Debian OS vs. macOS

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Debian OS
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
Debian OS is an open source operating system.N/A
macOS
Score 9.3 out of 10
N/A
macOS is the graphical operating system for Apple desktop devices.N/A
Pricing
Debian OSmacOS
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Debian OSmacOS
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Debian OSmacOS
Considered Both Products
Debian OS
Chose Debian OS
Its has all the needy features that we are looking for plus the support and updates for the OS as well. This means we get all the support and updates in the mean time. Also comparing to others, Debian OS helps us with more security features in built which is also updated over …
Chose Debian OS
Though Ubuntu is a derivative of Debian OS, (and I occasionally use resources from Ubuntu on a Debian system), I find Debian OS to be more user friendly and less likely to force me or bother me with upgrades, etc.
Chose Debian OS
Debian is the most widely used operating system in our environment due to being how lightweight, stable, and versatile it is.
Chose Debian OS
When compared to others, Debian runs smoother and faster and has great support for feature set with it. Even installing other supporting tools or IDEs for development work is pretty easier. With few simple commands and a good internet connection all the debian packages from the …
Chose Debian OS
As they are all a Linux distribution with many years of development, they all fulfill their specific function as an operating system, but something that differentiates Debian OS by a lot from the others is its resource management, which is very good, in addition to being safe …
Chose Debian OS
For our Linux servers, we felt that Debian suited us better than any alternative we've used previously, for a number of reasons.
Although RedHat could be said to have advantages with being backed by a very large company with a bucket full of cash, this does mean it has a more …
macOS
Chose macOS
macOS is much more user-friendly and designed for the novice user. Linux, while providing excellent performance, is not a system that regular non-expert users feel comfortable with out of the box. Windows is more complicated to support because it must accommodate a wide …
Chose macOS
Just that simplicity of day to day activities and management.
It's basically zero hassle with the ability to scale and power up if needed.
Chose macOS
Way faster and better than Windows OS. Only instance Windows OS wins is cost.
Chose macOS
macOS just makes sense to me. Each OS has its pros and cons.. macOS works for me. It's well designed, intuitive, and efficient. But it's not cheap... well, macOS is basically free, but you need the hardware to run it, and the hardware isn't cheap. Pick the right tool for the …
Chose macOS
More reliable, better for power users, more feature rich
Features
Debian OSmacOS
Operating System
Comparison of Operating System features of Product A and Product B
Debian OS
-
Ratings
macOS
9.5
Ratings
8% above category average
File Management00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Software Application Management00 Ratings9.80 Ratings
System Update Frequency00 Ratings9.80 Ratings
Operating System Security00 Ratings9.50 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Debian OSmacOS
Small Businesses
Ubuntu
Ubuntu
Score 8.2 out of 10
Ubuntu
Ubuntu
Score 8.2 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Debian OSmacOS
Likelihood to Recommend
9.3
(0 ratings)
9.1
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(0 ratings)
9.4
(0 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Debian OSmacOS
Likelihood to Recommend
Debian is very well suited for application servers, web servers, file servers, hypervisors (personally, we use Proxmox for some hypervisors and this is based on Debian), and much more. It can run on various CPU architectures and scales well from large to small. We have Debian DNS servers running on Raspberry Pis, and large application and database servers running on powerful Debian installs in our racks.
If you want an OS that is rock solid, easy to manage, and predictable, Debian might be the OS you're looking for. The official packages are generally far from being bleeding edge versions, but this means that you are using packages that are battle tested and will not break compatibility at any point during its life-cycle. This, to me, is one of Debian's core strengths and a good reason for recommending it to others.
On the flip-side, the lack of up-to-date versions of various packages may be an annoyance if you actually do need to be using the latest version of such a package. If you need to be using more modern versions, you will need to remedy that yourself or look at an alternative distribution. Ubuntu may be worth a look, in this case, being that it is basically Debian with newer packages and some minor differences here and there.
Personally, I would not recommend Debian for a graphical desktop OS. You'll nearly always be better off with one of the Ubuntu flavors for a modern desktop with all the bells and whistles you'd expect with a GUI desktop.
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It's generally great all round. IT will love it for the easy management and patching. Enforcing updates is straightforward. As a developer it has all the tools and software you could need, apart from windows apps development.
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Pros
  • Runs smooth and fast.
  • Supports many tools since it being an OSS.
  • Has got rich software feature and great backend support.
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  • Integrates with other apple devices seamlessly
  • Information passed between those devices is encrypted end to end (understanding that apple has the keys in some cases)
  • Compact design
  • Aesthetically pleasing
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Cons
  • sometimes I have trouble with drivers; took me a while to figure out that my HDMI TV was overriding my onboard sound card.
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  • Intrusiveness of security features is sometimes detrimental.
  • "Apple tax" (premium pricing).
  • Integration with open source and public domain development.
  • Strictly limited to Apple hardware.
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Likelihood to Renew
No answers on this topic
Its simply the best operating system
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Usability
Debian is one of the most well-thought-out, logical, and intuitive Linux operating systems you can use. Configuration, package management, file system layouts, etc, are all based on many years of usage, and it's very rare to find anything surprising or confusing in everyday usage. Package management and updates are handled by APT in such a way that once configured, you can almost guarantee your system will behave as expected for the lifetime of its service. Top-notch system integration provides all the tools you'd expect from a modern Linux system, with all the stability you demand from a demanding server OS.
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I'm sure I'm biased. I've been using a Mac for 30+ yrs. I am significantly more productive on a Mac than on any other platform. It comes down to some personal preference and familiarity, but I just think the interface is more intuitive and streamlined
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Reliability and Availability
No answers on this topic
macOS tends to be very reliable, and Apple distributes updates as needed to patch known vulnerabilities or issues. It is very seldom that a macOS-based system is unavailable, and if that happens, the cloud-based storage and identity management support make it very easy to slot in a loaner machine while the user's primary machine is repaired.
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Performance
No answers on this topic
The Apple Silicon hardware allows macOS to perform very well, with rapid response. Local processing for Apple Intelligence-related items is quite fast, and the response is impressively complete. Our experience with integrations to other enterprise systems is that the other system is usually the bottleneck in the process, rather than macOS.
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Alternatives Considered
Debian is the most widely used operating system in our environment due to being how lightweight, stable, and versatile it is.
Read full review
macOS is much more user-friendly and designed for the novice user. Linux, while providing excellent performance, is not a system that regular non-expert users feel comfortable with out of the box. Windows is more complicated to support because it must accommodate a wide variety of manufacturers' hardware, down to motherboards. macOS has a very well-defined set of hardware to support, and it is very well integrated. It is just simpler to use and simpler to support than the alternatives.
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Scalability
No answers on this topic
macOS is very easily deployed with central MDM/DDM management systems. There are several of these available to select, depending on the amount and type of deployment needed. We use Jamf Pro to support a "zero touch" deployment model, which makes it almost as easy to deploy 100 endpoints as 10 (other than delivery and unboxing).
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Return on Investment
  • we have always had a positive impact being a stable operating system helps to meet our goals
  • the security that Debian OS offers is a quality that contributes to our objectives
  • everything that helps productivity and efficiency in our work has a positive balance in the fulfillment of the objectives that we set ourselves
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  • DLP and overall security on macOS is just far superior than Windows OS
  • Updates are easier to push out on macOS so security has been further improved
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ScreenShots