# Amazon RDS vs Azure SQL Database

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Amazon RDS

| Attribute | Amazon RDS | Azure SQL Database |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 72 (73% (medium)) | 54.3 (41% (low)) |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"Automates routine database tasks like provisioning, backups, and patching while supporting multiple database engines. Offers flexibility with deployment options in cloud or on-premises environments. It is indexed under Managed Databases.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_pr","question":"What is Amazon RDS?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Amazon RDS offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Paid plans are also available: AWS Free Tier, Aurora Serverless (On-Demand) and Aurora Reserved Instances. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/rds/aurora/pricing/","question":"Is Amazon RDS free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Amazon RDS supports the web and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/rds/aurora/pricing/","question":"What platforms does Amazon RDS support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Amazon RDS can be deployed cloud / SaaS and on-premise, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_pr","question":"Can Amazon RDS be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 15 integrations for Amazon RDS, including Amazon Aurora, Amazon EC2, Amazon EBS, AWS CloudWatch, AWS CloudFormation, AWS Config, Amazon S3 and AWS IAM, plus 7 more. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/pricing/?nc2=h_pr_pr","question":"What does Amazon RDS integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA and GDPR for Amazon RDS. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Amazon RDS not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/compliance/?nc2=h_dsc_aa_cmp","question":"What security certifications does Amazon RDS have?","confidence":0.7},{"answer":"Amazon RDS is available worldwide. Its primary market is the United States. The vendor is headquartered in the United States.","source":"https://aws.amazon.com/rds/aurora/pricing/","question":"Where is Amazon RDS available?","confidence":0.75}]` | `[{"answer":"A relational database service delivered on Microsoft's cloud platform that handles administrative tasks, providing built-in security and compliance features alongside AI capabilities. It is indexed under Managed Databases.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/offers/reservations","question":"What is Azure SQL Database?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Azure SQL Database offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/offers/reservations","question":"Is Azure SQL Database free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed browser-based access to Azure SQL Database. That is the extent of what we could verify from public sources, so it may well offer desktop or mobile clients we have not indexed.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/purchase-options/azure-account?icid=azure-sql-database","question":"What platforms does Azure SQL Database support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for Azure SQL Database, so it appears to be vendor-hosted. If a self-hosted option exists we have not found it documented publicly.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/offers/reservations","question":"Can Azure SQL Database be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed GDPR for Azure SQL Database. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Azure SQL Database not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/explore/trusted-cloud/","question":"What security certifications does Azure SQL Database have?","confidence":0.7}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true,"hybrid":true,"on_prem":true}` | `{"cloud":true}` |
| description.long | Automates routine database tasks like provisioning, backups, and patching while supporting multiple database engines. Offers flexibility with deployment options in cloud or on-premises environments. | A relational database service delivered on Microsoft's cloud platform that handles administrative tasks, providing built-in security and compliance features alongside AI capabilities. |
| features.capabilities | `{"free_tier":true,"engine_family":"multi_engine","pricing_model":"tiered_plus_usage","deployment_type":"hyperscaler_native","automatic_failover":true,"private_networking":true,"point_in_time_recovery":true,"multi_region_replication":true,"built_in_connection_pooling":true}` | `{"free_tier":true,"engine_family":"sql_server","deployment_type":"hyperscaler_native"}` |
| integrations.count | 15 | - |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Amazon Aurora"},{"name":"Amazon EC2"},{"name":"Amazon EBS"},{"name":"AWS CloudWatch"},{"name":"AWS CloudFormation"},{"name":"AWS Config"},{"name":"Amazon S3"},{"name":"AWS IAM"},{"name":"AWS Outposts"},{"name":"AWS Graviton3"},{"name":"Amazon QuickSight"},{"name":"Amazon Redshift"},{"name":"AWS Artifact"},{"name":"Amazon GuardDuty"},{"name":"AWS Audit Manager"},{"name":"Amazon CloudWatch","native":true,"category":"monitoring","direction":"outbound"},{"name":"AWS Database Migration Service","native":true,"direction":"bidirectional"}]` | - |
| market.availability | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` | `{"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"hybrid","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"AWS Free Tier","summary":"$100 AWS credits included; free tier valid for 12 months","features":["Aurora PostgreSQL serverless instances","Database automation (provisioning, backup, patching)"],"components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":100,"period":"one_time","currency":"USD"}],"description":"$100 in AWS credits at sign-up, valid for up to 12 months; eligible services include Aurora. Additional $100 in credits available. For new signups after July 15, 2025: choice of Free Plan or Paid Plan.","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"free_tier_credits":"first year","storage_per_cluster":"1 GiB","aurora_serverless_capacity":"up to 4 ACUs"}},{"free":false,"name":"Aurora Serverless (On-Demand)","summary":"Billed per Aurora Capacity Unit (ACU) per second based on usage","features":["Automatic scaling to hundreds of thousands of transactions per second","Multi-AZ deployments","Read replicas","Global Database support","All Aurora features"],"description":"Auto-scaling configuration that adjusts database capacity based on application needs in real-time","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Aurora Reserved Instances","summary":"Annual commitment with amortized hourly pricing","features":["1-year commitment term","Designated to specific AWS Region and instance type","Billed for every hour of term regardless of running status"],"commitment":"annual","description":"Commitment-based pricing for predictable workloads with significant savings over on-demand","contactSales":false}],"addOns":[{"name":"CPU Credits","components":[{"per":{"qty":1,"unit":"vCPU-hour"},"kind":"metered","amount":0.09,"currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"Data API"},{"name":"RDS Extended Support"},{"name":"Database Savings Plans"}],"summary":"Free tier with $100 AWS credits for 12 months. Hybrid pricing: serverless billed per ACU/second, reserved instances with annual commitment, on-demand per hour. Pricing varies by region and instance type.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://aws.amazon.com/rds/aurora/pricing/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-19T14:45:21.479Z","billingPeriods":["hour","month","year"]}` | `{"freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/","retrievedAt":"2026-09-28T13:18:32.353Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | free | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | free | low |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| reliability.sla_pct | 99.99 | - |
| reliability.status_page | - | yes |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | - |
| security.fedramp | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | yes | yes |
| security.hipaa | yes | - |
| security.iso27001 | yes | - |
| security.pci | yes | - |
| security.soc2 | yes | - |
| security.trust_center | https://aws.amazon.com/compliance/ | https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/explore/security/ |

## Capabilities (Managed Databases)

| Capability | Amazon RDS | Azure SQL Database |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Capabilities** |  |  |
| Engine family | Multi engine | Sql server |
| Deployment type | Hyperscaler native | Hyperscaler native |
| Serverless scale to zero | - | - |
| Database branching | - | - |
| Point in time recovery | ✓ | - |
| Multi region replication | ✓ | - |
| Automatic failover | ✓ | - |
| Private networking | ✓ | - |
| Built in connection pooling | ✓ | - |
| Extensions plugin support | - | - |
| Self host alternative | - | - |
| Pricing model | Tiered plus usage | - |
| Free tier | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T19:14:38.381Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*