Amazon RDS vs SQL Server 2014 Express comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Cognosys Inc Hardened Images are both solutions in the Relational Databases Tools category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.4, while Cognosys Inc Hardened Images is ranked #30 with an average rating of 7.0. Additionally, 98% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Cognosys Inc Hardened Images users who would recommend it.

Amazon RDS

Read 58 Amazon RDS reviews

3,594 Views
719 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

SQL Server 2014 Express

Read 2 SQL Server 2014 Express reviews

176 Views
60 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Amazon RDS

SQL Server 2014 Express

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Amazon RDS and SQL Server 2014 Express based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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January 2026

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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

Amazon RDS

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

9th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Database as a Service (DBaaS) (2nd)

SQL Server 2014 Express

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

30th

Average Rating

7.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Featured Reviews

reviewer2592669

Director Software Engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees

Positive experiences with database services, with minor room for feature enhancements observed

I don't really see any disadvantages of Amazon RDS. With Oracle, I think AWS doesn't provide the RAC stability. If you have Oracle installed in your own data centers, you can set up various clusters and we can set up the RACs, but in Amazon RDS, we cannot have the RAC feature of Oracle. They could add that feature. Amazon RDS has limitations regarding RAC. If we talk about installing Oracle in RDS, we cannot have the RAC, but if you deploy Oracle on GCP, then there is probably the RAC feature available. I observed that around two or three years back, but I'm not sure whether they have added the RAC feature in AWS. Amazon RDS is expensive compared to GCP. GCP also has the same features, and although it is quite extensive and feature-rich, I see Amazon RDS as slightly expensive compared to other clouds.

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Rajneesh Prajapati

Senior Rpa Consultant at Accely Consulting

Reliable data storage has boosted automation logs and now needs fewer limits for growing workloads

The best features SQL Server 2014 Express offers are that it is free and reliable. The biggest advantage is that it is free and very stable, which makes it ideal for small scale and non-critical workloads. It integrates easily with .NET applications, automation tools, and reporting solutions. Setting up the installation and basic configuration is straightforward even for a small team. The integration with .NET applications and automation tools helps my team and projects by allowing me to record and store large amounts of data quickly. It processes very fast, stores very fast, reads the data, searches the data, and executes queries very quickly. However, in Excel, it does not work when the data is large. SQL Server 2014 Express has impacted my organization positively because it is time-saving. When I try to read Excel with a large amount of data, it is slow and sometimes it does not open because there is a lot of data. Sometimes Excel crashes. When I use SQL Server 2014 Express, it is very quick and time-saving, properly visible, and I can track where the data is breaking. It is reliable and cost-efficient for small use cases, but scalability and feature limitations prevent a higher rating.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Based on my experience, I would rate this solution a nine out of ten."

"I use Amazon RDS to support scalability, with multi-AZ support being an essential aspect."

"The product's initial setup phase is totally easy."

"Amazon RDS is lightweight and flexible."

"For me, RDS is a great solution. I like that Amazon RDS is a very simple solution to implement and to start using."

"Amazon RDS is good for backups, auto-scanning, and disaster recovery. It's also appropriate for the office server."

"The Amazon RDS features I found most valuable are snapshots and automatic backups."

"The time to install or set up a database environment is very fast."

More Amazon RDS pros

"SQL Server 2014 Express has impacted my organization positively because it is time-saving."

"SQL Server 2014 Express has positively impacted my organization by improving my knowledge in SQL coding and making my work faster."

Cons

"Amazon RDS should have a more user-friendly graphical user interface and include better database management options."

"There are a few aspects of database management that have room for improvement. There are a few parameters in the solution that are a bit unclear at our end as it's not understandable."

"The solution could improve by adding a sandbox environment and more security."

"One of the challenges of AWS RDS is that it doesn't support performance insight. So we need to write our own script or use third-party tools."

"In the next release, it would be great to see RDS provide connection pooling out of the box."

"The technical support from Amazon could improve. I would rate them a six out of ten as they do not fully meet my expectations."

"With my limited experience, I have noticed that documentation management could be improved. It could be better."

"The product must add more older versions of the database engines."

More Amazon RDS cons

"SQL Server 2014 Express can be improved as there are some resource limits. There are limitations on database size, memory, and CPU usage which restrict scalability."

"SQL Server 2014 Express can be improved by increasing the maximum 10 gigabytes for a database, as it would be better if this limit were increased."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Amazon RDS could improve by reducing the price."

"The solution is fairly priced."

"The product is expensive."

"Amazon RDS is less expensive than other solutions."

"On a scale from one to ten, where ten is the most expensive, and one is the cheapest, I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten."

"AWS is becoming pretty expensive because cheap or absolutely free services have become paid services. Amazon RDS is not an expensive product, but Amazon's ecosystem is becoming increasingly expensive."

"The price of Amazon RDS is reasonable."

"The substantial initial credit and cost-effectiveness make Amazon an attractive option."

More Amazon RDS pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	22
Midsize Enterprise	15
Large Enterprise	23

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Amazon RDS?

The product's installation phase is easy.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon RDS?

The pricing for Amazon RDS is reasonable.

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What needs improvement with Amazon RDS?

Currently, I cannot think of any major improvements. Perhaps more platforms in terms of database engine versions would be beneficial. Right now, Amazon RDS supports MySQL and PostgreSQL, but there ...

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What needs improvement with SQL Server 2014 Express?

SQL Server 2014 Express can be improved by increasing the maximum 10 gigabytes for a database, as it would be better if this limit were increased.

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What is your primary use case for SQL Server 2014 Express?

My main use case for SQL Server 2014 Express is querying with SQL code. I use SQL Server 2014 Express in my work for analyzing the data set, so I can learn how to use SQL code and how to correctly ...

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What advice do you have for others considering SQL Server 2014 Express?

The advice I would give to others looking into using SQL Server 2014 Express is to be careful about the size of the database. I would rate this product a 7.

See all answers

Comparisons

MongoDB Atlas vs Amazon RDS

Compared 20% of the time

Google Cloud SQL vs Amazon RDS

Compared 15% of the time

Microsoft Azure SQL Database vs Amazon RDS

Compared 13% of the time

Oracle Database as a Service vs Amazon RDS

Compared 12% of the time

Oracle Exadata Cloud at Customer vs Amazon RDS

Compared 5% of the time

More Amazon RDS Competitors

No data available

Product Reports

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Amazon RDS

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Relational Databases Tools

January 2026

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Also Known As

RDS

No data available

Overview

Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) is a web service that makes it easier to set up, operate, and scale a relational database in the cloud. It provides cost-efficient, resizeable capacity for an industry-standard relational database and manages common database administration tasks.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

SQL Server 2014 Express is a free, feature-rich database that provides capabilities for lightweight data-driven applications. It offers seamless integration, making it ideal for developers who need a reliable and manageable environment.

Designed for small-scale applications, SQL Server 2014 Express delivers a robust platform for developers. Its architecture supports efficient data management and application development without additional costs. With features like advanced security and scalability, it caters to complex needs with ease, providing tools for data storage and dynamic application growth.

What are the key features of SQL Server 2014 Express?

Advanced Security: Ensures data integrity with strong authentication and authorization.
Data Scalability: Efficiently handles growing amounts of data without compromising performance.
Full-Text Search: Provides powerful search capabilities within text data.
Integration Services: Simplifies data transformation and importing tasks.

Why should users review SQL Server 2014 Express?

Cost-Effectiveness: Offers substantial features at no cost, reducing operational expenses.
Performance: Optimized for quick data retrieval and processing, enhancing application speed.
Manageability: Provides simple configuration and management tools.
Reliability: Ensures consistent data availability and uptime.

SQL Server 2014 Express is widely implemented across industries like retail and healthcare, where reliable, scalable data management systems are essential. Its support for application development and data handling helps businesses innovate efficiently and maintain competitive operations.

Cognosys Inc Hardened Images

Sample Customers

Edmodo

Information Not Available

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January 2026

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