IBM Db2 on Cloud vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database comparison

IBM Db2 on Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database

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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

IBM Db2 on Cloud

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

12th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)

2nd

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

118

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Database as a Service (DBaaS) category, the mindshare of IBM Db2 on Cloud is 1.2%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is 15.4%, down from 18.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Featured Reviews

FarhanFarhan

Database Engineer at Meezan Bank

Multi-node architecture and it is good from a security point of view

I would rate the stability a seven out of ten. Most of the issues we faced during troubleshooting were due to specific bugs in the environment, and the only solution was to upgrade the database environment or services. But it is not easy to upgrade the database level when third-party applications are involved, as they are not always comfortable with upgrading. There should be some cumulative solution provided by IBM for their customers, just like other vendors. Upgrading to a certain version doesn't always resolve the issue. It might get resolved at the database level, but what about the other applications integrated with that database that are only compatible with older versions?

Read full review

Charley Hanania

Data Platform Specialist at QS2 AG - Quality Software Solutions

It is very easy to implement, manage, and offers great insights into what is happening inside the engine

Microsoft Azure SQL Database is integrated into other Azure capabilities and has a great foundation being on SQL Server with a long history of security, performance, and usability from a DBA perspective. Once you've set up a server, adding databases is easy. There's a minor challenge with having data in separate databases that you want to connect like we do on premises. I'm looking forward to using some of these new AI-driven functions that have come out around vectorization. Having the data closer to my transactional databases or data makes it easy to augment and enhance the Database and applications I currently use. It's great that Azure SQL now seamlessly integrates with Microsoft Fabric. It's a first-tier service in the cloud that connects to web applications and other databases. The data transformation orchestration capabilities within Database Factory and similar capabilities make it effortless to move that stuff forward.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The reliability is the most valuable feature. It is also user-friendly."

"Multiple business departments rely on reports and predictive analysis to make decisions for future business based on their data warehouse and Db2 network analytics tool. It helps our business department make decisions."

"The database is extremely scalable, allowing seamless scaling up or down with a simple change in parameters."

"It is easily scalable, and it is faster than SQL Server. It is also less expensive than using SQL Server. It has the pay-as-you-go model, and the charges are based on the usage."

"What I like about SQL Azure is that it's similar to your on-premises SQL databases. It's not much different, so it's easy to start quickly on the solution if you know Microsoft SQL. I find its ease of use most valuable, and I also like that SQL Azure is also easily integrated with the Azure Cloud platform."

"It's the type of product that doesn't need much technical support assistance as it works seamlessly."

"Shifting our corporate programs to the cloud is more or less the same due to the ease of implementation. We've cut costs by around 70 percent."

"The Power Virtual Agents help us go through documents and load data into SQL."

"We've cut costs by around 70 percent."

"I rate Microsoft Azure SQL Database 10 out of 10."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pros

Cons

"I would give their support a ten if they had more tutorials available."

"In other environments like Oracle or Teradata, they provide their own solutions for troubleshooting issues. They provide built-in AI services or autonomous databases, which I don't see in the Db2 environment."

"Their availability in the Middle East and Asia regions needs to improve."

"Adding users to Azure SQL could be easier. You need to script it out, but it would be nice if it had a UI where you can click and add them. It's not a major thing because we script things all the time, but it would be a minor thing that helps us."

"Microsoft Azure SQL Database would benefit from enhanced documentation, along with ongoing improvements to scalability and cost-effectiveness."

"The document storage is primarily relational, which is not ideally suited for SQL. If there were better integration with SharePoint for document handling in SQL, it would greatly benefit the organization."

"I think this product can improve its integrations with business intelligence software. The integrations are always cumbersome due to the approvals, passwords, et cetera."

"I would like to the solutions scalability to be improved."

"Although the solution integrates well into Azure’s ecosystem, it has limited capability and is incompatible with many third-party applications or tools."

"The solution has to scale up its expertise for hosting Oracle."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"The license is based on the number of users."

"It requires a license. As compared to its competitors, such as Oracle, it is affordable and reasonable."

"The solution is expensive."

"It only has a subscription-based license."

"We have had some issues with the licensing of the solution."

"SQL Azure is an expensive solution."

"When looking at the long-term expenses associated with running software on an on-premises server, the costs are almost equivalent but when we include insurance for devices, onsite fees for servers, and other related costs, we may find that this is a cost-effective solution."

"The pricing is flexible and can be adapted based on our requirements but the pricing options are complex especially if we are using a VM."

More Microsoft Azure SQL Database pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Financial Services Firm

13%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM Db2 on Cloud?

In other environments like Oracle or Teradata, they provide their own solutions for troubleshooting issues. They provide built-in AI services or autonomous databases, which I don't see in the Db2 e...

What advice do you have for others considering IBM Db2 on Cloud?

Since I have worked with almost every product, including IBM, Teradata is far better than any other data warehouse product. It's a separate database with its own features, architecture, and working...

What is your primary use case for IBM Db2 on Cloud?

It's a multi-node logical database clustered in three physical nodes. We use a lot of services already provided in our private cloud environment. It's a multi-node architecture.

What do you like most about SQL Azure?

The automated scalability feature of SQL Azure has proven to be highly beneficial, particularly when deployed in the cloud.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SQL Azure?

The pricing of Microsoft Azure SQL Database is not cheap, affecting user uptake. A gradual reduction in price could improve accessibility and user numbers, making it easier for users to adopt the s...

What needs improvement with SQL Azure?

Pricing could be improved to make Microsoft Azure SQL Database ( /products/microsoft-azure-sql-database-reviews ) more accessible. A reduction in price might encourage more users and bring more pro...

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Comparisons

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Product Reports

Database as a Service (DBaaS)

Download IBM Db2 on Cloud product report

Microsoft Azure SQL Database

Download Microsoft Azure SQL Database product report

Overview

A fully-managed cloud SQL database. Powered by a turbo-charged Db2 engine.

IBM

Microsoft Azure SQL Database is a relational database-as-a-service that delivers predictable performance, scalability, business continuity, data protection, and near-zero administration to cloud developers and solution architects. This is the deep technical library for Azure SQL Database.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Owens-Illinois, KONE Corp., Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue, Canon Europe, Delhaize America, Wimbledon

adnymics GmbH, LG CNS, Centrebet, netfabb GmbH, MedPlast, Accelera Solutions, Sochi Organizing Committee, realzeit GmbH

IBM Db2 on Cloud vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database