Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Magic xpa Application Platform vs Microsoft .NET Framework comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 2025

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

Magic xpa Application Platform
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
14th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
Application Server (9th), Mobile Development Platforms (9th)
Microsoft .NET Framework
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
53
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of Magic xpa Application Platform is 1.2%, down from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft .NET Framework is 6.1%, down from 6.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Infrastructure
 

Featured Reviews

Mylsamy T. - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables us to develop more than 90 applications in-house, which are used across our organization
It's a bit difficult to work with purely web-based applications to get the data and display it. There have been a few times when the connection was disconnected between the server and your browser. The connectivity on browser-built applications needs to be improved. The mobile application development could be easier. They could include different external applications, like finger sensors. I'm not sure whether it's in version 3.8 or not.
Alberto Carioni - PeerSpot reviewer
Integration with advanced tools improves development speed and efficiency
I use Azure DevOps because we have everything implemented in .NET by Microsoft, and we are integrated with the collection of the requirements, the .NET pipeline, and directing Azure DevOps for Azure Plus. I am more of a developer, so from an infrastructure point of view, I do not have feedback or…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Magic’s unique approach to development ensures that the programmer stays focused on the objective of the program (i.e. display all customers in California), instead of the repetitive tasks that surround it (i.e. connect to database, open customers table, create the query to retrieve records within the specified criteria, fetch the result of the query, connect it to a data grid, etc.)."
"Without the need to compile code, the time spent in the development cycle is greatly reduced, allowing the programmer to test modifications to a program immediately after they have been saved."
"Speed of development and database connectivity (MS SQL, Oracle, DB2, Btrieve/Pervasive PSQL, ODBC, MySql, and SQLite)."
"Being able to make changes to existing programs to comply with last minute changes in requirements, and/or being able to fix, test, review, and deploy new code in a manner of hours instead of days, definitely gives us a huge advantage over our competitors and this is only possible thanks to Magic’s speed of programming."
"Magic’s Database Gateway allows the logic of the program to be isolated from the underlying database. This provides the flexibility not only to move existing programs to different database environments without the need to change the logic in the program but also allows the programmer access to different databases without the need to know how to "talk" to them."
"The best feature of Magic is the development time. The time it takes to develop something is incredibly fast if you compare Magic with, for example, Java."
"The solution makes the managing and adapting of the software very easy."
"The ability to use the same development environment for both Windows and Android applications. Magic xpa also supports iOS applications."
"Basically, .NET is simply is the easiest programming language to use, based on my experience."
"The new .NET Core has those middlewares, which are awesome from a security standpoint. With the old Framework or the newer Framework, middleware is basically an event pipeline. You configure and register it, and it handles things centrally. A simple example is logging. With the old Framework, you needed to try/catch blocks everywhere. Here, you configure the logging handler once, and it captures exceptions across the application. I really like the middleware pattern."
"The most valuable thing about Microsoft .NET Framework is that it is an enterprise-grade language and platform."
"Given that it's cross-platform right now, where you can use it on Windows and Mac, that is the single most significant feature that has resulted in wider adoption of .NET."
"The most valuable features for us are web frameworks like MVC, Web API, and WCS."
"In my opinion, the best thing about Microsoft .NET is the fully featured framework. It provides most of the things which a normal developer requires of any application out of the box."
"The .NET Framework simplified operations dealing with the allocation and deallocation of memory spaces and the additional processing resources."
"Microsoft .NET Framework reduces the cost of entry and enables the development of applications with mature and enterprise features, thereby lowering the entry barriers."
 

Cons

"Support is very bad."
"In the next version of the Magic xpa Application Platform, I want tables or small programs where I can directly add expressions. I can do it on SQL, but it would make life much easier if that specification were added to the platform."
"The Android environment is missing a number of functions for file/folder manipulation, sending receiving text messages (SMS) and the menuing options are limited. For now, it is left to the developer to write his/her own Java functions to include in the APK."
"When you have several tasks, you open a screen in a task in developing mode, and you don't see the parent screens. Debugging lacks the effects to solve problems. You have to do it first in a kind of studio. Then you have to be sure that you can do it in Magic because there is almost nothing to debug it. It's practically impossible to debug. You have to be sure before you put your snippets."
"I would like to see a spell checker included with optional language support. Currently, this has to be purchased from a third-party."
"Magic has a tradition, when it adds new technologies/features to the Magic development tool, to provide either no documentation or documentation that does not provide an organized approach for bringing this new technology/feature to experienced Magic programmers."
"It is missing basic charting tools for bar/pie/series charts. It is left to the developer to acquire and deploy charting tools or the customer to purchase a third-party reporting tool to produce charts."
"There is room for improvement in Magic's marketing and licensing. I would like to see more integration of web functionality."
"The runtime environment for ASP.NET needs improvement to make it more universal."
"In my opinion, this solution can be improved by providing out-of-the-box support for different types of libraries."
"The cloud features must be improved."
"The integration capability of the product with AI is an area with certain shortcomings, where improvements are required."
"Microsoft .NET Framework has a steep learning curve, which could be improved."
"Improvements are needed in .NET development, particularly in a backend scenario."
"The solution is difficult to learn if someone is learning it for the first time."
"Microsoft could improve .NET Framework by providing more resources to help users understand the solution."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There are different licenses, we have the application and the online application. There are two different licenses for two different program sites for the Magic xpa Application Platform."
"It's not cheap. The licenses are not cheap. Not at all. They cost much money. There are other tools with free licenses but Magic asks for a lot of money."
"Magic is not the cheapest IDE out there. If you are considering Magic xpa, you should do a cost-benefit analysis to feel comfortable with your decision. The Magic sales staff is very helpful in providing pricing."
"The licensing is too costly."
"My clients have to purchase additional licenses in order to use what I built. It's not a fair approach."
"The main problem with the Magic xpa Application Platform is pricing. You have to pay a lot of money for development, and you also have to pay a lot for the deployments and runtime, while in most competitors, you have to pay a lot for one of the two and not both."
"The licensing cost varies because nowadays Magic has tailor-made offerings for clients. I think the solution is worth the money."
"The cost for developers is high because you have to pay for licenses as well as runtime."
"Considering the bigger picture, opting for the Microsoft ecosystem can be beneficial and it is priced well. When relying on entirely open-source solutions, you may encounter challenges associated with dealing with multiple vendors and potentially compromised security measures. However, it is important to note that Microsoft could enhance its performance when it comes to addressing critical security concerns."
"If you want to develop an enterprise-level application, you have to purchase the enterprise-level development license."
"The solution is a bit costly when compared to open source products or open gear licenses."
"Microsoft .NET Framework is very cost-effective for corporate users."
"For the moment I can only give the product a rating of five out of ten since only some of the customers will be satisfied, those that have the financial resources for hosting a platform on Windows Server."
"The product’s pricing is a bit high."
"In the interim, there's no need to purchase videos for viewing. Microsoft has made significant moves in the .NET space, starting with their response in Visual Studio Code and now providing Visual Studio entirely for free. This is a notable shift from the past when we used to pay substantial amounts for technical subscriptions. Previously, a group of ten developers could cost several thousand dollars annually for licensing. However, the current trend is to offer these tools for free to maintain their dominance in the developer market. The market dynamics have changed, and now developers can freely download Visual Studio, making it a preferred choice over other paid options."
"I rate the solution's pricing a two out of ten because .NET is an open-source framework. You don't have to pay for a license."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Application Infrastructure solutions are best for your needs.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Government
9%
Insurance Company
8%
Real Estate/Law Firm
12%
Construction Company
11%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What do you like most about Microsoft .NET Framework?
Microsoft .NET Framework continually innovates, particularly in Visual Studio, which focuses on improving languages, debugging, and .NET functionality.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft .NET Framework?
The company is not paying anything for the license. I am not familiar with this area. For us, it's free.
What needs improvement with Microsoft .NET Framework?
There may be some topics regarding connectivity and management of certificates that require attention. We are currently facing some issues.
 

Also Known As

uniPaaS
MS .NET Framework
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ADD, Cape plc, Adecco, Kuno Kinzoku Industry Co., GE Capital, Dove Tree, CBS Outdoor, Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Center, Allstate Life Insurance Company, Titan Software Systems
Curtin University, Rockwell Automation, Aruba Networks, Insurity Inc., City of Barcelona, Pennsylvania DCNR, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, A1 Telekom Austria AG, Eastman Chemical Company
Find out what your peers are saying about Magic xpa Application Platform vs. Microsoft .NET Framework and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.