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MySQL on Ubuntu vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 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

MySQL on Ubuntu
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
28th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
1st
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
388
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

NP
Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
Database platform has supported secure ecommerce growth but still needs simpler scaling and monitoring
MySQL on Ubuntu can be improved in a couple of things in my mind. I can consider performance-wise, scalability-wise, reliability, availability, security, and operational simplicity. Right now it is good enough for ourselves or our organization. But if it is considered from a scalability perspective, currently, MySQL on Ubuntu scales fairly well. Write scaling is hard and manual sharding is required. In that case, what we can improve is native sharding support, better distributed write handling, and easier multi-primary setups. For performance optimization, I can say currently the limitation is the required expert tuning. The default configuration is conservative. What we need to do in that is auto-tuning based on the hardware, better index recommendations, and smarter query optimization. Another point is high availability. Currently, what happens is that replication setup is complex. If you make the setup but if you want to replicate it, it will be complex. What we have to do is build in automatic failover, easier cluster setup, and faster recovery time. The fourth thing is security enhancements. Currently, whatever security is set up is manual. Misconfiguration risk is there. What we can improve in that is secure-by-default configuration and mandatory SSL in production because SSL is very important nowadays. This thing we can improve. Stronger password policy by default. For the security perspective, we can provide a stronger password policy by default. For recovery and backup simplicity, I can say that currently, we need scripting for the backups and recovery testing is a manual thing. What we can do here is built-in backup scheduler. We can run one scheduler and every day it will take the backups. If we can have it, it will be great. One-click restore and automated recovery validation. Those things we can improve. Another thing is observability and monitoring. Currently, what happens is limited built-in visibility and external tools required for that. What we can do here is provide native performance dashboard, query heat maps, and bottleneck detection. Those things we can improve. Another thing I can consider is at the Ubuntu level. Because if you consider, the OS and DB configuration is disconnected and kernel tuning is also manual. What we can improve in that is DB-aware kernel tuning, better file system defaults for the DB workloads, and pre-tuned DB server profiles. I can say cloud-native enhancements. Right now we are working on a traditional architecture and manual cloud optimization. It would be better to have Kubernetes native auto-scaling and storage-aware tuning. Those can improve my area for that. Another thing is developer experience. Debugging a query is hard. Currently, if we are running on Ubuntu and code something, there are no other tools we are using. Debugging is very hard. Also, error guidance is limited. We can say that a clearer error message, query rewrite suggestions, and schema change safety checks by default. Those kinds of improvements we can do. I can say I mostly covered the improvements needed for MySQL on Ubuntu, but one thing I can say is that there is also some limitation on the governance and compliance base. Auditing needs configuration. Some configuration we need to read. Compliance reporting also is manual right now. We can improve that with built-in audit templates, compliance-ready modes we can provide, and easier data masking we can do. Those things we can add also.
RO
Server administrator at Northrop Grumman
Empowers collaboration through streamlined integration and extensive documentation
Improving Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be tough, however, a significant area is collaboration tools. We have many Windows users that use Outlook and Skype or Teams to collaborate on our network. They want Linux desktops due to the fact that they want to use containers. Their biggest complaint is, 'I need two workstations to do my container work and one to collaborate.' If somehow RHEL can start introducing or collaborating with Teams and Outlook so their users can work with their Windows peers, that would be great. But I don't think that's available yet. Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, there needs to be more of an education piece to it. For instance, when purchasing 10 or 100 node licenses, they could suggest, 'We also offer this 1,000 node license instead, and it'll save you specific amounts.' Just more education on their offerings would be helpful, because usually, we're coming out with the requirements, and then they just provide it to us. They could inform us about saving by bundling it differently or using alternative approaches.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"MySQL on Ubuntu combination handles it in a very efficient way."
"I appreciate MySQL on Ubuntu for its relational tables which are faster to read, contributing to the performance in simple applications."
"The primary aspect of MySQL on Ubuntu that I appreciate is that it is extremely reliable among the RDBMS that I have used, and another important quality is that it extends with volume very well as most RDBMS don't scale very well, but this one scales very well and has been very reliable and highly available."
"MySQL on Ubuntu has positively impacted my organization by enabling me to use a database that is very easy to use, quick to set up, and inexpensive; this database provides business value because every web application nowadays needs some type of database, so for those that require SQL databases, MySQL on Ubuntu is a great way to do it."
"MySQL on Ubuntu is very simple, easy, and quick to use for people with database expertise."
"I have saved a significant amount of time because it's faster to create features with machine learning since it's very fast, and so we get the result in a few seconds."
"MySQL on Ubuntu is the base for most of our applications that are based on Linux, so it is wonderful."
"MySQL on Ubuntu is a great platform to deploy your data as it integrates well with services for ETL, analytics, or even machine learning platforms, and we have not encountered a single downtime while achieving high scalability, availability, and strong data security within our VPC."
"The feature that I am enjoying right now is the actual LEAP program that they created for the actual in-place upgrades. I am upgrading from Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) helps me solve pain points with all the integrated tools that it brings to us, including all the Ansible Towers that we exceedingly use."
"By using Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), our team saves approximately 10 hours per week on routine patching and monitoring housekeeping tasks, which allows us to focus more on innovation topics."
"RHEL has made our operations more reliable by giving us a more repeatable process. After we've built it once, we know it will work the same way the next time we build it. It has reduced the time I spend training my operations team, and the cost of ownership is low."
"The frequent updates are valuable."
"We're very happy with the amount of security customization we've been able to do with RHEL. The fact that Red Hat is really on top of security issues is also valuable. We get daily emails from Red Hat letting us know of possible issues and fixes, which is incredibly helpful for us."
"Normally, if I need help making a customer experience better, I can have a conversation with the business teams at Red Hat, and then we can find a collaborative solution."
"Red Hat is open source, so what we get with Red Hat Enterprise Linux is valuable support that is not included in the free version."
 

Cons

"Sometimes, if the indexing is not done very well, I have noticed slowness, but largely, it has performed pretty well."
"I would say that MySQL on Ubuntu can be improved particularly in its scaling capabilities."
"I cannot answer regarding improvements. As I said, I am not watching, and I don't know what is in between the application and the database."
"Despite some issues such as security concerns when changing passwords which compromised the database, it remains a very good database engine."
"Integration is always important regarding operating systems and these types of products, so being able to integrate and export or import from JSON structures is very critical."
"Currently, what happens is that replication setup is complex; if you make the setup but if you want to replicate it, it will be complex."
"MySQL on Ubuntu can be improved because it has limited analytics query capabilities rather than other competitors."
"A completely new setup should not be required when upgrading to a new version."
"Typically, when we open a support case with Red Hat, it is assigned to the first level of support. Even when we clearly outline the issue and request a timely response, the case often takes longer than expected to resolve."
"The licensing model is kind of a mess."
"The solution's modules feature could be better."
"Risks, for example, specific to Linux, need improvements."
"Even though I don't have complaints, I would like them to focus even more on what they're doing with Lightspeed and the AI assistance, so they could look more into that."
"I recommend that they improve their virtualization product, specifically the management console."
"If I had to imagine one thing that could be even better about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), it would be more information in the man pages."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"It's been good, but I don't really get involved with that."
"Its pricing and licensing are reasonable."
"It is cost-effective."
"For the basic operating system, its price is fair. It is not cheap, and it is also not expensive. For the OpenShift or OpenStack implementation, the cost is a little higher than what I would expect, but it is doable. For a storage solution, it is almost impossible to pay. In comparison to open-source competitors, RHEL has the most cost-effective open-source subscription model."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux licensing is quite costly, but I personally do not deal with pricing."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers a straightforward pricing and licensing model."
"When I started using it, Red Hat Enterprise Linux was free for all and open-source. It is now paid with access to many features to upgrade and use their services."
"I find the cost of this solution expensive."
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Comparison Review

it_user281973 - PeerSpot reviewer
Storage and VMware Expert at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Aug 24, 2017
It's improved our company's system environments that run Oracle databases.
Red Hat is mission critical to our environment Red Hat has improved the mission critical environments running Oracle databases, while CentOS has improved our web environment and MySQL. Oracle and SAP Environment and all HPC environments. 10 years No issues Very stable i don´t find any problem…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business87
Midsize Enterprise49
Large Enterprise266
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for MySQL on Ubuntu?
My experience with the pricing is that we are using free.
What needs improvement with MySQL on Ubuntu?
I believe there could be improvements for MySQL on Ubuntu, particularly with AI integration in scripting tools such as GitHub Copilot, which provides examples and solutions for errors encountered d...
What is your primary use case for MySQL on Ubuntu?
I have used MySQL on Ubuntu over the years, and I am currently working with some Docker products, but most of my experience with Docker is over Windows, not Linux. Currently, I am not using MySQL o...
Which would you choose - RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux) or CentOS?
Red Hat Enterprise Linux is fantastic. It is an inexpensive solution that has excellent security, performance, and stability, and also lots of features. I specifically like that the solution has fe...
What do you like most about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?
It is open source. We can customize it as per our requirements.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?
Regarding pricing, setup cost, and licensing, the pricing is good; however, licensing is a bit confusing.
 

Also Known As

No data available
Red Hat Enterprise Linux, RHEL, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for AWS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Travel Channel, Mohawk Industries, Hilti, Molecular Health, Exolgan, Hotelplan Group, Emory University, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, HCA Healthcare, Paychex, UPS, Intermountain Healthcare, Brinker International, TransUnion, Union Bank, CA Technologies
Find out what your peers are saying about MySQL on Ubuntu vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.