HCL Sametime vs Office 365 comparison

The compared HCLSoftware and Microsoft solutions aren't in the same category. HCLSoftware is ranked #17 in VM , with an average rating of 8.0, and holds a 1.5% mindshare in the category. Microsoft is ranked #1 in CCP , with an average rating of 8.6, and holds a 10.2% mindshare. Additionally, 75% of HCLSoftware users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 95% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

HCL Sametime

Read 5 HCL Sametime reviews

406 Views
349 Comparison Views

75% willing to recommend

Office 365

Read 152 Office 365 reviews

3,509 Views
2,562 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

HCL Sametime

Office 365

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between HCL Sametime and Office 365 based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Zoom Video Communications, Cisco, TeamViewer and others in Virtual Meetings.

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Virtual Meetings

January 2026

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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

HCL Sametime

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Virtual Meetings (17th)

Office 365

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

152

Ranking in other categories

Content Collaboration Platforms (1st)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Messaging and Collaboration solutions, they serve different purposes. HCL Sametime is designed for Virtual Meetings and holds a mindshare of 1.5%, up 0.4% compared to last year.
Office 365, on the other hand, focuses on Content Collaboration Platforms, holds 10.2% mindshare, up 4.9% since last year.

Virtual Meetings Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
HCL Sametime	1.5%
Zoom Workplace Business	8.6%
Webex	6.8%
Other	83.1%

Virtual Meetings

Content Collaboration Platforms Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Office 365	10.2%
Google Workspace	9.3%
Dropbox Business - Enterprise	8.6%
Other	71.9%

Content Collaboration Platforms

Featured Reviews

Bogdan Chechlowski

Kierownik Biura Informatyki at EIB SA

Stable product, communicate very fast and allows to see who's online in the office or work environment

It was used for communication through text messages, primarily Being able to see who was online and communicate very fast was a good feature. The security was quite good. However, when we tried to implement it for email at a high level, we had to use another solution, FortiMail Gateway. I view…

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BasilJiji

System Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees

Collaboration has transformed how our teams work and Copilot now drives faster daily decisions

The interface for the security and compliance center could be simplified. It changes frequently, which can make it somewhat difficult for admins to stay up-to-date on where specific settings are located. The compliance center modification or improvement of Office 365 needs to be introduced. The rest of the features feel acceptable to me. The reason it is not a ten is because of the complexity of managing the vast array of admin settings, which requires a specialized IT team. Even though it meets industry standards for decent security compliance such as SOC and HIPAA, the complexity of managing the admin settings needs to improve.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The security was quite good."

"I can view the status and availability of colleagues or team members, which makes it easy to approach them when they are available."

"The features of Office 365 that have significantly enhanced my workflow productivity include Excel, which is a very good product that helps assist me with my work."

"Office 365 enhances productivity in the mining industry by aiding with data analysis; it is crucial for daily activities, providing support in making reports, presentations, and conducting data analysis."

"I find Office 365 valuable because it is compatible across all companies, which is essential for our organization, and the flexibility to adjust subscriptions with headcount changes is an advantage for cost management."

"With Office 365, I have never encountered issues; my experience is entirely positive."

"The most valuable features in Office 365 for me are productivity, as all my productivity requirements are fulfilled, and communication capabilities."

"The most effective feature I find for threat detection is the 24/7 managed monitoring, which is a next-gen antivirus and next-gen Endpoint Detection and Response."

"The cloud storage and real-time collaboration features are incredibly valuable."

"The return on investment is always an improvement, and I think it's a significant improvement due to the many integration options available."

More Office 365 pros

Cons

"The webinar should be integrated into Sametime for a larger number of participants."

"It lacks some features compared to modern solutions. For example, it doesn't allow sending screenshots or other files."

"Integration with other platforms can be improved."

"We have found that, with Teams, if you are including one more person who is not in the company ecosystem, supposedly I'm inviting them as a guest in the chat. However, when I do that, I can't share files."

"There are some complexities to the initial setup if you use some of the more advanced features."

"There was a problem with the owner of a Team; although it was listed as an owner, he couldn't do whatever an owner can do."

"Security is still complex, but the admin console improving."

"I would like to see better integration with Teams, and better usability with SharePoint."

"I'd like to see them add more features in the future in order to continue to advance the product."

"As a private user, I do not appreciate the cloud features, but I doubt that this is something Microsoft would consider a feature request."

More Office 365 cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"I would rate the solution 3 out of 5 for the price. I think Microsoft presents a good solution concerning the price."

"Good reporting and good value subscriptions for international calls."

"The pricing/licensing is easy to manage."

"Licensing fees are paid on a monthly basis, or we prepay them."

"The price of Office 365 is very expensive."

"Most of the time, we purchase Microsoft Exchange licenses, which are less expensive and provide only an email platform and 50 gigabytes of email storage for free."

"The pricing is good for all the features that we receive, e.g., Skype for Business."

"We have a license to use this solution. We have an E3 license which covers many different solutions."

More Office 365 pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Computer Software Company

13%

Marketing Services Firm

Outsourcing Company

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	62
Midsize Enterprise	29
Large Enterprise	70

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with HCL Sametime?

I view it as part of HCL Notes and Domino, and my opinion is similar to those products. It lacks some features compared to modern solutions. For example, it doesn't allow sending screenshots or oth...

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What is your primary use case for HCL Sametime?

It was used for communication through text messages, primarily.

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What advice do you have for others considering HCL Sametime?

Overall, it was quite good. I would rate it an eight out of ten. It's a better product than some others from HCL, but overall, I wouldn't recommend it, given the availability of superior alternatives.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Office 365?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Office 365 is that it is moderate.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Office 365?

Office 365 can be improved by increasing support, which currently is not efficient and takes a lot of time to resolve issues. It has been observed that support personnel often lack hands-on experie...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Office 365?

Email and collaboration are the main use cases for Office 365 at Omagi Media Labs. It is used for internal and external communication in daily work. Groups and Teams groups are created and used in ...

See all answers

Comparisons

Webex vs HCL Sametime

Compared 100% of the time

More HCL Sametime Competitors

Google Workspace vs Office 365

Compared 49% of the time

Symphony vs Office 365

Compared 10% of the time

Dropbox Business - Enterprise vs Office 365

Compared 7% of the time

Microsoft OneDrive for Business vs Office 365

Compared 4% of the time

Quip vs Office 365

Compared 3% of the time

More Office 365 Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Virtual Meetings

January 2026

Download HCL Sametime product report

Buyer's Guide

Office 365

January 2026

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Also Known As

Lotus Sametime, IBM Lotus Sametime

Microsoft Office 365, Office 365 Enterprise, Office 365 Enterprise E1, Office 365 Enterprise E3, Office 365 Enterprise E5, Office 365 ProPlus, Office 365 Business, Office 365 Business Essentials, Office 365 Business Premium, Office 365 F1

Overview

HCL Sametime. Secure Conversations Across Any Device

Your company can’t afford to take any data risks, but your teams still need to be able to interact and react quickly, wherever they are working. Sametime offers modern instant messaging, file-sharing, and online meetings with the proven security your business can trust.

HCLSoftware

Office 365 is more than just Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. It provides powerful services like business-class email, online storage, and teamwork solutions that you can access from anywhere. Bring teams and resources together with solutions like Microsoft Teams and Skype for Business that make working together more productive and enjoyable regardless of where participants are located. Easily implement security and privacy controls to help protect business data and devices against malicious threats and help you meet your compliance obligations. Automatic updates ensure your employees will always have the latest features and security updates.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Connect2Cloud, Superior Group, Daifuku Co. Ltd., Seaward, The City of Fort Worth, Christian Brothers Services, Berlitz, Deutsche Notes User Group, Danske Fysioterapeuter, Slumberland, La Vacanza, Rheinmetall AG

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