

Microsoft Azure and Salesforce Platform are major contenders in the cloud services and CRM markets, respectively. Microsoft Azure holds an edge in hybrid cloud capabilities, whereas Salesforce Platform excels in CRM integration and customization.
Features: Microsoft Azure offers a robust cloud platform with extensive compatibility, supporting both Windows and non-Windows environments. It boasts hybrid cloud options, widespread data centers, and compatibility with languages like Java, .NET, and PHP. Azure's distributed caching and CDN services are designed to enhance performance and scalability. Salesforce Platform excels in CRM functions, providing wide customization and integration possibilities, along with low-code development features and a vast app ecosystem. Its strong focus on analytics makes it appealing for CRM-focused businesses.
Room for Improvement: Microsoft Azure can improve its user interface, pricing transparency, and setup processes. Users also desire better cost estimation, debugging, and documentation. Support responsiveness is another area for enhancement. Salesforce Platform needs to address price competitiveness and the transition to Lightning components. Simplifying integration processes, improving customization, and scalability for smaller businesses are also areas for development.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Both Azure and Salesforce offer strong deployment options, with Azure excelling in hybrid models and on-premises deployments, fitting numerous enterprise scenarios. Salesforce supports public and private cloud deployments, optimizing CRM operations. Azure's customer service is inconsistent, with challenges in accessing knowledgeable staff quickly. Salesforce is praised for responsive support, although costs can rise significantly for extensive needs due to its pricing model.
Pricing and ROI: Azure's pricing is competitive for small to medium applications, offering volume discounts and long-term agreements. However, its complex pricing structure and variable usage costs are noted issues. Azure provides a pricing calculator for cost management. Salesforce is seen as expensive, especially with extensive customization and support, though its comprehensive CRM solutions deliver strong value. Salesforce users often tailor contracts to fit specific licensing needs, with Azure's pay-as-you-go model contrasting Salesforce's user-based licensing, offering different scaling and cost strategies.
The value for money is good, and Microsoft Azure has positively impacted our operational costs.
When we use Microsoft Azure, it provides enhanced security from our perspective, though I am not certain about the financial return on investment or benefits for our users as I do not have that information.
Salesforce saved about 40% to 50% of my time by allowing me to manage and maintain client data and account progress.
In terms of productivity, my ROI is definitely at an eight or nine out of a scale of one to ten.
Microsoft needs to engage L3 and L2 in support when specified in service tickets.
We eventually get the resolution we seek.
I would rate their technical support a ten because we have various support channels available.
Microsoft Azure is not just one product; it is a platform with multiple products within Microsoft Azure, and I would say it is scalable and would rate it a nine.
The scalability of Microsoft Azure is excellent for growth and adaptation, depending on company requirements.
It has different kinds of designs that allow for management and deployment in multi-zones, offering both scalable and non-scalable options.
Salesforce's scalability was not a problem.
Salesforce Platform is absolutely scalable for us.
We are using it globally in thirty countries.
We noticed a few critical servers went down due to a Microsoft Azure-end hardware issue.
We are now migrating clients without the zoning into mandatory multi-zone deployments, so if one zone goes down, their application and database remain live.
Microsoft Azure is quite stable, but recent outages and security issues have slightly decreased my confidence.
On occasion, we had to log in and out frequently, open tickets with our IT team for account reconfiguration, or request permissions to access the system.
We have never had any problems with it.
It is definitely very stable.
Recent outages and security issues are also a concern, causing a decrease in confidence, especially when partnering with third-party companies.
The administrative side is suitable for technical people, but our finance and HR super users find it less user-friendly, as they prefer drag-and-drop features to build their own solutions without contacting IT.
There is still room for improvement in terms of pricing.
Salesforce could improve by adding more capabilities to the dashboard, such as additional fields for more filters and more control over what I would like to see.
Salesforce could improve by offering AI features or functionalities to help business decision-makers analyze business history, suggest forward strategies, and participate in events.
Using AI extensively to make the platform easier to use would also be beneficial.
Microsoft solutions might be cheaper than some services like AWS, but some solutions may be more expensive depending on the services compared.
Copilot is expensive based on recent pricing for our POC.
They have discounts and also provide promotions for a three-year reservation which comes with significant discounts on the infrastructure part.
Salesforce Platform may be on the expensive side.
It is on the expensive side, unfortunately.
Power BI, another feature of Azure, is extremely elegant and has robust features that support forecasting using R and Python.
If Microsoft gives a report, such as a server performance report in a detailed way, which shows what is consuming more CPU, memory, and disk IO, and network utilization during a particular time, it would be helpful to visualize that information.
What is very interesting in terms of scalability is the automatic possibilities to provision some new machines to be able to absorb the number of users we have in the system.
This integration allows us to manage customers from all aspects in one place, providing a clear view.
The biggest benefit is seamless usage in terms of an easy-to-use interface and GUI that makes it easy to interact with the entire platform and generate reports effortlessly.
Salesforce offers control over the opportunities to see where we are and gives me high-level dashboards on each opportunity stage.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Azure | 15.2% |
| Salesforce Platform | 3.2% |
| Other | 81.6% |


| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 140 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 53 |
| Large Enterprise | 150 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 39 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 26 |
| Large Enterprise | 39 |
Microsoft Azure integrates services and offers flexibility, ensuring compatibility with diverse environments. Its scalability, security, and cost-efficient features enhance deployment and management, making it ideal for infrastructure services and application hosting.
Azure provides a comprehensive suite of tools for application deployment, virtual machine management, and data analytics. It allows seamless integration with Power BI and offers a user-friendly interface supported by detailed documentation and technical support. Though users appreciate its capabilities, they sometimes face challenges with costs, setup, and interface complexity, alongside integration and performance issues. Frequent updates and a learning curve are also noted, though Azure's cloud-based security and scalability remain critical for disaster recovery and business continuity.
What are Azure's key features?Microsoft Azure is widely implemented in industries like financial services, healthcare, and logistics for hosting enterprise applications and vital services. Companies utilize its capabilities for IoT applications, DevOps, and Kubernetes clusters, benefiting from its cloud migrations, data analytics, and active directory support.
Salesforce Platform is a tool that provides application building with open application programming interfaces (APIs), integration tools, back-end services, starter templates, and developer environments. With a low-code interface, users are able to build applications and benefit from automated processes. The product helps customers to increase work productivity and save on IT costs through efficient, easy-to-understand, methods for creating applications.
Salesforce Platform allows companies to build and operate intelligent applications at scale and share them with employees and customers in real time. The tool secures companies' data while connecting and synchronizing it simultaneously across their Customer 360 accounts. The main components of the product are:
Salesforce Platform Features
Also referred to as a “drag and drop app builder," this solution offers various features for customers to create intelligent applications and build personalized services for clients, partners, and employees within the apps.
Salesforce Platform Benefits
The benefits of using Salesforce Platform include:
Reviews from Real Users
A vice president at a healthcare company values Salesforce Platform because it is flexible and user-friendly with helpful pre-built schemas.
Peter G., a senior technical consultant at a tech services company, rates Salesforce Platform highly because it is intuitive, quite easy to learn, and stores all kinds of relevant sales information.
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