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IIS vs IIS PHP Windows 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

IIS
Ranking in Application Server
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Application Infrastructure (1st)
IIS PHP Windows
Ranking in Application Server
9th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.0
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Application Server category, the mindshare of IIS is 7.6%, up from 6.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IIS PHP Windows is 0.6%. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Server Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IIS7.6%
IIS PHP Windows0.6%
Other91.8%
Application Server
 

Featured Reviews

Krishnakumar Natarajan - PeerSpot reviewer
Systems Engineer at Atos
Designs and manages multiple websites while ensuring data backup and disaster recovery
I have experience with AWS, and I am most familiar with the server environment, as we just use the server environment and then use Microsoft products on an AWS environment. I have experience with Windows Server IIS, which I ran on my own on-premise data center. The website was developed and then hosted, and through IIS, we managed the servers. The manageability within the IIS environment is not very difficult. For server management, you need to ensure data backup, data restore, and you have a DR configured to keep the database intact. It was done on-premises, so I had no problem doing that. If you have to go to the cloud, then you should have the storage connected to the IIS server and also have a DR set up for that. I didn't use Microsoft Azure tools, but since it is a Microsoft product, Azure has all the portability, so you don't have to worry about compatibility on the cloud. On a scale of 1-10, I would rate this solution a 10.
surajku32 - PeerSpot reviewer
SR Solution Engineer at VATSIN TECHNOLOGY PVT LTD
Hosting php apps on windows has delivered fast performance and met strict compliance needs
The main feature is hosting PHP applications in IIS. If we are hosting through XAMPP or another solution, it will be very slow. However, using IIS PHP Windows, the application performance will be very fast. If you want to host your PHP or Laravel-based application in Windows, you can definitely use this extension. Using this extension, you can host your PHP or Laravel application in IIS, and it will have super speed. If you use another solution, it will not give you that speed.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Windows Server IIS is stable."
"IIS works natively with Windows Server without any issues in publishing certificates."
"We use the solution for our customer's web applications."
"The solution is very simple to use and easy to deploy."
"It's very easy to publish."
"Microsoft's technical support has always been very good."
"It is an easy-to-use and secure program."
"The initial setup is simple."
"IIS PHP Windows has positively impacted my organization by helping to deploy customer websites that have very small budgets, allowing the organization to assist those clients, which builds trust with them."
"In my experience, the best features IIS PHP Windows offers include allowing us to host the PHP application with better performance compared to XAMPP, which we were previously using because XAMPP was giving slow performance."
"If you want to host your PHP or Laravel-based application in Windows, you can definitely use this extension, and using this extension you can host your PHP or Laravel application in IIS and it will have super speed."
"IIS PHP Windows impacts my organization positively because my applications perform very well here when compared with XAMPP."
 

Cons

"We'd like future versions to be more stable."
"The only disadvantage I see is that the documentation is a bit difficult to find."
"The documentation of IIS could be better. They are not easily accessible. I had to use YouTube and other online resources to learn how to use the solution properly."
"The customer service and support team can be improved."
"This solution needs to be easier for cases where you want to have an IIS cluster."
"In the next release, I would like to see better integration between the cloud environment and the on-premises environment."
"IIS could improve by Microsoft Windows improving the update services. We would like to be able to update all systems that are connected. The WSA service has to be in good order to accomplish this."
"Occasionally, we encounter performance issues with IIS where it becomes unresponsive and requires a solution restart."
"I chose a rating of seven out of ten because IIS PHP Windows is good for small enterprises with manageable aspects, but it has very high resource usage and requires a Windows server license, contributing to the overall cost."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is no license needed to use the solution."
"The price of Windows Server IIS is expensive. They have a large user base, and they charge a little bit too much."
"The price is good."
"There is an annual license to use this solution and the price could be better."
"The price of the cloud system is a bit high."
"IIS comes along with an OS license from Microsoft. Others can opt for a perpetual-based licensing model to be able to use the system."
"I was using the trial version of IIS inside my virtual machines."
"The product's price is not high."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Construction Company
48%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Healthcare Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business29
Midsize Enterprise11
Large Enterprise22
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - IIS or NGINX Plus?
IIS is a flexible, secure, and manageable web server to host anything on the web. IIS’s scalable and open architecture can handle the most demanding tasks. From media streaming to web applications,...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IIS?
For the pricing, setup cost, and licensing for IIS, as a Microsoft product, I didn't think much about separately purchasing an IIS product as it is part of Microsoft Windows. We bought a developmen...
What needs improvement with IIS?
I see that IIS has maintained the same interface for a long time, so they could potentially use more automation or integrate Copilot into it to make it easier to use. I have not accessed or checked...
What needs improvement with IIS PHP Windows?
IIS PHP Windows can be improved regarding its higher resource usage. Unlike a Linux web server that is very lightweight, the resource usage is higher on Windows. I chose a rating of seven out of te...
What is your primary use case for IIS PHP Windows?
My main use case for IIS PHP Windows is to deploy it for WordPress websites and Laravel custom applications so they can run on IIS using the PHP provider and PHP version. I used IIS PHP Windows for...
What advice do you have for others considering IIS PHP Windows?
Regarding IIS PHP Windows' security, I think its governance and security are solid as long as you configure Windows Active Directory correctly and all Windows authentication so that no other users ...
 

Also Known As

Windows Server IIS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Erste Bank Group, NJVC, Samsung Electronics, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Tata Steel Europe, Urban Software Institute
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about IIS vs. IIS PHP Windows and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,988 professionals have used our research since 2012.