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HCL Domino vs Oracle Application Express (APEX) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

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

HCL Domino
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
17th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
22
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Oracle Application Express ...
Ranking in Rapid Application Development Software
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
61
Ranking in other categories
Development Platforms (2nd), Low-Code Development Platforms (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2025, in the Rapid Application Development Software category, the mindshare of HCL Domino is 0.7%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Application Express (APEX) is 7.3%, down from 8.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rapid Application Development Software Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Oracle Application Express (APEX)7.3%
HCL Domino0.7%
Other92.0%
Rapid Application Development Software
 

Featured Reviews

Jason Levine - PeerSpot reviewer
A tool that offers great security and integration capabilities
The solution facilitates our company's workflow automation needs since it is a platform that allows users to build whatever workflows they want. The product is used for application development in our organization for our customers, as we operate as consultants. The features of the product that I found to be beneficial for the productivity of my company's team stems from the fact that it can be integrated directly into HCL Notes email so that you can manage your workflows there, and you don't have to change contacts a go to a separate application to deal with a document approval process since it can be done directly from emails. HCL Domino is one of the leading products in the industry, so it is definitely ahead of the other tools in the market. In our company, some departments use HCL Domino for emails rather than other solutions because it is more secure. The tool has an impact on the management of sensitive data in our company. My only suggestion to those who plan to use HCL Domino is that they should not be daunted by the old UI it offers. The collaboration tool of HCL Domino has affected the internal communication processes in our organization. The collaboration tool of HCL Domino is something that the solution has been offering from the time it was introduced in the market as an expensive product. The impact or value on our company from the use of the product can be proven by the fact that with the solution, it is possible to automate processes or workflows while ensuring that there is consistency, lack of human errors, and efficiency. Earlier, I would have rated the tool eight out of ten. Presently, considering the increase in the number of integrations that the product allows and its movement to meet industry standards, I rate the overall tool a nine out of ten.
Rodrigo-Mesquita - PeerSpot reviewer
Rapid application development empowers big projects in months
The ability to quickly develop applications without needing to code a lot is very valuable. It is very quick to create a page, and one can use AI to speed up software development. It is easy to learn. In my company, we could develop a very big application in a couple of months.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We have been able to set up a portal using a special XPage application that gives our customers access to this system."
"The pricing is excellent."
"The DAOS feature is the most valuable. It helps to save some of my storage."
"I like that HCL Domino is stable. It's a great product. I also like that HCL Domino is a mature product under IBM, which is why many companies use it."
"It is an excellent solution."
"The email system is the most valuable feature."
"This solution can be used for workflow application so that applications can be easily developed."
"One valuable feature of HCL Domino is its integration with other directories."
"This product will speed up development time with helpful production aids."
"It has many ready modules that can be used and developed."
"Oracle Application Express is easy to use, people don't have to be developers to use it."
"The database is super easy to use for creating tables."
"The most valuable feature is the ease of use."
"What I like best about Oracle Application Express (APEX) is that it doesn't require hard coding for reporting and building applications. It's a GUI-based application builder that even end-users with little development and language knowledge can develop applications on Oracle Application Express (APEX). The software is also very user-friendly, which I find valuable."
"The most valuable features are security, stability, and ease of implementation."
"The most valuable features of Oracle Application Express (APEX) are the ease and speed of development. Instead of engaging a large team of middleware, front-end, and database engineers, we can have professional look at the front end and have the user interface up and running in a matter of days. However, if you want to go far and implement very custom features, it doesn't require a lot of knowledge of front-end development, such as HTML, JavaScript, or other aspects."
 

Cons

"When you compare with Microsoft Exchange, the UI could be more user-friendly."
"Designing a new template could provide a refreshed visual experience for users without significant changes to the underlying functionality."
"An area for improvement in HCL Domino is security. New enhancements in the IT industry mean that security should be improved. The HCL Domino GUI also needs improvement."
"It would be advantageous if the web server could seamlessly pick up configuration changes without the need for a complete restart."
"Many people are not very happy with its speed."
"For me, the one thing missing is a really good reporting engine."
"From the Domino side, it should support DKIM and DMARC."
"HCL Domino could have a better interface."
"I would like to see easier integration into active directory authentication. Also, maybe integration of JavaScript frameworks would resolve some issues."
"Reporting needs to be accessed via third party tools."
"Oracle Application Express would be improved if you could use it on a mobile platform."
"The user interface needs to be improved. It should be more user-friendly."
"Better connection and integration with non-Oracle databases is needed."
"Occasionally when trying to un a page, I would be faced with an error number; however, not much information would be provided on the error itself outside of the programming language. It would be nice if more information could be provided."
"An area for improvement in Oracle Application Express (APEX) is the slow reporting because pulling the report for two months, one year, three years, etc., is very slow. It takes more than thirty minutes to download the report. There's also room for improvement in integrating Oracle Application Express (APEX) with other vendors, such as open-source solutions through API integration. I believe Oracle is working on this feature, or the issue could be because my organization is using an older version of Oracle Application Express (APEX). The Oracle database also has to be improved because it's still lacking in some packages, triggers, and indexes."
"It would be highly beneficial if APEX were an all-in-one platform capable of handling all aspects of application development."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"My company's customers need to make monthly or yearly payments towards the license charges of the product."
"We pay annually for the use of this solution and it is only a standard fee."
"For 30 licenses, we pay $1,500 every year. It is not an expensive product."
"We're happy with the price of our license — it's pretty standard."
"HCL Domino is costly, but it still depends on how your organization views it price-wise."
"The pricing is individually determined. For us, in our current deployment, we pay $12.50 Canadian per month per user."
"The pricing is subjective and contingent on the intended usage."
"We chose to pay for our licensing fees annually."
"Oracle Application Express (APEX) is free, so this is another magic of the solution. You just get charged for the database license, which I don't need."
"When you have a licensed database in an Oracle environment, APEX is free."
"It is expensive in comparison to other products."
"I rate the product's price as ten on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low price."
"I believe APEX comes bundled with the database, including autonomous database and other related database products, so the pricing is quite reasonable."
"APEX itslelf is a free product, but you will need to license peripheral components."
"Oracle Express comes with the Oracle license, it is a bundle."
"Apex is not priced separately; instead, it is associated with the Oracle database. A free option for Oracle database and Apex can be downloaded and installed on this complimentary database version. This aligns with our current approach."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Construction Company
7%
Government
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business29
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise28
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HCL Domino?
The most valuable features of the solution are security and integration.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HCL Domino?
The Notes client is very expensive, costing around $105 per client. Overall, HCL Domino is a costly product.
What needs improvement with HCL Domino?
One challenge I faced with HCL Domino was fully understanding its capabilities because initial use may lead to misconceptions based on simpler platforms. Exploring and comprehending what is possibl...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
I consider Oracle Application Express (APEX) to be good value for the money because it has infinite quality for money since it's included in any Oracle database license. It's free once you have the...
What needs improvement with Oracle Application Express (APEX)?
One of the things that could be done to improve Oracle Application Express (APEX) is if Oracle decided to open it up to other databases. It needs to be an enterprise database; therefore, it needs t...
 

Also Known As

IBM Lotus Domino, Lotus Domino
Oracle APEX
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

A1 Telekom, Acubiz, Afrisam, E. A. Juffali & Brothers, Fiducia & GAD, and Pakistan State Oil
Hepart AG, pharmasol, SATLOG, Collège Bois-de-Boulogne
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL Domino vs. Oracle Application Express (APEX) and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,869 professionals have used our research since 2012.