Oracle GlassFish vs Tomcat comparison

Oracle and Apache are both solutions in the Application Server category. Oracle is ranked #9, while Apache is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.8. Oracle holds a 2.2% mindshare in AppS, compared to Apache’s 19.9% mindshare. Additionally, 94% of Apache users are willing to recommend the solution.

Oracle GlassFish

Read 1 Oracle GlassFish review

517 Views
433 Comparison Views

0% willing to recommend

Tomcat

Read 52 Tomcat reviews

3,905 Views
3,221 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Oracle GlassFish

Tomcat

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Oracle GlassFish and Tomcat based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Oracle, Apache, Red Hat and others in Application Server.

To learn more, read our detailed Application Server Report (Updated: May 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Application Server

May 2025

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Helped 851,604 peers since 2012

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

Oracle GlassFish

Ranking in Application Server

9th

Average Rating

6.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Tomcat

Ranking in Application Server

2nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Application Server category, the mindshare of Oracle GlassFish is 2.2%, down from 3.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tomcat is 19.9%, down from 20.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Server

Featured Reviews

it_user517413

Technical Lead Developer

Offers EE Support. I would like to see integration with MQ systems.

The products offers EE support. It offers ease of use. I would like to see integration with MQ systems.

Read full review

Erick Karanja

Technical Lead at Cellulant Kenya

Offers high availability, straightforward deployment and easy to use

Tomcat could be a little bit more innovative. Tomcat could come up with a framework that's more lightweight and purely targeted at Java applications. Some other solutions are doing better right now, maybe because they have come up with MicroProfile, which I think is moving forward. It may actually beat Tomcat because of the lightweight nature of the framework, the MicroProfile. They're coming up with new solutions. So, for the future of Tomcat and to maintain the market share they might be looking for, they need to come up with initiatives to ensure that several of us have a lightweight framework to deploy applications on.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The products offers EE support."

"We can use Apache Tomcat for Java server applications."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is that it supports Java Enterprise."

"The product is easy to use."

"One of the most valuable features of Tomcat is its compatibility with the Apache web server and its ease of configuration. It is simple to set up and maintain and allows for easy management of database connections, transactions, and isolation. Overall, Tomcat is a user-friendly application server that makes it easy to manage various aspects of database interactions."

"Tomcat has connectors like REST requests to connect the front end. Also, some parts of the inter-system communication go through REST. External connections with third parties occasionally involve both REST and SOAP protocols. Tomcat is versatile in accommodating these various communication methods."

"Tomcat is a single-server solution for deploying applications that can scale effectively. It's a good choice because it simplifies deployment. Once you package your application, deployment is straightforward and efficient."

"The product's most valuable feature is the ability to host applications."

"It is easy to manage at a basic level."

More Tomcat pros

Cons

"I would like to see integration with MQ systems."

"In the solution, we are using the terminal to enter command line codes for operations and management, this is difficult for me. It would be better if we had some administrator UI tools for this."

"If it could support the driver's VIN, they can run natively without the GBM. Now, we can run what we call the native cloud application that doesn't require GBM. If Tomcat can support that, it's going to improve performance and backup."

"Deployment in Tomcat should be done through a GUI. We deploy applications from the backend using commands."

"The high availability is not as robust as the competition is such as WebLogic and Jboss."

"The setup is complex and could be improved."

"The interface is not user-friendly."

"Vulnerability is one of the areas that can be considered an issue in the solution."

"It will be useful if a direct report concerning a particular server configuration or application usage is readily available in the dashboard."

More Tomcat cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"Tomcat is an open-source server."

"Tomcat's pricing is very cheap."

"It's open-source. We don't pay for the license."

"I rate the product's price an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low price."

"It is an open-source tool and is free of cost."

"The solution is open source so is free."

"The price of the solution is good."

"If it is a community version of the solution, no payment is required. However, if it is a Linux version, we must buy the solution from JBoss."

More Tomcat pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

18%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

10%

Educational Organization

41%

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

Ask a question

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What do you like most about Tomcat?

Tomcat's ease of use has positively impacted project timelines. Tomcat already has high availability – it doesn't go down so often and doesn't require a lot of maintenance. As long as your applicat...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Tomcat?

Resource configuration like JNDI and queue configuration, similar to other servers, should be provided from the admin console for Tomcat. Currently, it is done manually. The server config file must...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Tomcat?

I am using the solution at running level three. It is for running web applications.

See all answers

Comparisons

Oracle WebLogic Server vs Oracle GlassFish

Compared 38% of the time

JBoss vs Oracle GlassFish

Compared 15% of the time

IBM WebSphere Application Server vs Oracle GlassFish

Compared 12% of the time

More Oracle GlassFish Competitors

Oracle WebLogic Server vs Tomcat

Compared 29% of the time

JBoss vs Tomcat

Compared 23% of the time

IBM WebSphere Application Server vs Tomcat

Compared 21% of the time

IIS vs Tomcat

Compared 11% of the time

Caucho Resin vs Tomcat

Compared 4% of the time

More Tomcat Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Application Server

May 2025

Download Oracle GlassFish product report

Buyer's Guide

Tomcat

April 2025

Download Tomcat product report

Also Known As

GlassFish

No data available

Overview

Oracle GlassFish Server is a robust open source platform that offers exhaustive and accessible documentation, intuitive administration and configuration features, interoperability with Microsoft Windows, feature-rich integration with NetBeans and Eclipse, and alignment with Oracle Solaris, OpenSolaris, and MySQL.

Oracle

Tomcat is a reliable and efficient web server, popular for hosting and running Java-based applications. It is praised for its scalability, compatibility with different operating systems and development frameworks, and its ability to handle heavy workloads.

Users appreciate Tomcat's ease of use, robust performance, reliable server functionality, seamless integration with various platforms, extensive documentation, and strong community support.

Apache

Sample Customers

TravelMuse, Clarity Accounting

1. Adobe Systems 2. Amazon 3. Apple 4. AT&T 5. Bank of America 6. Boeing 7. Cisco Systems 8. Citigroup 9. Dell 10. eBay 11. Facebook 12. General Electric 13. Google 14. Hewlett-Packard 15. IBM 16. Intel 17. JPMorgan Chase 18. Microsoft 19. Netflix 20. Oracle 21. PayPal 22. Salesforce 23. Samsung 24. Sony 25. Target 26. Twitter 27. Uber 28. Verizon 29. Visa 30. Volkswagen 31. Walmart 32. Yahoo

Find out what your peers are saying about Oracle, Apache, Red Hat and others in Application Server. Updated: May 2025.

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