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HCL Verse vs Zimbra Collaboration comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

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
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Zimbra Collaboration
Ranking in Email Applications
10th
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 September 2026, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of HCL Verse is 2.4%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zimbra Collaboration is 5.9%, down from 8.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Applications Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Zimbra Collaboration5.9%
HCL Verse2.4%
Other91.7%
Email Applications
 

Featured Reviews

MR
Diretor at MASTERDOM
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.
Muhammad Talha Baig - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Analyst and Associate Project Manager at SAMI Pharmaceuticals
One of the premium features was customized rooms tailored to the collaboration needs
Zimbra's strength lies in its individuality, and it should focus on leveraging its unique features rather than trying to emulate competitors. My organization has certified Zimbra technicians, so we believe we can utilize Zimbra certification. However, I was recently informed by Zimbra that no such certification exists. I have recently completed the test kit, and after the training, I will gain access to tickets. Therefore, if any clients are experiencing issues, we have a certified technical team available to provide support 24/7. This is how we can cater to our client's needs. I recommend Zimbra to small-scale and enterprise customers. Anyone, even those with 5 users, can opt for Zimbra. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We switched to Verse because of enhanced features, better design, and higher security."
"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."
"This solution is the best one."
"The most valuable feature is the mail server."
"The solution is easy to implement."
"The logs, troubleshooting, and tracking we have found to be the most valuable features, and when we have any issues with lost messages these features are useful because it is very easy to track and log."
"Zimbra Collaboration is light to manage. It works on the Linux operating system, which is far better to manage than Microsoft Windows. Microsoft Exchange works only on the Windows server. We prefer working on the Linux server for security reasons and ease of management. Zimbra Collaboration also has some integrated tools for security. It some modules to fight malware. These modules are not very powerful but are still doing a great job. Microsoft Exchange doesn't have a basic module. You have to purchase a security solution and add it to the solution. The cost of Zimbra Collaboration is one more reason for liking it. It is also very simple to migrate from Zimbra Collaboration to another email solution."
"Network NG Modules are valuable to us."
"Despite sticking with Gmail for over a decade in terms of business, Zimbra have impressed me with some other aspects as well; if the time comes, I would prefer Zimbra to my current solution."
"It is the best open source collaboration suite that I know, because it provides high availability and more performance than the other solutions."
"Zimbra Collaboration is a good tool for video calls...Zimbra Collaboration's initial setup phase was easy."
"For an SMB, it is a recommendable email solution."
 

Cons

"The setup was not very easy due to higher security standards."
"The solution could improve by allowing us to use a color that we want in the editing boxes."
"Security is very important to us, so improvements to this functionality are welcome."
"The solution could use more integration with third-party tools."
"There are security and performance issues which is one of the concerns of using an open-source product."
"The new patches are, at times, not so good, so we don't install them, causing the tool to be not so stable overall."
"Zimbra should provide a desktop client. Right now, we are using a web browser for accessing our emails. There should also be a desktop client."
"Some issues cause the solution not to function correctly or to cause downtime once a month."
"The solution’s forums don't have much information or documentation on administration tasks."
"There are some bugs we found that could be fixed."
"Because of the lack of this functionality, we are planning to migrate to Microsoft Exchange."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This is an affordable solution but the price could be improved."
"The price of the solution is reasonable."
"There is an annual standard licensing fee to use Zimbra Collaboration and there is no other cost."
"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."
"The solution is not expensive compared to other products."
"On a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the price a four"
"We are using perpetual licenses. We have deployed it in our local data center, and we buy perpetual licenses on a per-user basis."
"We do not pay for licenses to use this solution."
"We pay yearly licenses for Zimbra Collaboration."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
17%
Comms Service Provider
8%
University
8%
Construction Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise7
 

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...
 

Also Known As

Verse, IBM Verse
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Canon Marketing Japan Inc., Australian Trade Commission, BTC, Havas, Canal Barge Co.Inc., RAVInvest, Elemental Path, WDR mediagroup
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 HCL Verse vs. Zimbra Collaboration and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.