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Ubuntu Linux vs Windows 10 vs Windows Server 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.6
Organizations achieve substantial savings and increased productivity with Ubuntu Linux, highlighting its cost-effectiveness, stability, and strong ROI.
Sentiment score
2.4
Windows 10 enhances productivity with speed, compatibility, user-friendly interface, protection, and offers cost-effective returns within 18 months.
Sentiment score
5.4
While complex, Windows Server offers efficiency, reliability, and integration benefits, enhancing competitiveness and delivering strong ROI through cost savings.
Relevant metrics include money saved, time saved, and fewer employees needed.
IT at a construction company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I have seen a return on investment with Windows 10 in that it basically saves our money.
Cloud Engineer at TO THE NEW Digital
Overall, the gains in productivity, security, and operational efficiency have provided a strong return on investment.
IT at a retailer with 11-50 employees
You get a standard platform that is very secure and stable.
Manager, Information & Cloud Systems at a consultancy with 1,001-5,000 employees
The return on investment is evident as having efficient resources to manage our infrastructure means we are less dependent on costly external support from Microsoft.
Executive Vice President Technology at InfoEdge India Ltd
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.5
Ubuntu's extensive online community and resources reduce the need for paid support, though it's effective for urgent issues.
Sentiment score
4.5
Many users favor online resources for Windows 10 issues over Microsoft's reliable but sometimes slow direct support.
Sentiment score
6.3
Windows Server support varies, with some experiencing prompt service while others rely on forums and documentation for help.
They responded well, understood that the issue was not on my end, and provided a patch within two days.
Manging Director at Winworth UK
The community around Ubuntu Linux is beneficial, providing answers to questions and assisting with issues.
Bachelor of Engineering at Vaasan ammattikorkeakoulu VAMK University of Applied Sciences
Ubuntu Linux has a comprehensive knowledge base for self-help.
Techincal Support Engineer at Ibits Tech Solutions
We have informed Microsoft, but the issue is still there, and it has been more than three to four months.
Technology\Cloud Architect | IT Infrastructure Security & Compliance at IDFC Bank
I would rate customer support a ten.
Cloud Engineer at TO THE NEW Digital
The customer service and support from Microsoft are quite responsive and generally good.
Senior Manager at Morgan Stanley
They resolved our problems within the defined SLA.
Relationship Manager at Cognizant
When I had an issue with Hyper-V, the support was excellent.
Systems technician. IT Office at LNU
The technical support from Microsoft is one of the best, though there can be challenges when it comes to priority zero or critical issues, where the queue can be longer.
Executive Vice President Technology at InfoEdge India Ltd
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Ubuntu Linux is praised for scalable adaptability in cloud and on-premises setups, supporting diverse industries with flexible architecture.
Sentiment score
6.1
Windows 10 is scalable for enterprises, efficiently handling users and expanding with resources, despite occasional individual setup challenges.
Sentiment score
7.4
Windows Server is highly scalable, supports diverse user needs, but has resource demands and improvement potential in cloud environments.
The beauty of this hybrid approach is that because everything runs Ubuntu Linux, we have consistency across all environments.
Sr Manager - Corporate Training and Placements at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
In a server environment, it can seamlessly adapt to increased customer demand.
Bachelor of Engineering at Vaasan ammattikorkeakoulu VAMK University of Applied Sciences
Any Linux is scalable in terms of capacity, and on a day-to-day basis, we use scalability options with the help of Kubernetes clusters.
Associate Cloud Operations Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees
We can focus fully on our work without pressure or concerns about issues on our own PCs.
Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 201-500 employees
For scalability, I would rate it a nine or ten because performance-wise, Windows 10 has never given me those issues.
Senior Engagement Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I can increase the licensing amount easily when there is company growth or when new people join.
Assistant Vice President at a financial services firm with 51-200 employees
I've worked in companies with 20,000 to 100,000 users, and it scales beautifully without issues.
Manager, Information & Cloud Systems at a consultancy with 1,001-5,000 employees
Active Directory and Group Policy make it easy to manage a growing number of users and systems from a centralized platform.
IT at a retailer with 11-50 employees
We use it everywhere, and it serves approximately two thousand users in our company as a backend service.
System Engineer at Alnajat charity
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Ubuntu Linux is praised for its stability and reliability, though some issues occur with virtual machines or new hardware integration.
Sentiment score
7.0
Windows 10 is stable and reliable, but performance may degrade with time, requiring regular updates and memory management improvements.
Sentiment score
7.5
Windows Server is highly stable and reliable, praised for seamless performance and improvements over previous versions, despite update concerns.
The system has been completely stable, which makes it deserve a perfect score.
BA at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Ubuntu Linux is extremely stable and maintains uptime effectively.
Manging Director at Winworth UK
Our servers continuously run, and we rarely ever have to restart them due to a crash or system failure.
Sr Manager - Corporate Training and Placements at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
The challenges were related to third-party agents and their supportability.
Technology\Cloud Architect | IT Infrastructure Security & Compliance at IDFC Bank
Windows 10 is stable for my daily development work, providing frequent security updates and user-friendly updates, which are excellent.
Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 201-500 employees
I would rate the stability of the product an eight.
Senior Engagement Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
Manager at Accenture company
It provides reliable performance for critical services such as Active Directory, file service, DNS, and user authentication.
IT at a retailer with 11-50 employees
The stability is better with the newer versions like 2019.
System Engineer at Alnajat charity
 

Room For Improvement

Users seek improved Windows compatibility, user-friendliness, business app support, and better documentation, GUI, security, and integration for Ubuntu Linux.
Windows 10 users seek enhancements in security, stability, performance, integration, and customization, while desiring lighter hardware and efficient updates.
Windows Server needs improved security, stability, cloud integration, simpler UI, better pricing, easier configuration, and broader compatibility support.
There is a push towards integrating AI into software for various purposes like video and sound processing.
Manging Director at Winworth UK
Another thing is enterprise solution integration. Some enterprise tools that businesses commonly use, such as certain ERP systems or CRM platforms, either do not have a Linux version, or their Linux versions are not as feature-rich or well-maintained as the Windows counterparts.
Sr Manager - Corporate Training and Placements at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
Stability issues occur when integrating new components due to physical or technical challenges.
Bachelor of Engineering at Vaasan ammattikorkeakoulu VAMK University of Applied Sciences
Microsoft can improve their Teams product because everybody uses Teams, and it's very clunky and unfriendly in terms of scrolling back, downloading files, and moving back and forth within the different teams.
Senior Engagement Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Investment in Windows 10 may not be ideal as the world is changing with advancing technology in the AI age.
DevOps Engineer at CipherTV Corp.
The transitions within Teams are not smooth, and call quality in meetings is not great.
Senior Manager at Morgan Stanley
If Windows could make the OS part lighter, especially starting and restarting the Windows Server, which needs to be quick, then it would be great since this is an area where the tool lacks a bit.
Manager at Accenture company
The support team is getting worse in terms of expertise.
Manager, IT Security at Averis Sdn Bhd
We can work with both virtual and physical setups.
AVP at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

Ubuntu Linux offers a cost-effective, open-source OS with free basic use, optional paid enterprise support, and scalable solutions.
Enterprise buyers find Windows 10 pricing high, despite pre-installation savings, preferring lower costs to compete with alternatives.
Enterprise users find Windows Server costly and complex to license, preferring simpler, more competitive pricing compared to Linux.
For an enterprise-wide scalable operating system with professional services, you can select Ubuntu Linux at a reasonable price.
Owner at a computer software company with 1-10 employees
The setup cost is free.
Head of mission at CapHornier
Ubuntu Linux is open-source, leading to cost savings through its free availability.
Bachelor of Engineering at Vaasan ammattikorkeakoulu VAMK University of Applied Sciences
For those buying a Windows license, it might be better to buy a Windows 11 license.
DevOps Engineer at CipherTV Corp.
Windows is considered overpriced, especially given the normal software functionalities.
Design engineer at a construction company with 201-500 employees
Windows 10 is cost-effective when compared to other competitors available such as Mac and Linux.
BI developer at Jubilee Life Insurance Company Ltd
On a scale of one to ten, with ten being the most expensive, I rate it ten out of ten.
Manager, IT Security at Averis Sdn Bhd
Microsoft offers product pricing with licenses per processor and CAL licenses for accessing.
Manager, Information & Cloud Systems at a consultancy with 1,001-5,000 employees
The cost associated with Windows Server—considering pricing, licensing, and setup—is expensive, no doubt.
Executive Vice President Technology at InfoEdge India Ltd
 

Valuable Features

Ubuntu Linux is stable, secure, easy to install, cost-effective, highly customizable, and ideal for developers and enterprises.
Windows 10 is praised for its user-friendly interface, efficient multitasking, seamless integrations, security features, and valuable tools like BitLocker.
Windows Server excels in integration, ease of use, security, scalability, and supports enterprise applications with features like Hyper-V and PowerShell.
Ubuntu Linux's open-source nature supports community contributions, bolstering its development and support ecosystem.
Bachelor of Engineering at Vaasan ammattikorkeakoulu VAMK University of Applied Sciences
Ubuntu Linux supports remote troubleshooting via SSH, allowing connection from anywhere, which is beneficial for troubleshooting server issues.
Techincal Support Engineer at Ibits Tech Solutions
In terms of security, I am satisfied with Ubuntu Linux and I can rely on its security features more than I can with Windows.
Solution Architect at TB
When using mapping software such as QGIS or ArcGIS, the system remains stable, especially when handling heavy files.
Co-Founder at a consultancy with 51-200 employees
Device encryption is a main priority for us as developers in a FinTech company because we have the most secure user data.
Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 201-500 employees
It improved our operations compared to Windows XP or Windows 7 and helped save time, reduce issues, and improve security.
IT at a construction company with 1,001-5,000 employees
I can manage the firewalls on the server easily, open or close ports to manage security traffic, and use encryption on the hard disk to keep data secure.
Systems technician. IT Office at LNU
FTP functionality does not require additional payment because Windows Server already includes the feature, reducing the costs of these tools.
Team Lead at Regnology
If you need to include an email server, you can't ask about features individually since all features are necessary.
Manager, IT Security at Averis Sdn Bhd
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Ubuntu Linux is 8.0%, down from 12.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows 10 is 3.4%, up from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows Server is 6.9%, down from 9.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Ubuntu Linux8.0%
Windows Server6.9%
Windows 103.4%
Other81.7%
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

Garima Vyas Purohit - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr Manager - Corporate Training and Placements at a educational organization with 1,001-5,000 employees
Unified environments have streamlined our development workflows and reduced deployment issues
There are a few areas where I think Ubuntu Linux could be improved. The first one is hardware compatibility. Sometimes when we get a new machine, certain hardware like Wi-Fi cards, graphics cards, or printers do not work straight away out of the box. You have to manually find and install drivers, which can be frustrating, especially for people who are not very technical. Another area is the graphical user interface, or GUI, and desktop experience. While Ubuntu Linux has improved a lot in this area, it still does not feel as polished or as smooth as Windows or macOS for non-technical users. If Ubuntu Linux wants to attract more everyday users, that is an area they need to keep improving.On the software compatibility side, one of our biggest frustrations is that some industry-standard tools simply do not have native Linux versions. For example, tools such as Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite, and some specialized enterprise software just do not run natively on Ubuntu Linux. We have to use workarounds such as running Windows in a virtual machine or using a web-based alternative, which is not always ideal. Additionally, when it comes to vendor support, sometimes when we reach out to third-party software vendors for technical support, they do not officially support Linux. We are kind of on our own figuring things out. That can be really frustrating when you are dealing with a critical issue and the vendor just says they do not support Linux. Another thing is enterprise solution integration. Some enterprise tools that businesses commonly use, such as certain ERP systems or CRM platforms, either do not have a Linux version, or their Linux versions are not as feature-rich or well-maintained as the Windows counterparts.
R Pranavan - PeerSpot reviewer
Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 201-500 employees
Collaborative development has become more secure and efficient for our team
We have faced some issues with Windows OneDrive because if one developer has a folder in a common OneDrive folder, it took some time to show it to others. It becomes somewhat difficult to work, as there is latency on that, so if you update that, it will be more efficient and useful for the developers. My main focus on Windows 10 is the giving of regular updates, so it might take some time to update Windows, which is also mandatory. As a developer, when we are working with Windows 10, if it takes more time to update and restart the PC, it affects our efficiency at work. If we could stop the updates on a regular basis or if they were delivered faster, it would be easier. As a developer, the frequent updates are too annoying for working on it, so it would be better if we stop the frequent updates and only provide the most important ones. Performance issues over time due to background apps and programs piling up and using an SSD instead of a hard disk are also concerns.
reviewer2848875 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT at a retailer with 11-50 employees
Centralized controls have improved security and simplify user management across our environment
One area where Windows Server could be improved is in simplifying administration and troubleshooting. While Windows Server is powerful, diagnosing issues related to group policy, DNS, replication, and authentication can sometimes be complex and time-consuming. I would prefer to see more intuitive management dashboards, better built-in monitoring and reporting tools, and integration with cloud service-enhanced automation features for routine administrative tasks. This would further reduce manual effort and improve efficiency. Overall, Windows Server is a reliable platform, but making management and troubleshooting more streamlined would help IT teams save time and improve productivity. Another area for improvement is documentation and update management. While Microsoft provides extensive documentation, finding the most relevant troubleshooting information can sometimes be challenging for complex issues involving Active Directory, DNS, or group policy. Updates are important for security, but some updates require careful testing and planning to avoid unexpected impacts on production environments. More detailed pre-update impact analysis and simplified rollback options would be beneficial. Overall, Windows Server is a robust platform, but improvements in documentation, troubleshooting guidance, update management, and administrative automation would further enhance the experience for IT professionals.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
University
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Marketing Services Firm
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Construction Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business85
Midsize Enterprise22
Large Enterprise55
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business127
Midsize Enterprise64
Large Enterprise123
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business79
Midsize Enterprise41
Large Enterprise89
 

Questions from the Community

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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Ubuntu Linux?
My experience with the pricing for Ubuntu Linux is that I always use the free version, so I never paid for any instal...
What needs improvement with Ubuntu Linux?
There are a few areas where I think Ubuntu Linux could be improved. The first one is hardware compatibility. Sometime...
What needs improvement with Windows 10?
Windows 11 is good, but Windows 10 is fine and I don't have any major complaints about Windows 10. I think there coul...
What is your primary use case for Windows 10?
My main use case for Windows 10 is commercial as well as residential use. A quick specific example of how I use Windo...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Windows 10?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Windows 10 was a fair experience.
What needs improvement with Windows Server?
I cannot answer regarding which metrics I use to measure the effectiveness of Microsoft Defender for IoT because I ha...
What is your primary use case for Windows Server?
What suits me the most is that for all my OT environment, I can manage all those devices in one secure portal from Mi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Windows Server?
I think the licensing model of Microsoft products, including Windows Server, is not cheap. Microsoft has been guiding...
 

Also Known As

Ubuntu
No data available
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Samsung, eBay, AT&T, Walmart, Cisco, Time Warner Cable, Bloomberg, Best Buy, Dell, Intel, Microsoft, Ericsson, Orange, Wells Fargo
Information Not Available
Rakuten, Rackspace, Tyco
Find out what your peers are saying about Red Hat, Canonical, Rocky Linux and others in Operating Systems (OS) for Business. Updated: June 2026.
900,051 professionals have used our research since 2012.