Amazon RDS vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft are both solutions in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.3, while Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.6. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 25.6% mindshare in DS, compared to Microsoft’s 18.2% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 95% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

Amazon RDS

Read 50 Amazon RDS reviews

7,820 Views
6,406 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Read 92 Microsoft Azure SQL Database reviews

9,667 Views
4,277 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Amazon RDS

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

Amazon RDS and Microsoft Azure SQL Database are strong players in the cloud database market. Based on the comparisons, each product has distinct advantages that cater to different needs.

Features: Amazon RDS offers automated backups, ease of scalability, and high availability. Microsoft Azure SQL Database has advanced machine learning capabilities, integration with other Azure services, and built-in security features.

Room for Improvement: Amazon RDS could improve its support, reduce downtime during maintenance, and enhance its performance analytics. Microsoft Azure SQL Database needs better performance analytics, improved documentation for complex setups, and more intuitive user interfaces.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Amazon RDS is easier to deploy and integrates well with AWS services, but its customer service receives mixed reviews. Microsoft Azure SQL Database has a straightforward deployment process and an effective support team, especially for enterprises already using Azure.

Pricing and ROI: Amazon RDS offers competitive pricing with good ROI for small and medium businesses, but costs can increase with higher usage. Microsoft Azure SQL Database is more expensive but the added features and integration justify the cost, providing good ROI for enterprises needing comprehensive solutions.

To learn more, read our detailed Amazon RDS vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database Report (Updated: September 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Amazon RDS vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

September 2024

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Categories and Ranking

Amazon RDS

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

2nd

Average Rating

8.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2024, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of Amazon RDS is 25.6%, down from 29.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 18.2%, down from 19.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Featured Reviews

Adalberto Barbosa Da Costa Lobato

Cloud Solutions Architect at gwcloud.company

Sep 7, 2023

A highly scalable and affordable solution that provides ease of management and a high return on investment

We use the solution to host databases The product provides ease of management. We do not have to worry about the database. We just worry about the data. It is really convenient. The solution’s scalability, usability, and availability are valuable to us. It’s a really good solution. The product…

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SehrishTahir

Account Manager at Jaffer Business Systems

Apr 26, 2023

A reliable and affordable solution to customize applications

AWS secured much business in Pakistan because of RDS for Oracle. There is not much difference between AWS and Azure’s prices. AWS and Azure differ in price by a few dollars. Technically both solutions have different capabilities. AWS has a far better capability. People prefer AD authentication by AWS over Azure. We have Microsoft-certified trainers in Pakistan. We have been asking our customers to choose Azure because they will get a lot of benefits by adopting a cloud solution. Since hardware is not easily available within Pakistan due to dollar disparity, a lot of people are choosing Azure. We have been pushing Azure very aggressively for the past four to five years. People continue to implement the solution despite policy challenges. One of our customers wants to host nine to ten applications on Azure. There is a lot of demand for AWS and Azure. Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The initial setup is straightforward, and technical support is good."

"Amazon RDS is good for backups, auto-scanning, and disaster recovery. It's also appropriate for the office server."

"The solution has unique features like backup and recovery, and snapshots. It upgrades automatically. The solution offers easy analytics concerning performance metrics. Its reliability and scalability are very good. The tool's most valuable features are disaster recovery, high availability and scalability."

"The most valuable features of Amazon RDS are its scalability, reliability, and intelligence."

"The tool is very easy to use and configure."

"Amazon RDS handles database backup mechanisms and patch management."

"It is stable, scalable, and easy to deploy."

"It handles large-scale data migrations perfectly. Amazon RDS's performance is quite good. Charges are incurred after you utilize the service"

More Amazon RDS pros

"Database services and Active Directory related functions for this solution are good. Stable, scalable, and easy to install. Its technical support is good."

"The initial setup is very easy. It's extremely straightforward."

"Cost savings are the most valuable. The DR/high availability is also valuable. The failover group with the built-in DR/high availability features is probably one of the easiest things."

"The most useful feature of Azure SQL is the queries for manipulating the data, such as the tables and the storage processors."

"We have multiple applications running for our customers that we can integrate into Azure SQL."

"SQL Azure is good with transactional systems."

"The main advantage of it is that there is no infrastructure cost. We don't have to host it here. So, there is no infrastructure cost."

"My impression is that this solution is quite stable."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros

Cons

"The running cost could be improved."

"If we do not keep track of our costs, we might face some problems."

"Sometimes the interface has many moving parts, which is a concern."

"I also don't think it's very scalable."

"There are some use cases that might come up where we would want to understand the performance aspects better."

"They could provide better integration for the solution with Microsoft products."

"AWS support is decent, but it's not as good as before. Sometimes, we get junior staff who are unable to answer our questions. It also depends on the support team you get. Support based in Europe and Australia is better than US support. For example, European support is quick to deliver the right answer. US support handles routine maintenance issues, and it's mostly junior staff who don't know the product well."

"It would be better if it integrated seamlessly with Microsoft products. Our clients use the Microsoft Tally application server. We already tried to create a reputation from, for example, an on-premises environment from our client to Amazon RDS using Microsoft Tally server, and we couldn't do that because we didn't have a strong user in RDS. We couldn't create a reputation from an on-premises environment from the Microsoft Tally server to RDS. I think that it would be a good implementation, and it would help us with this case."

More Amazon RDS cons

"The initial setup was very complex."

"There are certain shortcomings when it comes to the stability of the product, especially if I consider the fact that there can always be some bug-related issues in the tool."

"The only problem we have with Azure is regarding the price."

"The user interface (UI) could be more flexible."

"The preset configuration switches we can select on SQL Azure should be made more liberal to work on."

"Lacks some tools on the SQL Server for data virtualization."

"Azure SQL can improve by adding more machine learning features like other databases, such as Cassandra or Cosmos DB."

"They should include more accessible functions for image tooling."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would rate the tool's pricing an eight out of ten."

"The cost is manageable because you can see the expense associated with each instance and utilize tools for tagging and cost control."

"The solution's pricing needs improvement."

"In my case, MySQL is free, and if there are any costs, then it is much less than other solutions since all such things usually come bundled with the hardware."

"Amazon RDS is cheaper compared to other tools."

"Amazon RDS could improve by reducing the price."

"The substantial initial credit and cost-effectiveness make Amazon an attractive option."

"The cost of using this solution is similar to that of having your own data center."

More Amazon RDS pricing and cost advice

"I am not aware of the exact pricing, but our monthly bill for Azure is around 80,000. It is less expensive than using SQL Server. It has the pay-as-you-go model, and the charges are based on the usage."

"It only has a subscription-based license."

"There is no licensing cost for the solution."

"I have an annual spend number, and it is in the hundred thousand dollar range. There are no additional costs to the standard licensing fees. Even though you have to look at the cost numbers of what you're going to be charged on a monthly basis, what you have to also remember is that your application may need a lot of rewriting and things like that. You get charged not just for the monthly costs but also for the transactions that occur. If your access to the data layer is not so efficient, your costs will go up because you're pulling far more data than you potentially need. These are hidden costs that nobody ever considers. If your application is not written very efficiently, you may actually increase your costs over on-prem versus cloud."

"It is beneficial in terms of cost because you are charged per data unit instead of licensing."

"In terms of the cost, SQL Azure is a pay-per-use solution, particularly because it's a cloud subscription, so you pay as much as you use it."

"When looking at the long-term expenses associated with running software on an on-premises server, the costs are almost equivalent but when we include insurance for devices, onsite fees for servers, and other related costs, we may find that this is a cost-effective solution."

"I believe the licensing is more on a global scale."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

14%

University

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

68%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Amazon RDS?

The product's installation phase is easy.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon RDS?

I would rate the pricing between six and seven. The cost is manageable because you can see the expense associated with each instance and utilize tools for tagging and cost control. However, a commo...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Amazon RDS?

They could provide better integration for the solution with Microsoft products. Although this may be challenging due to competitive interests, enhanced integration could significantly benefit users...

See all answers

What do you like most about SQL Azure?

The automated scalability feature of SQL Azure has proven to be highly beneficial, particularly when deployed in the cloud.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SQL Azure?

SQL Azure is an expensive solution.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SQL Azure?

The solution’s pricing needs improvement because it is too high.

See all answers

Comparisons

MongoDB Atlas vs Amazon RDS

Compared 32% of the time

Google Cloud SQL vs Amazon RDS

Compared 24% of the time

Oracle Database as a Service vs Amazon RDS

Compared 13% of the time

Google Cloud Spanner vs Amazon RDS

Compared 4% of the time

Yugabyte Platform vs Amazon RDS

Compared 3% of the time

More Amazon RDS Competitors

Google Cloud SQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 40% of the time

MongoDB Atlas vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 17% of the time

Oracle Database as a Service vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 8% of the time

Google Cloud Spanner vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 1% of the time

IBM Db2 on Cloud vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 1% of the time

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Amazon RDS

September 2024

Download Amazon RDS product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

August 2024

Download Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report

Also Known As

RDS

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Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Microsoft

Overview

Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) is a web service that makes it easier to set up, operate, and scale a relational database in the cloud. It provides cost-efficient, resizeable capacity for an industry-standard relational database and manages common database administration tasks.

Microsoft Azure SQL Database is a relational database-as-a-service that delivers predictable performance, scalability, business continuity, data protection, and near-zero administration to cloud developers and solution architects. This is the deep technical library for Azure SQL Database.

Sample Customers

Edmodo

adnymics GmbH, LG CNS, Centrebet, netfabb GmbH, MedPlast, Accelera Solutions, Sochi Organizing Committee, realzeit GmbH

Buyer's Guide

Amazon RDS vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

September 2024

Free Report: Amazon RDS vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

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