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IBM Informix vs Oracle Database comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 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

IBM Informix
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
23rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Embedded Database (10th)
Oracle Database
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
292
Ranking in other categories
Database Management Systems (DBMS) (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of IBM Informix is 1.8%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Database is 11.7%, down from 12.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Relational Databases Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Oracle Database11.7%
IBM Informix1.8%
Other86.5%
Relational Databases Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Nasir Niamat - PeerSpot reviewer
DB Consultant at i2c
Has offered a cost-effective option despite frequent technical issues and limited market demand
We find some bugs in IBM Informix. Maybe we are using it more aggressively than others. Every month or every second month, we find some bugs in it, which is not ideal. It should be rare, not this frequent. The good thing is they cover those bugs in the next release within weeks or days on demand. IBM Informix should become hybrid and should include AI features similar to other DBMS systems such as Snowflake, Redshift, and DataBricks. This would help its value rise with the market.
Muhammad Usman Muzaffar - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Vice President IT Operations at ZTBL
Running secure internal banking applications has been reliable and supports fast deployments
I am still working with Oracle products. I am still using Enterprise Manager 14c. I am using Oracle Database, Oracle ExaCC, Oracle EBS, Oracle WebLogic, Oracle Enterprise Manager, and Oracle Linux. I can answer questions about my experience with WebLogic Suite. I use it in my company. I have not used WebLogic's diagnostic tools. I do not utilize its lifecycle management features. I do not have much experience with WebLogic Java EE support, as I just deploy the application and the other team utilizes this server. I am not directly involved in WebLogic. I have been using Oracle Linux myself. The deployment is local, on-premises. I have been working with Enterprise Manager as well. All the components of Oracle I am using are on-premises. I use Oracle 19c database, Oracle ExaCC, Exadata on Cloud at Customer. I have been using Oracle Linux, Enterprise Manager, and databases as well. I have been working with Oracle Database for about 20 years. My experience has been 100% positive with Oracle Database. I have utilized its Real Application Clusters along with Data Guard. I do not use Oracle's Advanced Analytics and machine learning features right now. I have given this review an overall rating of 9 out of 10.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is very easy to install IBM Informix, very easy to scale, and support is quite better."
"It supports multiple applications and business intelligence tools."
"For IoT business cases, having Informix Enterprise Edition work on edge computers, like Raspberry Pi and using Informix replication, makes complex situations simple to build and maintain."
"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."
"IBM Informix benefits users with high availability and good integration capabilities."
"The solution's stability, performance, enhanced functionality, and replication are all great features."
"The scalability is very good."
"Replication, all levels of replication, query charting, and the MongoDB embedded are the most valuable features of this solution."
"What I like most is the real application security."
"The solution is very stable."
"It's a secure market leader."
"The solution is definitely very good for our consultancy on payroll and human resource."
"It has automatic memory management capability and large file capability."
"I like the design of the database because it works well. I also like the stability of the solution."
"The most valuable features are stability, its backup and recovery, and its performance."
"The thing two things that I like most about Oracle Database are its scalability and performance."
 

Cons

"Continue extending the SQL language for compatibility with the competition's language, including Stored Procedure Language."
"I would like to see backups from secondary servers."
"It would be helpful to have IBM salespeople know that Informix exists, and sell it. Currently, it is completely ignored by IBM."
"Every month or every second month, we find some bugs in it, which is not ideal."
"There should be more intelligence surrounding discovering data to be able to automatically create indexes."
"The solution lacks some functionality."
"This solution is in need of more current tools."
"I experienced poor input/output (IO) performance."
"The initial setup is a bit complex."
"The pricing needs to be improved."
"It could be cheaper and easier to manage. Support could also be better. Performance could be better. Sometimes testing impacts the prediction performance. We have a complex server that serves both prediction and testing. Sometimes testing applies to many other deployments that impact the service provided. It's a problem for our company."
"There is a lot of room for improvement. Ease of use is probably the biggest complaint. They're getting somewhat better, but it is not as easy or intuitive as it could be in terms of maintaining and managing the database."
"The interface is not reliable because the GUI is old."
"The pricing could be better."
"The solution could improve security."
"Their support portal requires a person to become well-trained in how to use it. They are pretty good at handling absolute critical emergencies, but with the exception of absolute critical emergencies, getting problems solved from their support system is difficult and takes a long time."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"For me, it's always too expensive."
"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."
"The product has reasonable pricing. We purchase its yearly license."
"I am not aware of the licensing costs or terms."
"The tool is expensive. Compared to its stability and eligibility, the tool is expensive, but if I consider the tool's ROI to be better, the tool is affordable with its set of features."
"Its price is a little bit high in terms of competitiveness. It is a little bit expensive. For any additional features, there are additional costs."
"The price of the solution could improve."
"There are licensing costs."
"It was purchased by our client. It might have been a one-time payment. It doesn't seem to be very expensive."
"It has an annual subscription. It is an Oracle solution, so it is a bit expensive, but that's fine."
"We mainly use a special license for ERP systems specifically, instead of a general purpose license. This ERP-focused license is very simple. You just have to use Oracle Database with an ERP system and that's it."
"It's not cheap, but sometimes, you get what you pay for."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
8%
University
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business87
Midsize Enterprise64
Large Enterprise180
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Informix?
There is a cost reason to move from IBM Informix. It is relatively cheaper than Oracle. The second reason is that moving the whole application to a new database would require significant cost. The ...
What needs improvement with IBM Informix?
We find some bugs in IBM Informix. Maybe we are using it more aggressively than others. Every month or every second month, we find some bugs in it, which is not ideal. It should be rare, not this f...
What is your primary use case for IBM Informix?
We are using IBM Informix for OLTP systems. We are using IBM Informix although it is a technology that is not very popular compared to others. We are using it because our application was initially ...
How do you run Oracle Database at your organization and why?
My company has been using Oracle Exadata Database Service for some years now, and we are happy with it. I will allow myself to answer your questions about why and what benefits it provides us with ...
Do you know of any disadvantages of Oracle Database?
Undoubtedly, Oracle Database is a top product in its category. But it does have its disadvantages, and for me and my organization, that has been the limitations of the product. When it comes to Ora...
What is the best use for Oracle Database?
Oracle Database is flexible and can be used for many things. My company's main use case for this product is for storing data. We benefit from its high level of security as well as from the fact tha...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Informix
Oracle 12c, RDBMS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Shaspa, Hildebrand, Kaifa, Ranhill Powertron, Federaci‹ Farmacutica (FedeFarma), Camden Council, The German Aerospace Center (DLR), Myers, Votorantim Group, Doosan Infracore, GreenIvory
Agncia Nacional de guas, Anbima, Aria Systems, Asiana Airlines, Astelit LLC, Australian Finance Group, Banco Occidental de Descuento, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, BT, Caja de Seguros S.A., Casas GEO S.A.B. de C.V., Comic Relief UK, Corsair Components Inc., CSAM Health AS, CSOB Group, Datacraft Solutions, DenizBank A.S., Department of Treasury and Finance WA, Office of State Revenue, Deutsche B_rse AG, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Deutsche Messe AG, Digicel Haiti, DPR COSEA, Essar Group, Essatto Software Pty Ltd, Farmšcia e Drogaria Nissei Ltda., Fomento Econ‹mico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (FEMSA), FundaÊo Petrobras de Seguridade Social, Future Group, GFKL Financial Services AG, Grupo Posadas S.A.B. de C.V., Grupo Sinosserra, Guerra S.A. Implementos Rodovišrios, Hanatour International Service, Hays plc, Henan Mobile Co. Ltd, Hochschule Hof, Hong Kong and China Technology (Wuhan) Co. Ltd (Towngas Technology), Industries Corpa_al C.A., Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited, Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatstica, Instituto Mexicano de la Propiedad Industrial, Kcell, LinkShare Corporation, MercadoLibre Inc., MetLife Inc., Nextgen Distribution, €BB-IKT GmbH, Octagon Research Solutions, Pacific Lutheran University, Paragon Data GmbH, Ping ltd., PJSC Trustbank, Prodaub _ Processamento de Dados de Uberl_ndia, Purdue University, Redknee Inc., Robi Axiata Limited, Shanghai Infoservice Technology Co. Ltd, Shanghai Sihua Technologies Co. Ltd, Sistema de Aguas de la Ciudad de M_xico, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Suddenlink Communications, Suprajit Engineering Limited, Tallink Grupp, Terminales Ro de la Plata S.A., Therap Services LLC, Think Passenger Inc., Trafigura, Transmed S.A.L Lebanon, ValeShop, VelQuest Corporation, Vodafone Group plc, West Virginia Network, WIND Hellas Telecommunications S.A
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Informix vs. Oracle Database and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.