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SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise vs SQL Server comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 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

SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
20th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
SQL Server
Ranking in Relational Databases Tools
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
269
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise is 0.9%, down from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SQL Server is 16.9%, down from 22.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Relational Databases Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Tejas Raj - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers cost-efficiency as it needs a very small amount of RAM to function
SAP is least bothered about Adaptive Server Enterprise nowadays since it wants to focus on promoting its new product, which is S/4HANA. If SAP gives out new releases and a patch upgrade to improve performance and provide additional options, then SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise can compete with other relational database systems in the market. The overall performance of the product is an area where the tool has certain shortcomings and needs to improve. I work in a very stable environment, and I prefer a very stable replication and database management system. Most of our company's customers do not want to opt out of SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise, but SAP has announced that it will be ending its support for it in 2027, and though I feel SAP might extend it, I feel SAP will want to promote its new product. Previously, I heard that SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise's end-of-support dates were announced for 2025, but now I think that they have extended it to 2027 or 2030.
Kapil Dev Khatri - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps monitor queries and identify which indexes need to be created in the databases
SQL Server is very simple due to its GUI, which is available for users. It allows for modifications and has execution plans available, along with options such as activity monitoring. This helps monitor queries and identify which indexes need to be created in the databases, tables, or columns to improve performance.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like that SAP ASE can match code and the database index to index data in the programming language. There are many other valuable features, such as the table buffer, tuning, and various control agents like dispatcher. SAP ASE can handle many different data types, including views, domains, data elements, structures, objects, and various table types that are most useful in the application. Its modularization technique is also handy."
"It's user-friendly, especially in the logistics field."
"They provide easy integration with other systems."
"Provides very good integration."
"The most valuable part of the tool stems from the fact that it is a very cost-efficient product compared to the newer technologies because it needs a very small amount of RAM."
"SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise is a good transactional database."
"The actual interface is good."
"This is a wonderful database that is, in my opinion, underrated. Users are able to get the most out of my experience by taking advantage of its centralized environment."
"It is a very user-friendly solution. It is easy to manage the databases and troubleshoot any issue. It is a perfect solution for the volume or transactions that we need to manage."
"SQL Server stands out due to its robust parallel processing capabilities."
"I believe Always On is the most valuable feature. It's also easy to use and not very tricky."
"The latest version supports for big data analytics. SQL Server's vector processing-based batch execution mode is now available to the entire execution of R or Python code. Since much of the work that tends to be done in R and Python involves aggregation, batch mode - which processes rows of data several at a time, can be very helpful."
"It is easy to use and easy to perform a backup."
"We use it for our on-premises solutions, virtual servers and SSAS, SSRS packages. Also, our applications are .NET based, so it made to use it."
"The features that we have found the most valuable are reliability, availability perspective, and current scalability."
"The most valuable feature is that it is easy to use and you don't have to do a lot of configuration."
 

Cons

"The solution should improve view partitioning. The documentation is very confined and available only for users. Distributors also would like access to it."
"I think that the solution needs to be positioned better within the market as it appears as though the Adaptive Server is being left out of the SAP scope."
"In my opinion, product support is not that great from SAP because they have already declared the end-of-date for SAP ASE. They will be stopping product support."
"Because the solution is customized. we do occasionally face unique bugs. There are always some changes that need to be made here and there."
"The overall performance of the product is an area where the tool has certain shortcomings and needs to improve."
"Cost-wise, SAP is still expensive compared to other available products."
"SAP should refine its debugging method, and the process needs to be a little faster. It should use more Pragmas and fewer pseudocomments. I would like if SAP added more features based on advanced technologies, like artificial intelligence and voice control. The modularization and if-else techniques could also incorporate the latest technology to code and solve complex problems. The SAP Editor should be more elaborative, and it should allow many more types of statements for all uses."
"There could be some improvements in barcode scanning and RFID access."
"As a software developer, it can be hard to do something in Oracle that is SQL Server specific, and vice-versa, sometimes."
"The performance degrades when the data is huge."
"I would like to see native plugins built for other platforms versus having to buy third-party plugins to tap into S3 buckets and AWS Cloud. Right now, it does not have those built-in plugins."
"If this solution could provide an automatic indexing feature it would be very useful."
"Better integration with other platforms would be an improvement."
"The licensing is pretty expensive."
"The solution is rather expensive."
"The solution is expensive. The licensing costs are high."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Price-wise, the product is worth it since one needs very less infrastructure to use it."
"The licensing cost for ASE is pretty low."
"I rate SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise's pricing a six out of ten."
"I would rate the tool's pricing a six out of ten. It is not extremely cheap but also it's not the most expensive product."
"It is expensive in terms of licensing costs and pricing. If you want to scale SQL Server, it is very expensive. We probably have to pay extra for technical support. We also have to pay for the license of Windows on which the SQL Server resides, which is an extra cost."
"We're looking at alternative solutions because we think Microsoft's licensing costs have been expensive."
"There is a license required to use the solution and I am satisfied."
"We pay approximately $12,000 USD per month for both the server and the license."
"We did a one-time payment. Its price, in general, can be reduced."
"You need to pay for the license. It most probably has per-core licensing."
"Although it comes with a cost, using the most recent version is highly advisable, since it would ensure a certain measure of bug fixes and stability. The sole issue would involve the cost, as this is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Educational Organization
19%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise?
SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise is a good transactional database.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise?
The licensing cost for ASE is pretty low when you compare it with Microsoft SQL Server. If you compare it with SQL Server, it is pretty low.
What needs improvement with SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise?
The main thing is it's not getting upgraded to meet today's needs. It's not upgrading at the level of transaction needs. For example, PostgreSQL or Oracle, these are pretty good databases. They can...
Would you say the price of SQL Server is high compared to that of similar products?
SQL Server is fairly priced because it has various editions, depending on the number of users, servers, or core packs you are using. If you compare the product to others in this category, the price...
Has using SQL Server helped your organization in any way?
SQL Server has helped my organization through partitioning to distribute the workload, as it splits them up into smaller pieces so the machines can easily deal with it. However, this comes with a h...
Which authentication mode is best for SQL Server?
My company connects through SQL Server authentication. We have company Windows accounts, but we do not want to connect the two, out of security concerns and to keep things separated for our own pur...
 

Also Known As

SAP ASE
Microsoft SQL Server, MSSQL, MS SQL
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

City of Buenos Aires, ASR Group, Citrix, EarlySense, Usha International Limited, Automotive Resources International (ARI), Takisada-Osaka Co. Ltd., Coelba (Grupo Neoenergia), RZD Russian Railways, National Basketball Association - NBA, TALLY
Microsoft SQL Server is used by businesses in every industry, including Great Western Bank, Aviva, the Volvo Car Corporation, BMW, Samsung, Principality Building Society, Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario.
Find out what your peers are saying about SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise vs. SQL Server and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
861,803 professionals have used our research since 2012.