No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

IBM PowerVM vs RHEV comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

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

IBM PowerVM
Ranking in Server Virtualization Software
12th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
38
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
RHEV
Ranking in Server Virtualization Software
13th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Server Virtualization Software category, the mindshare of IBM PowerVM is 2.1%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of RHEV is 2.4%, down from 3.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Server Virtualization Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM PowerVM2.1%
RHEV2.4%
Other95.5%
Server Virtualization Software
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2014950 - PeerSpot reviewer
Service Delivery Manager at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Virtualization has simplified partitioning and currently supports secure multi-tenant workloads
The ease of use of IBM PowerVM provides key benefits such as the installation being very easy, and the VIOS is really, really stable. IBM PowerVM is performing very well in supporting complex workloads. It's simple regarding the initial setup for IBM PowerVM. We always create two VIOS servers in IBM PowerVM to be compliant for security and to be compliant also for redundancy.
Mike Neuliep - PeerSpot reviewer
Linux Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Has supported virtualization projects in side jobs but has required workarounds due to lack of maintenance
In my opinion, the best features of RHEV are that it is a real hypervisor and it is free, so it performs better than VMware. I have used the live migration feature in the past with RHEV. There is a free clone of it that is based on the open source. Live migration is a nifty feature if your app is not highly available and you need to do maintenance on a machine. You can migrate the VM off of it, do your maintenance, and move it back when you are done. RHEV has a high availability architecture with a built-in monitoring feature where you could see machines other than the one you are operating on. I tend to implement high availability not so much in RHEV, but by using standard application high availability strategies. Red Hat has another product specifically for high availability.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"PowerVM excels in efficiently managing all systems and environments, including development, UI, and production."
"The product never fails to work and is very stable in general. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"The solution is comprised of robust technology and is RISC architecture, the hardware is excellent, we never have any issues with it, the stability is excellent with amazing uptime, and the solution is very secure so we feel safe in this environment."
"The case fileserver on the web server is the most valuable feature."
"It is a complete solution, with virtual fibre, virtual network, and SRIV all stable and able to handle heavy load requirements, making it suitable for customers that require high stability and a high profile."
"However, if you have a Data Center full of physical System p servers (Frame or Blade) then PowerVM will allow you to consolidate and save money by virtualising those workloads."
"The most valuable feature is the flexibility in terms of managing the hardware resources such as RAM, CPU, and the network."
"The support is easily reachable."
"Customers are moving to open source and Red Hat is the leader in this particular space, and I think customers feel more confident running Red Hat Virtualization than VMware."
"It is easy to deal with when comes to application migration and its compatibility with the multiple component applications."
"It is a very good solution, it works very well, we haven't had any issues with any technical aspects and it works well."
"If you have a heterogenous data centre that is specially focused on Linux platforms, this is safe money, and good if you are looking for automation."
"Whenever there's an issue or problem, I contact customer support and they take it seriously."
"The solution makes migration easy."
"When you purchase RHEV, you are essentially buying a subscription license. This license can be integrated with various client types, including these integrations with the subscription."
"The initial setup is fairly straightforward and well-documented. The process is very similar to its competitors. The success of your setup depends on how well you plan."
 

Cons

"From a product perspective, I would like to see faster certification of open-source products on IBM Power Systems. While the product has robust features and functionalities, the availability and certification of certain open-source products could be improved to avoid potential challenges."
"The performance should be improved."
"The program has very limited solutions for the virtualization of containers."
"I would like for IBM to be more focuses on the cloud."
"In terms of the technology used in the product, I feel that there are some areas where improvements are required. The tool should offer better clustering options."
"If it could actually virtualize the entire platform it might be better. If you're having more than one virtualization technology, maybe there's a way to actually have less - one technology to run the data center and maybe one special virtualization for power. If it integrated with other platforms more effectively it might be better."
"The hardware licensing model could be improved because the licensing model is a bit different from the standard hardware procured."
"The licensing could be better."
"We have found the technical support for this solution to be very slow in responding to our requests for assistance."
"They don't know how to sell their great products and don’t really seem to be interested in taking care of their partners who trust and really know their products."
"The solution has a very small lifecycle."
"Its scalability can be improved. It is not easy to scale, and we hope that Red Hat can provide a more scalable system."
"RHEV can improve by keeping pace with new features and new enhancements. They should not be halted or delayed innovation because over the past quarter the enhancements have not been as fast as they have been previously."
"With RHEV, the cyberattacks should be fewer. I want RHEV to be better protected."
"My teammates and I often complain that VMware is well-documented and has a large community since it is the de facto standard. I would love to see better documentation and ease of use."
"If you wanted to go to the desktop computer side of things, it lags behind in that you need to go to something like Fedora to get all the extra bells and whistles."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"IBM PowerVM's pricing is cheap."
"The tool is competitively priced, especially right now."
"The cost is on the higher side. Typically, we invest in the machine and support for two, three, or five years."
"The solution is expensive."
"We have to purchase the product's licenses."
"The license cost is bundled with IBM Power Systems as it is limited to RISC-based IBM systems only."
"IBM PowerVM costs more than other products but the customer does not need to pay additional money for the licenses. In VMware, you need to license everything. With IBM PowerVM it is unlimited and all-inclusive in the price you pay."
"The pricing for PowerVM is on the higher. Regarding the license, it can be on a monthly or annual basis, depending on the deal. Customers may choose to pay annually, one-time, or monthly based on their agreement with the sales team. As for additional costs, customers need to pay for support if they opt for it. If not, they only pay for the hardware cost as per the agreement."
"This is an open-source solution."
"This product has a variety of licensing options available. However, the level of licensing, and therefore the cost of licensing, is dependent on the number of servers being utilized."
"The price of RHEV is high. It is an open-source solution, the price should be less. The price should not be on par with a solution, such as VMware. It's not more or equal to VMware, it's less, but the difference should be more substantial."
"We are using the free version of Red Hat."
"The solution does not require licencing but a subscription is necessary, which is very affordable."
"We buy a license for commercial use, and we also use the free editions."
"I believe we pay on a yearly basis."
"I would say the price is acceptable."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Server Virtualization Software solutions are best for your needs.
909,099 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

VL
CIO at Robusta Technology & Training
Jan 13, 2015
vSphere vs. RHEV vs. Hyper-V vs. XenServer
We have used the following functions: 1. Hypervisor: to ensure that the virtual server provide web and email services to the company, thus providing a stable operation a with single sign-on integration of an AD server and vCenter. 2. Network and Storage: centralized data server…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Construction Company
7%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise21
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business21
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise12
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM PowerVM?
IBM’s licensing model offers flexibility in subscription terms, now allowing one- to five-year options. They have introduced a subscription-based model for some systems, creating a more cost-effect...
What needs improvement with IBM PowerVM?
Maybe an automatic installation of patches would be great to see as an additional functionality in IBM PowerVM. I don't see any point to improve IBM PowerVM. For me, it's okay, and I don't have any...
What is your primary use case for IBM PowerVM?
For storage, we mainly work with FlashSystem FS5200 and with IBM Power Systems with IBM i. We are using PowerVM for the creation of partitions on the Power Systems. I'm using the VIOS in PowerVM, a...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for RHEV?
It's the open source. There's not much cost. It's very minimal comparably. Compared to what I am paying for VMware, it's negligible.
What needs improvement with RHEV?
RHEV is not improving because it has been discontinued. It has been discontinued for years. I would love to get back into RHEV, but the job market is difficult and no one is hiring. RHEV is designe...
What is your primary use case for RHEV?
I have done some consulting where I used RHEV, taking on side jobs to run virtual machines in the financial industry for a startup. The last time I used RHEV was in my home lab, but that has been d...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

PowerVM
Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Sto, Soitec, SNO, Bundesrechenzentrum GmbH, Al Mansour Holding, Baptist Health of Northeast Florida, Huhtamaki, ELK Group, IT-Informatik, Arkansas Tech University, Pneuhage
Qualcomm and Bonham's Auction House.
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM PowerVM vs. RHEV and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,099 professionals have used our research since 2012.