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Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) vs Microsoft Azure File Storage comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 20, 2025

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

Amazon EFS (Elastic File Sy...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Storage (4th), File and Object Storage (8th)
Microsoft Azure File Storage
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Public Cloud Storage Services (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Cloud Services solutions, they serve different purposes. Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) is designed for Cloud Storage and holds a mindshare of 8.0%, down 9.9% compared to last year.
Microsoft Azure File Storage, on the other hand, focuses on Public Cloud Storage Services, holds 10.8% mindshare, down 13.3% since last year.
Cloud Storage
Public Cloud Storage Services
 

Q&A Highlights

NC
Nov 21, 2021
 

Featured Reviews

MuhammadAzhar Khan - PeerSpot reviewer
Auto-scaling capabilities enhance file management while reducing downtime
The most valuable feature of Amazon EFS is its auto-scaling capability. It's really easy to configure EFS by just creating it and running a command to directly configure it with my servers. It supports unlimited use, and charges are applied based on the file usage at the end of the month. The solution offers reduced downtime and increased durability through its auto-scaling features.
PrashanthR - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamlessly streamlines document processing with advanced file storage and OCR integration
We need to store data over there. We process documents through Kofax Time is a major benefit, as well as ease of processing. With configuration, it happens quite easily, and we can finish tasks early. File storage is complemented by OCR with Azure Cognitive Service. This enhances the processing…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most beneficial feature of the product for data storage stems from the fact that it serves as a shared file storage."
"Amazon EFS is extremely stable, as it is managed by AWS."
"The solution is scalable."
"Amazon EFS is extremely stable, as it is managed by AWS."
"The product's initial setup phase is easy, as per the configurations."
"Amazon EFS offers the flexibility of scaling as needed without requiring pre-provisioned storage."
"The initial setup was straightforward."
"Elastic File Systems allow me to share data, provision, and manage capacity and performance in AWS."
"First of all, the solution is very secure. Secondly, the solution is very fast. It is reliable and available all the time."
"We have not explored the desktop performance analysis of the file storage, but the user interface, API, and the response that we receive over the file storage are very good. We have a lot of customers that connect to the client-side, click the images, and upload them. The beauty of the solution is that we can mount the file storage into a critical server as well as an external drive. The speed that we receive with the images is pretty good."
"File storage is complemented by OCR with Azure Cognitive Service."
"The most significant aspect of Microsoft Azure File Storage is its life cycle functionality, which enables us to transfer files to various storage options, such as hot storage, full storage, and archive. This feature is crucial since we can apply a life cycle method to files that have not been in use for an extended period, and then move them to a cheaper cold storage option to save costs. Since the newest files are stored in the hot storage, it met our specific requirements. Consequently, older files can be transferred to archive and cold storage."
"Azure File Storage gives us easy access to cloud solutions at the storage level."
"The initial setup is fairly easy."
"It was quick to synchronize back from Azure to the on-premise server."
"Very user-friendly and intuitive."
 

Cons

"There are challenges related to AWS, such as ensuring proper security measures with IMS code and encryption."
"Specifically, when it comes to the file system for the learning system, we encountered performance issues with both Azure and AWS."
"The deployment is definitely not an easy process."
"The initial setup requires prior experience and technical skills."
"Amazon EFS is more costly compared to other storage options available from AWS."
"The lack of transparency in the costs attached to the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"The user activity needs to be more connected."
"I don't have notes on improvements."
"Azure File Storage's stability is okay, but sometimes we have trouble with the link to the Azure VPN disconnecting."
"It's not very intuitive."
"The security could always be modernized."
"The storage account key could be a security issue."
"A lot of things could be better, especially when it comes to accessing File Storage for monitoring. Azure Copy is fine, but there could be additional integration and security features for those who want more privacy and control over access to Azure."
"Microsoft's technical support could be improved. Their response time is usually high, and it takes considerable time to get a response."
"Maybe Microsoft can make it more economical because it is a costly affair."
"The support could improve."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution's price is mid-ranged."
"It has flexible pricing. You are charged based on your storage."
"I would rate the pricing 7 out of 10."
"The main challenge with EFS is its cost, which is slightly higher compared to EBS or S3. For one GB or ten GB of data, S3 is much cheaper. EFS could cost around $30 to $50 per month for similar usage."
"The product's price depends on the services and the size and capacity at which it is used in a business environment."
"Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) offers a pay-as-you-go model, so whenever you use its services, you need to pay."
"The product charges are based on the amount of data stored."
"One needs to pay according to the storage they plan to use in the solution. The payments are to be made yearly. It is usually monthly, but we opted for yearly subscriptions in our company."
"One of the major benefits for AWS is that they have a very large customer representative base where clients can be picked from, they offer large discounts and credit. We were not able to receive the same kind of offers from Microsoft Azure File Storage. We tried to approach Azure while hiring for our disaster recovery discussion, but we didn't receive anything from Azure."
"The pricing could be more flexible."
"The product's pricing need improvement."
"I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten, with ten being the most expensive. It's not cheap."
"There are fewer hidden costs involved compared to other solutions, and when our customer is already a Microsoft partner, they typically have access to more affordable fees."
"We have Microsoft Azure File Storage's enterprise license."
"The solution is a bit pricey compared to AWS and Google."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
16%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which file storage system is better - Amazon EFS (elastic file storage) or Azure File Storage?
Amazon EFS is easy to set up: you can use the AWS management console, API, or command-line. Amazon EFS can grow to petabytes and deliver consistent low latencies and high levels of throughput. This...
What do you like most about Amazon EFS (Elastic File System)?
The product's initial setup phase is easy, as per the configurations.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon EFS (Elastic File System)?
Amazon EFS is more costly compared to other storage options available from AWS.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure File Storage?
The pricing for Microsoft Azure File Storage is five out of ten, not so expensive and not so low.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure File Storage?
There is a limitation on the storage capacity, like four terabytes. It could be improved to accommodate more data. Expanding the storage capacity would be beneficial.
 

Also Known As

No data available
MS Azure File Storage
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Arcesium, Atlassian, Seeking Alpha, Zend
Talon, Camden
Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) vs. Microsoft Azure File Storage and other solutions. Updated: August 2024.
849,190 professionals have used our research since 2012.