Microsoft Outlook was one of the most preferred email clients in professional circles, while Microsoft Exchange was also in the news on receiving updates after nearly two decades. They are often similarly referred to each other. Have you ever wondered about the difference between Outlook and Exchange? Are they independent of each other? Fret not. To answer all your burning questions, let's take a look at Microsoft Exchange vs. Outlook, what they represent, and what's the difference between them.
What is Microsoft Exchange?
According to Business Insider, Microsoft Exchange is an email server that runs on Windows Server operating systems. Instead of just storing emails and data, it is a highly robust service used by businesses and institutions worldwide. It is available in two forms: Exchange Server and Exchange Online. The Exchange Server uses physical servers that organizations can set up with their own hardware. Exchange Online is a cloud-based SaaS solution directly availed from the official Microsoft website.
Using ActiveSync, Microsoft Exchange can synchronize data between multiple devices and manage calendars, tasks, databases, and events, all on a single platform. First introduced in 2000, it largely remained unchanged until recently when it received its first major update in Exchange 2019. It was also in the same year when Exchange Online became part of the Office 365 Premium suite. With it came numerous overhauls that increased productivity potential and tightened the security of the service.
What is Microsoft Outlook?
On the other hand, Microsoft Outlook is a professional email service. Although Exchange and Outlook were designed keeping each other in mind, the latter can be used with virtually any server network. Outlook helps manage your emails and calendars, even assisting in scheduling emails to be sent beforehand. It is also included in the Microsoft Office 365 suite, but unlike Exchange, Outlook can be used free of charge.
What separates Microsoft Outlook is that it can be made individually available without connecting to Microsoft servers. You can download it as an app on your smartphone or PC without much hassle. Sure, you miss out on ActiveSync and some other integrated ecosystem features. Still, you have a convenient emailing application that you can use on the go. Not to mention that it works much better than Gmail and Rediff in filtering out spam emails, and it is optimized for better productivity rather than aesthetics.
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What's the difference between Microsoft Exchange and Outlook
Now that you clearly understand what they are all about, it is time to look at some apparent differences between Outlook and Exchange.
Microsoft Outlook |
Microsoft Exchange |
| Outlook is an email service client | Exchange is a dedicated resource management service |
| Part of Office 365 Business and above | Only included with Office 365 Business Essentials and Premium (Exchange Server only as standalone) |
| Can only work with other servers in offline mode | Can work well with other email clients |
| Device-based service | Cloud-based service (Exchange Online) |
| Device-based service | Deals with email services at server-level |
| Can be used independently free of charge with a registered Microsoft account | Can only be used independently with a monthly subscription |
Compared to Outlook, Microsoft Exchange has a much broader scope. It can support a variety of email services like Thunderbird and ProtonMail. Since Exchange Online is a cloud-based email service, it can be accessed in proximity to most MS servers across the world. Usually, entire organizations have a single Exchange server mailbox for all their participants. Because Microsoft Exchange uses popular protocols such as SMTP, IMAP, and POP, it is easy to set up accounts for users and keep access to the server secure.
Even though both Outlook and Exchange Online are part of MS Office 365, they can be operated outside of it if you so choose. Outlook comes free of charge as a lite package with just the basic features compatible with any system. Moreover, only offline mode is available when you use Outlook on any other server. In contrast, Exchange offers full support for all clients, especially after its latest update. With Exchange, you have to pay up a small monthly fee for continued use.
Key considerations when choosing a Email service
While the notion of using both the services together was intended, the discussion for which is better, Microsoft Exchange or Outlook, is sure regarding suitability. Suppose you need a cloud-based server for a school that shall include students and staff from all over the town who use different email clients, Microsoft Exchange Online would no doubt be the right choice.
On the other hand, using only Outlook will help you manage tasks and emails much more efficiently than other such clients. It is a user-friendly application that anyone can learn and helps stave off non-essential material from your workspace.
When choosing the right email service for your business, it is wise to consider the needs of the organization, clients, and staff. It should be familiar to most users, easy for administrators to manage, compatible with most systems, and, above all, secure. A lack of synchronization between any two can lead to dire consequences.
Summary
All-in-all, the best results are obtained when you use Outlook and Exchange together. The Exchange servers can utilize ActiveSync to the best with all registered users. When they have Outlook with them, managing tasks, fixing timelines, and determining event specifications becomes seamless. Since a cloud-based solution is active, every user has easy access to data no matter where they are located. It brings about a unique efficiency made relevant today.
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