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Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud vs SUSE Linux Enterprise comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 11, 2026

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
4.7
Confluent Cloud's Kafka offers cost-effective scalability and reliability, enhancing data processing and schema management despite higher costs.
Sentiment score
4.9
SUSE Linux Enterprise provides better ROI and cost savings for SAP deployment than Red Hat, enhancing revenue by 10-15%.
Returns depend on the application you deploy and the amount of benefits you are getting, which depends on how many applications you are deploying, what are the sorts of applications, and what are the requirements.
Chief Architect at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
I have seen a return on investment by switching our clusters from on-prem to Azure public cloud, using our same Bring Your Own Licenses, which saved costs on licensing.
Senior cloud engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.8
Apache Kafka support on Confluent Cloud is praised for timely and competent assistance, with high user satisfaction ratings.
Sentiment score
5.6
SUSE Linux Enterprise support is generally praised for expertise, though experiences vary, with high costs for certain interactions.
I was getting prompt responses, and it was nicely handled regarding the support.
Lead Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I would rate them eight if 10 was the best and one was the worst.
Chief Architect at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
SUSE Linux Enterprise provides a stable, secure, and well-supported platform for enterprise workloads, with powerful management tools and robust support for clustering, cloud, and containers.
Senior Lead DevOps Engineer at Kyndryl
I rate the customer service 10 out of 10 because SUSE has 24/7 availability support, extended support, security, multi-Linux distribution support, upgradation, and everything is user-friendly.
Devops MAnager at DXC Technology
The customer support is good; whenever we have opened a case, they have provided detailed explanations of the issues and resolutions.
Senior cloud engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
5.8
Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud is scalable and flexible, though some users report reliability issues when scaling.
Sentiment score
6.0
SUSE Linux Enterprise is praised for its strong scalability, ease of maintenance, cloud compatibility, but faces some kernel issues.
According to me, it is quite scalable in terms of all the data it can handle and stream.
Lead Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
SUSE Linux Enterprise is widely recognized for its strong scalability, making it suitable for organizations of all sizes, from small businesses to global enterprises.
Senior Lead DevOps Engineer at Kyndryl
Its scalability is quite good since we are using Azure, which allows us to easily scale up or down our resources as needed.
Senior cloud engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.0
Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud is stable and reliable, with occasional issues in high traffic and dashboard access.
Sentiment score
7.9
SUSE Linux Enterprise is praised for its stability and reliability, with occasional minor issues in newer versions and Hyper-V.
The servers work properly, provide alerts for high CPU and memory usage, but do not encounter CPU or memory issues.
Senior cloud engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
I would rate stability for SUSE Linux Enterprise an eight out of ten.
Solution specialist Data and AI at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Room For Improvement

Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud needs improvements in integrations, user interface, cost, monitoring, and configuration for enhanced functionality.
SUSE Linux Enterprise requires improvements in package management, security policies, cloud integration, UI, documentation, licensing, and support services.
Regarding additional improvements, I would say probably around error handling, where when we encounter errors specific to our response structures and everything, or the tables or anything of that nature, it would be better if we were prompted with better error handling mechanisms.
Lead Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
If it were easier to configure clusters and had more straightforward configuration, high-level API abstraction in the APIs could improve it.
Partner at SouJava
Observability and monitoring are areas that could be enhanced.
Chief Architect at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Security is a top concern, and further strengthening default security policies, simplifying compliance management, and integrating advanced vulnerability management tools would be a valuable improvement.
Senior Lead DevOps Engineer at Kyndryl
The license we subscribed to should carry over within the same instance family.
IT Manager at a wellness & fitness company with 5,001-10,000 employees
We face difficulties troubleshooting issues without sufficient resources.
Senior cloud engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise users of Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud find pricing accessible but warn of potential cost surges with added features.
SUSE Linux Enterprise provides flexible pricing, emphasizing support over licensing, with mixed affordability perceptions but justified by scalability and support.
There was back and forth with the team regarding the cost, but overall, I feel it would have been easier to handle if there were a mechanism that let us know when the credits were being fully utilized or when the limits were getting crossed.
Lead Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I would rate pricing for SUSE Linux Enterprise considering one is a high price and ten is a low price.
Solution specialist Data and AI at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Upgrading an instance results in overlapping or double subscription fees.
IT Manager at a wellness & fitness company with 5,001-10,000 employees
The licensing cost is a bit high.
Senior cloud engineer at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
 

Valuable Features

Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud enables scalable, efficient real-time data processing with seamless platform integration and advanced management features.
SUSE Linux Enterprise excels in stability, security, easy administration, cost-effectiveness, and adaptability, ideal for enterprise workloads.
These features are important due to scalability and resiliency.
Chief Architect at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
The Kafka Streams API helps with real-time data transformations and aggregations.
Partner at SouJava
The best features Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud offers would be the connection with various external systems through various languages such as Python and C#.
Lead Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
It has a stable and reliable OS.
IT Manager at a wellness & fitness company with 5,001-10,000 employees
SUSE Linux had a clean user interface, which was a valuable feature for me.
Lead Desktop Support Technician at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
SUSE has a high availability cluster with syncing, and in production environments where zero downtime is expected, the high availability SAP cluster helps us to keep production up 24/7.
Devops MAnager at DXC Technology
 

Categories and Ranking

Apache Kafka on Confluent C...
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Streaming Analytics (12th)
SUSE Linux Enterprise
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
36
Ranking in other categories
Operating Systems (OS) for Business (6th)
 

Mindshare comparison

Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud and SUSE Linux Enterprise aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud is designed for Streaming Analytics and holds a mindshare of 0.5%.
SUSE Linux Enterprise, on the other hand, focuses on Operating Systems (OS) for Business, holds 5.4% mindshare, down 7.5% since last year.
Streaming Analytics Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud0.5%
Apache Flink11.3%
Databricks9.5%
Other78.7%
Streaming Analytics
Operating Systems (OS) for Business Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
SUSE Linux Enterprise5.4%
Rocky Linux11.1%
Ubuntu Linux9.0%
Other74.5%
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

AF
Lead Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Has unified log streams from multiple systems and accelerated issue tracking through streamlined setup
I think Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud can be improved by probably working more around Confluent or the tool. In my opinion, it should utilize the response structures in a better way or be able to detect if there is any variable or if there is any data structure that is mismatched, as it would be easier than us manually having to put in the exact name in order for it to match the response. Regarding additional improvements, I would say probably around error handling, where when we encounter errors specific to our response structures and everything, or the tables or anything of that nature, it would be better if we were prompted with better error handling mechanisms. I do not think there are any other improvements Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud needs, aside from error handling and response structures.
MoezCHEBBI - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Lead DevOps Engineer at Kyndryl
Has delivered expert training and enabled smooth migrations using automated deployment tools
SUSE Linux Enterprise is a mature and reliable platform, but there are areas where it can be improved. Modernizing the system management tools is important as many users appreciate YaST for its centralized management, but there is a growing demand for more modern, web-based, and modular tools. The introduction of tools such as Agama, a web-based installer, and Cockpit in newer releases is a step in the right direction.SUSE has made progress with multi-Linux support, allowing organizations to manage and support not just SUSE systems but also other distributions such as Red Hat and CentOS; continuing to expand these capabilities, especially for hybrid and multi-cloud environments, will help organizations manage diverse infrastructure more effectively. Security is a top concern, and further strengthening default security policies, simplifying compliance management, and integrating advanced vulnerability management tools would be a valuable improvement.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Insurance Company
5%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise11
Large Enterprise22
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud?
I think Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud can be improved by probably working more around Confluent or the tool. In my opinion, it should utilize the response structures in a better way or be able to...
What is your primary use case for Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud?
I have used Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud for one of my projects with regard to log monitoring. My main use case for Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud in that project was mainly streaming of the lo...
What advice do you have for others considering Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud?
My advice to others looking into using Apache Kafka on Confluent Cloud is that it is easier and has a low learning curve. If there is any use case regarding streaming, I would suggest starting off ...
What do you like most about SUSE Linux Enterprise?
The initial setup is simple and takes five minutes for deployment and if you have automation in place, it will take four minutes.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SUSE Linux Enterprise?
I would rate pricing for SUSE Linux Enterprise considering one is a high price and ten is a low price.
What needs improvement with SUSE Linux Enterprise?
SUSE can make improvements to SUSE Linux Enterprise. I have suggestions about what they can add to the product to simplify users' lives. They need to intensely work on their marketing strategy.
 

Also Known As

No data available
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP3
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Air India, Akademicki Szpital Kliniczny (ASK), Allone, Altran, Apollo, ARCHIVA, Asia Innovatory Management School, ATLAS ELEKTRONIK GmbH, AutoData Norge AS, Baldor Electric, Business Connexion, CASIO, Ciclum Farma, Delta Lloyd, Edumate , HPE,  SAP SE,  Lenovo, BMW, T-Systems, UCX, Turners & Growers, Shenzhen Development Bank, Bosch Group, JK Tyres & Industries, IOCL, European Space Agency, Daimler AG, China Minsheng Banking Corp, Café Coffee Day, Unisys,  Petrochina Company Ltd, Fitch Ratings, ABeam Consulting Co Ltd, Tyro Payments, Rackspace, Pacific Textiles, ...
Find out what your peers are saying about Databricks, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Apache and others in Streaming Analytics. Updated: January 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.