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Alibaba Cloud vs Microsoft Azure comparison

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Alibaba Cloud

Read 5 Alibaba Cloud reviews
4,690 views|2,882 comparisons
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Microsoft Azure

Read 179 Microsoft Azure reviews
57,936 views|50,332 comparisons
Comparison Buyer's Guide
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Buyer's Guide
Alibaba Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure
November 2022
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Alibaba Cloud and Microsoft Azure based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
To learn more, read our detailed Alibaba Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure Report (Updated: November 2022).
Download the complete report
655,711 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Use Alibaba Cloud?
Anonymous User
Helpful online community, plenty of documentation, and simple setup
Microsoft Azure has benefited our organization mostly because we moved all our infrastructure to the cloud. That has helped with cost optimization.... Read more →
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"It's easy to use, cheaper than other solutions, and more secure.""Alibaba support is responsive. When we create tickets in the Alibaba portal, they usually respond online or call me in five minutes.""What's good about Alibaba Cloud is its database service. It's also good in the virtual machine area.""Flexibility and costs were probably the most important thing for us. The cost was one of the big factors for choosing Alibaba Cloud relative to other cloud solutions, especially in Asia""The installation is easy."

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"Virtual machine services, in SaaS services, M365, and Data Lake are all popular with our clients.""Good security, scalability, and elasticity.""The solution is completely scalable.""I like that it is user-friendly and flexible.""The system is more secure, and this is valuable.""The ability to create the actual resource on the private cloud is easy to manage with Microsoft Azure.""The solution does a lot of coding and customization, and can go live quickly.""Azure services like EDM and Batch are all famous, but one of the most popular services for development is Azure Functions, especially the PaaS option. Depending on a customer's environment, they can go for the PaaS."

More Microsoft Azure Pros →

Cons
"Alibaba Cloud's initial setup is somewhat complex.""The solution should have more integration.""The flexibility of the solution could be improved.""The majority of the tools and processes, in general, have a lot of room for improvement.""A big area for improvement in Alibaba Cloud is its support. Another area for improvement in Alibaba Cloud is SDK-based service because sometimes, the SDKs don't work correctly. Support for API-based services also needs improvement in Alibaba Cloud because, at the moment, it's not that stable."

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"The solution could improve by providing better tutorials and documentation.""There are so many services available that the interface is a little bit messy, and when you're looking for a specific service, you have to know exactly where to search.""It is impossible to sell a cloud-based model here in Venezuela because we have strong inflation and most of our clients are immigrating to on-premises solutions.""Integration with other services could be much better.""An issue I encountered was around the integration of Identity. I lost some important information and I would like to see improvements with this.""Its costing can be improved. There should be better cost management.""The microservices and analytics of Azure are good areas that could be improved.""There are times when using a service in Microsoft Azure can be confusing because you have four or five options that do similar operations. It would be helpful if there was a clear decision tree around those features. Microsoft does provide a lot of decision trees around a lot of their services, but it's not for everything."

More Microsoft Azure Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "I'm not sure about the exact pricing, but let's just say if it cost a dollar for Amazon AWS, it was closer to 70 to 80 cents for Alibaba Cloud."
  • "We cut our costs significantly by migrating our infrastructure to the cloud. Alibaba Cloud employs a pay-as-you-go model, so that minimizes many costs for us."
  • "The cost is better than similar solutions."
  • "Pricing for Alibaba Cloud is a little bit cheaper. It has reasonable pricing."

    • More Alibaba Cloud Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Microsoft always provides the entry-level solution with a cheap license. Once you start to like the product, then you have to pay for the full package, which is more expensive than the entry-level solution. Every feature comes with a license and a cost. Some licenses have multiple features, and some features require a specific license."
  • "It is competitive with other public cloud providers, and its price is very close to different cloud providers. There is not a noticeable difference between different cloud providers. Otherwise, it would be a risk for them to have services that were much more expensive than their competition. They're pretty much neck to neck on pricing."
  • "The licensing fees depend on the number of users that we have."
  • "Pricing is comparable but from a cost perspective, this solution is the cheapest."
  • "Licensing fees are paid on a yearly basis."
  • "Its price can be cheaper. Price is always an issue. We pay around $10,000 per month for all resources."
  • "The cost structure is like most cloud-based services. The solution could be cheaper, it is always better to be cheaper."
  • "It's an OPEX model, you pay as you go, or you can reserve funds."

    • More Microsoft Azure Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    What do you like most about Alibaba Cloud?
    Top Answer:Flexibility and costs were probably the most important thing for us. The cost was one of the big factors for choosing Alibaba Cloud relative to other cloud solutions, especially in Asia
    Read all 3 answers   →
    What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alibaba Cloud?
    Top Answer:I'm not sure about the exact pricing, but let's just say if it cost a dollar for Amazon AWS, it was closer to 70 to 80 cents for Alibaba Cloud.
    Read all 3 answers   →
    What needs improvement with Alibaba Cloud?
    Top Answer:The majority of the tools and processes, in general, have a lot of room for improvement. I think, in general, things are there, but they're not good enough. Customer support could also be better.
    Read all 3 answers   →
    Which is preferable - IBM Public Cloud or Microsoft Azure?
    Top Answer:IBM Public Cloud is IBM’s Platform-as-a-Service. It aims to provide organizations with a secure cloud environment to manage data and applications. One of the features we like is the cloud activity… more »
    Which is better - SAP Cloud Platform or Microsoft Azure?
    Top Answer:One of the best features of SAP Cloud Platform is that it is web-based and you can log in from anywhere in the world. SAP Cloud Platform is suitable for companies of any size; it works well with both… more »
    Read all 2 answers   →
    How does Microsoft Azure compare to Google Firebase?
    Top Answer:I would recommend Google Firebase instead of Microsoft Azure, simply for the array of features that it has to offer. In particular, the Firebase library grants you access to a shared data structure… more »
    Ranking
    9th
    out of 60 in Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS)
    Views
    4,690
    Comparisons
    2,882
    Reviews
    5
    Average Words per Review
    409
    Rating
    7.2
    1st
    out of 60 in Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS)
    Views
    57,936
    Comparisons
    50,332
    Reviews
    172
    Average Words per Review
    436
    Rating
    8.4
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Windows Azure, Azure, MS Azure
    Learn More
    Alibaba
    Microsoft
    Overview

    Alibaba Cloud offers a comprehensive suite of cloud computing services to support growing enterprises worldwide, including data storage, relational databases, big-data processing, and content delivery networks.

    Windows Azure is Microsoft's cloud platform, where developers can create, deploy, and maintain their apps. This cloud application platform allows developers to concentrate on the actual applications, while it takes care of all the elements behind the apps.

    Windows Azure works across multiple frameworks and languages. It is fully scalable, localized in that it is hosted globally in many datacenters, and has widespread capabilities with elements of application development, deployment, and management.

    Azure is comprised of several different service modules, including Infrastructure; Web; Mobile; Dev & Test; Big Data; Media;Storage, Backup & Recovery; and Identity & Access Management.

    Microsoft Azure works as a:

    1. Platform as a service (PaaS)
    2. Software as a service (SaaS)
    3. Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)

    Microsoft Azure is available:

    • On-premises
    • Hybrid
    • Multi-cloud
    • At the edge

    Compared to its competitors, Microsoft Azure:

    • Has more affordable features
    • Has easier migration for organizations already using other Microsoft tools
    • Has several educational resources available
    • Provides robust support
    • Is ideal for small and large businesses

    Microsoft Azure Features:

    • Scalability
    • Stability
    • Flexibility
    • Azure Site Recovery
    • Active Directory
    • Monitoring features
    • Cloud-based
    • Automated tasks
    • Change capability cadence
    • Showback capabilities
    • Information protection
    • Azure Data Lake
    • Excellent portal
    • Intuitive user interface
    • Remote desktop
    • Fast provisioning
    • Data security
    • Data resiliency
    • Speed of service
    • Integrated delivery pipeline
    • Disaster recovery
    • Robust templates
    • Flexible coding languages
    • Virtual systems testing

    Benefits of Microsoft Azure:

    • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): Because Microsoft Azure is an IaaS, organizations can deploy as well as manage applications easily and quickly. Azure also provides you with the ability to customize the cloud software to meet your specific business needs.
    • Seamless integration: Microsoft Azure is built to seamlessly integrate with existing IT departments via hybrid databases, secure private connections, and storage solutions.
    • Cost-effective: Because Azure can harmoniously exist in your business environment with your data center, it is a very cost-effective solution.
    • Analytics support: Azure is designed with built-in support that is used to analyze data and provide key insights. Azure offers Cortana Analytics, Stream Analytics, Machine Learning, and SQL services.
    • Unique storage system: Compared to other cloud services, Microsoft Azure has more data centers and delivery points, which helps create an optimal user experience and also helps deliver content faster. In addition, Microsoft Azure makes it possible for organizations to exchange content across several virtual machines.
    • Enhanced flexibility: Azure provides extreme flexibility by allowing you to choose any level of functionality you require. It also supports many of the same technologies IT teams and developers usually depend on, making it easier for them to manage.
    • Easy implementation: Microsoft Azure is easy and quick to deploy. If necessary, you can change web apps to Azure with almost zero downtime.

    Reviews from Real Users:

    "It is a flexible solution that is straightforward to use," says the principal consultant at a computer software company.

    OmarJ., future datacenter consultant: Microsoft Azure Cloud at a tech company, adds that "The user interface is very nice and makes everything easy to use."

    “You can build an environment in minutes. It's very good in terms of being an infrastructure as a service, and I found that really fascinating,” says an information technology consultant at a computer software company.

    "I think Azure's level of automation to achieve efficiency or agility is valuable. I also like the change capability cadence, the showback capabilities, and understanding what our costs are," says an enterprise architect at an energy/utilities company.

    Marco C., Ing. at Wolters Kluwer, says "The valuable features of Microsoft Azure are that it is cloud-based and has good storage. The storage is completely managed by Azure. We do not need to do any patching of security because it is handled by Azure which is a benefit. The solution is fully compatible with the Microsoft technology stack and is very scalable."

    "The most valuable feature of Microsoft Azure is it has everything together in one place. It is one large tool with lots of small tools that are updated often," says the owner of a media company.



    Offer
    Learn more about Alibaba Cloud
    Learn More
    Learn more about Microsoft Azure
    Learn More
    Sample Customers
    Schneider Electric, BorderX Lab, Royal Philips, Catchpoint, Conversant, Blogmint
    BMW, Toyota, easyJet, NBC Sports, HarperCollins, Aviva, TalkTalk Business, Avanade, and Telenor.
    Top Industries
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Comms Service Provider16%
    Computer Software Company16%
    Retailer8%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company25%
    Financial Services Firm12%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Comms Service Provider7%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company19%
    Comms Service Provider13%
    Financial Services Firm10%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business57%
    Midsize Enterprise29%
    Large Enterprise14%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business16%
    Midsize Enterprise19%
    Large Enterprise65%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business39%
    Midsize Enterprise17%
    Large Enterprise43%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise69%
    Buyer's Guide
    Alibaba Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure
    November 2022
    Free Report: Alibaba Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure
    Find out what your peers are saying about Alibaba Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure and other solutions. Updated: November 2022.
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    655,711 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Alibaba Cloud is ranked 9th in Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) with 5 reviews while Microsoft Azure is ranked 1st in Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) with 179 reviews. Alibaba Cloud is rated 7.2, while Microsoft Azure is rated 8.4. The top reviewer of Alibaba Cloud writes "A flexible and affordable cloud solution, but customer support could be better". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Microsoft Azure writes "Optimized cloud solution with reliable recovery and fail services". Alibaba Cloud is most compared with Google Cloud, Amazon AWS, Google Firebase, Oracle Cloud and DigitalOcean, whereas Microsoft Azure is most compared with Oracle Cloud Platform, Amazon AWS, Google Firebase, Pivotal Cloud Foundry and VMware Tanzu Application Service. See our Alibaba Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure report.

    See our list of best Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) vendors.

    We monitor all Infrastructure as a Service Clouds (IaaS) 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.