SAP HANA vs SAP SQL Anywhere comparison

SAP HANA and SAP SQL Anywhere are both solutions in the Relational Databases Tools category. SAP HANA is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.2, while SAP SQL Anywhere is ranked #32. SAP HANA holds a 5.9% mindshare in SQL, compared to SAP SQL Anywhere’s 1.4% mindshare. Additionally, 91% of SAP HANA users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 83% of SAP SQL Anywhere users who would recommend it.

SAP HANA

Read 93 SAP HANA reviews

8,011 Views
6,088 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

SAP SQL Anywhere

Read 6 SAP SQL Anywhere reviews

1,076 Views
1,011 Comparison Views

83% willing to recommend

SAP HANA

SAP SQL Anywhere

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

SAP SQL Anywhere and SAP HANA are competing in the database management systems category. SAP HANA tends to have the upper hand due to its advanced features and scalability, making it suitable for businesses with high data processing needs.

Features: SAP SQL Anywhere offers robust mobile and embedded database capabilities, ideal for remote work. It also facilitates offline usage and has a user-friendly interface. SAP HANA, however, provides advanced real-time data processing, in-memory computing, and strong integration capabilities. Its architecture allows effective large-scale data analytics.

Room for Improvement: SAP SQL Anywhere could improve in handling larger data sets, offering more advanced analytics, and enhancing integration capabilities with other software. SAP HANA may improve by reducing its complexity for initial setup, making it more cost-effective for smaller businesses, and offering more straightforward deployment options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SAP SQL Anywhere is easier to deploy due to straightforward procedures and low hardware requirements, making it suitable for smaller operations. SAP HANA provides more advanced deployment options, including cloud, on-premise, and hybrid installations, and it is supported by comprehensive support and service offerings.

Pricing and ROI: SAP SQL Anywhere is cost-effective, offering a quick return on investment for small to medium-sized businesses. SAP HANA may have a higher initial setup cost but potentially delivers significant long-term ROI through its advanced data processing capabilities, which help optimize operations and derive insights.

To learn more, read our detailed SAP HANA vs. SAP SQL Anywhere Report (Updated: April 2026).

Buyer's Guide

SAP HANA vs. SAP SQL Anywhere

April 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 893,244 peers since 2012

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 HANA

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

3rd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Data Virtualization (2nd), Embedded Database (1st), Database Management Systems (DBMS) (5th)

SAP SQL Anywhere

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

32nd

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of SAP HANA is 5.9%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP SQL Anywhere is 1.4%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Relational Databases Tools Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
SAP HANA	5.9%
SAP SQL Anywhere	1.4%
Other	92.7%

Relational Databases Tools

Featured Reviews

Hari Priya

SAP Analytics Lead at Miracle Software Systems, Inc

Performs well with high database and reporting performance

We face difficulties replicating the AC DOCA table, which is a huge table, from S/4HANA to SAP HANA BAS, Business Application Studio, or HANA Studio using SLT. For developing Power BI reports using the AC DOCA table, we are replicating full data daily. We want to implement delta load, and while we used OData service for one client, the delta OData service link is not properly updating delta records. Licensing costs with SAP HANA are very high. Due to high pricing, many clients are moving from BW on SAP HANA and S/4HANA to Azure SQL. I have worked with several clients who have moved all data flows to Azure and developed Power BI queries on top of Azure. Many clients are also using Google Cloud Platform (GCP). The certification costs are also very high, more than ₹1,40,000 INR. Previously, it was ₹30,000 to ₹40,000. I want to pursue three certifications but am unable to do so due to the cost.

Read full review

Mehak TAlwar

Automation Project Manager at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees

Scalable, easy to use, but stability could improve

We use SAP SQL Anywhere because we have a lot of Power BI reports that connect with the SQL database that we have for our robotic process automation data. We create procedures and other elements within the solution The most valuable features of SAP SQL Anywhere are the ease of use and the user…

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 functionality is of the solution is very good."

"If you want to scale with new processes and new reports, that's fairly easy."

"We have found the solution to be customizable and it is beneficial it comes as a bundled package, and additionally, it is user-friendly."

"The data storage requirement is reduced from the original database to the HANA database."

"The latest version is very good, it's excellent."

"The most valuable feature of SAP HANA is the interaction it provides with external suppliers and clients."

"SAP HANA has everything, and that is the advantage of SAP because you can get everything in one suite, whatever you need for your company."

"It's easy to use, and the Hana Studio is pretty good."

More SAP HANA pros

"It works well in general."

"It's a great product to use if you are already have an integration with SAP's ERP/CRM systems."

"The auto-backup replication is a perfect feature."

"The auto-backup replication is a perfect feature. That is the feature I liked the most."

"The most valuable features of SAP SQL Anywhere are the ease of use and the user interface is intuitive."

"SAP SQL Anywhere is very helpful."

"SQL Anywhere is easy and it did not cost as much as SQL Microsoft."

More SAP SQL Anywhere pros

Cons

"SAP HANA is a very proprietary tool and there's not as much support available for it as there is for an SQL Server (which is more popular)."

"The solution needs to work on its performance and make it faster."

"We have not really received any technical support from SAP HANA. I think that's also one thing that maybe SAP would be most helpful, especially if we encounter several errors during installation."

"Technical support could be better. When we have requested this, the tendency has been to instruct us to implement a note and keep them apprised."

"SAP HANA isn't user-friendly, and it's very hard to train newcomers to use it."

"When we are using SAP HANA we have some difficulty with the customization."

"I would like to see improvement on the feedback from the road-map; it is currently extremely hard to get insight in this area."

"Needs graphical programming without coding."

More SAP HANA cons

"It is not as secure as it could be."

"We have had some stability issues with SAP SQL Anywhere, but I am not sure if it is an application or network issue."

"A problem we are experiencing now is when doing a backup in SQL 2012 and 14."

"We have had some stability issues with SAP SQL Anywhere, but I am not sure if it is an application or network issue. We sometimes have a large amount of data being queried and it cannot handle it."

"SAP SQL Anywhere needs to incorporate functionalities like SAP S/4HANA."

"The interface is not easy in comparison to the SQL Server. It could be more user-friendly."

"Performance issues when syncing the MBO packages to the server."

"It is not as secure as it could be; there needs to be more encryption and we can find passwords very easily."

More SAP SQL Anywhere cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive."

"Price-wise, the product falls on the higher side of the spectrum. There is no need to pay for maintenance and support additionally. Support is available for bug fixes in the product."

"The price of licensing is dependent on the size of the project, however, we have found that there is scope to negotiate the cost. If the solution is implemented on-premises there may be some extra costs for hosting etc."

"The tool has a high price. I rate the solution’s pricing, one on a scale of ten, where one is expensive and ten is cheap."

"We pay annually for the license of the solution."

"The price is high and could be a bit cheaper."

"We pay for a maintenance license, and the licensing cost is high. In general, it is a very expensive solution."

"Setup and licensing require planning and proper budgeting, as it is not cheap."

More SAP HANA pricing and cost advice

"SAP SQL Anywhere is affordable."

"SQL Anywhere cost us about $400."

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Relational Databases Tools solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Comms Service Provider

Government

Computer Software Company

10%

Construction Company

University

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	26
Midsize Enterprise	12
Large Enterprise	63

No data available

Questions from the Community

What are the biggest benefits of using SAP HANA?

Based on my work with SAP HANA, the biggest benefit that it can bring to your business is total data management. This product is by SAP - a company that serves almost all needs a client may have co...

See all answers

Is SAP HANA’s customer and technical support reliable?

We have been using SAP HANA for a fairly short period of time and have only taken advantage of their customer support. So far, we have not had issues that required specialized help from technical s...

See all answers

Is SAP HANA difficult to set up and start using?

SAP HANA is fairly easy to set up, however, I do not think a complete beginner can do it. You certainly need some preparation - either you need to have experience with similar solutions, or with ot...

See all answers

Ask a question

Earn 20 points

Comparisons

Oracle Database vs SAP HANA

Compared 29% of the time

SQL Server vs SAP HANA

Compared 10% of the time

MySQL vs SAP HANA

Compared 7% of the time

IBM Db2 Database vs SAP HANA

Compared 5% of the time

DuckDB vs SAP HANA

Compared 4% of the time

More SAP HANA Competitors

SQL Server vs SAP SQL Anywhere

Compared 17% of the time

MySQL vs SAP SQL Anywhere

Compared 17% of the time

Oracle Database vs SAP SQL Anywhere

Compared 14% of the time

OpenText Analytics Database (Vertica) vs SAP SQL Anywhere

Compared 10% of the time

MariaDB vs SAP SQL Anywhere

Compared 7% of the time

More SAP SQL Anywhere Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

SAP HANA

April 2026

Download SAP HANA product report

Buyer's Guide

Relational Databases Tools

April 2026

Download SAP SQL Anywhere product report

Also Known As

SAP High-Performance Analytic Appliance, HANA

Sybase SQL Anywhere

Overview

SAP HANA is a high-speed in-memory data platform providing real-time analytics and quick data retrieval while supporting enterprise scalability and integration.

Designed for efficient data processing, SAP HANA offers robust security, ease of use, and advanced analytics through an architecture that ensures flexibility and stability. This allows seamless integration with third-party systems, significantly improving data management and decision-making capabilities. Enterprises benefit from data modeling, compression, comprehensive dashboards, and real-time insights. However, users have noted high costs, speed, and scalability issues, as well as complexity in interface and customizations. There's also a need for better integration with third-party tools, clearer documentation, and enhanced connectivity with Java and other platforms.

What are the key features of SAP HANA?

In-memory Processing: Delivers rapid data retrieval and analytics.
Data Modeling and Compression: Enhances storage efficiency and speed.
Advanced Analytics: Offers comprehensive insights for strategic decisions.
Seamless Integration: Integrates with third-party systems effectively.
Real-time Insights: Supports real-time analytics across data sets.

What benefits should users expect when evaluating SAP HANA?

Improved Decision-making: Informs strategic business choices with advanced analytics.
Operational Efficiency: Enhances productivity by streamlining data management.
Scalability: Supports growth and evolving data needs effectively.
Security: Protects data integrity with robust mechanisms.

SAP HANA is deployed for enterprise resource planning across industries, notably in finance, HR, and sales. It supports real-time analytics, business intelligence, and integrates with SAP ERP and S/4HANA, offering tailored solutions for sectors like supply chain management, CRM, procurement, and financial analysis.

SAP

SAP SQL Anywhere provides rugged database management for diverse environments, efficiently handling data synchronization and processing for embedded and mobile applications. Its flexibility and reliability make it suitable for enterprises needing robust data solutions.

SAP SQL Anywhere is known for its ability to run in resource-constrained environments, supporting mobile and remote database access without sacrificing performance. It offers comprehensive data management capabilities, ensuring seamless data integration and synchronization across varying platforms. This scalability complements business growth and evolving data needs, providing a cost-effective way to manage data across mobile and embedded applications.

What are the noteworthy features of SAP SQL Anywhere?

SQL Database Server: Efficiently manages data with full support for SQL standards.
Data Synchronization: Ensures consistent data across multiple devices in real-time.
Cross-platform Support: Operates on multiple operating systems, enhancing versatility.
Security Features: Provides encryption and authentication for data protection.

Why choose SAP SQL Anywhere for your business?

Cost Efficiency: Reduces IT overhead with minimal maintenance requirements.
Adaptability: Fits seamlessly into existing infrastructures, reducing integration costs.
Scalability: Grows with business needs without requiring substantial reinvestment.
Reliability: Offers high performance even in offline settings, ensuring continuous access.

Industries such as retail, healthcare, and manufacturing use SAP SQL Anywhere to support mobile field operations, enabling data access and updates in remote locations. This adaptability enhances operational efficiency, providing crucial support in environments where real-time data handling is critical.

SAP

Sample Customers

Unilever, NHS 24, adidas Group, CHIO Aachen, Hamburg Port Authority (HPA), Bangkok Airways Public Company Limited

AOK Bundesverband, Surgutneftegas Open Joint Stock Company, Molson Coors Brewing Company, City of Buenos Aires, ASR Group, Citrix, EarlySense, Usha International Limited, Automotive Resources International, Wªrth Group, Takisada-Osaka Co. Ltd., Coelba, RZD Russian Railways, National Basketball Association, TALLY WEiJL

Buyer's Guide

SAP HANA vs. SAP SQL Anywhere

April 2026

Free Report: SAP HANA vs. SAP SQL Anywhere

Find out what your peers are saying about SAP HANA vs. SAP SQL Anywhere and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our SAP HANA vs. SAP SQL Anywhere report.

See our list of best Relational Databases Tools vendors.

We monitor all Relational Databases Tools reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.