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IBM Db2 Database vs Vertica 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

IBM Db2 Database
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
73
Ranking in other categories
Relational Databases Tools (6th)
Vertica
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
86
Ranking in other categories
Data Warehouse (5th), Cloud Data Warehouse (11th)
 

Mindshare comparison

IBM Db2 Database and Vertica aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. IBM Db2 Database is designed for Relational Databases Tools and holds a mindshare of 7.1%, up 6.6% compared to last year.
Vertica, on the other hand, focuses on Data Warehouse, holds 8.6% mindshare, down 8.7% since last year.
Relational Databases Tools
Data Warehouse
 

Featured Reviews

SimonHiggins - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
T Venkatesh - PeerSpot reviewer
Processes query faster through multiple systems simultaneously, but it could support different data types
We use the solution for various tasks, including preparing data marts and generating offers. It helps extract data based on rules from the policy team and provides insights to enhance business operations. We also analyze transactions to target customers and improve business performance The…

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 this solution is the integration with other IBM products."
"IBM DB2 pureScale Feature is valuable."
"It's very secure."
"The scalability and availability of this solution are the most valuable features."
"The performance of the solution is valuable."
"The most valuable feature of the IBM Db2 Database is the ease of use, and the ability to do query writing of any SQL statement and have an output."
"It's a very mature product."
"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."
"For me, It's performance, scalability, low cost, and it's integrated into enterprise and big data environments."
"Partition and join back to node are easy and simple for DBAs."
"It maximizes cloud economics with Eon Mode by scaling cluster size to meet variable workload demands."
"Eighty percent of the ETL operations have improved since implementing this solution."
"The most valuable feature is Vertica's performance and the ease of using the database."
"The fast columnar store database structure allows our query times to be at least 10x faster than on any other database."
"Speed and resiliency are probably the best parts of this product."
"I have found the solution to be scalable."
 

Cons

"We need some time to improve the performance. We have to perform a weekly REORG, or else RUNSTATS for the databases."
"Db2 interface could be improved a bit. Comparing it to Oracle, Db2's interfaces could be improved."
"Performance is something that can be improved with DB2."
"The tool is not easy to use. It needs to improve scale computing so that the tool can be scaled vertically. The product needs to enhance pre-engine optimization and it needs to be more efficient in completing queries. The documentation should be updated to include different scenarios of deployment."
"There are some issues with Db2's database file system not being readable. The storage could also be increased, and the monitoring could be improved."
"IBM Db2 Database is not ACID compliant, which would improve it. Db2 lacks Isolation, so when two people are trying to update the same field at the same time it can become stuck. Other newer databases do not have this issue, such as Microsoft SQL, Oracle DB, PostgreSQL, and SAP HANA."
"It would be helpful to have a hybrid data storage facility that includes NoSQL technologies."
"The product’s user interface is not easy to use."
"In my opinion, Vertica's documentation could be improved. Currently, there is not enough documentation available to gain a comprehensive understanding of the platform."
"Vertica's native cloud support could be improved, and its installation could be made easier."
"The integration with AI has room for improvement."
"Fact-to-fact joins on multi-billion record tables perform poorly."
"The biggest problem is the cost of cloud deployment."
"I would personally like to see extended developer tooling suited to Vertica – think published PowerDesigner SQL dialect support."
"I have found that coding support could be simplified."
"When it is about to reach the maximum storage capacity, it becomes slow."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is a license for this solution and we pay every three years."
"It is expensive when compared to other products."
"We don't see what the specific price of the DB2 license is because we pay for the backup license as a package."
"Db2 is less expensive than Oracle."
"We normally handle large size businesses and as far as I am aware, the license is negotiable based on the number of users and the quantitative data."
"I think that everyone knows that with IBM the standard price is higher than the others."
"Compared to Oracle, it is so much cheaper."
"The solution's hardware and subscription model for support are very expensive."
"I am aware that we have licensed it, but I have no knowledge of its cost."
"The price is reasonable. We use a pay per license model. Firstly, you need to buy a license. After that, you mainly pay the annual support fee of around 20% or 25%. I think their prices are quite reasonable."
"Start with license per 1TB. Starting from hundreds of TB there is unlimited licensing to be considered. Move historical data to HDFS/S3 which are significantly cheaper or even free."
"It's difficult today to compete with open-source solutions. In these areas, there is a lot of competition and the price of this solution is a bit pricy."
"The price of Vertica is less expensive than some competitors, such as Teradata."
"Read the fine print carefully."
"I think it's starting to get a little expensive. Open source products are starting to get more robust, so I think that's something that they need to start looking at in terms of licensing."
"It is fast to purchase through the AWS Marketplace."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
61%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
4%
Government
4%
Financial Services Firm
20%
Computer Software Company
18%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
4%
 

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.
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.
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.
What do you like most about Vertica?
Vertica is easy to use and provides really high performance, stability, and scalability.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Vertica?
The solution is relatively cost-effective. Pricing and licensing are reasonable compared to other solutions.
What needs improvement with Vertica?
The product could improve by adding support for a wider variety of data types and enhancing features to better compete with other databases.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

DB2
Micro Focus Vertica, HPE Vertica, HPE Vertica on Demand
 

Overview

 

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
Cerner, Game Show Network Game, Guess by Marciano, Supercell, Etsy, Nascar, Empirix, adMarketplace, and Cardlytics.
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