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Dell PowerEdge XE-Series vs HPE ProLiant DL Servers comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 1, 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

Dell PowerEdge XE-Series
Ranking in Rack Servers
9th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
HPE ProLiant DL Servers
Ranking in Rack Servers
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
160
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of Dell PowerEdge XE-Series is 2.6%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE ProLiant DL Servers is 19.1%, down from 21.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
HPE ProLiant DL Servers19.1%
Dell PowerEdge XE-Series2.6%
Other78.3%
Rack Servers
 

Featured Reviews

Palatla Srikanth - PeerSpot reviewer
Lead Solution Architect at Avineon India Private Limited
Infrastructure has delivered reliable control for diverse heavy imagery and application workloads
I think most of them are in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series. What I found in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series servers is the disk reading; sometimes with heavy imagery, we find it to be slow. Some of our workloads utilize heavy imagery, which could be several terabytes or gigabytes in size, so when accessing imagery, we find disk read to be a bit slow. I need to check with my team, but I recently noticed some compatibility issues with disk upgrades and RAM upgrades in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series, and limitations were there. In the upcoming series, I hope to see flexibility in adding GPUs and similar features. I would rate this review an overall eight out of ten.
ArifSheikh - PeerSpot reviewer
Director / Chief Business Artchitect at SMARIF
High availability servers have boosted hosted payment services but still need better local support
We are not using PowerVM because of certain limitations; it is on a back-end engine. However, we are using other components such as vSphere for some small interfaces, and those are the main components we are utilizing. Since these servers are fully dedicated to various high-end solutions, they have some embedded features that their kernel and applications are using, which are bound to that functionality. We may not provide an exact assessment on its usage, but we are considering those products for some AI solutions; however, we are currently in the review stage and have not concluded our evaluation on how those are utilized yet. We are aware of the pricing of HPE ProLiant DL servers, but not off the cuff. We have obviously acquired those solutions ex-Pakistan, so they are on the rise, and while we do not remember those prices offhand, they are generally better than the IBM series, although they are becoming slightly pricey in Pakistan due to processor shortages and demand. Improvements could be made in database engine hosting services because, as it stands, the pricing of Oracle is too high from both the service and software solution perspectives. If pricing can be reduced, especially for DB servers, that could have a direct positive impact on the overall solution. Regarding reliability, it has been satisfactory so far, but since the distributors are not physically present in Pakistan, that creates a risk for long-term large customers. They provide import-based services, necessitating us to over-invest in backup stock and offline servers. If there was a market presence from those players in Pakistan, it could benefit both clients and distributors by reducing the need for investment in backup inventory.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"PowerEdge XE servers are high-performing. We're hardly using 15 percent of their computing power, so there's a lot left over that we could utilize."
"The most valuable feature is the trusted platform module."
"PowerEdge XE is quite stable."
"This solution has brought us a return on investment. It can store a lot of hard disks, which helps users to have a lot of capacity in smaller rack space."
"In general, it works well. We haven't had issues."
"The most valuable feature is that it can support up to 32 drives of internal storage."
"The most valuable feature of these servers is the ability to store a lot—the capacity and the number of hard disk drives."
"The solution is flexible in my experience."
"It's helpful to have standardized platforms, and so from that standpoint it works very well for our environment at our company because we have a vast distributed data center infrastructure across multiple locations so it helps to have standardized platforms to reduce operating expense and extend the lifecycle of the product."
"HPE offers the products we need. They come back with solutions. It's uncomplicated to deal with HPE."
"We choose a lot of HPE because we know we're getting a good, reliable product and at a good price point."
"Its management, IOs, and stability are the most valuable features. It works fine. It has all the features of a typical server. All that can be done has already been done."
"We chose HPE because we've had good experience with them, I worked with them in the past and so far, HPE has proven to be reliable."
"One of the most valuable features is iLO, which is very good. Another thing is the HPE support is very good."
"When we need to, we can get through to technical support and get the right person."
"HPE ProLiant DL Servers are a great product; we don't have many complaints."
 

Cons

"In future releases, there should be more support options for the latest processor."
"Upgrading can be a bit difficult."
"Dell PowerEdge XE Servers can improve by adapting HCI technology."
"Upgrading can be a bit difficult."
"The support team must improve the speed of response."
"The quality and reliability could be improved."
"I would like to have support for performing a detailed analysis of the server from a mobile device."
"What I found in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series servers is the disk reading; sometimes with heavy imagery, we find it to be slow."
"I'm not impressed as you always go to the first-level support first, and it just takes forever to get to somebody that really can help you."
"It would be great if HP could use a ProLiant Server to run HP-UX, the Unix build from HPE. Right now, HP-UX cannot run on the ProLiant architecture."
"In DL 500 systems, the flow of air is not good enough, and some components get overheated. IBM systems have better airflow and scalability. We have a data center that has limited physical space. Therefore, we need to maximize the processing or compute systems that we use. In HP servers, such as DL 500, there are only four processors, whereas IBM servers, such as SR 916, have eight processors. We don't get any support from HP because of our geographical location. We solve all problems ourselves by doing research on the internet. It would be good to get HP support."
"ProLiant servers could be more scalable. For example, some models can only contain four hard drives, but many of our customers expect six. If they were to add another extendable hard drive slot, it would be easier to sell the servers to our customers."
"The big challenge for us is our deliveries for certain countries, such as Australia and some areas of Asia."
"The most pressing issue is that downloads depend at present on the current period."
"Support on the hardware side is a little bit more challenging than on other sides because there are so many components involved, if you look at servers."
"We've had issues where some components fail, but overall the system runs well."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There are different types of licensing available, that works well for customers. The product is not very much to purchase."
"If you want an SLA for parts and equipment then you need to purchase a support agreement."
"Dell has competitive pricing."
"The pricing model is quite competitive."
"You always want slightly cheaper, but overall, they are quite comparable and quite neutral."
"This solution is priced very reasonably."
"I rate the product price an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price."
"The price of HPE ProLiant DL Servers is reasonable, but because of covid and other factors, the price could be reduced. The license is paid annually."
"The pricing of these servers is fair. It is in the mid-range."
"They need to work with Microsoft to make the licensing costs better and more efficient."
"It is just too expensive."
"This was a one-time purchase for us because it's hardware that we purchased from HPE. There aren't any licensing costs."
"They should reduce the prices as it is a significant concern for developing countries."
"​If you have to include the warranty, enhance the warranty support.​"
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Retailer
7%
University
7%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business56
Midsize Enterprise28
Large Enterprise98
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Dell PowerEdge XE Servers?
What I found in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series servers is the disk reading; sometimes with heavy imagery, we find it to be slow. Some of our workloads utilize heavy imagery, which could be several teraby...
What is your primary use case for Dell PowerEdge XE Servers?
I deal mostly with Dell PowerEdge XE-Series, specifically the XE-Series. My team uses Dell EMC OpenManage Enterprise with Dell PowerEdge XE-Series servers, but I have not used it much myself. We ha...
What advice do you have for others considering Dell PowerEdge XE Servers?
I think most of them are in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series. What I found in Dell PowerEdge XE-Series servers is the disk reading; sometimes with heavy imagery, we find it to be slow. Some of our workload...
How do Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers compare with HPE ProLiant DL servers?
Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers offer flexibility and efficiency in order to meet mission-critical demands. I like that Lenovo blends outstanding performance, reliability, and manageability. The bi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HPE ProLiant DL Servers?
The pricing of HPE ProLiant DL Servers depends purely on the configuration, and it is not affordable. However, if you look at the technical caliber of the server, if a customer invests that additio...
What needs improvement with HPE ProLiant DL Servers?
If I had to choose between HP and Dell, I would choose Dell's iDRAC over iLO. iLO is adequate, but Dell is much better, especially when configuring the internal storage of the server. Mostly when w...
 

Also Known As

PowerEdge XE Servers
HP ProLiant DL series, HP ProLiant DL
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Epsilon, ROZETTA CORP, JIGUANG, RACKSPACE, NEW BELGIUM BREWING
AmeriPride Services, iSource, Bolagsverket, BlueShore Financial, British Columbia Assessment Authority, National Stock Exchange, Cardlytics
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerEdge XE-Series vs. HPE ProLiant DL Servers and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
887,041 professionals have used our research since 2012.