# Azure Functions vs Modal

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Modal

| Attribute | Azure Functions | Modal |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 44.4 (30% (low)) | 56.4 (72% (medium)) |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"A cloud platform for building and running applications composed of small, independent functions triggered by events, supporting multiple programming languages and eliminating the need to manage infrastructure. It is indexed under Serverless & Edge Platforms.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/","question":"What is Azure Functions?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Azure Functions 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/products/functions","question":"Is Azure Functions free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed browser-based access to Azure Functions. 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/","question":"What platforms does Azure Functions support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for Azure Functions, 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/","question":"Can Azure Functions be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed GDPR for Azure Functions. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Azure Functions 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 Functions have?","confidence":0.7}]` | `[{"answer":"A serverless cloud platform designed for running AI inference, training, batch processing, and interactive development. It automatically scales compute resources on demand, offers integrated logging and metrics, and provides a Python-native SDK for defining infrastructure as code. It is indexed under Serverless & Edge Platforms.","source":"https://modal.com/pricing","question":"What is Modal?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Modal offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Paid plans start at $0 per month. Prices are published openly on the vendor's own pricing page. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://modal.com/pricing","question":"Is Modal free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Modal supports the web and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://modal.com/pricing","question":"What platforms does Modal support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for Modal, so it appears to be vendor-hosted. If a self-hosted option exists we have not found it documented publicly.","source":"https://modal.com/pricing","question":"Can Modal be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 4 integrations for Modal, including AWS Marketplace, GCP Marketplace, Datadog and Sentry.io. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://modal.com/pricing","question":"What does Modal integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed SOC 2 and HIPAA for Modal. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Modal not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://modal.com/docs/guide/security","question":"What security certifications does Modal have?","confidence":0.7},{"answer":"Modal is available worldwide. Its primary market is the United States. The vendor is headquartered in the United States.","source":"https://modal.com/pricing","question":"Where is Modal available?","confidence":0.75}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true}` | `{"cloud":true}` |
| description.long | A cloud-based serverless compute service that executes code in response to events, supporting multiple programming languages and letting developers focus on business logic rather than infrastructure management. | A cloud platform that automatically scales applications based on demand and charges only for actual compute consumed, measured per CPU cycle. Provides direct GPU access for AI inference and training, with support for Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, and Go. |
| features.capabilities | `{"hosting":"cloud","triggers":"event-driven","languages":".NET, Java, Python, Node.js, and additional languages supported","observability_builtin":true}` | `{"hosting":"cloud","triggers":"HTTP, cron/scheduled, events","languages":"Python","cold_start":"low","cli_and_iac":true,"http_trigger":true,"durable_state":true,"scale_to_zero":true,"custom_runtime":true,"scheduled_cron":true,"edge_distributed":true,"runtime_substrate":"container","observability_builtin":true}` |
| integrations.count | - | 2 |
| integrations.list | - | `[{"name":"AWS Marketplace"},{"name":"GCP Marketplace"},{"name":"Datadog","native":true,"category":"observability","direction":"outbound"},{"name":"Sentry.io","native":true,"category":"observability","direction":"outbound"}]` |
| market.availability | - | `{"hqCountry":"US","primaryMarkets":["US"],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"web":true}` | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"usage","summary":"Consumption-based pricing","sourceUrl":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/functions","retrievedAt":"2026-08-01T15:33:43.454Z"}` | `{"type":"usage","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Starter","summary":"$0/month base + compute usage ($30/month free credits)","features":["3 workspace seats","100 containers","10 GPU concurrency","Limited scheduled and web functions","Real-time metrics and logs","Region selection"],"minSeats":3,"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":0,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For small teams and independent developers","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"compute":"$30/month","containers":"100","gpu_concurrency":"10"}},{"free":false,"name":"Team","summary":"$250/month base + compute usage ($100/month free credits)","features":["Unlimited workspace seats","5000 containers","50 GPU concurrency","Unlimited scheduled functions","Custom domains","Static IP proxy","Deployment rollbacks","Environment-level budgets"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":250,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For startups and larger organizations","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"compute":"$100/month","containers":"5000","gpu_concurrency":"50"}},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","summary":"Custom pricing","features":["Volume-based discounts","Embedded ML engineering services","Private Slack support","Audit logs","SAML SSO","HIPAA compliance"],"description":"For organizations requiring security and compliance","contactSales":true}],"addOns":[{"name":"Non-preemptible execution","components":[{"of":"base compute pricing","kind":"percentage","rate":3}]}],"summary":"Free tier with $30/month compute. Pay-per-second metering: CPUs from $0.0000131/core/sec, GPUs from $0.000164/sec (T4) to $0.001972/sec (B300), memory at $0.00000222/GiB/sec.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://modal.com/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-09-18T15:59:18.208Z","startingPrice":{"amount":250,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},"billingPeriods":["month"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | freemium | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | unknown | high |
| pricing.starting_price | - | `{"amount":250,"currency":"USD"}` |
| pricing.transparent | - | yes |
| reliability.status_page | yes | yes |
| security.certifications | - | `[{"name":"SOC 2 Type II","level":"Type II","status":"active"}]` |
| security.disclosure_policy | - | yes |
| security.gdpr | yes | - |
| security.hipaa | - | yes |
| security.soc2 | - | yes |
| security.trust_center | https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/explore/security/ | https://modal.com/docs/guide/security |

## Capabilities (Serverless & Edge Platforms)

| Capability | Azure Functions | Modal |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Execution substrate | - | Container |
| Language / runtime breadth | .NET, Java, Python, Node.js, and additional languages supported | Python |
| **Reach** |  |  |
| Runs at global edge PoPs | - | ✓ |
| **Scale** |  |  |
| Scale to zero | - | ✓ |
| **Performance** |  |  |
| Cold-start profile | - | Low |
| **Limits** |  |  |
| Max execution duration | - | - |
| **Integration** |  |  |
| Event source breadth | event-driven | HTTP, cron/scheduled, events |
| HTTP endpoint trigger | - | ✓ |
| Cron / scheduled invocations | - | ✓ |
| **State** |  |  |
| Durable state / workflow primitive | - | ✓ |
| **Flexibility** |  |  |
| Bring-your-own runtime / container | - | ✓ |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Hosting | Cloud only | Cloud only |
| **Ops** |  |  |
| Built-in logs / metrics / tracing | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Extensibility** |  |  |
| CLI + IaC / framework support | - | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T18:31:18.813Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*