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HCL Verse vs Microsoft Exchange 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

HCL Verse
Ranking in Email Applications
13th
Average Rating
9.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Exchange
Ranking in Email Applications
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
92
Ranking in other categories
Wireless Email (1st), File Archiving (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of HCL Verse is 1.5%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 11.4%, down from 12.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

MR
Stable, scalable, and good interface
HCL Verse has a nice interface and it is a practical email solution. There are a diverse set of features, such as the search bar on top of the screens. The usability from the old applications to the new version has been very good. It was great that we were able to migrate applications from the older version to the new one.
Hesham Hussain - PeerSpot reviewer
A good solution for large enterprises, but is expensive when compared to other solutions
Regarding the decision of increasing the number of users, it depends on the organization's choice, whether to opt for CapEx or OpEx. Both options involve expenses over the years. Building an in-house Exchange solution requires investing in hardware, storage, connectivity, and administrative resources. Office 365 shifts the budget solely to OpEx as a subscription service. Scalability is another factor. Starting a new company favors Office 365 due to cost efficiency. As the organization grows, the choice depends on available resources and technical expertise. An internal Exchange setup is feasible with skilled engineers, while Office 365 suits those lacking in-house resources.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"HCL Verse has a nice interface and it is a practical email solution. There are a diverse set of features, such as the search bar on top of the screens."
"The most valuable feature is the mail server."
"All features are useful; they meet the purpose of an email server."
"The most used feature of Microsoft Exchange is the email capability, especially since it integrates with the calendar."
"Microsoft Exchange's most valuable feature is that it's old-fashioned communication, meaning it's good for people who aren't able to work comfortably in a cloud environment."
"The product works very well."
"The search tools are good."
"It is a very stable tool...It is a very scalable tool."
"The email management system is very easy to set up, configure, and use."
"It is easy to set up."
 

Cons

"Security is very important to us, so improvements to this functionality are welcome."
"The solution could improve by allowing us to use a color that we want in the editing boxes."
"Some users encounter stability issues. I connect with the support team through my local partner, which takes time."
"Its search functionality can be better. It is currently not really easy. It has the capability to search your mailbox, but it has some restrictions in terms of the number of results that you can retrieve. You can only get around 250 results. If you want to do a deeper search, you need to use different functionalities of the product. The policy that we have for handling emails is that we do not delete emails at all. If I insert the text that I am searching for in the Search field, it only retrieves a limited number of emails. To search for an email from 2010, I need to use different search functions to find what I am looking for. Microsoft can also improve its licensing for its products. Microsoft's licensing is not very easy to understand. It can sometimes be really complex to understand what you need to have in order to comply with Microsoft licensing."
"In terms of probability, every now and then there are changes coming and going. The changes are not that frequent because every month they got updates back, so that is an issue."
"I do not have any notes for improvement."
"There are limitations in terms of the number of emails that can be sent in a minute, which makes it a little difficult for the marketing folks."
"The management of .pst files and archiving need improvement."
"Microsoft could make it easier to combine comments in the GUI. It isn't easy to do certain things in Exchange, primarily if the administrator isn't used to the command line, so I think the customer interface could be improved."
"In terms of Microsoft Exchange, I think maybe what can be done is to make it more user-friendly."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the solution is reasonable."
"This is an affordable solution but the price could be improved."
"Licensing fees are paid monthly."
"I rate Microsoft Exchange's pricing a six out of ten."
"It's working very well. There is no problem, but the price is not the best."
"Microsoft Exchange itself does not require a license, but users who will have mailboxes will require a license. It depends on the number of users to choose which license. If you exceed 2,000 mailboxes, it's preferable to get the enterprise license."
"There is an annual cost to use Microsoft Exchange, and the price could be less expensive."
"Microsoft's licensing structure is too complex, but its prices are affordable, though not cheap."
"The solution is expensive to maintain because it requires frequent updates and ongoing server maintenance."
"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."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
19%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Healthcare Company
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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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 do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?
The initial setup was straightforward and fast.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?
The licensing and pricing are quite costly, which can demotivate customers from opting for features and upgrades. However, the solution provides value for money if one is well-acquainted with Excha...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Verse, IBM Verse
Exchange, MS Exchange
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Canon Marketing Japan Inc., Australian Trade Commission, BTC, Havas, Canal Barge Co.Inc., RAVInvest, Elemental Path, WDR mediagroup
Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL Verse vs. Microsoft Exchange and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.