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NGINX Plus vs Windows Server AppFabric comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 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

NGINX Plus
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
3rd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
32
Ranking in other categories
Application Delivery Controllers (ADC) (10th)
Windows Server AppFabric
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
13th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of NGINX Plus is 7.9%, down from 9.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows Server AppFabric is 2.7%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Infrastructure Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
NGINX Plus7.9%
Windows Server AppFabric2.7%
Other89.4%
Application Infrastructure
 

Featured Reviews

Nadeem-Inamdar - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Information Security Engineer at a tech company with 10,001+ employees
Advanced policies and web firewall have strengthened application protection and reduced attack traffic
There were some vulnerabilities in F5. They tried to fix it, but the fixes were not available at the time because they were zero days, so they attempted to fix it, but their support was not proper. Their support should be improved because sometimes features which we need for customization take time, and they are sometimes feasible and sometimes not feasible by the team, so their support and the engineering team should improve their product. I would like to see more features regarding customization which should be built into the application, and the tool optimization should be good, and the dashboard should be more crisp and clear.
DN
Senior System Administrator at Kentainers
Improved on-premise performance has supported faster, secure apps and clearer server monitoring
One thing I appreciate most about Windows Server AppFabric is because it's widely used; it's easier to get solutions online from other communities when I am stuck. Because it is widely used, it's easier to get solutions and also easier to work with. Especially after I found 2019, I have worked with 2019 and I appreciate it. It's easier to get solutions. After implementing Windows Server AppFabric, I can say I love the speed. The functionality and speed are good. Earlier, when they added more people, I could see some lagging. But now, I have no issue even if I double the users, even if I add 30% of users or any applications, it will still be fast. It increased the speed and also security. I've noticed the new one I have is good and secure. I love the security. The monitoring capabilities of Windows Server AppFabric help me improve service visibility and troubleshooting. In a day, I have to go through a lot of the logs and also the utilization. There, I see the CPU. I have to do the utilization, and I can see what is utilizing the most. By doing this, I can be able to tell what, in case I need to do an upgrade, what I might need to provide the upgrade or maybe increase in users that will not affect the operations.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I think NGINX Plus is one of the most powerful and fittest solutions in this area, and I'd recommend it to others."
"The overall product rating is ten out of ten."
"With NGINX, I appreciate its ability to route traffic geographically."
"It's lightweight software that can handle heavy loads efficiently."
"Using NGINX Plus for web traffic distribution is fantastic. It offers performance similar to physical load balancers but with added flexibility."
"The load balancing module, which is equivalent to LTM, is the focus of the PSE, and so far, the features of both are identical, and I believe NGINX has more features for securing these services, but in terms of load balancing, both are massive solutions."
"It performs very well. That's one of the primary reasons we use NGINX."
"I utilize NGINX for its capability to provide visibility and discovery options, helping discover and identify networks, which is crucial for ensuring application performance, managing latency, and checking server reachability."
"The product's deployment phase was very easy."
"After implementing Windows Server AppFabric, I can say I love the speed."
"The most valuable feature is AppFabric's hosting solution, which is what we need for running workflows."
"This product works great for us and it's unfortunate that they're not going to support it anymore."
"It is very usable and easy to understand, and antivirus and VPN are the main features being used now, allowing my clients to access the network from home, which was very crucial because of the pandemic."
"The ability to seamlessly deploy, image, and patch without causing downtime is extremely helpful and user-friendly."
 

Cons

"If NGINX brings some features for health check in the open source version, it would be better. ​"
"The drawback is that you must obtain a license for everything."
"The center management system could be improved."
"Improvement needed in NGINX Plus could focus on optimizing memory usage for users."
"There is room for improvement in the pricing model."
"I am not so happy with their pricing policy, but this is not the worse thing in my life."
"Only improvement needed that I would point to is scalability. With it, I mean clusterized organisation on a low level. At the moment, the best alternative is RHEL HA."
"Initially, I experienced hiccups whenever I installed the application. As with any application, there were initial issues, however, after receiving support, everything was rectified."
"Microsoft will stop supporting the product next year, and we can't run unsupported programs in our systems."
"The most important issue I've found is the blue screen errors, particularly when customers use external displays with a P-type cable."
"Its price and licensing policy can be improved. It could be a little cheaper. Licensing is sometimes confusing. There are so many different options. It is difficult to find out what to buy or what to choose for my necessity."
"The product is unable to connect with different cloud services."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The list price of NGINX Plus is close to $5,500."
"​NGINX Plus is worth it, if you need it. If you do not need the features or support, the free and open source package is more than capable. ​"
"You pay for each feature that you want."
"The cost is reasonable."
"The solution is free, but you can spend a lot of money with a complex solution."
"Compared to other similar solutions on the market, I think it's over-priced."
"​NGINX is a free tool in Brazil. There are some companies which do support it.​"
"Nginx is free. I don't have experience with the Plus version."
"The product is affordable, in my opinion."
"It is expensive, and its licensing is a bit confusing."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Construction Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
13%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise11
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - IIS or NGINX Plus?
IIS is a flexible, secure, and manageable web server to host anything on the web. IIS’s scalable and open architecture can handle the most demanding tasks. From media streaming to web applications,...
What needs improvement with NGINX Plus?
There were some vulnerabilities in F5. They tried to fix it, but the fixes were not available at the time because they were zero days, so they attempted to fix it, but their support was not proper....
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Windows Server AppFabric?
I am overall satisfied with the licensing cost of Windows Server AppFabric. It's a reasonable price because I run multiple servers, so we bought the bulk one. I can say the price was fair.
What needs improvement with Windows Server AppFabric?
I do not utilize Windows Server AppFabric's workflow management for now because that's a project that we might be looking at in the coming year, in the first or second quarter.
What is your primary use case for Windows Server AppFabric?
All of our major applications are on-premise, so I think 90% of my software used by the employees is on-premise. We have the telephony, we have the ERP, we have some mobile apps. We run a mobile ap...
 

Also Known As

NGINX, F5 NGINX Plus
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Locaweb, AppNexus, Wix, Reliam, Montana Interactive, MuleSoft, Warpwire, Discovery Education, InkaBinka, WordPress.com, Gogo, GOV.UK, NASA
OSIsoft
Find out what your peers are saying about NGINX Plus vs. Windows Server AppFabric and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.