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Azure Stack vs VMware Cloud Foundation comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 12, 2025

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

Azure Stack
Ranking in Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms
1st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
64
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined Data Center (SDDC) (2nd)
VMware Cloud Foundation
Ranking in Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
27
Ranking in other categories
Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) (12th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms category, the mindshare of Azure Stack is 29.6%, down from 31.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Cloud Foundation is 23.5%, up from 22.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

PuneetKaura - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers seamless transition, integration capabilities of Azure Stack works well and scales easily
For hybrid cloud operations, the seamless transition it enables is key. Most enterprises have a lot of workloads on-premises, and they want a smooth way to move into the cloud. Some things are on-prem, and some things are on the cloud. Azure Stack bridges that gap with solutions that work well for their existing on-premises infrastructure.
NiteshKumar1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers automated deployment features that enhances operational efficiency and simplifying complex tasks
Cost is a big factor. Clients want a reduced price. Ease of use is definitely there – the VMware interface is user-friendly. But cost is a challenge when convincing clients, especially for large deals. They understand the value proposition of VMware's reliability, and they're willing to pay a premium for it as long as it's guaranteed in writing. Clients signing multi-million dollar deals are primarily concerned with reliability. They're willing to pay a premium for a guaranteed level of reliability that's spelled out in the agreement. If they pay a significant amount and we can't convince them of the solution's reliability, then it won't be a successful implementation.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution's front door and web application firewalls have proven most beneficial for our edge computing needs."
"Azure Stack is like a hybrid model with a CI/CD pipeline. The IaaS and PaaS model works well with a hybrid type of connectivity."
"The tool has simplified our application development."
"Azure Data Factory is a great solution for orchestration."
"The solution pairs well with other MS services and saves us a lot of money."
"One of the features I really appreciate is the Hybrid Cloud Extension UI."
"It is probably the best solution out there."
"Azure Stack is very stable."
"The DSR feature is valuable because we have internal clustering, and these features are good for us."
"The tool's UI is great."
"VMware Cloud Foundation's most valuable features are password and certificate management. The SDDC manager tool is the front tool we are using to manage the entire VCF stack. In the SDDC manager, we can able to rotate, and update the passwords of all users. Anything in the VMware portfolio, we can manage from a single dashboard and we have various data centers. We have connected everything into one Federation. From one single place, we are managing our entire virtual interactions."
"I like that VMware Cloud Foundation reduces both the installation and setup time from a matter of weeks to hours."
"The solution's most valuable features are automated provisioning, network, and storage."
"The ability to auto-scale is the most valuable feature."
"The solution is very stable."
"They have in release 4.0 features from vSphere and Cloud Suite. It's a complete data center."
 

Cons

"It might be beneficial if Microsoft could introduce a more cost-effective data lake feature within their product."
"Azure Stack should be open to different technologies for more virtualization environments to accept it."
"I would like to see better network integration."
"The solution's price is high, and the implementation process is difficult. I would like to see a lower price and simpler implementation for Azure Stack."
"Microsoft is changing the Azure Stack interface all the time, so it's sometimes hard to find the functionality or the service you're looking for. A feature was in one place and now it has moved somewhere else."
"From a security perspective, there are certain things which could be improved."
"The user interface could be more user friendly."
"The solution's transparency over cost management could be much easier because it's very difficult to manage costs."
"The interface is good, but there are compatibility issues or issues with the certificate for the VCenter."
"We would like the ability to write to both sites at the same time, in a synchronous fashion."
"They need to offer more support for Mac."
"The platform needs improvement in terms of troubleshooting."
"The deployment is clumsy and complex. There are too many things that need to be done in order to deploy."
"Cost is a challenge when convincing clients, especially for large deals."
"The price could be better. VMware Cloud Foundation is overpriced, but I think we get what we pay for. It would be better if it were cheaper because it would be easier to go to customers and get them to buy it. We'd get more projects, and that would be great."
"In the early adoption of VMware Cloud Foundation, we have seen minor problems. For example, in our Federation, I see the single pane of glass where we need to manage everything, which is good. However, internally, we have a Kafka database that is distributed by the database used by the SDDC manager. During the distribution and synchronization, there is some issue and we need to stop the process."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Azure Stack is expensive."
"In terms of costs, it is a standard price, and there is no negotiation."
"When comparing Azure to Amazon and Google, it appears that Azure offers the most cost-effective solution."
"We are satisfied with the pricing."
"The pricing is very expensive."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"Subscription model customers need not make large expenditures on upfront purchasing."
"I rate the tool's pricing a seven out of ten."
"The pricing of VMware Cloud Foundation could improve, it is expensive."
"The pricing is moderate. I would rate it six out of ten."
"The tool's price is slightly on the higher side, but I guess you think there is no one-to-one comparison with other tools. The licensing part has become easier, while earlier, it was quite complex."
"There is an annual license required to use the solution."
"The price of VMware Cloud Foundation is expensive."
"The licensing is expensive compared with Hyper V and Unitech's platform."
"The pricing can be more competitive."
"The solution’s pricing could be improved and made more flexible."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Educational Organization
7%
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Azure Stack?
For hybrid cloud operations, the seamless transition it enables is key. Most enterprises have a lot of workloads on-premises, and they want a smooth way to move into the cloud. Some things are on...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Stack?
Azure Stack is a very expensive solution. The costs are very opaque and coming out of control quite quickly.
What needs improvement with Azure Stack?
The solution's transparency over cost management could be much easier because it's very difficult to manage costs.
What do you like most about VMware Cloud Foundation?
VMware Cloud Foundation provides us with the vSphere dashboard through which we can manage, monitor, schedule, and spin up your virtual machines. We can manage, monitor, and get reports of your inf...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Cloud Foundation?
After the acquisition, prices have been going up, however, we find the product quite good. The licensing model changed after the Broadcom acquisition. Lower prices are good for end users, however, ...
What needs improvement with VMware Cloud Foundation?
All virtualization features are there, and they release periodic patches and updates. There is not much I would suggest for improvement. We are almost there in terms of meeting our needs.
 

Overview

Information not available
 

Sample Customers

Weblink, Fathym, Sage, CFD Support Ltd, The UberCloud Inc.
ricoh, dell technologies, sky
Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Stack vs. VMware Cloud Foundation and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
832,340 professionals have used our research since 2012.