HCL Notes Reviews

Name: HCL Notes
Brand: HCLSoftware
Rating: 3.8 (17 reviews)

3.8 out of 5

17 reviews
77% willing to recommend

585 followers

What is HCL Notes?

HCL Notes is a secure on-premises email client that allows teams access to email, calendar, and contact management capabilities. The solution integrates other collaboration tools seamlessly along with HCL Domino business applications, into a single workspace. HCL Notes is most commonly used in corporate environments for email, but can also be used to create websites, custom applications and business workflows, discussion groups, and document libraries. In addition, the solution enhances user experiences, helps internal teams collaborate with internal and external stakeholders, and streamline communication management operations.

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HCL Notes is the #8 ranked solution in top Email Applications. PeerSpot users give HCL Notes an average rating of 7.6 out of 10. HCL Notes is most commonly compared to Google Workspace: HCL Notes vs Google Workspace. HCL Notes is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 51% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a computer software company, accounting for 13% of all views.

Helped 856,873 peers since 2012

Featured HCL Notes reviews

Herad Howell

Military Officer at a government with 5,001-10,000 employees

I primarily value HCL Notes for its security features. The software's secure communication is particularly useful when dealing with professional entities. It ensures that business is conducted smoothly, allowing me to use my organization's email confidently, as opposed to my personal Gmail, which might not prompt responses from some entities.

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Bogdan Chechlowski

Kierownik Biura Informatyki at EIB SA

The performance was terrible because we have a very large database with around three million records, including attachments and scanned comments. It was slow, and integrating new technologies or designs was also slow. The XPages technology we used was outdated, and development stopped, which is the main reason we're considering moving away from HCL Notes.

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Chiheb Charmiti

IS Manager & Consultant HCL Domino at JACOB & ASSOCIATES

What I like about this solution is that you can use it for mailing, as a client for email, and you can also use it for workflows. So, you can easily develop applications. Even people who haven't got great IT skills can develop some basic applications to use in the company, especially a workflow application. So, it is for mailing and for applications, which is a great thing about HCL Notes. It is very good for managing and sharing documents on the network or inside the company. It works very well for sharing documents. It is one of the best products in the world for workflow applications. It works very well for workflows or decisional processes where a task needs to be first approved by someone. After that, the task moves to the next or final stage where another person approves it with some notes or attached documents. People who are on the move outside the company but need to interact with the database of the company can do some tasks in the HCL Notes application offline. When they have connectivity, the information is updated or replicated in real-time. They can install the application on different devices. They can use it on mobile phones or iPad.

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HCL Notes mindshare

As of June 2025, the mindshare of HCL Notes in the Email Applications category stands at 3.5%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Email Applications

PeerResearch reports based on HCL Notes reviews

Type	Title	Date
Category	Email Applications	Jun 15, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Jun 15, 2025	Download
Comparison	HCL Notes vs Google Workspace	Jun 15, 2025	Download
Comparison	HCL Notes vs Microsoft Exchange Online	Jun 15, 2025	Download
Comparison	HCL Notes vs Microsoft Exchange	Jun 15, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Google Workspace	4.1	22.1%	95%	102 interviews Add to research
Microsoft Exchange Online	4.3	13.8%	96%	90 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

HCL Notes is praised for its robust security, seamless integration capabilities, and ease of application development. Users appreciate its backward compatibility, flexible templates for web applications, and ease of managing workflows and documents. The platform's ability to integrate various systems and secure communication makes it ideal for business interactions. Its cost-effectiveness and ease of use for even non-IT staff to develop applications are also highlighted. Some users note outdated elements compared to competitors like Office 365.

"It offers unique capabilities, excellent security, and replication features."
"The software's secure communication is particularly useful when dealing with professional entities."
"The most valuable feature is security. It's very easy to manage security on records, views, and tables."

Room for Improvement

HCL Notes requires a substantial interface overhaul. The current UI is outdated, resembling older systems. Users struggle with navigation as options are not intuitive. Integration with modern software and improved speed are essential. The software also lacks efficient mobile support and a robust reporting engine. Enhanced user-friendliness and seamless integration with databases are necessary. Modernization of development tools and advanced features like Microsoft Teams would benefit users significantly. Web support needs an update to remain competitive.

"While HCL has made significant advances in the user interface and diverse platform compatibility, some improvements could be made in user-friendliness and graphical interface enhancements."
"One area for improvement would be making the interface more user-friendly."
"The performance was terrible because we have a very large database with around three million records, including attachments and scanned comments. It was slow, and integrating new technologies or designs was also slow."

ROI

HCL Notes demonstrates a return on investment as clients have utilized it for over two decades, experiencing notable efficiencies. Cost-effective at $100 per user annually, it enhances communication security and ensures reliable interactions with professional entities, indirectly saving time and improving engagement. Skipping quantitative analysis, users acknowledge its impact on efficiency, suggesting its value surpasses the costs involved. Users appreciate its enduring value and consistent delivery of investment gains over time.

Pricing

Enterprise users find HCL Notes pricing reasonable, with annual licensing costs perceived as favorable compared to competitors like Microsoft. The licensing model allows payments aligned to user needs, providing flexibility. Users appreciate the platform's affordability in developing applications, thanks to built-in security and competitive programmer costs. Setup costs are minimal, with "guest" users being license-free. Some highlight lower storage costs compared to Google, while opinions on the pricing model vary among stakeholders.

"It was reasonably priced, but the product itself was not worth the cost."
"The solution is expensive. There are many components or features which make the price very high."
"I don't remember how much we paid when we first bought the Domino license, but now, we pay only for the passport. For 30 client licenses, we pay about $1,500 per year, and we don't consider it very expensive for the quality of the product.In our case, we need 30 client licenses. So, we buy 30 client licenses independently of the server. It is very easy for us to choose and maintain this kind of license and get the passport advantage."

Popular Use Cases

HCL Notes is primarily used as an email client by multiple organizations. It supports web meetings and chat functionalities via Sametime, functions as a CRM system, and manages key production databases. It's utilized for email communication, application development, and processes like HR and insurance tasks. It serves as a document-oriented database for workflow and information sharing. Many rely on it for calendaring, to-do management, and managing customer contacts, despite challenges with database issues.

Service and Support

HCL Notes support is excellent, with quick responses, usually from India, knowledgeable staff, and dedicated issue resolution. Users commend the transition from IBM, praising updated strategies and client-focused service. While some have limited interaction due to independent technical capabilities, others benefit from engaged representatives and timely updates. Even when escalation is needed, support remains highly effective. Community platforms, portals, and online resources are frequently utilized, receiving high ratings from users.

Deployment

Initial setup for HCL Notes varies. Many find it straightforward and quick, especially for IT professionals, while others see it as complex, requiring technical expertise. Some organizations need minimal time for installation, noting ease for knowledgeable users. Larger deployments may require detailed planning due to infrastructure needs. Feedback often highlights simplicity with proper documentation, though non-IT users might struggle without guidance. Some emphasize HCL Notes as easy with in-house or cloud options.

Scalability

HCL Notes is known for its scalability, performing well in organizations of various sizes. Users report effective handling of extensive networks, though there are concerns about database size affecting performance. While powerful, it requires adequate hardware due to its heavy nature. Recent updates have improved its integration with mobile platforms and major applications, enhancing its usability. Suitable for both small teams and large corporations, its scalability is rated high by many users.

Stability

HCL Notes is described as very stable, with high ratings for reliability. Issues mainly arise when databases grow excessively large, causing performance problems. Users have experienced occasional server stoppages with large data, but these are manageable. Improvements since the HCL transition include enhanced mobile capabilities. Despite outdated infrastructure in some cases leading to integration issues, many have experienced minimal stability problems over long periods. Stability ratings range from 8 to 10 out of 10, with exceptional security noted.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

Download our HCL Notes Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Government

13%

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Comms Service Provider

Insurance Company

Educational Organization

Retailer

Real Estate/Law Firm

Healthcare Company

Aerospace/Defense Firm

University

Construction Company

Hospitality Company

Wholesaler/Distributor

Non Profit

Energy/Utilities Company

Legal Firm

Performing Arts

Wireless Company

Consumer Goods Company

Logistics Company

Media Company

Outsourcing Company

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Compare HCL Notes with alternative products

Learn more about HCL Notes

HCL Notes is available for Windows, Apple iOS, and Android.

HCL Notes Features

HCL Notes has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

Instant Messaging with HCL Sametime.
Unified Inbox: This HCL Notes feature helps you consolidate multiple email accounts into one viewable platform.
Filters: The HCL Notes filters allow users to filter their emails by sender, date received, opened/unopened, and more.
Reminders: With the reminders feature, users are prompted with reminders to send or reply to emails.
Notifications: HCL Notes notifications feature pings users, notifying them when they receive new emails.
Task Management: HCL Notes has built-in task creation and assignment functionality.
Reporting & Statistics.

HCL Notes Benefits

Some of the benefits of using HCL Notes include:

Mobility and accessibility: HCL Notes provides users with access to their mail and calendar wherever and whenever they are doing work.

Easy integration: With HCL Notes, you can interact with files directly from your email messages — preview, download, follow, comment, or share them with your team.

Better access capabilities: HCL Notes makes it possible for you to access profiles, roles, skill sets, and areas of responsibility for all your contacts. It also allows you to view related blogs and collaboration histories of shared work.

Reviews from Real Users

Below are some reviews and helpful feedback written by HCL Notes users.

An Administration & Technical Director at a tech services company says, "Its security is absolutely stratospheric. In an application, you can lock down to field-level security. For example, I could log in and see a field in an HR database with salaries. When you log in, you see exactly the same database, but the field with the salary just isn't there. So, you can literally have field-level security on it, and you can also have secure encryption. For example, I could give you that database allowing you to see the salary, but a calculation that shows how much they get per month in another field is encrypted. So, you won't be able to see that because you don't have the encryption key. You can implement high-level security very simply."

PeerSpot user Bogdan C., Kierownik Biura Informatyki at an insurance company, mentions, “The most valuable feature is the access that it provides to documents. This offers us an easy way to make changes.”

Marcos S., Diretor at MASTERDOM, comments, “The solution is practical, good interface, and performs well. The usability of the old applications to the new version of the client is very good. The migration is very good for some legacy applications.”

HCL Notes was previously known as IBM Lotus Notes, Lotus Notes.

HCL Notes customers

Connect2Cloud, Hansgrohe, Sauk County, Blue Water Shipping, FDBR, ibml, Multivac, Aarhus University Hospital, Hendricks Regional Health, Asian Paints, Integra Legal, Sunplus Technology, S¾SS, The Moroccan Ministry of Youth and Sports, Nicrometal, Doncasters Group, Practice Plan, Barr, RACV, Neotechnik, Deutsche Notes User Group