration. Both technologies could advance user interfaces for better user experience.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IIS benefits from streamlined deployment within the Windows ecosystem, supported by extensive documentation. Zend PHP Engine offers straightforward deployment processes and ample community resources but lacks the centralized support infrastructure provided by Microsoft.

Pricing and ROI: Zend PHP Engine's open-source model results in lower setup costs, promoting a favorable ROI for PHP-focused companies. IIS, while potentially having higher initial costs, offers significant ROI for organizations deeply invested in Windows technologies due to cohesive integration and robust support.

To learn more, read our detailed IIS vs. Zend PHP Engine Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IIS vs. Zend PHP Engine

March 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

IIS

Ranking in Application Infrastructure

1st

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Server (4th)

Zend PHP Engine

Ranking in Application Infrastructure

15th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.6

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 IIS is 12.5%, down from 13.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zend PHP Engine is 1.6%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Infrastructure

Featured Reviews

VikramSingh6

Operations Executive at Quess

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.

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SatyendraGupta

External Consultant (Digital Tool Developer and Intervention Specialist) at IQVIA

The fact that it is available open-source is the best feature

The fact that it is available open-source is the best feature. A general scripting language should be further developed and should be embedded into it. I have been Zend PHP Engine for nine years. Multiple people are using the solution. Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.…

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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

"The product is easy to configure."

"The tool shows us the operating systems where our servers and applications are running."

"The graphical user interface makes it easy for users to configure the sites."

"IIS has a very simple and user-friendly interface, which helps a lot in effective and efficient management."

"The initial setup of IIS is easy. The process takes only five minutes."

"The solution is simple and very easy to manage compared to Linux."

"The product is flexible."

"IIS is stable."

More IIS pros

"We have not encountered issues with scalability as long as we effectively use caching to optimize performance of our web applications as well as a proper use of database connectivity."

"Scaling up is an important factor for large projects, and with PHP 7 and its performance improvements, this becomes even easier."

"Zend PHP Engine is a good tool for developing and collecting data, offering strong performance."

"The fact that it is available open-source is the best feature."

"Faster web app implementation, when PHP dev is required by customers."

"Zend Engine is the core of PHP. It makes PHP fast, efficient, and basically, the language of choice for web applications."

"Offers a complete environment to develop PHP applications. It is valuable because it allows you to have a complete stack (PHP, MySQL, Zend Server) enabling the building of a development environment, and to deploy to the production system."

"The solution's initial setup process is easy."

More Zend PHP Engine pros

Cons

"Finding different settings can be difficult if you don't know where to look."

"The solution's scalability needs improvement."

"We'd like future versions to be more stable."

"The solution's pricing and stability need improvement."

"The tool needs to improve its performance."

"Scalability issues and security concerns need attention from Microsoft."

"IIS could improve by having some features related to ASR and HTTPS certificate generation."

"The scalability depends on how you have set it up. If you're running IIS on a single server, it might not be as capable as if you are on many in a cluster or with load balancing and so on."

More IIS cons

"Integration of MVC with ORM tools for PHP is okay, but lacking a short list of decent ORM tools for PHP to choose from; there is ample room for improvement in both areas."

"SQL queries have always been an issue with PHP, especially if you use large tables, which require caution from the side of the developer."

"Its object oriented programming language needs improvement."

"The solution can be quicker."

"A general scripting language should be further developed and should be embedded into it."

"Integrating AI tools would make PHP more competitive, as other tools already have AI features."

"The main area that Zend needs to improve is to support asynchronous programming tasks, which is facilitated in PHP 7, but not at the same degree as HHVM."

"Zend PHP Engine needs to improve the loading time of its libraries and make it faster."

More Zend PHP Engine cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is licensed with your Windows installation which makes it relatively cheap if you already have a Windows Server sitting around."

"I was using the trial version of IIS inside my virtual machines."

"The licensing cost is dependent on the usage."

"IIS is expensive."

"IIS comes along with an OS license from Microsoft. Others can opt for a perpetual-based licensing model to be able to use the system."

"Users can get a subscription-based license or a perpetual license for IIS."

"The cost for IIS is already included in Windows services. We don't have to pay anything extra."

"IIS's pricing is not expensive."

More IIS pricing and cost advice

"The solution is open source and you just pay for the server cost."

"Its pricing depends on the number of users."

"Zend PHP Engine is not an expensive solution."

"No problem with pricing and licensing, as tools are open source. You have to consider training cost, mindset setup cost, as part of the TCO."

"The Zend PHP engine is open source technology, so there's no need for us to worry about licensing or other costs."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Financial Services Firm

15%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

13%

University

10%

Government

10%

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

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,...

See all answers

What do you like most about IIS?

The product is flexible.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IIS?

If you have a Windows license, there is no additional cost for IIS. However, you may need to pay for SSL publishing at times.

See all answers

What do you like most about Zend PHP Engine?

The fact that it is available open-source is the best feature.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zend PHP Engine?

PHP is an open-source solution.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Zend PHP Engine?

Integrating AI tools would make PHP more competitive, as other tools already have AI features.

See all answers

Comparisons

NGINX Plus vs IIS

Compared 29% of the time

Apache Web Server vs IIS

Compared 23% of the time

Oracle WebLogic Server vs IIS

Compared 16% of the time

Tomcat vs IIS

Compared 14% of the time

JBoss vs IIS

Compared 6% of the time

More IIS Competitors

Apache Web Server vs Zend PHP Engine

Compared 100% of the time

More Zend PHP Engine Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IIS

March 2025

Download IIS product report

Buyer's Guide

Application Infrastructure

March 2025

Download Zend PHP Engine product report

Also Known As

Windows Server IIS

PHP Engine

Overview

Internet Information Services (IIS) provides a secure, easy-to-manage, modular and extensible platform for reliably hosting websites, services and applications. With IIS, you get choice and control without giving up reliability or security.

Microsoft

The Zend PHP Engine is designed to optimize PHP code and improve performance, making it a popular choice for web developers. It is easy to use, stable, does not require a lot of code, is open source, and only requires payment for server costs. The initial setup is straightforward, and there is no real need to set up the solution because it's built into the deployment.

Zend

Sample Customers

Erste Bank Group, NJVC, Samsung Electronics, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Tata Steel Europe, Urban Software Institute

Cisco

Buyer's Guide

IIS vs. Zend PHP Engine

March 2025

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