No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

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 June 2026, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 8.5%, down from 11.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zimbra Collaboration is 6.7%, down from 8.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Exchange8.5%
Zimbra Collaboration6.7%
Other84.8%
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

AS
Bookkeeper at FCA - Victoria Point
Reliable email service has supported consistent communication and improved user training
I do use Cisco Secure Email, Grafis, and Proofpoint Email Protection when needed, but we were using Proofpoint before, and we are no longer using it. I am currently using Microsoft Exchange as our email solution. We are a client of Microsoft; there is no partnership between my company and Microsoft. My experience with Microsoft Exchange is as good as the generic email. I do not use Microsoft Exchange to synchronize emails across devices, and it is not part of my workflow. The protocols I mostly use with Microsoft Exchange for integration are SMTP. I do not use the shared calendars feature in Microsoft Exchange. Data loss prevention is something we are not really using or utilizing at the moment. My overall review rating for Microsoft Exchange is 8.
Vidya Shree - PeerSpot reviewer
CTO at Molecular Connections Private Limited
Deploys quickly and has a good web interface
Zimbra Collaboration has a good web interface 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 solution’s forums don't have much information or…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"If you don't really mind the cost then go for Microsoft."
"Support is very good."
"I find Exchange's basic mail features to be highly valuable."
"The flexibility that Microsoft has to offer, especially when it comes to email, is better."
"It is very well integrated with other Microsoft programs, teams, and so on. They work well together."
"Microsoft support is very good."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Exchange are it is always online and has broad email and file-sharing capabilities."
"It's a very user-friendly application. The mail server is also valuable when compared to other services like SquirrelMail."
"The configuration is simple."
"The stability is good and keeps getting better with each new update."
"It is the best open source collaboration suite that I know, because it provides high availability and more performance than the other solutions."
"The product is easy to set up."
"We can control all the data in my IT infrastructure."
"Zimbra Collaboration has integrated a lot of their party tools and they have good documentation available."
"Zimbra Collaboration's sharing features are most valuable."
"Zimbra Collaboration is mainly used for messaging, emails, calendars, video conferencing, and document sharing."
 

Cons

"I'd like the archiving process to be faster."
"Microsoft Exchange could improve the archiving of emails and the performance."
"The issue with Exchange has always been storage."
"It is overall all good, though technical support is just average."
"The platform could be more user-friendly."
"The solution could be more secure."
"When we started using Exchange on the cloud, we had a lot of initial problems relating to our main database and we also experienced issues with the accidental deletion of inboxes, amongst other things. In fact, many of the files we had moved to the cloud had disappeared. There also seems to be a problem with the retention of information."
"Microsoft Exchange could improve by adding artificial intelligence."
"Because of the lack of this functionality, we are planning to migrate to Microsoft Exchange."
"Zimbra Collaboration could improve the migration from a basic solution to a more containerized solution. For example, the installation should be able to extend to the containers and manage them with some solution, such as OpenShift or Kubernetes."
"Zimbra Collaboration is expensive, and there is no perpetual license option."
"Server deployment and the GUI for emails should be better."
"Some issues cause the solution not to function correctly or to cause downtime once a month."
"We had a couple of issues with stability, but nothing that I couldn't work around or fix myself. Zimbra is a powerful product, but since VMware bought it, changes and bug fixes have been very slow in coming."
"The tool should improve its multi-cloud feature."
"The log files need to be improved; they need to show us more information because a lot of detail is lacking and that's not very helpful or insightful."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its price is okay."
"The pricing is expensive."
"Microsoft Exchange is a very well-priced solution."
"They are flexible when it comes to pricing, unlike most of the other vendors I have dealt with."
"The solution's pricing is fine...I do think the tool offers value for money."
"I have Outlook 365 Professional, and Exchange comes in the bundle with other solutions, such as Word and OneDrive. I pay for the use of the bundle monthly and I can imagine if you are a company with many licenses the pricing model would be a lot different."
"Microsoft doesn't have a unit price, it's based on the quantity, and they offer great discounts."
"This solution is expensive."
"I use Zimbra Collaboration's community version. We may move to the enterprise version since prices are affordable."
"The solution is competitively priced."
"We are using perpetual licenses. We have deployed it in our local data center, and we buy perpetual licenses on a per-user basis."
"The price of the solution is low."
"If you choose the network edition, it is a little pricier. They have the open-source edition too which is only community supported."
"We pay yearly licenses for Zimbra Collaboration."
"There is an annual standard licensing fee to use Zimbra Collaboration and there is no other cost."
"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."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Email Applications solutions are best for your needs.
900,644 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
11%
Construction Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
9%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business42
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 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 needs improvement with Microsoft Exchange?
I see some drawbacks and areas for improvement; the quarantining is not fantastic. I think the quarantining is not fantastic because it lets a lot of spam through, and when it is notified of spam, ...
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...
What advice do you have for others considering Zimbra Collaboration?
I would recommend the solution to other users. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
 

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: June 2026.
900,644 professionals have used our research since 2012.