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Microsoft Exchange Online vs Zimbra Cloud 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

Microsoft Exchange Online
Ranking in Email Applications
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
90
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Zimbra Cloud
Ranking in Email Applications
16th
Average Rating
4.0
Reviews Sentiment
4.7
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of Microsoft Exchange Online is 13.8%, down from 15.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zimbra Cloud is 0.3%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

NancyHartman - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
OmarOrta - PeerSpot reviewer
Quick solution, but not very user-friendly or suitable for collaboration
It's not a good solution for collaboration. We're using it because of the price. It's not very strong or comparable with Office 365. An additional feature I would like to see is the ability to connect from different devices. Zimbra could be more user-friendly and deploy security rules. The integration with Outlook could be better to share agendas.

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 of Microsoft Exchange Online is if you have people that are geographically distributed from each other is good. For example, if you have people in the United States, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia, having an online solution works best because then you can reach the scale of the data centers that are available by Microsoft. Additionally, if you're only going to have two to three people using the solution the cost is a lot less than having an onsite server and licensing. It is highly beneficial in these areas."
"The solution is scalable."
"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 communication and see user activity"
"The best part of this solution is the security it offers."
"It's not hard to set up."
"Exchange Online's most valuable features are two-step verification and security."
"Intuitive and easy to use."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Exchange Online are the frequent updates. They upgrade and optimize the features to make them better and better. They have a very strong ecosystem and they integrate together."
"It's a fast solution."
 

Cons

"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."
"There is room for improvement in terms of security, as it could be better."
"I don't really like the response time of the web GUI for administration."
"The price could be an area of concern for many."
"This product is too complex to use."
"Migration can be an issue if you do not have a good audit process."
"The solution's performance can be improved when you are trying to access it remotely."
"When initially setting up, it took a bit of time because we had a lot of PST files with the users, and we had to migrate them batch by batch."
"It's not a good solution for collaboration. We're using it because of the price. It's not very strong or comparable with Office 365."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We have yearly licensing costs."
"I think that the price is a little high, especially considering that Google have a similar, free email solution."
"The pricing could be improved."
"Microsoft Exchange Online is too expensive."
"The subscription fee is monthly."
"The pricing is really high. It's higher compared to other services."
"It is a reasonable solution."
"I would say the solution is reasonable and affordable."
"It's an open-source solution so it's free."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Educational Organization
6%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange Online?
The cost of Microsoft Exchange Online varies between $4 and $25 per user per month, depending on the different plans we use for different users.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Exchange Online?
The mobile version of Microsoft Outlook has limited features compared to the desktop version. We find fewer features in the mobile version of Microsoft Exchange Online, so that could be improved if...
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Also Known As

Exchange Online, Exchange Online Plan 1, Exchange Online Plan 2, MS Exchange Online
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd., Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Blue Star Infotech, Scitec Nutrition, Resolution Films, British Airways, Empire Cinemas, InnoGames
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and others in Email Applications. Updated: May 2025.
854,338 professionals have used our research since 2012.