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Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service comparison

Microsoft and Oracle are both solutions in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category. Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.6, while Oracle is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.8. Microsoft holds a 13.0% mindshare in DS, compared to Oracle’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of Oracle users who would recommend it.
Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Read 118 Microsoft Azure SQL Database reviews
  • 3,076 Views
  • 3,045 Comparison Views
96% willing to recommend
Oracle Exadata Express Clou...
Read 12 Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service reviews
  • 421 Views
  • 156 Comparison Views
88% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2024

Microsoft Azure SQL Database and Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service are two prominent cloud-based database solutions. Microsoft Azure SQL Database appears to have the upper hand in pricing and deployment based on user reviews, while Oracle Exadata is recognized for its superior features that justify its higher cost.

Features: Microsoft Azure SQL Database offers scalability, integration with Microsoft tools, and AI-driven performance insights. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service stands out with robust analytics, high availability, and extensive support for complex queries.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Azure SQL Database users suggest improvements in automated backups, advanced query optimization, and better user interface design. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service users express the need for a more user-friendly setup process, better documentation, and enhanced customer support options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is praised for its simpler, faster deployment process and responsive support. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service, although having a steeper learning curve and slower deployment times, provides knowledgeable support.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Azure SQL Database is generally viewed as cost-effective with straightforward pricing and positive ROI. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service, while more expensive, is considered worth the investment by users who need its advanced capabilities.

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To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service Report (Updated: September 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service
September 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
7.1
Number of Reviews
118
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Oracle Exadata Express Clou...
Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)
9th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 13.0%, down from 17.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service is 1.0%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Database as a Service (DBaaS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Azure SQL Database13.0%
Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service1.0%
Other86.0%
Database as a Service (DBaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Charley Hanania - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Read full review
Shrikant Navelkar - PeerSpot reviewer
Have achieved excellent performance and seamless integration with effective cost control in cloud solutions
When customers are migrating from Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service and need to remove some of their test and development environment, what happens in normal virtualization is that they can just switch it off, but in ExaCS, they need to terminate the entire thing. Most of the customers are not aware of this, so they keep spending money even if they want to shut down their UAT environment or development environment, so Oracle needs to make it simpler in terms of reducing the bill on ExaCS when customers want to shut down certain environments. Today, you have to terminate the entire VM, and only then your billing will stop. The only functionality I would expect from Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service is that if Oracle is able to support Oracle MySQL Enterprise also on Exadata, that will solve a lot of problems.
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 stability is good."
"The initial setup was straightforward. It took less than one day for deployment."
"The stability is good and the performance is fantastic. Even when we try to do an inquiry into issues we can do it easily."
"Its cost benefit is most valuable because you are charged per data unit instead of licensing. You can easily migrate your on-premise SQL to the cloud with a managed instance. That's what it is designed to do. It is easy to take your on-premise or older SQL instance and move it to the cloud. It makes it easy to get off your on-premise SQL and start utilizing the cost benefit of the cloud."
"Microsoft Azure SQL Database has significantly reduced our total cost of ownership by eliminating the need for a dedicated environment to host SQL."
"Some of the best features of Microsoft Azure SQL Database are its scalability, pricing, and ease of setup."
"The on-premise SQL Server licenses can be used since it is on Azure, so it's a significant savings for the customers."
"It is very fast in replicating the data from one database to another. We do some extractions from multiple databases to a target database that we use for visualization. It has a good speed."
More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros
"I would rate Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service ten out of ten for its overall solution."
"One of the most valuable parts of the solution is the high availability within the system and the performance enhancement without making any changes or fine-tuning the databases."
"The performance of the tool is valuable."
"In the cloud, Exadata is more scalable. The on-prem version was limited. It wasn't that scalable because it only came in a quarter rack, half rack, and full rack. In the cloud, it scales to what you need."
"Having the prediction happen in the modular format allows you to start with a lower version of Exadata and then you can keep on upgrading it as per your requirement."
"I like that Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service is easier to use and is a cost-saving solution because you won't need to hire people to run and maintain it."
"The solution is very stable and offers great performance."
"It is a scalable product."
More Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service pros
 

Cons

"There is room for improvement regarding the pricing structure."
"This solution would be improved with the inclusion of better self-service tools."
"Microsoft could improve its documentation and support."
"In terms of support, they don't give much support."
"There is so much information that it becomes confusing at times. The information can be more friendly. They could also provide additional training, especially at the beginning."
"Microsoft Azure SQL Database could improve by having better tooling in terms of connecting to other database platforms and better capabilities around programmable interfaces."
"There is a need for dynamic scaling support without losing current transactions. That should be part of the standard offering to SKUs. It doesn't have Auto SQL. We have HyperSQL, but there are limitations on the Elastic Pool. It only allows 25 databases. It would help if we could automatically analyze and optimize long-running queries instead of handling these tasks manually."
"We've had many concurrency issues with it, particularly with applications that do a lot of parallel processing."
More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons
"I feel there is a need for better integration with Google Maps and Google Earth. This is crucial for me in the geographical facilities of the environment."
"The support must be faster."
"The only downside is the difficulty in monitoring, and that's why I would like to implement MySQL database."
"Oracle's support could be better."
"The solution's pricing could be improved."
"Scaling Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service can be done, but the process is a little tedious, which could be an area for improvement in the solution."
"The product's installation process needs improvement. It could be more accessible."
"We use artificial intelligence for deep learning, and it would be a huge benefit to implement this in Oracle Exadata."
More Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service cons
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I find that they are relatively expensive, especially when compared to AWS, where the prices are notably lower."
"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'm not sure what the exact price is, but it's a moderate amount. It's not too expensive."
"The licensing for this solution is based on subscription."
"I believe the licensing is more on a global scale."
"It is expensive for us. We are looking for something less expensive and thinking of migrating the whole system."
"Microsoft services are costly, which is the only problem we face. So, pricing is an area of improvement."
"The license is based on the number of users."
More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice
"The price of this solution is very comparative to others on the market. There is no direct comparison between this solution and with something else because I do not see any other similar product."
"The tool is not cheap, but it is not really expensive."
"I think Oracle pricing is usually above average market price."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Retailer
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business55
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise50
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise8
 

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?
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...
See all answers
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...
See all answers
What do you like most about Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service?
The performance of the tool is valuable.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service?
Oracle is quite expensive here in Brazil. Pricing is the primary challenge we face with Oracle.
See all answers
What needs improvement with Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service?
When customers are migrating from Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service and need to remove some of their test and development environment, what happens in normal virtualization is that they can just...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

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Google Cloud SQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Compared 24% of the time
Amazon RDS vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database Logo
Amazon RDS vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Compared 19% of the time
MongoDB Atlas vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database Logo
MongoDB Atlas vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Compared 17% of the time
Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database Logo
Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Compared 7% of the time
Azure Database for PostgreSQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database Logo
Azure Database for PostgreSQL vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Compared 7% of the time
More Microsoft Azure SQL Database Competitors
Oracle Database Appliance vs Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service Logo
Oracle Database Appliance vs Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service
Compared 100% of the time
More Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service Competitors
 

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Azure SQL Database
September 2025
Microsoft Azure SQL Database reportDownload Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report
Buyer's Guide
Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service
September 2025
Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service reportDownload Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service 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 Database Exadata Express Cloud Service delivers a managed Oracle Database 12c Release 2 Enterprise Edition with options, running on Oracle Exadata engineered systems – all at a highly affordable entry-level price. It is a full Oracle Database experience, compatible with what you get on-premises or in other Oracle Database Cloud Services, provisioned within minutes, and suitable for small to medium sized data.

Oracle
 

Sample Customers

adnymics GmbH, LG CNS, Centrebet, netfabb GmbH, MedPlast, Accelera Solutions, Sochi Organizing Committee, realzeit GmbH
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Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service
September 2025
Free Report: Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs. Oracle Exadata Express Cloud Service and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
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