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Microsoft Azure VMware vs VMware Cloud Foundation comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 15, 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 VMware
Ranking in Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
VMware Cloud Foundation
Ranking in Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
33
Ranking in other categories
Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms category, the mindshare of Microsoft Azure VMware is 3.7%, up from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Cloud Foundation is 14.2%, down from 20.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware Cloud Foundation14.2%
Microsoft Azure VMware3.7%
Other82.1%
Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

DW
Solutions Area Lead at Tech One Global
Cloud migration has reduced hardware dependence and optimizes security and AI-ready operations
Microsoft Azure VMware is an area that requires attention. I believe the VMware part should eventually merge with Azure as a single Azure platform, moving away from hypervisor-on-hypervisor architecture and instead bringing VMware features into Azure as native capabilities or as VMware-labeled features running in a true cloud environment. Some features should be brought in to achieve this integration. Additional improvements for Microsoft Azure VMware would include integration with Azure Site Recovery and disaster recovery capabilities. The ideal scenario would be VMware as primary with disaster recovery in Azure, connecting in a native manner. These improvements should be delivered as an integrated solution available out of the box rather than as separate components. Integration with other solutions such as Microsoft Site Recovery should encompass Azure native business continuity and disaster recovery with VMware. Microsoft Azure VMware would serve as primary hosting and connect natively to business continuity and disaster recovery capabilities with Azure. This should be available as a native feature.
Narasimha Reddy Illuri - PeerSpot reviewer
VMware Administrator at Infosys
There is progress in performance and stability, but further advancements are needed for end-user satisfaction
VMware Cloud Foundation's best features include its advanced capabilities, security purposes, and performance levels. The solution offers efficient licensing options. Previously, vSphere essential was available, but now it has moved to VMware Cloud Foundation 8.0. It includes advanced features such as lifecycle manager, patching level, and cluster level patching options. The solution now offers auto-deployment of VMs. Previously, I had to use the content library, right-click, and create VMs manually. With VMware Cloud Foundation, auto-deployment is possible by simply right-clicking and assigning a specific DHCP IP, enabling physical to vCenter level communication for automatic VM deployment. The workload portability feature in VMware Cloud Foundation provides good workload balance. For instance, in a cluster level with four to five ESXi hosts, each host has minimum resources allocated for CPU and memory, resulting in significantly reduced utilization at the VMware Cloud Foundation level.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The integration is very good."
"The capabilities are like a lift-and-shift operation for moving existing VMware environments to the cloud. The time for migration onto the cloud has substantially reduced."
"For new users, if you have a scalable environment where a VMware data center makes sense for your business, I definitely recommend AVS."
"Regarding stability, it is like a five-star solution."
"Since organizations are already on VMware, they can lift and shift everything to Microsoft Azure VMware, allowing the data center to be moved as a whole rather than as separate servers."
"The fact that it automates a lot of manual processes in a net new environment build is most valuable."
"A valuable feature of VMware Cloud Foundation is its ability to manage everything from a single console, including network, virtualization, and storage management."
"The initial setup is straightforward and easy."
"The product enables flexibility in network structures."
"If you want to reduce the operational overhead and manage your entire virtual infrastructure from a single pane of glass, then I would recommend VMware Cloud Foundation."
"The solution's most valuable features are automated provisioning, network, and storage."
"VMware Cloud Foundation can be used to make private clouds faster than the traditional way and can also be used for continuity."
"They have in release 4.0 features from vSphere and Cloud Suite. It's a complete data center."
 

Cons

"Microsoft Azure VMware is an area that requires attention."
"The only issue is that a small challenge was found regarding the network...to have extended, smooth VLANs and everything else was a little bit complicated."
"Well, sometimes they release product after product, so it's it's kind of hard to keep an overview of all the different aspects of of the solutions."
"Azure VMware needs to cater to smaller enterprises, as it is currently meant for larger entities. One improvement could be more support for mid-sized or scalable environments."
"In the early adoption of VMware Cloud Foundation, we have seen minor problems. For example, in our Federation, I see the single pane of glass where we need to manage everything, which is good, however, internally, we have a Kafka database that is distributed by the database used by the SDDC manager and during the distribution and synchronization, there is some issue and we need to stop the process."
"The tool's price tag is high."
"The pricing could be a bit less expensive."
"The maintenance cost has increased significantly, especially after Broadcom acquired VMware, with a shift from socket-based licensing to core-based licensing."
"I think the integration potential is very weak with other systems."
"Life cycle management is an area for improvement."
"Typically, the ABA in comparison to other products needs improvement, but it depends on the customer."
"The solution's log management could be improved because the logs don't provide enough information."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"To be honest, the tool comes at a high price."
"The mandatory requirements, such as a minimum of three nodes, make it expensive. The customers need to sign up for approximately $20,000 per month."
"The solution is very competitive."
"The price of VMware Cloud Foundation is expensive."
"The pricing of VMware Cloud Foundation could improve, it is expensive."
"VMware Cloud Foundation is overpriced, but I think we get what we pay for."
"There is an annual license required to use the solution."
"The tool's price is slightly on the higher side, but I guess you think there is no one-to-one comparison with other tools. The licensing part has become easier, while earlier, it was quite complex."
"I rate the tool's pricing a seven out of ten."
"The pricing is moderate. I would rate it six out of ten."
"The price of VMware Cloud Foundation is a bit high. However, it comes with a lot of useful features and can handle a lot of operational complexity. Overall the price can be seen as being fair for what it offers."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
University
17%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise27
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure VMware?
The pricing is high, rated around nine to 9.5 out of ten. The mandatory requirements, such as a minimum of three nodes, make it expensive. The customers need to sign up for approximately $20,000 pe...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure VMware?
Microsoft Azure VMware is an area that requires attention. I believe the VMware part should eventually merge with Azure as a single Azure platform, moving away from hypervisor-on-hypervisor archite...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Azure VMware?
People are moving to Microsoft Azure VMware primarily due to reducing on-premises hardware dependencies. One key factor is VMware licensing, and another is hardware costs. Hardware prices are incre...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Cloud Foundation?
The price for VMware Cloud Foundation is not cheap, as the market is competitive with AWS cloud. When comparing prices of both clouds, AWS is cheaper because they offer a free section for practice....
What needs improvement with VMware Cloud Foundation?
In VMware Cloud Foundation, areas that have room for improvement include the experience between VMware Cloud Foundation and the cloud. I prefer working with the cloud due to my study with the archi...
What is your primary use case for VMware Cloud Foundation?
Regarding my experience with application migration between on-premises and public clouds using VMware Cloud Foundation, I have used it for storage deployment.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
ricoh, dell technologies, sky
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure VMware vs. VMware Cloud Foundation and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,644 professionals have used our research since 2012.