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Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

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)
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
140
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Oracle Exadata Cloud at Cus...
Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)
16th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
4.9
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 9.0%, down from 12.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is 3.1%, down from 4.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Database as a Service (DBaaS) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Azure SQL Database9.0%
Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer3.1%
Other87.9%
Database as a Service (DBaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Matthew Parker - PeerSpot reviewer
Ai Team Lead at Phoenix Software
Integrates with familiar tools and supports reliable data storage for AI applications
Microsoft Azure SQL Database can be improved overall by being able to compete with some of the features that come from things such as PostgreSQL. From my team's perspective in terms of building AI applications, more native integrations with some of the newer AI data types, such as vectors for storing embeddings, would be beneficial. I think all of that is coming. It is just a big product, so I think it is naturally a little bit behind the curve. However, that is not necessarily a bad thing because a lot of customers, because it has been around for so long, they trust it and they are willing to wait until those features become available.
WB
Oracle DBS at Bpifrance
Positive experience with virtual cloud network creation and database migration highlights patching challenges
The best feature of Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is that it can be managed without needing only DBAs. We have many features, including the observability feature that helps check performance and generates numerous reports about performance. We have also implemented APIs, enabling us to create and perform many operations. This means we need DBAs who can work with APIs. We are autonomous in the patching process and don't need Oracle for patching. If you configure the process of patching, it will be executed automatically. We are using dynamic scaling which is implemented on an external virtual machine, helping us to downscale or upscale the CPU. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer has supported our organization's compliance and data sovereignty without problems. I have observed some limitations. For example, regarding encryption, though it is mandatory for Exadata Cloud at Customer, we cannot encrypt the database with external keys. Currently, with Exadata Cloud at Customer, using external keys is not possible.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We're a Microsoft customer, so it fits in with everything else we work with."
"Our migration to Azure for most databases has increased our organization's efficiency and reduced the maintenance required to manage on-premises infrastructure."
"Coding does not require much effort."
"The solution is very stable."
"If anybody is using Azure Cloud, they should definitely use Azure SQL."
"The tool set is familiar since I've used SQL Server on-premises for quite a few years."
"Microsoft Azure products provide good return on investment; for example, in a simple workload or simple apps, we use managed services in Azure, which is a good thing for return on investment because we can deploy simply and rapidly with a lower price for a workload, and it is important for us since our applications are simple and are designed for Azure."
"I rate Microsoft Azure SQL Database 10 out of 10."
"The operation model is the most valuable feature."
"I like that Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is a stable, well-positioned product in the market today, and it's very scalable."
"I am particularly fond of the intelligent capabilities that enhance the backend, utilizing technology to analyze SQL queries."
"Exporting and importing is easy because of its cleanliness, making the process easier. However, setting up the Data Guard was more difficult. Despite this, the client experienced lower downtime."
"Performance has significantly improved."
"The best feature of Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is that it can be managed without needing only DBAs, with observability features to check performance, generate reports, and implement APIs for creating and performing many operations."
"The most valuable feature is that it is based on Exadata infrastructure, which is Oracle 's leading engineered system that is trusted, fault-tolerant, and has unique performance features."
"We have migrated mission-critical databases to Exadata and gained significant performance in our OLTP and Batch jobs."
 

Cons

"Adding users to Azure SQL could be easier. You need to script it out, but it would be nice if it had a UI where you can click and add them. It's not a major thing because we script things all the time, but it would be a minor thing that helps us."
"One area for improvement is data virtualization. Companies use different data sources, creating a separate data virtualization layer, and there are more data sources behind that layer. For example, we have different data layers for Excel, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, etc. Creating a data virtualization layer would help because you retain the metadata of your source data."
"Scalability Cost efficiency Business continuity"
"Its price could be better. It is expensive. I am not sure if Microsoft Master Data Services is included in this. If not, Master Data Services can be integrated with Azure SQL. I have only used Master Data Services on-premises."
"The configuration is the area that is most cumbersome."
"Some data types are not available on SQL Azure while it's available on SQL Server."
"Microsoft Azure SQL Database is not cheap."
"On the support side, Microsoft support is not good. We encounter many issues and challenges with Microsoft support, as they tend to circulate around issues for a long time without solving them, and ultimately we get solutions from other sources."
"Today their support no longer lives up to my expectation."
"A room for improvement in Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is that they need to train more partners to gain more knowledge because currently, they are keeping a lot to themselves. For example, they are still keeping a lot of information on their campus, so information sharing is limited."
"Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is stable, but the only problem occurs during OS patching. If you encounter issues, the VMC (virtual machine cluster) becomes unusable."
"The solution is expensive."
"Scalability is not straightforward."
"We had some problems in the developer's environment. We had some problems with the initial installation environment."
"As a customer, you can't see the boot messages of your virtualized guest machines."
"For the data migration, we used ZDM. It was not integrated with the databases, and the documentation lacks clarity."
 

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."
"If we use a smaller or free-sized Microsoft Azure SQL Database, it is extremely cost-effective and much cheaper than on-premise enterprise licenses, which are expensive."
"The solution is expensive."
"SQL Azure is an expensive solution."
"The solution is moderately expensive."
"You can use it for smaller instances and pay less. You can also go for the premium product with all the security, scalability, and business continuity features, but you have to pay a premium amount."
"I would like it to be cheaper, but comparatively, it is reasonably priced."
"The cost is around $2,000 per month."
"The price is too much."
"The machine and the cloud model itself already have licensing advantages."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
29%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Insurance Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business64
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise66
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SQL Azure?
I think Microsoft Azure SQL Database is affordable, not expensive. Regarding migration, I am just keeping a professional service charge for that.
What needs improvement with SQL Azure?
The automatic tuning feature in Microsoft Azure SQL Database impacts database performance sometimes. What happens with Microsoft Azure SQL Database's automatic tuning is that when SQL queries are e...
What is your primary use case for SQL Azure?
I am a system integrator using Microsoft Azure SQL Database for my customers. The major use case for Microsoft Azure SQL Database is that most of my clients have a lot of applications, so they are ...
What needs improvement with Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer?
In future updates for Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer, I would like to see another feature for the different costs for the non-CDB models, because if you are not using the non-CDB models, you have...
What is your primary use case for Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer?
The use cases for Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer are based on our actual solution. We have the Exadata, but it has reached its end of life. The X5 has attained the end of life, so we discussed mi...
What advice do you have for others considering Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer?
My client is using Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer, not AWS Cloud or Amazon. For impact assessment of automated routine tasks, we are using our internal solution for backup, which is based on Comm...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

adnymics GmbH, LG CNS, Centrebet, netfabb GmbH, MedPlast, Accelera Solutions, Sochi Organizing Committee, realzeit GmbH
IBVI, illycaffe, Scottish Water, trueblue, AirAsia, droptank
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.
920,769 professionals have used our research since 2012.