Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer comparison

Microsoft and Oracle are both solutions in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category. Microsoft is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.5, while Oracle is ranked #10 with an average rating of 7.7. Microsoft holds a 10.7% mindshare in DS, compared to Oracle’s 3.8% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Oracle users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Read 134 Microsoft Azure SQL Database reviews

4,005 Views
3,925 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Oracle Exadata Cloud at Cus...

Read 7 Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer reviews

1,008 Views
1,008 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Oracle Exadata Cloud at Cus...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

Microsoft Azure SQL Database and Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer are leading cloud database solutions. Users report higher satisfaction with Microsoft Azure SQL Database in terms of pricing and customer support, while Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer excels in features and is considered worth its premium price.

Features: Microsoft Azure SQL Database users highlight its scalability, integration with other Microsoft services, and ease of use as valuable features. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is praised for its performance, advanced analytics, and strong security features.

Room for Improvement: Users suggest Microsoft Azure SQL Database could improve its offline capabilities and database performance during high loads. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer users feel there's room for better integration with non-Oracle applications and more simplified management tools.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is noted for its straightforward deployment process and responsive customer service. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer has a more complex deployment process but offers extensive support and documentation.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is favored for its cost-effectiveness and quick ROI due to flexible pricing models and lower initial setup costs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer has higher upfront costs but delivers a significant ROI over time due to its superior performance and comprehensive features.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer Report (Updated: February 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

February 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 881,707 peers since 2012

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

6.9

Number of Reviews

134

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Oracle Exadata Cloud at Cus...

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

10th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

4.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 10.7%, down from 16.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer is 3.8%, down from 4.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database as a Service (DBaaS) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Azure SQL Database	10.7%
Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer	3.8%
Other	85.5%

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Featured Reviews

Thomas Sawyer

Executive Director, Platform Architecture at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation – SMBC Group

Automatic tuning and multi-region availability have reduced manual workloads and improved performance management

The features of Microsoft Azure SQL Database that I like the most are easy scaling and high availability. I appreciate those features because it's easy to make Microsoft Azure SQL Database readily available in a multi-region infrastructure. Using Microsoft Azure SQL Database is very easy; it's much easier than SQL on-premise because I don't have to worry about deploying infrastructure, and I can rapidly deploy via infrastructure as code. I am using the automatic tuning feature in Microsoft Azure SQL Database. We are using the new feature of data encryption in Microsoft Azure SQL Database with customer-managed keys only. The reliability and stability of Microsoft Azure SQL Database platform are rock-solid; it's as good, if not better, than what our on-premise stability has been from an uptime perspective.

Read full review

WALID BOUHAJJA

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.

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 features of Microsoft Azure SQL Database that I find most valuable are the ability to scale it up and down dynamically with customer load, which is necessary because during the day or business hours when there's more load, we need to scale it up and scale it back down at night for cost efficiency."

"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."

"We're a Microsoft customer, so it fits in with everything else we work with."

"It is quick to set up and easy to scale."

"Emergency mode is quite useful."

"The feature I appreciate most about Microsoft Azure SQL Database is the ease of use; whenever we navigate to the portal, we realize that it is user-friendly and intuitive, and if there is a problem such as an application being down, we know exactly where to look and what to do to troubleshoot it quickly."

"The solution is quite straightforward to set up."

"Microsoft's expertise in SQL Server is a significant advantage."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros

"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."

"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."

"Performance has significantly improved."

"The operation model is the most valuable feature."

"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."

Cons

"I think that the cost management in SQL is not clear because we may use some tax to identify products, but in some cases identifying the transactions in SQL is not easy for some financial cost centers."

"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."

"There are certain shortcomings when it comes to the stability of the product, especially if I consider the fact that there can always be some bug-related issues in the tool."

"I need something which is in one place so I can automate the Azure data factory, but it's a different tool. It's not easy and in one place, so I can't switch to the other tool and do something there, automate everything there in the on-prem infrastructure, and then have everything in the agent. I can just pick one packet and use it. However, I want to be able to click it and run it."

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

"If we need to deploy data management or services with SQL Azure we need InterSecure."

"The solution’s pricing needs improvement because it is too high."

"The benefits I have realized from using Microsoft Azure SQL Database are currently limited since we've only done it in test and dev environments right now, and we haven't moved to production, so we haven't realized the full gain just yet."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons

"We had some problems in the developer's environment. We had some problems with the initial installation environment."

"For the data migration, we used ZDM. It was not integrated with the databases, and the documentation lacks clarity."

"The solution is expensive."

"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."

"As a customer, you can't see the boot messages of your virtualized guest machines."

"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."

"Scalability is not straightforward."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The license is based on the number of users."

"There is a license required to use the solution and it cost $30 to do the installation."

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

"The solution is moderately expensive."

"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."

"With one being expensive and five being competitive, I would give the product a four out of five as it's relatively competitive. It is also important to note that pricing is based on usage."

"It's reasonably priced and when you compare it with other products in the cloud environment, it's cheaper."

"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."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice

"The price is too much."

"The machine and the cloud model itself already have licensing advantages."

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

881,707 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

13%

Marketing Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

32%

Manufacturing Company

13%

Computer Software Company

Insurance Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	59
Midsize Enterprise	17
Large Enterprise	61

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Large Enterprise	4

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?

I would say I am at a basic experience level with the pricing, setup costs and licensing because while I am the administrator for the service, I do not provision the services and worry about the co...

See all answers

What needs improvement with SQL Azure?

I have no comments at the moment on how Microsoft Azure SQL Database can be improved. I have no comments on additional features that I would like to see released in the next release. I do not have ...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer?

The pricing is reasonable due to a universal agreement, which often positions Oracle solutions better against others. I would rate the pricing an eight out of ten.

See all answers

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...

See all answers

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...

See all answers

Comparisons

Google Cloud SQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 19% of the time

Amazon RDS vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 16% of the time

MongoDB Atlas vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 13% of the time

Azure Database for PostgreSQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 9% of the time

Oracle Database as a Service vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Compared 4% of the time

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database Competitors

MongoDB Atlas vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

Compared 22% of the time

Amazon RDS vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

Compared 19% of the time

Google Cloud SQL vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

Compared 9% of the time

Google Cloud Spanner vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

Compared 8% of the time

Oracle Database as a Service vs Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

Compared 7% of the time

More Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

January 2026

Download Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report

Buyer's Guide

Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

January 2026

Download Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer product report

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

Oracle Cloud@Customer brings Oracle’s complete portfolio of public cloud infrastructure, fully managed cloud services, and Oracle Fusion SaaS applications into your data center. It enables you to run applications faster and lower your costs using the same high-performance capabilities, autonomous operations, and low-cost subscription pricing in Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). You get all this while maintaining complete control of your data so you can address data residency, security, and connectivity concerns.

Oracle

Sample Customers

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

IBVI, illycaffe, Scottish Water, trueblue, AirAsia, droptank

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

February 2026

Free Report: Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

881,707 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer 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.