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HCL Notes vs Microsoft Exchange vs OpenText GroupWise 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:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of HCL Notes is 3.4%, up from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 11.3%, down from 11.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OpenText GroupWise is 1.4%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange11.3%
HCL Notes3.4%
OpenText GroupWise1.4%
Other83.9%
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

Herad Howell - PeerSpot reviewer
Secure communications that prompts responses with room for improved user interface
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.
ImranShaikh - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers several valuable features including conditional access, identity and access management, and scalability of mailboxes
We use Microsoft Exchange primarily for mailing purposes, both internal and external. We integrate it with other Microsoft tools like Outlook, Word document collaboration, Teams, SharePoint, and more The integration of Microsoft Exchange with other tools allows for seamless collaboration and…
JN
Great security, stability, versatility expandability and low cost of ownership
About the only thing I don't like about GroupWise is the lack of a modern Linux client. Micro Focus stop their development of the Linux Client a long time because there wasn't enough demand for it. Most other solutions do not have the Linux client. I would really like to see OpenText add a modern GroupWise Linux Client back. But until they do there is the Web Client to be used in a browser.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The software's secure communication is particularly useful when dealing with professional entities."
"It is easy to integrate the product with other services."
"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."
"Notes is a perfectly adequate front end. It's clear and straightforward."
"It offers unique capabilities, excellent security, and replication features."
"HCL Notes is stable most of the time."
"The product is very stable and scalable."
"The most valuable feature is the UI."
"We have found it to be a stable solution. It is scalable and easy to install."
"It ensures high availability and resilience, allowing seamless recovery from potential failures and making it a reliable option for business-critical operations."
"Customers can benefit from this new pricing model because it's expensive and now with the subscription they can budget for this."
"It's a very user-friendly application. The mail server is also valuable when compared to other services like SquirrelMail."
"The solution can scale well."
"One of the most valuable features of Microsoft Exchange is its security."
"It gives me benefit in terms of integration with other services such as SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, and OneDrive. It makes my work much easier."
"It is a very stable tool...It is a very scalable tool."
"I like the ease of logging best in Micro Focus GroupWise. I also like its proxy capabilities from a user level. I also like how secure Micro Focus GroupWise is."
"The cost-effectiveness of the solution is most valuable."
"Very secure with great storage capacity."
 

Cons

"The loading time can be excessive."
"GUI and replication can be improved."
"The interface could be more user-friendly. Some additional trainings could be added as well."
"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."
"Regarding additional functions, the front end of the databases on the home screen looks somewhat old-fashioned. It could be modernized by the development team."
"One area for improvement would be making the interface more user-friendly."
"The solution could improve by adding some more features."
"There is a chat component but it does not work properly."
"From a security perspective, Microsft Exchange can be improved. All that needs to be added is security, but that's an internal hierarchical problem from the product itself and not the end-users."
"There are limitations in terms of the number of emails that can be sent in a minute, which makes it a little difficult for the marketing folks."
"Exchange took time to be deployed. It requires extensive configuration and setting up servers and managing internal network access."
"The tool is not easy to use. Every person has to have at least administration-level experience to use the tool."
"Deployment should become a bit easier, the process is a bit complicated. You have to have done it one or two times before you get it right. The first time you do it, it won't be perfect. There are a lot of complications compared to Gmail For Business, which is a bit easier when it comes to configuration."
"The setup is difficult so could be easier."
"I'd like the archiving process to be faster."
"The management of .pst files and archiving need improvement."
"The WebAccess feature is somewhat lacking and could be improved."
"Their support can be improved. It is not as good as it used to be."
"What I don't like about Micro Focus GroupWise is the removal of the Unix client. Micro Focus took that function away about ten years ago because there wasn't enough demand for it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It was reasonably priced, but the product itself was not worth the cost."
"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."
"The solution is expensive. There are many components or features which make the price very high."
"The price is reasonable."
"It is far cheaper to license. It is a third of the cost of our Microsoft license for 10 times the amount of usage. Developing applications cost a fraction of anything else. There are two reasons for that. First of all, applications are very fast to build. All the security is already built into the platform, so you don't have to worry about security at all. The other thing is that because fewer people use it than, for example, Microsoft SharePoint, the salary commanded by programmers is slightly lower. So, it is not only faster; you also get cheaper programmers. So, you really win-win-win on it."
"We pay annually for the use of the solution."
"We pay licensing fees on a yearly basis."
"The platform has a reasonable price."
"The price of Microsoft Exchange is reasonable."
"Exchange is better for medium to large businesses because it can be quite costly for SMB, which may not need all the options the product provides."
"Its price is okay."
"Microsoft Exchange itself does not require a license, but users who will have mailboxes will require a license. It depends on the number of users to choose which license. If you exceed 2,000 mailboxes, it's preferable to get the enterprise license."
"This solution is expensive."
"I rate Microsoft Exchange a four out of ten for pricing because it is quite cheap, and many companies use the solution."
"Microsoft's licensing structure is too complex, but its prices are affordable, though not cheap."
"Micro Focus GroupWise is the most affordable solution on-premises. Versus Microsoft Exchange on-premises, pricing is 20:1, so there's no comparison. Micro Focus GroupWise is cheaper, though, for my clients, it's not about the cost but the stability and security of the solution."
"It was a part of the suite, so it was very cost-effective. There were no costs beyond the licensing fee."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
16%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
18%
University
8%
Educational Organization
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business41
Midsize Enterprise27
Large Enterprise35
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with HCL Notes?
Regarding additional functions, the front end of the databases on the home screen looks somewhat old-fashioned. It co...
What is your primary use case for HCL Notes?
Our use case for HCL Notes is that we use it for critical production databases and a lot of administration databases....
What advice do you have for others considering HCL Notes?
We actively work with HCL Notes and have integrated it with other applications as it is installed on Windows. We use ...
How does Zimbra Collaboration compare with Microsoft Exchange?
Zimbra is a free, open source collaborative software suite. The features I like best are the ease of integration and ...
What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?
The initial setup was straightforward and fast.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?
Microsoft Exchange is costly, and its licensing model can be expensive over time as more users require licenses.
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Also Known As

IBM Lotus Notes, Lotus Notes
Exchange, MS Exchange
Micro Focus GroupWise, GroupWise
 

Overview

 

Sample 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
Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting
Heritage Oaks Bank
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