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Apache Hadoop vs Apache Spark comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
5.4
Apache Hadoop offers cost-effective storage and processing, benefiting some with analytics and optimizing data applications for resource savings.
Sentiment score
6.1
Apache Spark enhances machine learning, cutting operational costs by up to 50%, with efficiency reliant on resources and expertise.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.1
Customer service for Apache Hadoop varies, with differing satisfaction levels and reliance on external resources and forums for support.
Sentiment score
5.9
Apache Spark support feedback varies, with mixed reviews on community forums, vendor support, and documentation adequacy.
It's not structured support, which is why we don't use purely open-source projects without additional structured support.
Financial Advisor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
I have received support via newsgroups or guidance on specific discussions, which is what I would expect in an open-source situation.
Data Architect at Devtech
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.4
Apache Hadoop is valued for its scalability, supporting large data and users effectively, especially in cloud environments.
Sentiment score
7.5
Apache Spark excels in scalability, efficiently handling large data workloads with ease, though it requires skilled infrastructure management.
It is a distributed file system and scales reasonably well as long as it is given sufficient resources.
Financial Advisor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Apache Hadoop is stable and reliable in multi-node clusters, performing well with minimal instability during high-load operations.
Sentiment score
7.4
Apache Spark is generally stable, trusted by companies; newer versions enhance reliability, though memory issues may arise without proper configuration.
Continuous management in the way of upgrades and technical management is necessary to ensure that it remains effective.
Financial Advisor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Apache Spark resolves many problems in the MapReduce solution and Hadoop, such as the inability to run effective Python or machine learning algorithms.
Data Engineer at a tech company with 10,001+ employees
Without a doubt, we have had some crashes because each situation is different, and while the prototype in my environment is stable, we do not know everything at other customer sites.
Data Architect at Devtech
 

Room For Improvement

Apache Hadoop needs user-friendly enhancements, better integration, improved security, streamlined setup, and modernized features and support.
Apache Spark requires improvements in scalability, usability, documentation, memory efficiency, real-time processing, and broader language support for better performance.
The problem with Apache Hadoop arose when the guys that originally set it up left the firm, and the group that later owned it didn't have enough technical resources to properly maintain it.
Financial Advisor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Various tools like Informatica, TIBCO, or Talend offer specific aspects, licensing can be costly;
Data Architect at Devtech
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise Apache Hadoop pricing varies greatly, influenced by distribution choice, deployment type, and specific usage requirements.
Apache Spark is cost-effective but may incur expenses from hardware, cloud resources, or commercial support, impacting deployment costs.
 

Valuable Features

Apache Hadoop offers scalable, cost-effective data processing, supporting diverse environments with fault tolerance, integration, and analytics tools like Hive.
Apache Spark offers fast in-memory processing, scalable analytics, MLlib for machine learning, SQL support, and seamless integration with languages.
I assess Apache Hadoop's fault tolerance during hardware failures positively since we have hardware failover, which works without problems.
Principle Network and Database Engr at Parsons Corporation
Hadoop is a distributed file system, and it scales reasonably well provided you give it sufficient resources.
Financial Advisor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Not all solutions can make this data fast enough to be used, except for solutions such as Apache Spark Structured Streaming.
Data Engineer at a tech company with 10,001+ employees
The solution is beneficial in that it provides a base-level long-held understanding of the framework that is not variant day by day, which is very helpful in my prototyping activity as an architect trying to assess Apache Spark, Great Expectations, and Vault-based solutions versus those proposed by clients like TIBCO or Informatica.
Data Architect at Devtech
 

Categories and Ranking

Apache Hadoop
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
41
Ranking in other categories
Data Warehouse (7th)
Apache Spark
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
68
Ranking in other categories
Hadoop (1st), Compute Service (5th), Java Frameworks (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Apache Hadoop is designed for Data Warehouse and holds a mindshare of 3.5%, down 4.3% compared to last year.
Apache Spark, on the other hand, focuses on Hadoop, holds 13.9% mindshare, down 18.2% since last year.
Data Warehouse Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Apache Hadoop3.5%
Snowflake10.4%
Oracle Exadata9.9%
Other76.2%
Data Warehouse
Hadoop Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Apache Spark13.9%
Cloudera Distribution for Hadoop15.1%
HPE Data Fabric14.9%
Other56.1%
Hadoop
 

Q&A Highlights

it_user1272297 - PeerSpot reviewer
Special Adviser Strategy at a university with 501-1,000 employees
Apr 19, 2020
 

Featured Reviews

NR
Financial Advisor at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Reliable performance maintained but requires ongoing management and support
Hadoop was used for years, but there were problems since the people who originally set it up left the firm. The group that owned it later didn't have the technical resources to properly maintain it. Although there was nothing wrong with Hadoop itself, issues arose without proper management and upgrades.
Devindra Weerasooriya - PeerSpot reviewer
Data Architect at Devtech
Provides a consistent framework for building data integration and access solutions with reliable performance
The in-memory computation feature is certainly helpful for my processing tasks. It is helpful because while using structures that could be held in memory rather than stored during the period of computation, I go for the in-memory option, though there are limitations related to holding it in memory that need to be addressed, but I have a preference for in-memory computation. The solution is beneficial in that it provides a base-level long-held understanding of the framework that is not variant day by day, which is very helpful in my prototyping activity as an architect trying to assess Apache Spark, Great Expectations, and Vault-based solutions versus those proposed by clients like TIBCO or Informatica.
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Answers from the Community

it_user1272297 - PeerSpot reviewer
Special Adviser Strategy at a university with 501-1,000 employees
Apr 19, 2020
Apr 19, 2020
I haven't used SQream personally. However, if you are only considering GPU based rdbms's please check the following https://hackernoon.com/which-gpu-database-is-right-for-me-6ceef6a17505
2 out of 4 answers
Russell Rothstein - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at PeerSpot
Jan 27, 2020
Morten, the most popular comparisons of SQream can be found here: https://www.itcentralstation.com/products/sqream-db-alternatives-and-competitors The top ones include Cassandra, MemSQL, MongoDB, and Vertica.
reviewer1219965 - PeerSpot reviewer
Data Architect at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Jan 27, 2020
I haven't used SQream personally. However, if you are only considering GPU based rdbms's please check the following https://hackernoon.com/which-gpu-database-is-right-for-me-6ceef6a17505
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
34%
Computer Software Company
7%
University
5%
Manufacturing Company
5%
Financial Services Firm
25%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise8
Large Enterprise21
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business28
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise32
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Apache Hadoop?
It's primarily open source. You can handle huge data volumes and create your own views, workflows, and tables. I can also use it for real-time data streaming.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Apache Hadoop?
The product is open-source, but some associated licensing fees depend on the subscription level. While it might be free for students, organizations typically need to pay for their subscriptions. Th...
What needs improvement with Apache Hadoop?
The problem with Apache Hadoop arose when the guys that originally set it up left the firm, and the group that later owned it didn't have enough technical resources to properly maintain it. This wa...
What do you like most about Apache Spark?
We use Spark to process data from different data sources.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Apache Spark?
Apache Spark is open-source, so it doesn't incur any charges.
What needs improvement with Apache Spark?
Areas for improvement are obviously ease of use considerations, though there are limitations in doing that, so while various tools like Informatica, TIBCO, or Talend offer specific aspects, licensi...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Amazon, Adobe, eBay, Facebook, Google, Hulu, IBM, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Spotify, AOL, Twitter, University of Maryland, Yahoo!, Cornell University Web Lab
NASA JPL, UC Berkeley AMPLab, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo!, UC Santa Cruz, TripAdvisor, Taboola, Agile Lab, Art.com, Baidu, Alibaba Taobao, EURECOM, Hitachi Solutions
Find out what your peers are saying about Snowflake Computing, Oracle, Teradata and others in Data Warehouse. Updated: January 2026.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.