Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs SingleStore comparison

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

Microsoft Azure SQL Database and SingleStore compete in the enterprise database solutions category. Azure SQL Database has an edge in integration and scalability, while SingleStore leads in performance and real-time analytics capabilities.

Features: Azure SQL Database integrates comprehensively with the Microsoft ecosystem, offers high availability, and advanced security features. SingleStore is known for high-performance analytical processing, real-time data capabilities, and handling complex queries efficiently.

Room for Improvement: Azure SQL Database needs better documentation, enhanced technical support, and more cost-effective advanced features. SingleStore should improve integration with third-party tools, offer more flexible pricing models, and better address initial setup difficulties.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Azure SQL Database is straightforward to deploy within the Azure ecosystem and has responsive customer service. SingleStore has a steeper learning curve, but users benefit from performance improvements post-deployment.

Pricing and ROI: Azure SQL Database involves high initial setup costs but provides long-term ROI with its integration and scalability. SingleStore demands a higher upfront investment but offers significant ROI through high performance and real-time analytics gains.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. SingleStore Report (Updated: July 2025).

Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. SingleStore

July 2025

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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

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

2nd

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

117

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SingleStore

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

11th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Vector Databases (15th)

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 15.4%, down from 18.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SingleStore is 2.1%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Featured Reviews

Charley Hanania

Data Platform Specialist at QS2 AG - Quality Software Solutions

It is very easy to implement, manage, and offers great insights into what is happening inside the engine

Microsoft Azure SQL Database is integrated into other Azure capabilities and has a great foundation being on SQL Server with a long history of security, performance, and usability from a DBA perspective. Once you've set up a server, adding databases is easy. There's a minor challenge with having data in separate databases that you want to connect like we do on premises. I'm looking forward to using some of these new AI-driven functions that have come out around vectorization. Having the data closer to my transactional databases or data makes it easy to augment and enhance the Database and applications I currently use. It's great that Azure SQL now seamlessly integrates with Microsoft Fabric. It's a first-tier service in the cloud that connects to web applications and other databases. The data transformation orchestration capabilities within Database Factory and similar capabilities make it effortless to move that stuff forward.

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Yasin Sarı

Senior Data Analyst at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

High-speed data processing, seamless scalability, and excellent high availability making it an optimal choice for those prioritizing performance and efficiency in a database solution

There's a noteworthy consideration when it comes to collecting massive amounts of data. It is not the optimal choice for direct data collection through queries, and it's more suited for aggregation tasks. Attempting to use it for direct extraction, for instance, might lead to memory-related challenges. While MySQL version five might lack extensive SQL capabilities, SingleStore also has its constraints, requiring simpler SQL writing. This becomes evident when seeking advanced functionalities like window functions or JSON functions, where SingleStore doesn't offer an extensive toolkit, necessitating a more straightforward approach to SQL.

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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 ease of provisioning and administration is most valuable."

"Azure SQL Database has significantly reduced our total cost of ownership by eliminating the need for managing physical infrastructure, including data warehouses and data centers."

"Microsoft Azure SQL Database is integrated into other Azure capabilities and has a great foundation being on SQL Server with a long history of security, performance, and usability from a DBA perspective."

"The product is quite stable. The performance is great and it's reliable."

"We have come from hosting on-premise for customers, or they've done it themselves with SQL. We've now taken a cloud offering for the equivalent services of standard database management and the inbuilt backup and restore offerings. The scalability is probably the biggest feature that we are benefiting from by being in the cloud."

"The most valuable aspect of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is its accessibility."

"The most valuable feature is PolyBase."

"My main use case for SQL Azure is for a self-reading application related to portfolio management. In this application, users can have portfolios designed and managed based on recommendations from their brokers. These recommendations are sent to users, and if consumed, they get executed and added to their portfolios, which can be easily maintained through mobile applications. This involves using Kafka for messaging and execution."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros

"It's a distributed relational database, so it does not have a single server, it has multiple servers. Its architecture itself is fast because it has multiple nodes to distribute the workload and process large amounts of data."

"MemSQL supports the MySQL protocol, and many functions are similar, so the learning curve is very short."

"The paramount advantage is the exceptional speed."

"The most valuable feature is the ability to create pipelines, streamline and extract data from the pipelines."

"The product can automatically reinstall and reconfigure in case of a shutdown."

"The ability to store data in memory is a standout feature, enhanced by robust failover mechanisms."

Cons

"Microsoft Azure SQL Database could improve by having better tooling in terms of connecting to other database platforms and better capabilities around programmable interfaces."

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

"Although the solution integrates well into Azure’s ecosystem, it has limited capability and is incompatible with many third-party applications or tools."

"There is probably more functionality in our on-prem SQL Server than SQL Azure."

"Support isn't that great. They need to work on this aspect of their service. It can be challenging to reach them."

"The document storage is primarily relational, which is not ideally suited for SQL. If there were better integration with SharePoint for document handling in SQL, it would greatly benefit the organization."

"It's not a feature, but the solution only offers a certain amount of memory and that's limiting. The scalability should be extended to more than two terabytes."

"The managed SQL MI does not allow us to control the zone it runs in, which affects latency."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons

"Having the ability to migrate servers using a single command would be extremely beneficial."

"We don't get good discounts in Pakistan."

"It is not the optimal choice for direct data collection through queries, and it's more suited for aggregation tasks."

"For new customers, it's very tough to start. Their documentation isn't organized, and there's no online training available. SingleStore is working on it, but that's a major drawback."

"There should be more pipelines available because I think that if MemSQL can connect to other services, that would be great."

"Poor key distribution can significantly impact performance, requiring a backward approach in design rather than adding tables incrementally."

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."

"I find that they are relatively expensive, especially when compared to AWS, where the prices are notably lower."

"From a licensing benefit standpoint, we have clients who are coming with their own SQL licensing with Software Assurance, and they are able to use those licenses for their Azure SQL and reduce costs."

"SQL Azure is an expensive solution."

"The licensing for this solution is based on subscription."

"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."

"We have the licensing fee, and we are also paying a third party to maintain it with an SLA. There is no infrastructure cost, but its running costs are higher than expected. There is the cost of the Azure cloud, which is pricier than expected, but it is not specific to SQL Azure. It is specific to the cloud. You expect it to be cheaper, but it is more expensive to run it."

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

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice

"Using it for analytical purposes can be cost-effective in the long run, especially in terms of infrastructure."

"SingleStore is a bit expensive."

"The product's licensing is not expensive. It is comparable."

"I would advise users to try the free 128GB version."

"They have two main options: cloud installation and bare-metal installation, each with different pricing models."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

27%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

33%

Computer Software Company

13%

University

Manufacturing 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.

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

The pricing of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is not cheap, affecting user uptake. A gradual reduction in price could improve accessibility and user numbers, making it easier for users to adopt the s...

What needs improvement with SQL Azure?

Pricing could be improved to make Microsoft Azure SQL Database ( /products/microsoft-azure-sql-database-reviews ) more accessible. A reduction in price might encourage more users and bring more pro...

What do you like most about SingleStore DB?

The paramount advantage is the exceptional speed.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SingleStore DB?

Using it for analytical purposes can be cost-effective in the long run, especially in terms of infrastructure. While building an on-premise cluster incurs an initial cost for servers with ample RAM...

What needs improvement with SingleStore DB?

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Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 7% of the time

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Compared 7% of the time

Oracle Database vs SingleStore

Compared 6% of the time

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Product Reports

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

June 2025

Download Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report

Download SingleStore product report

June 2025

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.

Microsoft

SingleStore delivers the performance you need for enterprise AI, providing the most performant data platform for apps and analytics at scale. SingleStore enables organizations to scale from one to one million customers in one unified platform. SingleStore offers transparent pricing as shown here https://www.singlestore.com/pricing/

SingleStore caters to over 400 customers globally, including major banks and tech companies in 50+ countries and 40+ verticals. It offers seamless scaling for both transactional and analytical workloads, simplifying data management with its MySQL compatibility and real-time processing capabilities. SingleStore's distributed architecture ensures speed and reliability, efficiently handling large data volumes.

What are the key features of SingleStore?

MySQL Compatibility: Eases the learning curve for users.
Built-in Pipelines: Connects to S3, Kafka, and more.
High Concurrency: Processes billions of records swiftly.
Replication & Failover: Enhances speed and reliability.
In-memory Storage: Ensures data safety and quick access.

What benefits can users find in SingleStore reviews?

Automatic Reconfiguration: Simplifies management tasks.
Impressive SQL Performance: Supports complex queries efficiently.
Scalability: Handles large datasets with a multi-node setup.

Top banks and fintech companies leverage SingleStore for efficient management of financial data, while media and telecom industries use it for scalable metadata management and improved data processing. Retail and eCommerce sectors benefit from enhanced transactional capabilities, reducing the need for separate databases and optimizing reporting processes. SingleStore's capacity to unite diverse workloads makes it a strategic choice across many sectors.

Sample Customers

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

400+ customers including: 6sense, Adobe, Akamai, Ant Money, Arcules, CARFAX, Cigna, Cisco, Comcast, DELL, DBS Bank, Dentsu, DirectlyApply, EY, Factors.AI, Fathom Analytics, FirstEnergy, GE, Goldman Sachs, Heap, Hulu, IMAX, impact.com, Kroger, LG, LiveRamp, Lumana, Nvidia, OpenDialog, Outreach, Palo Alto Networks, PicPay, RBC, Samsung, SegMetrics, Siemens, SiteImprove, SiriusXM, SK Telecom, SKAI, SONY, STC, SunRun, TATA, Thorn, ZoomInfo.