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Microsoft Exchange vs Zimbra Collaboration comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 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

Microsoft Exchange
Ranking in Email Applications
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
95
Ranking in other categories
Wireless Email (2nd)
Zimbra Collaboration
Ranking in Email Applications
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
28
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 10.2%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zimbra Collaboration is 6.9%, down from 9.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange10.2%
Zimbra Collaboration6.9%
Other82.9%
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

SJ
Manager IT Support at Naubahar Bottling Company (Pvt.) Ltd. Gujranwala Pakistan
Efficient email management with seamless integration
We previously used Microsoft Exchange but have moved to an MDN email solution due to cost and user growth Microsoft Exchange is a user-friendly and easy-to-deploy solution, which is beneficial for handling emails even without professional support. It is effective in managing email integration…
Muhammad Talha Baig - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Analyst and Associate Project Manager at SAMI Pharmaceuticals
One of the premium features was customized rooms tailored to the collaboration needs
Zimbra's strength lies in its individuality, and it should focus on leveraging its unique features rather than trying to emulate competitors. My organization has certified Zimbra technicians, so we believe we can utilize Zimbra certification. However, I was recently informed by Zimbra that no such certification exists. I have recently completed the test kit, and after the training, I will gain access to tickets. Therefore, if any clients are experiencing issues, we have a certified technical team available to provide support 24/7. This is how we can cater to our client's needs. I recommend Zimbra to small-scale and enterprise customers. Anyone, even those with 5 users, can opt for Zimbra. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The latest versions have gotten much better about balancing the load on the backend."
"For me, the solution is very user-friendly. I've used it a long time and I know where everything is."
"Exchange is a robust system that is well suited for an enterprise environment. It's always up, and we hardly face any technical issues. Exchange has a web interface and integrates perfectly with Microsoft Outlook. This web interface can be easily used to change the passwords from the domain controllers."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Exchange is its ease of use."
"It is a very scalable solution."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Exchange are it is always online and has broad email and file-sharing capabilities."
"Microsoft Exchange is a user-friendly and easy-to-deploy solution, which is beneficial for handling emails even without professional support."
"We have found it to be a stable solution. It is scalable and easy to install."
"The most valuable feature of Zimbra Collaboration is email functionality."
"The Zimbra Collaboration's most valuable feature is web access."
"We can control all the data in my IT infrastructure."
"One of the most valuable features involves the solution's automatic backup, which I find to be pretty simple and straightforward, and obviates the need for additional software."
"The product is easy to set up."
"The logs, troubleshooting, and tracking we have found to be the most valuable features. We have any issues with lost messages the features are useful. It is very easy to track and log."
"Zimbra Collaboration is light to manage. It works on the Linux operating system, which is far better to manage than Microsoft Windows. Microsoft Exchange works only on the Windows server. We prefer working on the Linux server for security reasons and ease of management. Zimbra Collaboration also has some integrated tools for security. It some modules to fight malware. These modules are not very powerful but are still doing a great job. Microsoft Exchange doesn't have a basic module. You have to purchase a security solution and add it to the solution. The cost of Zimbra Collaboration is one more reason for liking it. It is also very simple to migrate from Zimbra Collaboration to another email solution."
"Zimbra Collaboration has integrated a lot of their party tools and they have good documentation available."
 

Cons

"Microsoft needs to make some modifications to meet the current needs of the environment. For example, they need to add more cell service features because people work from home during the pandemic, and certain elements should be available as a mobile service."
"I would like to see the search capability of the Outlook client improved"
"Microsoft Exchange is highly stable. However, after receiving some updates it can be unstable."
"At the end of the day, the biggest area for improvement is having better and more knowledgeable support technicians."
"One major area for improvement is the need for repeated authentication when running a meeting."
"Microsoft Exchange's customer support could be faster and more knowledgeable."
"An improvement would be to combine Exchange and Teams so that emails, calls, and chats can be integrated into one window."
"The solution's hybrid deployment process could be improved, particularly for customers who initially started in the cloud and may want to return to an on-premises setup. Microsoft could make this transition more flexible."
"Zimbra Collaboration's video conferencing could be improved."
"Zimbra Collaboration does not have a solution roadmap as aggressive as the new collaboration mail solutions. Additionally, they can have a better interface and integration with single sign-on."
"The solution could use more integration with third-party tools."
"In the next release, Zimbra Collaboration should include a security feature to allow access for mobile device administrators."
"Zimbra should provide a desktop client. Right now, we are using a web browser for accessing our emails. There should also be a desktop client."
"The antispam and antivirus features are hard to understand on mobile devices."
"It does have a few bugs."
"We have had an issue with security."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate Microsoft Exchange's pricing a six out of ten."
"They are flexible when it comes to pricing, unlike most of the other vendors I have dealt with."
"Since my company is on Microsoft Cloud, we pay for the licenses per user. Compared to volume licensing, I would say the present licensing cost is not expensive."
"The solution's pricing is fine...I do think the tool offers value for money."
"I rate Microsoft Exchange a four out of ten for pricing because it is quite cheap, and many companies use the solution."
"The solution is expensive to maintain because it requires frequent updates and ongoing server maintenance."
"I don't have enough information about the licensing costs of Microsoft Exchange, but I do know that you need two types of licenses to run it. You need the product key and the client access key to activate Microsoft Exchange. This means that apart from the standard Microsoft Exchange licensing fees, you have to pay additional costs."
"We are currently using enterprise licenses for the solution. They are different pricing models available. There are individual, cloud-based, and enterprise licenses all with different pricing models. The larger the number of users, the lesser the price. For small to medium companies like us, we feel it is expensive."
"The solution is competitively priced."
"When it comes to the licensing of Zimbra Collaboration, my license covers the servers and I find its terms to be much simpler than those of Microsoft Exchange."
"We do not pay for licenses to use this solution."
"Zimbra Collaboration offers a good price-to-feature ratio."
"We pay yearly licenses for Zimbra Collaboration."
"I use Zimbra Collaboration's community version. We may move to the enterprise version since prices are affordable."
"On a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the price a four"
"Zimbra Collaboration is less expensive than Microsoft Exchange. Zimbra works for small companies because it is not expensive. Zimbra Collaboration has more security tools than Microsoft Exchange. If you are choosing between Zimbra Collaboration and Microsoft Exchange, you have to take into account the cost of security tools with Microsoft Exchange. When you purchase Microsoft Exchange, you will also have to purchase tools for security, which adds to the cost. The migration from Zimbra Collaboration to another email solution is very simple and easy. Migration from Microsoft Exchange to another email solution is very difficult. Microsoft doesn't allow migration that easily. In fact, you have to pay for tools to do that. You have to buy some expensive tools to migrate."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business41
Midsize Enterprise28
Large Enterprise35
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

How does Zimbra Collaboration compare with Microsoft Exchange?
Zimbra is a free, open source collaborative software suite. The features I like best are the ease of integration and the email, calendar, and collaboration server with web interface. In addition, I...
What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?
The initial setup was straightforward and fast.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?
I am aware of pricing aspects, and I would say it is affordable for what it is.
What do you like most about Zimbra Collaboration?
The most valuable feature of Zimbra for our team's productivity is its efficiency in handling email communication.
What needs improvement with Zimbra Collaboration?
When it comes to administration tasks like configuring specific filters or group signatures, I have to dig into the configuration since there's nothing in the graphical or web interface. The soluti...
 

Also Known As

Exchange, MS Exchange
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting
NEC Biglobe, City of Ventura, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Hola Publishing, BIG, Sleepwell, LaFayette College, Xmission, DNA, Ring Line, Future Group, TIGC
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Exchange vs. Zimbra Collaboration and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
882,160 professionals have used our research since 2012.