HCL Verse vs Microsoft Exchange Online comparison

HCLSoftware and Microsoft are both solutions in the Email Applications category. HCLSoftware is ranked #13, while Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.7. HCLSoftware holds a 1.7% mindshare in EA, compared to Microsoft’s 12.1% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of HCLSoftware users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

HCL Verse

Read 3 HCL Verse reviews

668 Views
387 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Exchange Online

Read 91 Microsoft Exchange Online reviews

3,835 Views
3,682 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

HCL Verse

Microsoft Exchange Online

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

Microsoft Exchange Online and HCL Verse are competing products in enterprise email solutions. Microsoft Exchange Online seems to hold an advantage in pricing and support, while HCL Verse is noted for its feature set that some find worth the premium.

Features: Microsoft Exchange Online provides seamless integration with Microsoft 365, strong security features, and advanced email management tools. HCL Verse distinguishes itself with intelligent spam filtering, dynamic search capabilities, and personalized collaboration spaces. Both have robust features, but Exchange Online's integration within Microsoft's ecosystem offers a more unified experience.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Exchange Online benefits from extensive deployment tools and a comprehensive support network, allowing smoother transitions. HCL Verse relies on solid support channels, although its deployment complexity can be challenging for some.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Exchange Online's pricing is competitive, delivering substantial ROI due to its integration benefits. HCL Verse may incur higher initial costs, yet its advanced features can yield satisfying ROI in settings valuing collaboration enhancements.

To learn more, read our detailed HCL Verse vs. Microsoft Exchange Online Report (Updated: November 2025).

Buyer's Guide

HCL Verse vs. Microsoft Exchange Online

November 2025

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Helped 873,085 peers since 2012

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 Verse

Ranking in Email Applications

13th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Microsoft Exchange Online

Ranking in Email Applications

2nd

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2025, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of HCL Verse is 1.7%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Exchange Online is 12.1%, down from 15.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Email Applications Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange Online	12.1%
HCL Verse	1.7%
Other	86.2%

Email Applications

Featured Reviews

Marcos Roberto Silva

Diretor at MASTERDOM

Stable, scalable, and good interface

HCL Verse has a nice interface and it is a practical email solution. There are a diverse set of features, such as the search bar on top of the screens. The usability from the old applications to the new version has been very good. It was great that we were able to migrate applications from the older version to the new one.

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NancyHartman

Business Process Manager/ Educational Technologist at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees

Effective collaboration achieved with versatile features and good customer service

There are always improvements needed. My personal issue with using OfficeSuite and the Exchange Server is that one has to cobble together a whole bunch of different applications. Therefore, a lot of scripting and programming knowledge is necessary. I am not an IT person; I am an educator, a trainer, a user. I want to get the work done. However, I find that the Exchange Server and possibly the way our company has set up access permissions require extensive programming knowledge. It might take six to eight weeks to get a programmer's time to build something, whereas I can use something like Smartsheet that will do everything I want without needing a programmer. Smartsheet is more end-user friendly compared to a Microsoft product. Microsoft believes an expert IT person should manage everything, however, I want to manage things on my own in a simplified way. That is not easy using the Exchange Server or Microsoft Office. It is not end-user friendly for development, and a programmer is needed. Once set up, using them as an end-user is fine. I find that the automations are not robust, and the FedRAMP systems are not robust. I have a few issues with Exchange and Office, but there's nothing I can do about 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

"The most valuable feature is the mail server."

"HCL Verse has a nice interface and it is a practical email solution. There are a diverse set of features, such as the search bar on top of the screens."

"Exchange Online is consistent. It's easy to deploy and scale out to all of our organizations."

"The solution has been stable with good performance on offer."

"The best thing about Microsoft Exchange Online is that it's integrated with the Outlook application."

"Microsoft Exchange Online's resiliency is its most valuable feature."

"I enjoy not having to maintain the local infrastructure, local servers, local whatever. You use the software and don't have to worry about the details."

"Microsoft Exchange Online is a very stable solution."

"Technical support is helpful."

"The initial setup was straightforward."

More Microsoft Exchange Online pros

Cons

"Security is very important to us, so improvements to this functionality are welcome."

"The solution could improve by allowing us to use a color that we want in the editing boxes."

"I don't like it in general. It sort of has that Microsoft flavor to it, which is just the style they use and the way they color things and lay them out."

"What I don't like about Microsoft Exchange Online is too much integration because now it has many services connected to it. In the beginning, it was just email, and now it's also Teams and Visio, and many other services which I don't like. Microsoft Exchange Online should focus on one service. The product now lost focus, and this is its area for improvement. I would also like more freedom in choosing to use just one service, for example, just Microsoft Exchange Online, which means I don't need Teams or any other Microsoft product or service there. Right now, all services are either in the Microsoft Office suite, or there are more products or services integrated with Microsoft Exchange Online, and I'd like to just focus on one."

"The product needs to embed AI for intelligent searches and analytics."

"The SaaS platform performance could be improved. At a previous company, we used this same solution on-premises. The data exchange was much faster compared to the SaaS platform and we sometimes experience lags."

"I think there should be an incorporation of DLP on the business premium version of Exchange, as well."

"When we need to purchase additional licenses for additional users, the process is slow."

"The support could improve their response time and sometimes the phone lines are not clear because of static or noise. However, the agents are knowledgeable and very helpful."

"When you migrate from on-prem to cloud, if you choose to or are forced to do the hybrid, they need to devise a way to undo the hybrid."

More Microsoft Exchange Online cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This is an affordable solution but the price could be improved."

"The price of the solution is reasonable."

"I think that the price is a little high, especially considering that Google have a similar, free email solution."

"We pay a yearly licensing fee for the solution."

"We have a three-year license for $25,000."

"The license for the solution is cheap, but it could be more affordable in the long term."

"The solution costs $12 to $16 per user per month."

"We bought some licenses, and some are within our package or partnership with Microsoft."

"They have raised their prices, and obviously, it hits our customers. Some of them are deciding to step back from Office 365. For customers who have bought the annual subscription, they are moving to the monthly subscription."

"Microsoft Exchange Online is too expensive."

More Microsoft Exchange Online pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Government

27%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

University

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Educational Organization

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	40
Midsize Enterprise	14
Large Enterprise	40

Questions from the Community

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What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange Online?

The benefits are widespread and effective communication. We use Microsoft Teams for meetings within and outside our organization. Additionally, Teams can be used for chat, allowing us to track comm...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange Online?

If I segment it into three points: low price, average, and high price, I would place Microsoft Exchange Online between average and high price.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft Exchange Online?

I see no disadvantages currently. From the admin perspective, whenever an admin wants to get the email backup for a particular employee, there are a few challenges in terms of the role assignment o...

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Email Applications

October 2025

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Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Exchange Online

October 2025

Download Microsoft Exchange Online product report

Also Known As

Verse, IBM Verse

Exchange Online, Exchange Online Plan 1, Exchange Online Plan 2, MS Exchange Online

Overview

IBM Verse is a powerful email hosting solution that enables users to access their business communications from a laptop or desktop browser or from a mobile device. This email and business messaging experience is based on an innovative user-centric design, including social analytics and advanced search capabilities. IBM Verse helps users quickly find and focus on what content is most important, empowering them to build stronger working relationships while optimizing business results.

HCLSoftware

Exchange Online helps protect your information with advanced capabilities. Anti-malware and anti-spam filtering protect mailboxes. Data loss prevention capabilities prevent users from mistakenly sending sensitive information to unauthorized people. Globally redundant servers, premier disaster recovery capabilities, and a team of security experts monitoring Exchange Online around the clock safeguard your data.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Canon Marketing Japan Inc., Australian Trade Commission, BTC, Havas, Canal Barge Co.Inc., RAVInvest, Elemental Path, WDR mediagroup

Bank Alfalah Ltd., Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Blue Star Infotech, Scitec Nutrition, Resolution Films, British Airways, Empire Cinemas, InnoGames

Buyer's Guide

HCL Verse vs. Microsoft Exchange Online

November 2025

Free Report: HCL Verse vs. Microsoft Exchange Online

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