CentOS offers a stable, secure, and compatible environment with Red Hat packages, providing robust performance and cost efficiency. Its lightweight, scalable design and strong community support make it ideal for handling heavy workloads with limited resources.


| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| CentOS | 4.4% |
| Rocky Linux | 13.0% |
| Ubuntu Linux | 10.1% |
| Other | 72.5% |
| Type | Title | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Operating Systems (OS) for Business | Dec 29, 2025 | Download |
| Product | Reviews, tips, and advice from real users | Dec 29, 2025 | Download |
| Comparison | CentOS vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) | Dec 29, 2025 | Download |
| Comparison | CentOS vs Rocky Linux | Dec 29, 2025 | Download |
| Comparison | CentOS vs Ubuntu Linux | Dec 29, 2025 | Download |
| Title | Rating | Mindshare | Recommending | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu Linux | 4.3 | 10.1% | 95% | 150 interviewsAdd to research |
| Rocky Linux | 4.3 | 13.0% | 100% | 18 interviewsAdd to research |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 26 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 19 |
| Large Enterprise | 24 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 188 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 111 |
| Large Enterprise | 318 |
CentOS is a popular choice for organizations seeking reliable server and virtualization solutions. Known for its robust stability and security, it offers seamless integration and maintenance. However, after a shift from Red Hat, some challenges emerged, including weak NFS client performance and a more complex interface, which beginners find challenging alongside insufficient documentation. Despite these, CentOS remains a favored option for deploying web applications, server installations, and supporting cloud solutions, thanks to its efficient use in monitoring, databases, and telecommunications.
What are CentOS's key features?CentOS is widely used in industries requiring robust infrastructure, such as web hosting, scientific computing, and telecommunications. In data centers, companies deploy it to support virtual environments, testing, and development. The OS powers business applications, email servers, and cloud solutions, offering a cost-effective alternative to Red Hat.
CentOS was previously known as CentOS 7 (x86_64) - with Updates HVM.
| Author info | Rating | Review Summary |
|---|---|---|
| IT infrastructure executive at a computer software company with 201-500 employees | 4.5 | I've used CentOS for over six years, valuing its stability, security, and long-term support in enterprise environments; it's reliable, easy to manage, though performance updates and hardware improvements would enhance its effectiveness further. |
| Presales Engineer at Crayon | 4.5 | I've used CentOS for over eight years for testing, development, and server management due to its stability, security, and cost efficiency, though I believe its documentation, hardware support, and visibility could be improved. |
| Technical Operations Manager at a wholesaler/distributor with 10,001+ employees | 4.0 | We initially used CentOS for its stable, long-term support but switched to AlmaLinux due to CentOS's frequent version releases and update issues. We considered RHEL for its features but found it too expensive for our needs. |
| Technical person at a university with 1,001-5,000 employees | 4.0 | I use CentOS to run a FreeRADIUS server integrated with Active Directory due to its stability, security, and GUI support, though I’d like better security features, lighter installation, and improved logging for easier diagnostics. |
| Staff Software Consultant at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees | 4.0 | I use CentOS mainly for development on AWS due to its speed, simplicity, and low cost, though I’ve occasionally faced driver issues on older hardware; overall, it’s stable, easy to set up, and suits my needs well. |
| Technical Lead InfraOps at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees | 4.5 | I've used CentOS for ten years in development and production, valuing its stability, security, and clean updates. It’s reliable, cost-effective, and hassle-free, with no major issues or improvements needed for my use cases. |
| Senior Support Engineer at a computer software company with 201-500 employees | 5.0 | I've used CentOS for over ten years as a reliable, cost-effective enterprise server solution, valuing its stability, performance, and similarity to Red Hat Enterprise Linux, which helped us significantly reduce IT costs without sacrificing functionality. |
| Senior Technical Support Engineer at a tech vendor with 11-50 employees | 4.5 | I’ve used CentOS for 10 years to support customers, mainly managing services via the command line. It’s stable, scalable, and efficient, though I’d like more security patches. The open-source model saves time and setup costs. |