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Microsoft Azure DocumentDB vs Microsoft Azure SQL Database comparison

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Executive Summary

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

Microsoft Azure DocumentDB
Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)
13th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.4
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
NoSQL Databases (15th)
Microsoft Azure SQL Database
Ranking in Database as a Service (DBaaS)
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
138
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Anish-Anand - PeerSpot reviewer
Performance Test Professional at Happiest Minds
Reporting for global banking stakeholders has become seamless and supports diverse visual formats
All Microsoft applications, whether database or analytics, are a little costlier compared to Google products, and this is a barrier that needs to be crossed so that all its applications become more affordable. For example, startups typically go for free tools. Microsoft should offer these products for free to startups or perhaps free for the first year or two years, so that startups can use these applications, and once they grow bigger and have larger revenue, they can purchase it at a reasonable cost. All Microsoft tools need to cut down on their price and have a better strategy around pricing for the masses. If you sell only to ten customers, your revenue is lesser, but if you give something for free to some customers, two years down the line they will purchase it. Microsoft Azure DocumentDB still needs the ability to connect to other analytics easily without any additional integrator. For example, if I can connect to Google Analytics or other analytics that are not Microsoft tools using this database, that would be a good source of revenue. If I have already purchased Google Analytics in my company and I need a database, and Microsoft Azure DocumentDB can very easily connect or integrate to my Google Analytics, I would not have to think twice. Cross-company application connectivity is something that needs to be worked on.
Matthew Parker - PeerSpot reviewer
Ai Team Lead at Phoenix Software
Integrates with familiar tools and supports reliable data storage for AI applications
Microsoft Azure SQL Database can be improved overall by being able to compete with some of the features that come from things such as PostgreSQL. From my team's perspective in terms of building AI applications, more native integrations with some of the newer AI data types, such as vectors for storing embeddings, would be beneficial. I think all of that is coming. It is just a big product, so I think it is naturally a little bit behind the curve. However, that is not necessarily a bad thing because a lot of customers, because it has been around for so long, they trust it and they are willing to wait until those features become available.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"One of the most appreciated aspects of Microsoft Azure DocumentDB is the elastic scaling feature which has significantly helped manage business growth for two customers who have employed it, experiencing a dramatic rise in improvement."
"We have immeasurable benefits mainly in reduced operational effort and the time saved on routine database administration."
"The most beneficial features of Microsoft Azure DocumentDB that I noticed is that it appeared to be straightforward, it was ease of use, it was not complicated compared to some of the other tools that are out there, the teams were familiar with it, and it integrated well with other Microsoft products."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Azure DocumentDB in my daily work is the speed."
"Microsoft Azure DocumentDB is never down because of its scalability feature."
"Microsoft Azure DocumentDB has positively impacted my organization by allowing us to reduce database costs by 30%."
"That's why Microsoft has delivered their dream cloud promise with the zero cost alternative of community edition."
"Azure SQL is easy to integrate and simplifies things from a licensing perspective. We're comfortable with SQL versus other types of databases, so we feel better talking to Microsoft."
"Its technical support team is good."
"It's easy to work with large amounts of data, query it, and bring it back to a visualization tool to show it to the end users."
"They have good documentation. It's concentrated information."
"Valuable features of Microsoft Azure SQL Database include its quick deployment capabilities, the ability to spin up an environment easily, and seamless integration with Microsoft products."
"Microsoft is at the forefront of databases, and everyone uses SQL."
"The database is extremely scalable, allowing seamless scaling up or down with a simple change in parameters."
 

Cons

"Microsoft gives you the base functionality which you can grow from, but some tools perhaps go a bit further because that is their only focus or niche."
"All Microsoft applications, whether database or analytics, are a little costlier compared to Google products, and this is a barrier that needs to be crossed so that all its applications become more affordable."
"It is a bit expensive, especially concerning the elastic scale."
"Maybe in the future, I would like to see relationships between one document set and another document set."
"Microsoft Azure DocumentDB could be improved with more straightforward cost and performance optimization guidance, especially for understanding resource usage and selecting the right configuration for different workloads."
"The initial setup was very complex."
"The only thing that concerns me today is the pricing connected with Microsoft Azure SQL Database; everything else is all right."
"It is expensive for us. We are looking for something less expensive and thinking of migrating the whole system."
"Its price could be better. It is expensive. I am not sure if Microsoft Master Data Services is included in this. If not, Master Data Services can be integrated with Azure SQL. I have only used Master Data Services on-premises."
"I am very happy with Microsoft Azure SQL Database; I don't think there's anything in particular I would change, except to make it cheaper."
"The way it has been designed, in the on-premises deployments, the underlying Windows OS is highly scalable but has a very large resource requirement. A lot of power-related and memory-related things are there, which I have not seen in the RHEL and Oracle. I have not tried SQL on RHEL EXEC. On Windows, infrastructure-wise, a very large workload is running on the SQL. This issue is related to Windows, not SQL."
"I need something which is in one place so I can automate the Azure data factory, but it's a different tool. It's not easy and in one place, so I can't switch to the other tool and do something there, automate everything there in the on-prem infrastructure, and then have everything in the agent. I can just pick one packet and use it. However, I want to be able to click it and run it."
"Sometimes, we encounter limitations due to our use of a government cloud environment, which differs from commercial cloud platforms."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The cost is around $2,000 per month."
"Compared to other providers, the pricing is definitely on the affordable side."
"It is quite expensive. I would definitely recommend not using the pay-as-you-go model because this will just mean all your money will go to Microsoft. So, really make sure to control resource usage as much as possible."
"If we use a smaller or free-sized Microsoft Azure SQL Database, it is extremely cost-effective and much cheaper than on-premise enterprise licenses, which are expensive."
"I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten."
"There is no licensing cost for the solution."
"The solution is more cost-effective than Google BigQuery. Compared to Google BigQuery, downloading data can be more expensive."
"I recommend considering a pay-as-you-go pricing model initially."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Outsourcing Company
19%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Construction Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business62
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise65
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure DocumentDB?
I think perhaps in some aspects the documentation could be better, as well as the integration with Azure Backup to improve Microsoft Azure DocumentDB.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Azure DocumentDB?
My main use case for Microsoft Azure DocumentDB is when we modernize applications that use MongoDB on-premise and move them to Azure using DocumentDB. By doing this migration to Microsoft Azure Doc...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SQL Azure?
For pricing, it is a good benefit. You can decrease the price by approximately 25% or 30% maximum. It is a good opportunity for us. Software Assurance and Azure Hybrid Benefit is a good opportunity...
What needs improvement with SQL Azure?
This question is complicated. Some developers know the SQL language, but they are not database managers. They can develop with some queries, which is acceptable for us, but management of SQL engine...
What is your primary use case for SQL Azure?
We work in Azure on our applications. We work with SQL, Cosmos DB, PostgreSQL, and we work with some services: AKS, Kubernetes services, managed Kubernetes, which we use in our applications. We use...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
adnymics GmbH, LG CNS, Centrebet, netfabb GmbH, MedPlast, Accelera Solutions, Sochi Organizing Committee, realzeit GmbH
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Azure DocumentDB vs. Microsoft Azure SQL Database and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.