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Databricks vs Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
6.5
Databricks efficiently lowers costs with cloud services, though ROI varies by sector and integration, particularly with Azure.
Sentiment score
7.0
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio improves efficiency with a 36% ROI, offering streamlined processes and comprehensive solutions.
For a lot of different tasks, including machine learning, it is a nice solution.
When it comes to big data processing, I prefer Databricks over other solutions.
I have seen a return on investment from using Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio in terms of workload reduction, as we now complete the same projects with two people instead of five.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.2
Databricks support is praised for prompt, professional service, comprehensive resources, and effective communication, enhancing overall user satisfaction.
Sentiment score
7.2
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio offers responsive support, but small clients suggest faster responses and improved escalation processes.
Whenever we reach out, they respond promptly.
As of now, we are raising issues and they are providing solutions without any problems.
I rate the technical support as fine because they have levels of technical support available, especially partners who get really good support from Databricks on new features.
The customer support for Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is quite responsive across different channels, making it a cool experience.
Microsoft technical support is rated a seven out of ten.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.4
Databricks is praised for its scalability, enabling easy adaptation to large data and user loads with efficient resource management.
Sentiment score
7.4
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is praised for its scalability, flexibility, and efficient cloud-based capabilities, with high user satisfaction.
The patches have sometimes caused issues leading to our jobs being paused for about six hours.
Databricks is an easily scalable platform.
I would rate the scalability of this solution as very high, about nine out of ten.
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is scalable as I can choose the compute, making it flexible for various scales.
We are building Azure Machine Learning Studio as a scalable solution.
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio's scalability has been beneficial, as I could increase my compute resources when needing more data injection.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Databricks is stable and robust, with minor issues, handling large data volumes and earning high stability ratings.
Sentiment score
7.8
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is stable, reliable, with occasional JavaScript issues, suitable for non-production environments.
They release patches that sometimes break our code.
Although it is too early to definitively state the platform's stability, we have not encountered any issues so far.
Databricks is definitely a very stable product and reliable.
 

Room For Improvement

Databricks requires visualization improvements, pricing clarity, user-friendliness, expanded integrations, and simplification for non-technical users to enhance usability.
Users seek improved usability, algorithm variety, support, pricing, integration, deep learning modules, and better data preparation in Azure ML Studio.
Adjusting features like worker nodes and node utilization during cluster creation could mitigate these failures.
We prefer using a small to mid-sized cluster for many jobs to keep costs low, but this sometimes doesn't support our operations properly.
We use MLflow for managing MLOps, however, further improvement would be beneficial, especially for large language models and related tools.
It would be beneficial for them to incorporate more services required for LLMs or LLM evaluation.
I find the pricing to be not a good story in this case, as it is not affordable for everyone.
In future updates, I would appreciate improvements in integration and more AI features.
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise buyers view Databricks as moderately pricey, with high setup costs, though discounts and licensing flexibility are available.
Microsoft Azure's pricing is seen as reasonable, though complexities and potential high costs require careful management.
It is not a cheap solution.
I rate the pricing as three or four on a scale of one to ten in terms of affordability.
The pricing for Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is reasonable since it's pay as you go.
 

Valuable Features

Databricks excels in scalability, integration, and user-friendly features, making it ideal for data processing and AI across industries.
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is user-friendly, scalable, integrates with Azure, supports AutoML, and accommodates all skill levels.
Databricks' capability to process data in parallel enhances data processing speed.
The platform allows us to leverage cloud advantages effectively, enhancing our AI and ML projects.
The Unity Catalog is for data governance, and the Delta Lake is to build the lakehouse.
The platform provides managed services and compute, and I have more control in Azure, even in terms of monitoring services.
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is a powerful platform for those already in the Azure ecosystem because it allows for scalability and provides a good environment for reproducibility, as well as collaboration tools, all designed and packaged in one place, which makes it outstanding.
Azure Machine Learning Studio provides a platform to integrate with large language models.
 

Categories and Ranking

Databricks
Ranking in Data Science Platforms
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
91
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Data Warehouse (9th), Streaming Analytics (1st)
Microsoft Azure Machine Lea...
Ranking in Data Science Platforms
4th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
62
Ranking in other categories
AI Development Platforms (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Data Science Platforms category, the mindshare of Databricks is 14.5%, down from 19.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is 4.9%, down from 6.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Data Science Platforms Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Databricks14.5%
Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio4.9%
Other80.6%
Data Science Platforms
 

Q&A Highlights

NC
Sep 23, 2021
 

Featured Reviews

ShubhamSharma7 - PeerSpot reviewer
Capability to integrate diverse coding languages in a single notebook greatly enhances workflow
Databricks offers various courses that I can use, whether it's PySpark, Scala, or R. I can leverage all these courses in a single notebook, which is beneficial for clients as they can access various tools in one place whenever needed. This is quite significant. I usually work with PySpark based on client requirements. After coding, I feed the Databricks notebooks into the ADF pipeline for updates. Databricks' capability to process data in parallel enhances data processing speed. Furthermore, I can connect our Databricks notebook directly with Power BI and other visualization tools like Qlik. Once we develop code, it allows us to transform raw data into visualizations for clients using analysis diagrams, which is very helpful.
Takayuki Umehara - PeerSpot reviewer
Streamlined workflows with drag and drop convenience but needs enhancements in AI
I use Machine Learning Studio for system reselling and integration Machine Learning Studio is easy to use, with a significant feature being the drag and drop interface that enhances workflow without any complaints. It provides a return on investment and cost savings, proving beneficial for…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Healthcare Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
University
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise56
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise30
 

Questions from the Community

Which do you prefer - Databricks or Azure Machine Learning Studio?
Databricks gives you the option of working with several different languages, such as SQL, R, Scala, Apache Spark, or Python. It offers many different cluster choices and excellent integration with ...
How would you compare Databricks vs Amazon SageMaker?
We researched AWS SageMaker, but in the end, we chose Databricks. Databricks is a Unified Analytics Platform designed to accelerate innovation projects. It is based on Spark so it is very fast. It...
Which would you choose - Databricks or Azure Stream Analytics?
Databricks is an easy-to-set-up and versatile tool for data management, analysis, and business analytics. For analytics teams that have to interpret data to further the business goals of their orga...
What do you like most about Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio?
The learning curve is very low. Operationalizing the model is also very easy within the Azure ecosystem.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio?
The pricing for Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio is reasonable since it's pay as you go, meaning it won't cost excessively unless specific resources are used.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio?
The initial setup can be a bit challenging for someone new, as the learning curve can be steep, but once I master the platform, I find it quite manageable. I would love to see the integration of a ...
 

Also Known As

Databricks Unified Analytics, Databricks Unified Analytics Platform, Redash
Azure Machine Learning, MS Azure Machine Learning Studio
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Elsevier, MyFitnessPal, Sharethrough, Automatic Labs, Celtra, Radius Intelligence, Yesware
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Schneider Electric, BP
Find out what your peers are saying about Databricks vs. Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
867,445 professionals have used our research since 2012.