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Oracle Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs SUSE Linux Enterprise 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:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Oracle Linux is 10.2%, down from 15.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is 9.6%, down from 12.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SUSE Linux Enterprise is 7.1%, down from 8.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

Thomas Waltair - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides outstanding performance and resource savings with effective customer service
The solution works closely with the operating system kernel, which gives better performance in terms of multi-threading and a distributed database. We work based on Oracle specifications, and whenever there are critical patches and vulnerability tests, we update with the latest security patches. The collaboration with Oracle WebLogic and other Oracle tools enhances performance as well.
Bruce Lundberg - PeerSpot reviewer
Reliable patch management, high uptime, and incredible knowledge base
In terms of security, it does a lot of things that most people still turn off. SELinux is turned on by default. They have pretty good firewall rules in their defaults. The audit rules always take tweaking, but, overall, it comes out of the box not too bad. I used to write scripts to harden them from there. There are multiple ways to provision and patch. You have everything from local repositories to doing it by hand. Their knowledge base is incredible. There is so much information out there. It has never taken me longer than 30 minutes to find an answer to anything, even very tough ones. One company I worked for was a security company, and we did a lot of patching on everything. It was designed around security and email hosting, and uptime was pretty much whatever we wanted it to be. I have had a couple of times when the uptime was bad, but it was caused by a third-party solution. In fact, the Norton antivirus was definitely the worst. Red Hat had nothing to do with it.
Dominique Locksley - PeerSpot reviewer
Has good kernel modules and upgrades
I like how the tool handles kernel modules and upgrades - we rarely have issues after upgrades, unlike with other Linux distributions like Oracle Linux or Ubuntu. The kernel module management is excellent. Changes made in one version typically work the same in other versions too, which isn't always the case with other distributions. There's also lots of information and community support available if you run into any problems, both on the official website and in forums and user groups. I know many people who use it specifically, so it's easy to get independent support if needed. I've been working with the tool for a long time, since 2003, before they became SUSE Linux Enterprise. It's always been one of the most admin-friendly Linux versions.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"When it comes to my favorite features of Oracle Linux, I have been impressed with its ability to facilitate a smooth and efficient workflow system. This system is responsible for gathering data from multiple cameras and transferring this information to the backend systems. The system comprises around 10 to 12 servers, all of which are integrated into a highly reliable and redundant cluster setup. Currently, we are using Red Hat Linux for our production needs, however, we have plans to switch over to Oracle Linux in the near future. The reason for this change is due to the specialized nature of our system which precludes the use of cloud computing capabilities."
"It is secure in terms of the network, the viruses, etc."
"It is a stable solution. We rarely face any issues with the machine."
"The features that I have found to be the most valuable are the performance, stability, and support that Oracle offers for the solution."
"It is a stable solution with a secure operating system."
"It is very compatible because it's from the same product family, so it makes the work very easy."
"The advantages of Oracle Linux are that it is secure and provides end-to-end support from Oracle, from the operating system to the application ERP."
"The installation is straightforward and it did not take very long."
"It is hardware-independent. We can use Dell, HPE, or any other hardware. It is also more reasonable than the other operating systems."
"The support for OpenShift and CoreOS is valuable, as we frequently use support services and rely heavily on Red Hat support for assistance."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux has a vast set of features."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux is super fast, and our systems have less downtime."
"We find the Red Hat Satellite deployments very useful. It integrates well with other solutions."
"Things like packaging and the stability you get from things being downstream are valuable. A lot of times, upgrades are more security-based and not feature-based, so things do not break API-wise as we go forward a lot of times"
"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."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers many features I appreciate, especially the increasing maturity of the operating system and its automation platform."
"The most important feature is the automatic kernel lifecycle subscription, which is critical for us because the server cannot go down once we start offering any services on the cluster."
"SUSE Linux was stable for me. I did not experience any problems with its stability."
"The tool’s idempotency ensures all configurations are in place at all times."
"The technical support services are good."
"The product's initial setup phase was easy."
"The stability of the solution is good. We have not had any issue with performance."
"It's a flexible solution."
"It is very easy to maintain, migrate and upgrade."
 

Cons

"The deployment is a bit complex."
"Since it is a VM, it gets slow. It can be an area for improvement."
"Performance can always be improved."
"The installation documentation needs to be improved"
"It will be better to consolidate all the features in one release instead of sporadic releases."
"Oracle Linux could improve by having better compatibility with other solutions. Some aspects of the configuration are difficult. I was using Oracle Linux on a Mac computer and it was very difficult to set up."
"The tool’s user interface needs to improve."
"The product's support is expensive."
"The solution lacks proper documentation."
"When there is downtime from a system admin perspective, this solution could improve how they communicate why this down time is happening."
"Red Hat training is phenomenal, but it is expensive. There has to be a better way to onboard new engineers into Linux to really and truly compete with Microsoft."
"Red Hat Enterprise Linux licensing is a bit complex. The solution operates on a subscription-based model, which may not provide immediate return on investment for small to medium-sized organizations."
"I use Linux on Satellite with Ansible infrastructure. It would be great if there were a universal interface to control RHEL's policy from Satellite. It could be a dashboard showing which policies were enabled on what system and allow you to apply them from the dashboard."
"Continuous improvement is essential to enhance user experiences and address evolving needs."
"I prefer a product that offers everything in a yearly subscription, like VMware, and I think RHEL should consider offering it as well."
"I am still trying to figure out the features it has. There is so much that it can do."
"Sometimes it is a bit of work for developers to change the configurations."
"They should improve their educational portal."
"All distributions of Linux could use some improvement."
"We have had trouble integrating Autodesk with the SUSE manager."
"SUSE could make more APIs available."
"Compared with the competition, of late actually, the solution has increased its pricing tremendously."
"The software management side was a bit difficult, especially compared to Ubuntu."
"The solution has to be fine-tuned with better documentation."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is a license required for this solution and we are on an annual license."
"We have a yearly license, and I think Oracle charges too much."
"We pay for a license for this solution annually."
"The solution is less expensive than Solaris and allows for use of existing hardware."
"The price of Oracle Linux overall could be less expensive."
"We pay a monthly subscription fee."
"The cost is relatively affordable."
"Nowadays, Oracle is very open toward price negotiation; they negotiate well with their clients"
"We are an educational institution and as such, what we pay is less than the average company."
"The combined cost of implementing in hybrid and cloud environments to fulfill all our client's needs can be considerable."
"We purchased our license from Red Hat."
"We are coming from CentOS, so technically, our total cost of ownership has gone up, but it is still cheaper than Windows for a database server and things like that."
"We use open source. We only have a subscription for support."
"The licensing model of Red Hat Enterprise Linux is good, but lower prices are always preferable."
"We have a site license on a yearly basis. Generally, we're okay with its price, but everything could be cheaper."
"I have limited information regarding Red Hat Enterprise Linux pricing and licensing, but our managers appear satisfied."
"Regarding pricing, everybody would want it to be cheaper."
"The price of SUSE Linux Enterprise could be cheaper. Other solutions, such as"
"When we first implemented this product, we had licenses for support."
"The tool is expensive compared to Red Hat. I rate its pricing a nine out of ten."
"The product's licensing options align well with the evolving landscape of Linux variants."
"I have to pay for a license in order to get support."
"SUSE Linux Enterprise is reasonably priced compared to other operating systems. I find it's a much better option for us than Oracle, for example, because of the pricing structure. The pricing is easier to explain to clients and makes it easier to get clients' commitment. The licensing is also simpler to manage and keep track of. Their responsiveness is great - they give feedback very quickly when we ask questions about licensing or other aspects. This helps ensure we're always at the gold standard regarding licensing and everything related to SUSE Linux Enterprise."
"The license we pay is for Oracle. We make use of the community edition."
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Comparison Review

it_user281973 - PeerSpot reviewer
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
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How does Oracle Linux compare with Solaris?
When comparing Oracle Linux and Solaris, I believe that Linux is more secure and more flexible. It is also very suita...
Which would you choose - Ubuntu Linux or Oracle Linux?
Ubunto Linux is a complete Linux operating system that is freely available with both community and professional suppo...
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 st...
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)?
Though a bit expensive compared to competitors, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is still recommended because it works...
What do you like most about SUSE Linux Enterprise?
The initial setup is simple and takes five minutes for deployment and if you have automation in place, it will take f...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SUSE Linux Enterprise?
I used the open-source version, so there were no setup costs.
What needs improvement with SUSE Linux Enterprise?
The software management side was a bit difficult, especially compared to Ubuntu. The software manager was different, ...
 

Also Known As

Oracle Enterprise Linux
Red Hat Enterprise Linux, RHEL
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

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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
Air India, Akademicki Szpital Kliniczny (ASK), Allone, Altran, Apollo, ARCHIVA, Asia Innovatory Management School, ATLAS ELEKTRONIK GmbH, AutoData Norge AS, Baldor Electric, Business Connexion, CASIO, Ciclum Farma, Delta Lloyd, Edumate , HPE,  SAP SE,  Lenovo, BMW, T-Systems, UCX, Turners & Growers, Shenzhen Development Bank, Bosch Group, JK Tyres & Industries, IOCL, European Space Agency, Daimler AG, China Minsheng Banking Corp, Café Coffee Day, Unisys,  Petrochina Company Ltd, Fitch Ratings, ABeam Consulting Co Ltd, Tyro Payments, Rackspace, Pacific Textiles, ...
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