Google Cloud Spanner vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database comparison

Google and Microsoft are both solutions in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category. Google is ranked #9 with an average rating of 9.0, while Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.7. Google holds a 5.1% mindshare in DS, compared to Microsoft’s 14.7% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Google users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

Google Cloud Spanner

Read 5 Google Cloud Spanner reviews

836 Views
769 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Read 118 Microsoft Azure SQL Database reviews

3,353 Views
3,319 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Google Cloud Spanner

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

Microsoft Azure SQL Database and Google Cloud Spanner are two prominent cloud database services with distinct functionalities and benefits, each suited to different needs. Users find Spanner superior for its global distribution and consistency.

Features: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is praised for its integrated AI capabilities, disaster recovery options, and strong integration with Microsoft services. Google Cloud Spanner is noted for its strong global scaling, true ACID compliance, and global transactional consistency.

Room for Improvement: Users identify areas for improvement in Azure SQL Database's performance tuning, advanced data analytics features, and documentation. For Google Cloud Spanner, complex query execution, additional native support for various data types, and training resources need enhancements.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Users generally find the deployment process of Microsoft Azure SQL Database straightforward, benefitting from integrated support. Google Cloud Spanner offers robust deployment options but could enhance initial setup ease. Azure receives mixed feedback on customer service responsiveness, while Spanner users value prompt and knowledgeable support.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Azure SQL Database offers competitive pricing with flexible options, appealing to those seeking cost-effective solutions. Google Cloud Spanner, meanwhile, is considered expensive but justified by its high performance and scalability. Users experience significant ROI with Azure due to cost savings, while Spanner users justify the higher upfront costs with long-term gains in performance and reliability.

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

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud Spanner vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

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

Google Cloud Spanner

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

9th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.8

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

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

118

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of Google Cloud Spanner is 5.1%, up from 3.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 14.7%, down from 18.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Featured Reviews

Ethan Lo

Infrastructuer Security at Premise Data

A stable and scalable relational database that ensures a return on investment for its users

The most valuable feature of the solution is its scalability. Scalability comes with two options, among which Google Cloud Spanner can scale horizontally, compared to other relational databases that scale vertically. You can change Google Cloud Spanner's resource configuration, which is done through processing units. Suppose you set up Google Cloud Spanner initially with a hundred processing units, and then you run out of resources since your database used too much CPU. In the aforementioned scenario, you can scale up or down and face no downtime in the production phase. The solution's features are important when running a company twenty-four hours, seven days a week.

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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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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We can scale the solution if we need to."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is its scalability. Scalability comes with two options, among which Google Cloud Spanner can scale horizontally, compared to other relational databases that scale vertically."

"It is a very scalable solution."

"The application deployment in the cloud is the best feature of the infrastructure."

"Google Cloud Spanner is stable."

"Shifting our corporate programs to the cloud is more or less the same due to the ease of implementation. We've cut costs by around 70 percent."

"Azure SQL is easy to integrate and simplifies things from a licensing perspective. We're comfortable with SQL versus other types of databases, so we feel better talking to Microsoft."

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

"Some of the best features of Microsoft Azure SQL Database are its scalability, pricing, and ease of setup."

"I'd give Microsoft Azure SQL Database a nine out of ten."

"SQL Azure is good with transactional systems."

"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."

"It is good for scalability and high availability. It is also secure because of Microsoft's cloud investment. It is easy to use because it is on the cloud. Creation or making it available through web services is super easy. Azure SQL can be quickly published as web services for APIs to connect with other applications. Because it is in Microsoft Cloud, you can easily integrate with Microsoft stack."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros

Cons

"Google came up with something called Cloud Spanner Emulator, which fails to work like the real product if I want to develop some code and run a database locally on my machine."

"The tool lacks to offer AI features."

"The cost can be a bit high."

"I want to improve the deployment of cameras and surveillance infrastructure."

"The tool needs to improve horizontal scaling."

"The solution needs to improve its customer network, including its online support."

"I would like to the solutions scalability to be improved."

"There needs to be a hybrid model for situations where not all customers want a cloud-based SQL solution."

"There isn't any new improvement that I can think of at the moment. We have different deployment choices, such as running SQL on an Azure VM or deploying SQL-managed instances. The managed instance is a significant improvement over running SQL in an Azure VM."

"The solution could be less expensive. They need to work on their pricing model."

"I would like to see more compatibility with SSMS and more backward compatibility with regular on-prem SQL."

"We need improvement in the latency between availability zones. The managed SQL MI does not allow us to control the zone it runs in, which affects latency."

"There are compatibility issues that prevent Azure SQL Database from being a direct replacement for SQL Server running on a virtual machine. For instance, handling application-initiated DBCC commands is a challenge."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is expensive."

"It is expensive."

"Google Cloud Spanner is an expensive solution."

"Price-wise, I heard that Google Cloud Spanner is on the higher side."

"I'm not sure what the exact price is, but it's a moderate amount. It's not too expensive."

"It is expensive for us. We are looking for something less expensive and thinking of migrating the whole system."

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

"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."

"The solution is expensive."

"Its price can definitely be lower. It is pretty pricey."

"We have had some issues with the licensing of the solution."

"We pay less than $1000 monthly in licensing fees. There are no additional costs."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

22%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

Retailer

Financial Services Firm

14%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What is your primary use case for Google Cloud Spanner?

Google Cloud Spanner has all the features of a traditional relational database, including schemas, SQL queries, ACID transactions, and provides excellent integration and monitoring tools as well as...

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What do you like most about Google Cloud Spanner?

Google Cloud Spanner is stable.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud Spanner?

Price-wise, I heard that Google Cloud Spanner is on the higher side. I am not sure if this is a rumor or if it's fake news, but I believe that having BigQuery and GCP together could be a little cos...

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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.

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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...

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What needs improvement with SQL Azure?

I have used the Microsoft Azure SQL Database for two years now, and I don't find it satisfactory. It's slow and expensive. The Microsoft Azure SQL Database is not the latest version of Microsoft SQ...

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Comparisons

Amazon RDS vs Google Cloud Spanner

Compared 22% of the time

MongoDB Atlas vs Google Cloud Spanner

Compared 18% of the time

SingleStore vs Google Cloud Spanner

Compared 10% of the time

Google Cloud SQL vs Google Cloud Spanner

Compared 9% of the time

Yugabyte Platform vs Google Cloud Spanner

Compared 4% of the time

More Google Cloud Spanner Competitors

Google Cloud SQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 29% of the time

Amazon RDS vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 22% 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 7% of the time

Couchbase Capella vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 2% of the time

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

August 2025

Download Google Cloud Spanner product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

August 2025

Download Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report

Also Known As

Google Spanner

No data available

Overview

Cloud Spanner is the first and only relational database service that is both strongly consistent and horizontally scalable. With Cloud Spanner you enjoy all the traditional benefits of a relational database: ACID transactions, relational schemas (and schema changes without downtime), SQL queries, high performance, and high availability. But unlike any other relational database service, Cloud Spanner scales horizontally, to hundreds or thousands of servers, so it can handle the highest of transactional workloads. With automatic scaling, synchronous data replication, and node redundancy, Cloud Spanner delivers up to 99.999% (five 9s) of availability for your mission critical applications. In fact, Google’s internal Spanner service has been handling millions of queries per second from many Google services for years.

Google

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

Sample Customers

Streak, Optiva, Mixpanel

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

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud Spanner vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

July 2025

Free Report: Google Cloud Spanner vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

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