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Google Cloud Firestore vs Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 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

Google Cloud Firestore
Ranking in NoSQL Databases
14th
Ranking in Managed NoSQL Databases
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.1
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB
Ranking in NoSQL Databases
5th
Ranking in Managed NoSQL Databases
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
94
Ranking in other categories
Database as a Service (DBaaS) (6th), Vector Databases (1st)
 

Featured Reviews

AnthonyAbah - PeerSpot reviewer
Real-time syncing boosts productivity with efficient data management
The most valuable features are Firestore's query capabilities and its real-time syncing functionality. The queries are efficient, apart from some limitations. Real-time syncing allows any changes at the backend to automatically appear at the frontend. This is highly useful as it eliminates the need to reload the browser to see the updates.
MichaelJohn - PeerSpot reviewer
Very efficient for application-facing scenarios
There are several areas for improvement. Firstly, having a local development emulator or simulator for Azure Cosmos DB would be beneficial. It would be very handy to have a Docker container that developers can use locally. Although, I know there is a free tier and so on and so forth, having a local environment would be nice. For example, SQL Server is very portable. You can even install it on your machine. That is the number one thing that is missing in Azure Cosmos DB. The second improvement area is the IDE of choice. That means how you interact with Azure Cosmos DB. For example, with SQL Server, you have SQL Server Management Studio. I know there is a little bit of support for Azure Cosmos DB in Azure Data Studio, but it is not heavily advertised or it does not feel like first-class citizen support. Developer experience or developer tooling is missing in terms of interacting with the database. Better developer tools or an IDE for interacting with Azure Cosmos DB would enhance the developer experience. Lastly, there is some mixed messaging about what Azure Cosmos DB is, given its multiple APIs. There are so many Azure Cosmos DB APIs available. There is NoSQL. There are MongoDB, Gremlin, and others. There is still some mixed messaging for others who are new to Azure Cosmos DB about what Azure Cosmos DB is. Is this like MongoDB, but then there is also MongoDB in Azure Cosmos DB? I know it well, and I know that the default one is just NoSQL, but others I have interacted with over the last ten years or so get confused.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable features are Firestore's query capabilities and its real-time syncing functionality."
"I use the solution for maps, saving some locations, and chats."
"Our customer is very satisfied with it."
"The best feature of Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB is API access, which makes it very easy to interact with the database without needing to write queries."
"The best feature is the velocity to make a query."
"Change feed is a pretty amazing feature. Once you make the changes, they are quickly read for you, and then you also have geo-replication. You can do a lot of things in your region, and the same regions can be replicated all over the world."
"Azure Cosmos DB offers numerous data connectors that provide a platform for seamless integration with various platforms and visualization tools such as Power BI. It allows connection via multiple data connectors to integrate data in any desired format."
"Overall, I would rate Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB a nine out of ten."
"Their new feature, dynamic data masking, is very cool and useful for us."
"One valuable feature of Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB is partitioning. Its performance is very nice."
 

Cons

"Firestore needs improvements in its querying capabilities, particularly the ability to join tables and merge data from different tables before sending it to the front end."
"I initially faced a problem creating groups in individual chats."
"They can implement a better backup system or alert system on Microsoft's end. We do receive notices for regular maintenance or updates, but sudden issues create significant problems."
"The initial setup was difficult."
"Azure Cosmos DB is generally a costly resource compared to other Azure resources. It comes with a high cost."
"Overall, it works very well and fits the purpose regardless of the target application. However, by default, there is a threshold to accommodate bulk or large requests. You have to monitor the Request Units. If you need more data for a particular query, you need to increase the Request Units."
"The query searching functionality has some complexities and could be more user-friendly. Improvements in this area would be very helpful."
"It would be ideal if we could integrate Cosmos DB with our Databricks. At this point, that's not possible."
"Firstly, having a local development emulator or simulator for Azure Cosmos DB would be beneficial. It would be very handy to have a Docker container that developers can use locally."
"The size of the continuation token in Azure Cosmos DB should be static rather than increasing with more data, as it can lead to application crashes."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The tool is not expensive."
"Its price is very good for the basic stuff. When you go to a more complicated use case, especially when you need replication and availability zones, it gets a little costly."
"Its price is in the middle, neither too low nor too high."
"Microsoft provides fair pricing."
"This cost model is beneficial because it allows for cost control by limiting resource units (RUs), which is ideal. However, for our needs, we can't engage with their minimum pricing, which ranges from 100 to 1,000 RUs. At the bare minimum, we need to use 4,000 RUs for a customer. I would like to find a way to gain some advantages from the lowest tier, particularly the ability to scale down if necessary. It would be helpful to have more flexibility in cost management at the lower end."
"I would rate Cosmos DB's cost at seven out of ten, with ten being the highest."
"Cosmos DB is a managed offering, so its cost is understandably higher."
"Cosmos DB is expensive, and the RU-based pricing model is confusing. Although they have a serverless layer, there are deficiencies in what I can define and assign to a database. Estimating infrastructure needs is not straightforward, making it challenging to manage costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Legal Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Google Cloud Firestore?
Firestore needs improvements in its querying capabilities, particularly the ability to join tables and merge data from different tables before sending it to the front end. The pricing model is also...
What is your primary use case for Google Cloud Firestore?
I use Google Cloud Firestore for user management and data storage, primarily for web applications. Firestore helps sync data between different users and stores documents efficiently.
What advice do you have for others considering Google Cloud Firestore?
I highly recommend Google Cloud Firestore due to its cost-effectiveness and real-time syncing capabilities. However, it needs improvements in querying functionalities and a simplified pricing model.
What do you like most about Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB?
The initial setup is simple and straightforward. You can set up a Cosmos DB in a day, even configuring things like availability zones around the world.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB?
We are not consuming so much yet since we are at the beginning of using this solution. I would rate the pricing of Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB a six out of ten.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB?
We are at the beginning of production, and everything is working very well. The price can always be lower, but currently, it's not a problem.
 

Also Known As

No data available
Microsoft Azure DocumentDB, MS Azure Cosmos DB
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
TomTom, KPMG Australia, Bosch, ASOS, Mercedes Benz, NBA, Zero Friction, Nederlandse Spoorwegen, Kinectify
Find out what your peers are saying about Google Cloud Firestore vs. Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB and other solutions. Updated: May 2025.
858,327 professionals have used our research since 2012.