Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics and Azure Data Factory compete in the realm of data analytics and ETL solutions. Azure Synapse Analytics seems to have an edge in handling large data volumes, offering significant scalability and performance.
Features: Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is known for its scalability, performance, and seamless integration with Power BI, making it a powerful solution for large data processes. Its Massively Parallel Processing architecture supports vast volumes of data and offers a separation between analytics and storage layers. Azure Data Factory, on the other hand, excels in creating ETL pipelines with its user-friendly interface and extensive built-in connectors, providing a straightforward path for data movement and transformation.
Room for Improvement: Synapse Analytics could improve with enhanced Active Directory integration and a more streamlined initial setup process. There is also a need for better performance on concurrent queries and improvement in documentation. Azure Data Factory may benefit from more transparent pricing and ease of configuration. There's a demand for more built-in connectors and improved integration support with external databases.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics offers flexibility with extensive public, private, and hybrid cloud deployment options. Azure Data Factory is primarily deployed on public clouds. Synapse customer service is generally praised for its quick and knowledgeable support, although some users experience delays. Azure Data Factory support is considered responsive, despite some inconsistencies in quality. Both platforms offer community and Microsoft-driven resources to supplement support.
Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is considered costly, mainly for enterprise-level use, but its pricing aligns with its capabilities, offering a high ROI by reducing operational costs. Its usage-based pricing model can be unpredictable. Azure Data Factory is perceived as cost-effective with a pay-as-you-go model, though its pricing complexity can be a barrier for new users. Its competitive pricing and integration capabilities ensure a solid ROI, catering well to diverse enterprise needs.
Our stakeholders and clients have expressed satisfaction with Azure Data Factory's efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
Some of my customers have indeed seen a return on investment with Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics as they used it for analytics to drive decision-making, improving their processes or increasing revenue.
The technical support from Microsoft is rated an eight out of ten.
The technical support is responsive and helpful
The technical support for Azure Data Factory is generally acceptable.
They are slow to respond and not very knowledgeable.
This is an underestimation of the real impact because we use big data also to monitor the network and the customer.
I would rate the support for Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics as an eight out of ten.
Azure Data Factory is highly scalable.
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is scalable, offering numerous opportunities for scalability.
For the scalability of Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics, I would rate it a 10 until you remain in the Azure Cloud scalability framework.
Recovering from such scenarios becomes a bit problematic or time-consuming.
The solution has a high level of stability, roughly a nine out of ten.
Performance and stability are absolutely fine because Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is a PaaS service.
I find the service stable as I have not encountered many issues.
We have never integrated Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics with Databricks, but we have mostly pulled data from on-premises systems into Azure Databricks.
Incorporating more dedicated API sources to specific services like HubSpot CRM or Salesforce would be beneficial.
Sometimes, the compute fails to process data if there is a heavy load suddenly, and it doesn't scale up automatically.
There is a problem with the integration with third-party solutions, particularly with SAP.
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is an excellent product because it includes both SIEM and orchestration capabilities with playbooks.
There is a need for better documentation, particularly for customized tasks with Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics.
Databricks is a very rich solution, with numerous open sources and capabilities in terms of extract, transform, load, database query, and so forth.
The pricing is cost-effective.
It is considered cost-effective.
The cheapest tier costs about $4,000 to $4,700 a year, while the most expensive tier can reach up to $300,000 a year.
I think the price of Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is very expensive, but that's not only for Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics—it's for the cloud in general.
I find the pricing of Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics reasonable.
It connects to different sources out-of-the-box, making integration much easier.
The platform excels in handling major datasets, particularly when working with Power BI for reporting purposes.
Regarding the integration feature in Azure Data Factory, the integration part is excellent; we have major source connectors, so we can integrate the data from different data sources and also perform basic transformation while transforming, which is a great feature in Azure Data Factory.
One of the most valuable features in Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is the ability to write your own ETL code using Azure Data Factory, which is a component within Synapse.
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics offers significant visibility, which helps us understand our usage more clearly.
For Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics, the integration is the most valuable feature, meaning that whatever you need is fast and easy to use.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Azure Data Factory | 6.8% |
| Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics | 6.3% |
| Other | 86.9% |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 31 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 19 |
| Large Enterprise | 55 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 29 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 18 |
| Large Enterprise | 55 |
Azure Data Factory efficiently manages and integrates data from various sources, enabling seamless movement and transformation across platforms. Its valuable features include seamless integration with Azure services, handling large data volumes, flexible transformation, user-friendly interface, extensive connectors, and scalability. Users have experienced improved team performance, workflow simplification, enhanced collaboration, streamlined processes, and boosted productivity.
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is an end-to-end analytics solution that successfully combines analytical services to merge big data analytics and enterprise data warehouses into a single unified platform. The solution can run intelligent distributed queries among nodes, and provides the ability to query both relational and non-relational data.
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics is built with these 4 components:
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics Features
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics has many valuable key features, including:
Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics Benefits
Some of the benefits of using Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics include:
Reviews from Real Users
Below are some reviews and helpful feedback written by Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics users who are currently using the solution.
PeerSpot user Jael S., who is an Information Architect at Systems Analysis & Design Engineering, comments on her experience using the product, saying that it is “Scalable, intuitive, facilitates compliance and keeps your data secure”. She also says "We also like governance. It looks at what the requirements are for the company to identify the best way to ensure compliance is met when you move to the cloud."
Michel T., CHTO at Timp-iT, mentions that "the features most valuable are the simplicity, how easy it is to create a dashboard from different information systems."
A Senior Teradata Consultant at a tech services company says, "Microsoft provides both the platform and the data center, so you don't have to look for a cloud vendor. It saves you from having to deal with two vendors for the same task."
We monitor all Cloud Data Warehouse 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.
