Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service comparison

Microsoft and Oracle are both solutions in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category. Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.6, while Oracle is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.0. Microsoft holds a 18.2% mindshare in DS, compared to Oracle’s 0.4% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 83% of Oracle users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Read 92 Microsoft Azure SQL Database reviews

9,667 Views
4,277 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Oracle Exadata Express Clou...

Read 9 Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service reviews

127 Views
92 Comparison Views

83% willing to recommend

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Oracle Exadata Express Clou...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

Microsoft Azure SQL Database and Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service are two prominent cloud-based database solutions. Microsoft Azure SQL Database appears to have the upper hand in pricing and deployment based on user reviews, while Oracle Exadata is recognized for its superior features that justify its higher cost.

Features: Microsoft Azure SQL Database offers scalability, integration with Microsoft tools, and AI-driven performance insights. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service stands out with robust analytics, high availability, and extensive support for complex queries.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Azure SQL Database users suggest improvements in automated backups, advanced query optimization, and better user interface design. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service users express the need for a more user-friendly setup process, better documentation, and enhanced customer support options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is praised for its simpler, faster deployment process and responsive support. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service, although having a steeper learning curve and slower deployment times, provides knowledgeable support.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is generally viewed as cost-effective with straightforward pricing and positive ROI. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service, while more expensive, is considered worth the investment by users who need its advanced capabilities.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service Report (Updated: September 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service

September 2024

Download the complete report

Helped 801,634 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

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

Oracle Exadata Express Clou...

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

11th

Average Rating

7.4

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 Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 18.2%, down from 19.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service is 0.4%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Featured Reviews

reviewer1427208

Technical Account Manager at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

Sep 27, 2020

Scalable and flexible with good pricing

The flexibility with regards to licensing is the most valuable aspect of the solution. Customers can benefit from a lot of cost savings if they go for Azure The implementation process needs to be improved. Support isn't that great. They need to work on this aspect of their service. It can be…

Read full review

Humza BHatti

Senior Associate at a consultancy with 1,001-5,000 employees

Dec 12, 2022

Easy to use, easy to set up, and doesn't require maintenance from your end

How Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service helps improve organizations depends on client requirements. For example, my current client said, "Why don't we use the PL/SQL to do ETL services?" And that's where the question on using Informatica or ODI came in, particularly the question, "Why write entire queries just to do this?" That's when I started my research, so it depends on what my client requires. My main job is to help clients choose a better solution that serves them long-term, so I usually recommend Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service because it's easier to use and good long-term. The vendor will also assist you, so you won't need to hire people, so Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service also helps save on costs.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The stability is good."

"They have good documentation. It's concentrated information."

"The product's initial setup phase is very easy."

"Coding does not require much effort."

"The most valuable aspects of this solution are the integration with the darknet stack especially Microsoft, table groups, supports major capability requirements, and SQL always-on feature."

"The dashboard is valuable."

"SQL Azure can integrate well with other Microsoft Windows services."

"Because the solution is cloud-based it's highly manageable, it makes maintenance of logs, space, storage and backups much easier compared to a traditional SQL server installation."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros

"One of the most valuable parts of the solution is the high availability within the system and the performance enhancement without making any changes or fine-tuning the databases."

"Having the prediction happen in the modular format allows you to start with a lower version of Exadata and then you can keep on upgrading it as per your requirement."

"In the cloud, Exadata is more scalable. The on-prem version was limited. It wasn't that scalable because it only came in a quarter rack, half rack, and full rack. In the cloud, it scales to what you need."

"The solution is very stable and offers great performance."

"It is a scalable product."

"I like that Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service is easier to use and is a cost-saving solution because you won't need to hire people to run and maintain it."

"The performance of the tool is valuable."

Cons

"We haven't had any major issues that have prevented us from doing stuff fundamentally. For its implementation, sometimes, it is complicated to understand what your needs are. It would be good to have a few use cases that provide different cloud variations that match on-premise installations and show how they can be moved to the cloud a bit better."

"I feel that the price is high and it could be reduced."

"I would like to see the cloud connectivity environment improved."

"The way it has been designed, in the on-premises deployments, the underlying Windows OS is highly scalable but has a very large resource requirement. A lot of power-related and memory-related things are there, which I have not seen in the RHEL and Oracle. I have not tried SQL on RHEL EXEC. On Windows, infrastructure-wise, a very large workload is running on the SQL. This issue is related to Windows, not SQL."

"The problem is the automated configuration."

"They should also simplify the security in Azure. We are using the cloud as a platform, so there is no physical infrastructure. We're using Azure components like databases and servers to create an application. Integrating those components in terms of permissions and security is challenging for us. Maybe there is a lack of knowledge on our side, but it's not straightforward."

"The solution could improve by allowing the export of the data more seamlessly. It is difficult to copy and back up data."

"I want the pricing to be improved."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons

"The customer's default choice is the on-premise version of this solution. Only when Oracle or the partners like us, can explain to customers the cloud value proposition, and if the compliance authorities allow, they can look into this cloud solution. It will take some time for Oracle to change its perception of customers' de-facto standards. Exadata used to be treated as a black box, which is not the case now. The customer is aware of what is happening inside, how the configurations have been made, and what patching has been applied. Oracle needs to market the cloud version better."

"The solution's pricing could be improved."

"The only downside is the difficulty in monitoring, and that's why I would like to implement MySQL database."

"The support must be faster."

"Scaling Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service can be done, but the process is a little tedious, which could be an area for improvement in the solution."

"Oracle's support could be better."

"We use artificial intelligence for deep learning, and it would be a huge benefit to implement this in Oracle Exadata."

"The product's installation process needs improvement. It could be more accessible."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is actually complicated, and that is probably one downside of it. In some respects, although we can plan for the costs on a month-by-month basis, we are finding it hard to project our costings for it. Fundamentally, Microsoft is offering two pricing models, and it is challenging to understand the differences between the two. We're basically on the DTU model at the moment. That may change in the future as the size grows, but it is one of those things that we'll end up monitoring as we progress. At the moment, to get a reasonable response, generally, the price is a little high for us, but it is one of those things for which we know that we can do improvements on our code. So, it is not just the service that's the problem; it is some of the things that we need to do as well."

"The cost is around $2,000 per month."

"The pricing is flexible and can be adapted based on our requirements but the pricing options are complex especially if we are using a VM."

"The price of the solution is reasonable."

"It is quite expensive. I would definitely recommend not using the pay-as-you-go model because this will just mean all your money will go to Microsoft. So, really make sure to control resource usage as much as possible."

"SQL Azure is an expensive solution."

"It only has a subscription-based license."

"Microsoft services are costly, which is the only problem we face. So, pricing is an area of improvement."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice

"The price of this solution is very comparative to others on the market. There is no direct comparison between this solution and with something else because I do not see any other similar product."

"I think Oracle pricing is usually above average market price."

"The tool is not cheap, but it is not really expensive."

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Database as a Service (DBaaS) solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

801,634 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

68%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Healthcare Company

Financial Services Firm

37%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

Logistics Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

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

What do you like most about Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service?

The performance of the tool is valuable.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service?

We can pay the licensing fee monthly. We can also choose to pay upfront for a year. The tool is not cheap, but it is not really expensive. It depends on our usage. I rate the pricing a seven to eig...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service?

The support must be faster.

See all answers

Comparisons

Google Cloud SQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 40% of the time

Amazon RDS vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 29% 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

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database Competitors

Oracle Exadata vs Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service

Compared 100% of the time

More Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

August 2024

Download Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report

Buyer's Guide

Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service

August 2024

Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service report

Download Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service product report

Learn More

Microsoft

Oracle

Overview

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.

Oracle Database Exadata Express Cloud Service delivers a managed Oracle Database 12c Release 2 Enterprise Edition with options, running on Oracle Exadata engineered systems – all at a highly affordable entry-level price. It is a full Oracle Database experience, compatible with what you get on-premises or in other Oracle Database Cloud Services, provisioned within minutes, and suitable for small to medium sized data.

Sample Customers

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

TAFEL LEIPZIG, AS ONE

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service

September 2024

Free Report: Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service and other solutions. Updated: September 2024.

DOWNLOAD NOW

801,634 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service report.

See our list of best Database as a Service (DBaaS) vendors.

We monitor all Database as a Service (DBaaS) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.