IBM Db2 Database vs IBM Informix comparison

IBM Db2 Database and IBM Informix are both solutions in the Relational Databases Tools category. IBM Db2 Database is ranked #6 with an average rating of 8.2, while IBM Informix is ranked #18 with an average rating of 8.0. IBM Db2 Database holds a 7.1% mindshare in SQL, compared to IBM Informix’s 1.8% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of IBM Db2 Database users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of IBM Informix users who would recommend it.

IBM Db2 Database

Read 73 IBM Db2 Database reviews

6,202 Views
4,021 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

IBM Informix

Read 16 IBM Informix reviews

1,759 Views
1,005 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

IBM Db2 Database

IBM Informix

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

IBM Db2 and Informix compete in the database management systems category. Db2 appears to have the upper hand due to its comprehensive platform support and strong integration capabilities.

Features: Db2 offers extensive platform support, powerful SQL dialects, and self-tuning memory management that enhances performance and usability. It integrates well with various IBM tools and features robust security options. Informix is known for flexible data management, ease of use, and strong capabilities in hybrid data and replication, efficiently supporting large-scale data with minimal resources.

Room for Improvement: Db2 has a steep learning curve and a complex licensing process, with a need for a more user-friendly interface. Informix needs a stronger marketing presence and improved integration with modern tools, as well as advanced features like data anonymization. Both require enhanced support structures and more intuitive setup processes.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Db2 mainly focuses on-premises deployment with hybrid cloud options, but users find its setup and interface challenging. Informix offers similar deployment flexibility with fewer reported issues. Db2 enjoys broad customer service access but experiences vary in support quality. Informix's support is adequate but requires better global reach and proactive engagement.

Pricing and ROI: Db2 is considered expensive but more cost-effective than Oracle in terms of long-term ROI due to its strong performance and security. Informix, while perceived as high-priced, is competitive within the industry, offering various editions for different enterprise scales. Both solutions need careful license management to maximize ROI and control costs.

To learn more, read our detailed IBM Db2 Database vs. IBM Informix Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IBM Db2 Database vs. IBM Informix

April 2025

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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

IBM Db2 Database

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

6th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

IBM Informix

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

18th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Embedded Database (9th)

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of IBM Db2 Database is 7.1%, up from 6.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Informix is 1.8%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Relational Databases Tools

Featured Reviews

SimonHiggins

Mainframe Technical Manager/Service Integration Lead at Saudi Business Machines

Very scalable with high availability and excellent technical support

The good thing is that there are improvements coming with later function levels for the z/OS Db2. I'd like it if, with the operating system that we've got, z/OS, on the mainframe, it would allow us to refresh the hardware to run Linux dockers on the mainframe. This means this might give us opportunities for different ways of coming into the Db2 environment in the future. We just want a bit more integration with Linux. That said, we are already seeing Linux more readily available on the mainframe environment. Not only have we got the premium operating systems on OS. We can run LPARs on the same mainframe footprint that is also supporting Linux. This is what has improved and made the mainframe environment more competitive. We're also looking at AI for Db2 as well, and machine learning for the future. We know that AI has come out, that we're going to get that, and we're going to evaluate that product next year for Db2. That said, I haven't got any real complaints about Db2 on the mainframe. For the most part, a lot of the problems we have nowadays are to do with communication between the various teams that you would class as stakeholders.

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Nazzareno Maria Rezzini

Senior Oracle Database and Systems Administrator at Dedagroup

Supports multiple business intelligence tools, but the technical support services need improvement

IBM Informix is a central database solution across various environments, supporting multiple applications and business intelligence tools The key areas for improvement revolve around understanding the current customer trends and demands, particularly in software and database requirements. The…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of the IBM Db2 Database is security."

"The solution's security is very tough and impenetrable."

"Some of the most valuable features are the scaling from a small very cheap installation to a very large enterprise installation. In addition, the backups and assistance are good."

"IBM Db2 was much cheaper as a package than using other products. This is because IBM supplied a package with its product. It's an application. So it was much more efficient and a stronger competitor in that regard."

"I like that its true active-active. For example, if there are two instances within a cluster, we can take one of them down and there's no failover or switch over. There's no primary and secondary, it's true active-active. We can take one side down and we can upgrade that with new maintenance or a new version, obviously testing coexistence beforehand, without impacting the business."

"The solution can scale."

"The solution has many beneficial features, such as security, support, and stability."

"Its functionality and availability are valuable. Its availability is great. It is available 99.99% of the time."

More IBM Db2 Database pros

"The initial setup is pretty easy."

"Every version is faster than the previous."

"IBM Informix benefits users with high availability and good integration capabilities."

"This solution has made financial reporting possible by allowing financial people the opportunity to set Informix to "Auto Pilot" so that they can attend other duties."

"It supports in-house-built applications in .NET and VB6"

"Replication, all levels of replication, query charting, and the MongoDB embedded are the most valuable features of this solution."

"So far, we do not have a lot of issues. It's pretty problem-free."

"The stability is incredible. I have customers with uptimes of several years."

More IBM Informix pros

Cons

"The solution could be more modern and have updated database technology."

"When I look at Microsoft SQL Server, SQL Server provides me with better tools for database management."

"The product’s user interface is not easy to use."

"I would like to see some artificial intelligence brought into the solution."

"The technical support team is not very good when compared to the efficiency of Oracle's support."

"There could be more user-friendly tools with features such as drag-and-drop functionality, visual basics, and low-code capabilities."

"IBM Db2 Database could improve the user-defined functions. There are some user-defined functions that are missing, such as the spring functions. I used to have Teradata for my projects and I was used to working in the environment. They had a good set of user-defined functions."

"The usage of Db2 could be simplified, as it is quite complex and requires substantial knowledge of Db2 and zOS."

More IBM Db2 Database cons

"I really would love to have a QT plugin."

"In my opinion, the packages could be improved. The version I use doesn't allow for packages. I can do some general procedures, but no packages like in Oracle. So, develop separate modules in SQL language. This would be most beneficial for me."

"This product could be made easier to use for beginners."

"It would be helpful to have IBM salespeople know that Informix exists, and sell it. Currently, it is completely ignored by IBM."

"The technical support services need substantial improvement."

"Continue extending the SQL language for compatibility with the competition's language, including Stored Procedure Language."

"The pricing is a bit expensive."

"The solution really doesn't add new features very often."

More IBM Informix cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution's pricing is fine."

"I think that everyone knows that with IBM the standard price is higher than the others."

"Licensing fees are on a yearly basis."

"It is expensive. The price depends on the size of the machine on which you are installing the Db2 and the features you are using. It also depends on the country. IBM has different policies and different options for payment for this product."

"Among Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, and Db2, Microsoft SQL Server is the cheapest one, and Oracle is the most expensive one. Db2 is in the middle. As compared to SQL Server, its price could go down. It will be good for customers."

"I rate the price of the IBM Db2 Database an eight out of ten."

"Clients are required to purchase a license."

"Compared to Oracle, it is so much cheaper."

More IBM Db2 Database pricing and cost advice

"The free edition can be enough to handle moderate-size implementations, but you may want a pay for edition to benefit from more functionality, such as replication."

"I am not aware of the licensing costs or terms."

"The product has reasonable pricing. We purchase its yearly license."

"For me, it's always too expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

57%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

59%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Db2 Database?

Db2 database scalability and performance capabilities match our database needs. It covers pretty much everything a database administrator or engineer might need.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Db2 Database?

IBM Db2 is an expensive solution. While I am not heavily involved with pricing, additional companies provide capabilities or products like those from BMC, which many installations might also purchase.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Db2 Database?

The user interface is old and needs to be improved. It doesn't match the responsive and suggestion-rich UI of cloud solutions. New functions don't come to mind.

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM Informix?

It supports multiple applications and business intelligence tools.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Informix?

The product has reasonable pricing. We purchase its yearly license.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Informix?

The key areas for improvement revolve around understanding the current customer trends and demands, particularly in software and database requirements. The product's performance could be better com...

See all answers

Comparisons

SQL Server vs IBM Db2 Database

Compared 32% of the time

Oracle Database vs IBM Db2 Database

Compared 18% of the time

SAP HANA vs IBM Db2 Database

Compared 16% of the time

Teradata vs IBM Db2 Database

Compared 13% of the time

Oracle Multitenant vs IBM Db2 Database

Compared 2% of the time

More IBM Db2 Database Competitors

Oracle Database vs IBM Informix

Compared 42% of the time

SQL Server vs IBM Informix

Compared 31% of the time

MySQL vs IBM Informix

Compared 10% of the time

MariaDB vs IBM Informix

Compared 6% of the time

More IBM Informix Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM Db2 Database

May 2025

Download IBM Db2 Database product report

Buyer's Guide

IBM Informix

May 2025

Download IBM Informix product report

Also Known As

DB2

Informix

Overview

DB2 Enterprise for Linux, UNIX, and Windows is the ideal data server for the most demanding workloads. New XML support is designed to help firms minimize the time and effort it takes to persist and use their XML data reducing development costs and improving business agility.

IBM

IBM Informix is a widely used and scalable relational database management system designed to handle large amounts of data and high transaction volumes. It is known to provide exceptional performance, thanks to its Parallel Data Query Engine (PDQ) that enables parallel processing of queries and operations, significantly reducing response times for complex queries and large data sets. Additionally, Informix supports online operations like backup, restore, index maintenance, and table reorganization, minimizing downtime and ensuring continuous availability.

Informix provides robust high availability and replication features, including shared-disk clustering, remote data replication, and high-availability data replication (HDR). These features ensure data redundancy, failover protection, and disaster recovery capabilities, making it a reliable choice for mission-critical applications. Furthermore, Informix offers specialized features for data warehousing and analytics, such as in-database analytics, data compression, and parallel load capabilities, making it suitable for business intelligence (BI) and data analysis applications.

Informix can be deployed as an embedded database, allowing it to be tightly integrated with applications and systems, reducing overhead and simplifying deployment. It includes workload management capabilities, enabling organizations to prioritize and manage different types of workloads, such as online transaction processing (OLTP) and analytical queries, ensuring efficient resource utilization and meeting service-level agreements (SLAs). Informix also provides robust security features, including role-based access control, data encryption, auditing, and compliance with industry standards like FIPS 140-2 and Common Criteria.

IBM

Sample Customers

Knorr-Bremse, Mizuho Bank Ltd., Australian Government Department of Defence, SCHWENK Zement, Friedhelm Loh Group, YAZAKI Europe Limited, Ekornes ASA, Baldor Electric, VSN Systemen BV, Lion Brewery (Ceylon) PLC, PLANSEE Group, TE Connectivity, Hansgrohe SE, Openmatics, University of Toronto

Shaspa, Hildebrand, Kaifa, Ranhill Powertron, Federaci‹ Farmacutica (FedeFarma), Camden Council, The German Aerospace Center (DLR), Myers, Votorantim Group, Doosan Infracore, GreenIvory

Buyer's Guide

IBM Db2 Database vs. IBM Informix

April 2025

Free Report: IBM Db2 Database vs. IBM Informix

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Db2 Database vs. IBM Informix and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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