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Oracle Linux vs Rocky Linux comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 13, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
6.4
Oracle Linux saves costs, reduces downtime, integrates with Oracle tools, and offers strong security with positive ROI.
Sentiment score
4.3
Transitioning to Rocky Linux yields cost savings and efficient support, though ROI remains partially evaluated due to retained resources.
Everything from Oracle tools to applications is well integrated within Oracle Linux.
IT Department Manager at DHA Lahore
Our team is comfortable using Oracle Linux as it integrates well with Oracle tools, making everything work seamlessly.
Director of Provisioning Services at MRP ELITE
In terms of outcomes or benefits I've seen over the last year, we have more than 30 servers, and we only need to reboot one server while all other servers continue working fine, resulting in very low downtime, which is very helpful.
System Engineer at Reve Systems
When it comes to return on investment, a lot of money is saved since we moved from a purchased license to the open source provided by Rocky Linux.
System Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
ROI has been good as we have significant open source community involvement.
Technical Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I have seen a return on investment since there was definitely money saved at the time due to the lack of need for licensing since Rocky is available openly.
System Administrator at a computer software company with 5,001-10,000 employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.3
Oracle Linux support is skilled but criticized for high costs, slow responses, yet praised for useful resources and zero-downtime updates.
Sentiment score
4.5
Rocky Linux is reliable with minimal customer support needed; community resources are effective, and official support responds promptly.
Not all support engineers at Oracle are the same, so sometimes I experience good support that resolves issues quickly, while other times, it loops.
Senior Infrastructure Specialist at a financial services firm with 11-50 employees
Oracle's technical support is excellent.
IT Department Manager at DHA Lahore
It is not as helpful or friendly as their application support.
IT Admin at Rosy Blue NV
The support level is extraordinary, providing on-time assistance.
Senior System Engineer at Al Jazeera Media Network
We have not yet needed to contact a vendor regarding Rocky Linux.
Senior Network Engineer at KLC bvba
Even if we raise a support ticket, we receive a resolution or a reply from the team within two business days.
System Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Oracle Linux is praised for scalability, though some experience challenges with non-Oracle hardware and processor compatibility.
Sentiment score
5.6
Rocky Linux is praised for scalability, ease of integration, and effective performance in scalable and high availability environments.
It handles device performance well, automatically managing any issues that arise.
Software Engineer at Trianz
Oracle should make the process faster, as we sometimes have to use a previous processor model to ensure compatibility.
Director of Provisioning Services at MRP ELITE
New processor models sometimes lack immediate compatibility with Oracle Linux, requiring the use of previous models until support is available.
IT Department Manager at DHA Lahore
Even if the server is not responding and we want to attach the volume on another instance or a temporary instance, it is very easy and straightforward with no hiccups.
CloudOps Engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
It has handled growth or changing needs well.
System Administrator at a computer software company with 5,001-10,000 employees
The scalability is quite good, though there are some issues with Rocky Linux.
System Engineer at clusterkit
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Oracle Linux is praised for its stability and reliability, effectively handling workloads with minor bugs primarily related to hardware.
Sentiment score
7.3
Rocky Linux is praised for stability, reliability, and ease of use on low-resource systems, receiving high user satisfaction ratings.
Testing determines stability, as continuous Linux use and installations reveal more bugs.
Senior Infrastructure Specialist at a financial services firm with 11-50 employees
Oracle Linux is very stable.
IT Department Manager at DHA Lahore
Our environment is locally deployed, and there are no performance issues or latency problems.
Director of Provisioning Services at MRP ELITE
Rocky Linux is stable, scalable, and it is very much easier to use.
System Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
Rocky Linux is stable.
Software Engineer at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
 

Room For Improvement

Oracle Linux requires security updates, better hardware compatibility, user-friendly interface, cost-effective support, and improved virtualization performance.
Rocky Linux needs improvements in software availability, documentation, integration issues, updates, Kubernetes support, and security solutions to satisfy user needs.
Having a user interface would make tasks easier, saving time by avoiding the need to remember command-line instructions.
IT Admin at Rosy Blue NV
There are significant limitations as we are not able to customize the system, and we are forced to use standard features which are not suitable for our business.
Manager, Information Technology at Gemini Equipment
Oracle Linux's outage management can be improved to better handle outages.
Software Engineer at Trianz
It is based on customer requirements, as they might want to use Rocky Linux or Ubuntu, depending on their needs.
System Engineer at clusterkit
Rocky Linux could be improved by having more integration with Kubernetes.
Linux architect at European Commission
Currently, it takes more than one month to release a new package or kernel, so speeding that up would help reduce reported vulnerability remediations.
System Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
 

Setup Cost

Oracle Linux offers cost-effective enterprise solutions with free usage and customizable, subscription-based support, often cheaper than competitors.
Enterprise clients find Rocky Linux economical, with options as low as $10 yearly, enhancing affordability compared to VMware.
While ERP might be expensive, Oracle Linux and KVMs are not on the higher side.
Director of Provisioning Services at MRP ELITE
The cost of Microsoft OS is pretty high, and switching to Oracle Linux, which is free, reduced our costs by about 20% to 25%.
IT Admin at Rosy Blue NV
Oracle Linux is affordable.
IT Department Manager at DHA Lahore
We switched to Rocky Linux because of the license price, and in our business, we don't need to have a higher cost as that is not a good idea.
Network Infrastructure Manager at SAGEMCOM
There is no extra cost for a license if we are purchasing Rocky Linux from the AWS Marketplace.
CloudOps Engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Rocky Linux is free, and I can download it and deploy it in whatever environment I have, whether it be H3C, VMware, or Hyper-V.
Server & Cloud Engineer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
 

Valuable Features

Oracle Linux provides performance, compatibility, and cost-effective integration for Oracle applications, offering stability and support for demanding enterprises.
Rocky Linux enhances reliability and efficiency with strong community support, stability, easy migration, scalability, and cost savings.
Since it's from the same vendor as Oracle applications, it's easier to manage issues, making not just the solution cost-effective but also streamlined in management.
IT Admin at Rosy Blue NV
The updates are applied instantly once a CVE is identified, which makes it highly beneficial.
Consultant at a outsourcing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Oracle Linux provides fast updates, and the best aspect is that we can update our server without interrupting our service, which is very important for business continuity.
Superbly mistaken at Banco Nacional de Investimento S.A.
Rocky Linux has positively impacted my organization, specifically through cost savings, because we did not have to buy any licenses or extra licenses of other distros, such as Oracle or Red Hat.
IT / IAM Senior Specialist at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
For production deployment, Rocky Linux is a great choice because it offers full RHEL compatibility without licensing costs, along with strong community support.
CloudOps Engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Since migrating to Rocky Linux, I've seen specific outcomes such as improved security because CentOS stopped the project, and security patches aren't being released.
Linux architect at European Commission
 

Categories and Ranking

Oracle Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
4th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
128
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Rocky Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Oracle Linux is 6.3%, down from 13.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rocky Linux is 12.2%, down from 13.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Rocky Linux12.2%
Oracle Linux6.3%
Other81.5%
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

DR
Manager, Information Technology at Gemini Equipment
Stable performance enhances operations, but improving interface and customization is necessary
Oracle Linux can be improved by making it more user-friendly. The interface and some features need improvement. The interface is very important. Sometimes, there is a very lengthy process to generate a single report. The customization also needs development. There should be more customization allowed for the system. There are some limitations as we cannot customize the system according to our needs. We have to use the standard features which are not always suitable for our business. Despite these limitations, we continue to use it.
Massimiliano Adamo - PeerSpot reviewer
Linux architect at European Commission
Has supported seamless migrations and enabled running complex data workloads securely
The best features Rocky Linux offers include clustering and all the packages from Red Hat.Rocky Linux has impacted my organization very positively because we migrated everything from CentOS and Windows servers to Rocky Linux. Everything is clear, with good packaging, and now it's version 9.6, which is very important for us due to security problems since we are in Europe. Rocky Linux is very good for security and other aspects. Since migrating to Rocky Linux, I've seen specific outcomes such as improved security because CentOS stopped the project, and security patches aren't being released. We need to maintain a system similar to Red Hat, which is very stable and has many features such as file system, topology, and containers.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Comms Service Provider
14%
University
11%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business44
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise74
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Large Enterprise14
 

Questions from the Community

How does Oracle Linux compare with Solaris?
When comparing Oracle Linux and Solaris, I believe that Linux is more secure and more flexible. It is also very suitable for enterprises that are already Oracle solution users. I found Linux to be ...
Which would you choose - Ubuntu Linux or Oracle Linux?
Ubunto Linux is a complete Linux operating system that is freely available with both community and professional support. This solution is suitable for both desktop and server use. It has a very app...
What do you like most about Rocky Linux?
It's very simple to work with, easy to learn, and know where things are.
What needs improvement with Rocky Linux?
I am not an expert on Rocky Linux, but I do not have anything to say regarding improvements; I think it is doing better. I chose a rating of eight out of ten because Rocky Linux must grow more; it ...
What is your primary use case for Rocky Linux?
My main use case for Rocky Linux is for the Nutanix environment, where we have a data center and everything is hosted there, including all the services and systems. Rocky Linux is the main OS of th...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Oracle Enterprise Linux
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

See here
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Oracle Linux vs. Rocky Linux and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.