CentOS vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) comparison

CentOS and Red Hat are both solutions in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category. CentOS is ranked #6 with an average rating of 8.9, while Red Hat is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.8. CentOS holds a 4.6% mindshare in OSB, compared to Red Hat’s 9.1% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of CentOS users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Red Hat users who would recommend it.

CentOS

Read 69 CentOS reviews

6,682 Views
6,682 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...

Read 327 Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) reviews

25,473 Views
25,218 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

CentOS

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and CentOS both provide robust operating systems but cater to slightly different markets. Users often prefer CentOS for its no-cost offering and identical features, while RHEL is favored for its pricing and comprehensive support.

Features: RHEL offers advanced security features, enterprise-level support, and consistent updates. CentOS provides identical features to RHEL, extensive documentation, and high reliability but lacks official support.

Room for Improvement: RHEL could improve its update process, reduce licensing costs, and offer more flexibility in licensing. CentOS could benefit from better community support, more frequent updates, and improved support mechanisms provided by the community.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: RHEL is known for its straightforward deployment process and excellent customer service with round-the-clock support. CentOS deployment is seamless but lacks official customer service, relying on community forums and user contributions.

Pricing and ROI: RHEL has higher setup costs due to licensing fees but offers significant ROI through enhanced security and management features. CentOS, being free, presents zero setup costs and attracts users seeking lower total cost of ownership.

To learn more, read our detailed CentOS vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

CentOS vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

June 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

CentOS

Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business

6th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...

Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business

1st

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

327

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of CentOS is 4.6%, down from 8.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is 9.1%, down from 12.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Operating Systems (OS) for Business

Featured Reviews

Mahender Nirwan

Software developer at TAIGLE LLC

In-depth documentation available and command-line utility works well

One issue I recently faced, but I think it was due to my IT support guys, was that when the server storage gets full, the service crashes. It's very difficult to regain access and stability in that situation. That could be improved. So, the stability might be improved. But I don't think it's a CentOS-level issue. The system administrators need to come up with a solution for that, but I don't think it's CentOS's fault. I haven't done any research [R&D] on this issue. There's one thing for sure. We recently migrated from CentOS 7 to CentOS 9, and it was a bit difficult. For example, updating Windows is simple; you just download it, and it takes about 15-20 minutes. But that's not the case with migrating from CentOS 7 to 9. We had to back up the entire server, launch a new server, and then restore the backup to the new server. We couldn't directly migrate. I think that was a bit of a problem. The setup and updates are not that new in CentOS.

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Bruce Lundberg

Linux HPC Systems Administrator at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Reliable patch management, high uptime, and incredible knowledge base

In terms of security, it does a lot of things that most people still turn off. SELinux is turned on by default. They have pretty good firewall rules in their defaults. The audit rules always take tweaking, but, overall, it comes out of the box not too bad. I used to write scripts to harden them from there. There are multiple ways to provision and patch. You have everything from local repositories to doing it by hand. Their knowledge base is incredible. There is so much information out there. It has never taken me longer than 30 minutes to find an answer to anything, even very tough ones. One company I worked for was a security company, and we did a lot of patching on everything. It was designed around security and email hosting, and uptime was pretty much whatever we wanted it to be. I have had a couple of times when the uptime was bad, but it was caused by a third-party solution. In fact, the Norton antivirus was definitely the worst. Red Hat had nothing to do with it.

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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

"It has all the features of Red Hat, but you don't have to pay for the subscription."

"It is a scalable and cost-effective product compared to public cloud solutions."

"It's easy to install."

"CentOS's most valuable features are that it's cost-saving and helps to scale down your usage."

"Setup is straightforward. You can complete it in about 30 minutes."

"The product is very efficient when it comes to virtualization."

"Very robust and easy to work with."

"The technical support is good."

More CentOS pros

"Red Hat Enterprise Linux's most valuable features are the Podman and a lot of packages that come inbuilt as part of the regular package."

"RHEL's effect on our organization's management and efficiency is noticeable because we check all the compliance boxes when we run STIG machines."

"Until now, RHEL has been the most stable OS I have ever seen. Nothing seems to break, with frequent updates. I have been running it 24/7 for the past 18 months and it runs flawlessly."

"Red Hat Insights is valuable. There is patch and vulnerability management."

"We use RHEL in our infrastructure, which consists of VM and Linux. We use it to create clusters."

"RHEL makes patching and scripting much easier, and it provides all the features I need for patching and VM updates."

"Among all Linux flavors in the market, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has a very high-level support developer team, which is important for our critical systems."

"My experience with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) in terms of stability and reliability is excellent."

More Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) pros

Cons

"The solution could improve by making the management tools better for the DevOps teams. For example, WebEX and Webstacks."

"In terms of commands, it's all CLI and there isn't any GUI which can make it challenging to use for some people."

"Updates are going to a streaming version."

"This solution is no longer suited to our business following the change they have made to the release process. It is no longer an enterprise solution."

"More security features could be included in the next release."

"The solution is stable, however, it could always be even more stable if possible."

"Previous versions were unstable."

"It would be useful if reporting were included as part of the basic license."

More CentOS cons

"I would mostly like to see improvement around corporate messaging. When Red Hat 8 came out, and Red Hat decided to change, it inverted the relationship between Red Hat and CentOS. This caused my customers who had a CentOS to RHEL development to production workflow quite a bit of heartburn that several of them are still working out. A lot of that probably could have been avoided through better messaging."

"Identity management could be simpler. Red Hat Enterprise Linux has Identity Manager, but it is not as simple to use as Microsoft Windows Active Directory."

"Red Hat Enterprise Linux should enhance its support for commonly used application servers such as JBoss, Tomcat, and Apache."

"Most Indians will find Red Hat Enterprise Linux a little costly."

"One of the suggestions I have for improving Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is finding better solutions around domain authentication, as we are facing several issues with our current methods."

"As for how Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be improved, besides being cheaper, I am uncertain."

"I'm not certain if Red Hat could smooth out the migration process from CentOS to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)."

"AIX will be out of support in the next few years, so that is a problem because a lot of the clinical apps use AIX."

More Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"CentOS is a free solution."

"There are no licensing fees. CentOS is a free solution."

"CentOS is free."

"This is a free solution."

"Once you buy the license, Linux will provide you with yearly or monthly patches, so your systems will be scalable for a long time."

"CentOS is an open source that is free of cost."

"The solution is not subscription-based, unlike Red Hat."

"We use the free, open-source solution because we cannot afford the price for Linux."

More CentOS pricing and cost advice

"The licensing is tricky to understand. Enterprises want to be beyond reproach when it comes to licensing. We would rather over-license than under-license. However, that can be complicated with a high-performance development team who may need multiple operating system instances or want to experiment with spinning up many machines to see if something works or sticks."

"My company has acquired five to ten licenses from Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)."

"Its pricing and licensing are reasonable."

"Pricing is something that needs to be worked out with the vendor. The more you have, the less you pay. That is the model nowadays in IT, but it is very cost-effective. You get what you pay for."

"RHEL has a decent pricing model. It's a subscription, which makes sense. The OS itself is free, but you pay for the support. I have never heard any complaints about the pricing."

"Red Hat Enterprise Linux is a more cost-effective solution than Windows Servers."

"The price for Red Hat Enterprise Linux is reasonable."

"The solution is cost-effective."

More Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) pricing and cost advice

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Comparison Review

it_user281973

Storage and VMware Expert at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Aug 24, 2017

It's improved our company's system environments that run Oracle databases.

Red Hat is mission critical to our environment Red Hat has improved the mission critical environments running Oracle databases, while CentOS has improved our web environment and MySQL. Oracle and SAP Environment and all HPC environments. 10 years No issues Very stable i don´t find any problem…

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Government

Computer Software Company

15%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

Which would you choose - RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux) or CentOS?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is fantastic. It is an inexpensive solution that has excellent security, performance, and stability, and also lots of features. I specifically like that the solution has fe...

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What do you like most about CentOS?

CentOS is very easy to use, and all the commands are user-friendly.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for CentOS?

CentOS is a free product with free updates. There are third-party companies available for support, but they charge varying amounts for their services.

See all answers

What do you like most about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?

It is open source. We can customize it as per our requirements.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?

My experience with the pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) indicates that this was the main topic that made me step away from RHEL. Personally, I don't see good b...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?

The solution has high pricing.

See all answers

Comparisons

Oracle Linux vs CentOS

Compared 36% of the time

Ubuntu Linux vs CentOS

Compared 11% of the time

Windows Server vs CentOS

Compared 8% of the time

SUSE Linux Enterprise vs CentOS

Compared 8% of the time

Rocky Linux vs CentOS

Compared 4% of the time

More CentOS Competitors

SUSE Linux Enterprise vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 22% of the time

Windows Server vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 15% of the time

Rocky Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 14% of the time

Oracle Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 9% of the time

Windows 11 vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 2% of the time

More Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

CentOS

July 2025

Download CentOS product report

Buyer's Guide

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

June 2025

Download Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) product report

Also Known As

No data available

Red Hat Enterprise Linux, RHEL

Overview

CentOS is a versatile operating system with many use cases, including virtual spaces, scientific computing, data center servers, web-based applications, and more. Its valuable features include customization options, low memory consumption, performance, scalability, open-source nature, cost-saving, and compatibility with Red Hat packages.

The solution has helped organizations save money on licensing and improve testing capabilities for new implementations without spending additional resources. CentOS is a stable, reliable, and efficient operating system that is easy to use and integrate with other applications and services.

CentOS

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is recognized for its stability, security, and performance, serving diverse industries with its robust support and seamless cloud deployment capabilities.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux provides comprehensive server applications across cloud environments, featuring tools like Ansible for enhanced user experience. It integrates OpenShift, Identity Management, and automation, supported by extensive documentation. Users seek easier upgrades, enhanced network virtualization support, and improved live patching.

What are the key features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux?

Stability and Security: RHEL is designed to provide a stable and secure environment, backed by consistent updates.
Cloud Deployment: Easily deployable across cloud platforms, enhancing flexibility.
Integration with Ansible: Enhances operational efficiency with powerful automation tools.
OpenShift and Containerization: Supports modern app development with integrated OpenShift features.
Extensive Documentation: Offers comprehensive resources for users to troubleshoot and optimize.

What are the benefits of using Red Hat Enterprise Linux?

Reliable Support: Benefit from extensive support options for seamless operation.
Enhanced Security: Built-in features ensure data integrity and protection.
Increased Flexibility: Suitable for diverse deployment environments, including on-premises and cloud.
Operational Efficiency: Tools like automation and cloud navigation improve productivity.
Training and Resources: Access to comprehensive training contributes to smoother implementations.

In sectors like finance, telecommunications, and education, Red Hat Enterprise Linux is crucial for running stable, secure systems. Its application spans web servers, data management, and containerization through tools like Kubernetes. Organizations adopt it for on-premises, virtualized, and cloud environments, ensuring robust infrastructure management.

Red Hat

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Travel Channel, Mohawk Industries, Hilti, Molecular Health, Exolgan, Hotelplan Group, Emory University, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, HCA Healthcare, Paychex, UPS, Intermountain Healthcare, Brinker International, TransUnion, Union Bank, CA Technologies

Buyer's Guide

CentOS vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

June 2025

Free Report: CentOS vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

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