# Exoscale vs Microsoft Azure

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Exoscale

| Attribute | Exoscale | Microsoft Azure |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 83.3 (69% (medium)) | 58.5 (48% (low)) |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"European cloud provider offering compute instances, managed Kubernetes, database services, object and block storage, and GPU servers across multiple European regions. It is indexed under Cloud Infrastructure.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com/blog/cloud-pricing-models/","question":"What is Exoscale?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Exoscale is a paid product; published pricing starts at €0.01. It is sold across 2 plans (Standard Micro and GPU A30 Small). There is no free tier. Prices are published openly on the vendor's own pricing page. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com","question":"How much does Exoscale cost?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Exoscale supports a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com","question":"What platforms does Exoscale support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for Exoscale, so it appears to be vendor-hosted. If a self-hosted option exists we have not found it documented publicly.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com/blog/cloud-pricing-models/","question":"Can Exoscale be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 4 integrations for Exoscale, including Rancher, Terraform, Kubernetes and Karpenter. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com","question":"What does Exoscale integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA and GDPR for Exoscale. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Exoscale not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com/blog/tags/trust/","question":"What security certifications does Exoscale have?","confidence":0.7},{"answer":"Exoscale is available in Austria, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Germany and Croatia. Its primary markets are Switzerland, Germany and Austria. The vendor is headquartered in Switzerland.","source":"https://www.exoscale.com/blog/cloud-pricing-models/","question":"Where is Exoscale available?","confidence":0.75}]` | `[{"answer":"A comprehensive cloud computing platform offering virtual machines, containerized applications, API management, serverless functions, and hybrid cloud capabilities with enterprise-grade security. It is indexed under Cloud Infrastructure.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/virtual-machines/linux/","question":"What is Microsoft Azure?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Microsoft Azure 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","question":"Is Microsoft Azure free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed browser-based access to Microsoft Azure. 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/details/virtual-machines/linux/","question":"What platforms does Microsoft Azure support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Not fully, on what we have confirmed. Microsoft Azure is offered as cloud / SaaS and hybrid, and a hybrid deployment usually means some components can run on your own infrastructure while the rest stays vendor-hosted. We have not confirmed a completely self-hosted option, so check with the vendor if that is a requirement.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/virtual-machines/linux/","question":"Can Microsoft Azure be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 3 integrations for Microsoft Azure, including GitHub, Visual Studio Code and Power Apps. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/acom/etc.clientlibs/onecloud/components/content/reimagine/atomic/carousel/v1/carousel/clientlibs/pricing-styles.ACSHASHbcdafd3e07059ae596973551430292fc.min.css","question":"What does Microsoft Azure integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed GDPR for Microsoft Azure. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Microsoft Azure not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://azure.microsoft.com/security","question":"What security certifications does Microsoft Azure have?","confidence":0.7}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true}` | `{"cloud":true,"hybrid":true,"on_prem":true}` |
| description.long | European cloud provider offering compute instances, managed Kubernetes, database services, object and block storage, and GPU servers across multiple European regions. | Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing service offering infrastructure, platform, and application services designed for enterprises, governments, and startups, with integrated AI capabilities, multi-layered security, and extensive compliance support. |
| features.capabilities | `{"tier":"vps_dev","marketplace":true,"block_storage":true,"gpu_instances":true,"regions_count":"5 European regions (Austria, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Germany, Croatia)","object_storage":true,"managed_databases":true,"managed_kubernetes":true}` | `{"tier":"hyperscaler","free_egress":false,"marketplace":true,"block_storage":true,"gpu_instances":true,"object_storage":true,"spot_instances":true,"serverless_faas":true,"managed_databases":true,"managed_kubernetes":true,"private_networking":true}` |
| integrations.count | 2 | 4 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Rancher"},{"name":"Terraform"},{"name":"Kubernetes"},{"name":"Karpenter"}]` | `[{"name":"GitHub"},{"name":"Visual Studio Code"},{"name":"Visual Studio"},{"name":"Power Apps"}]` |
| market.availability | `{"hqCountry":"CH","primaryMarkets":["CH","DE","AT"],"availabilityScope":"regional","availableCountries":["AT","BG","CH","DE","HR"],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true}` | `{"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"usage","plans":[{"free":false,"name":"Standard Micro","summary":"€0.00729/hour","components":[{"per":{"qty":1,"unit":"hour"},"kind":"metered","amount":0.00729,"currency":"EUR"}],"description":"512 MB RAM, 1 core, 10-200 GB storage","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"GPU A30 Small","summary":"€1.226/hour","components":[{"per":{"qty":1,"unit":"hour"},"kind":"metered","amount":1.22645833,"currency":"EUR"}],"description":"56 GB RAM, 12 cores, 1x NVIDIA A30 GPU","contactSales":false}],"summary":"Pay-as-you-go usage-based pricing billed by the second, no upfront costs or commitments. Starting from €0.00729/hour.","currency":"EUR","freeTier":false,"sourceUrl":"https://www.exoscale.com","retrievedAt":"2026-08-03T13:22:08.200Z","startingPrice":{"amount":0.00729,"period":"month","currency":"EUR"}}` | `{"type":"hybrid","summary":"Usage-based pay-as-you-go pricing with commitment-based savings plans (up to 3 years). Free tier available.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/","retrievedAt":"2026-09-23T14:43:09.252Z","billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | no | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | low | low |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| reliability.sla_pct | 99.95 | - |
| reliability.status_page | yes | yes |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | yes |
| security.fedramp | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | yes | yes |
| security.hipaa | yes | - |
| security.iso27001 | yes | - |
| security.pci | yes | - |
| security.soc2 | yes | - |
| security.trust_center | https://www.exoscale.com/blog/tags/security/ | https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/explore/trusted-cloud/ |

## Capabilities (Cloud Infrastructure)

| Capability | Exoscale | Microsoft Azure |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Provider tier | VPS / developer | Hyperscaler |
| **Reach** |  |  |
| Regions / global footprint | 5 European regions (Austria, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Germany, Croatia) | - |
| **Compute** |  |  |
| Bare-metal servers | - | - |
| GPU / accelerated compute | ✓ | ✓ |
| Spot / preemptible pricing | - | ✓ |
| **Storage** |  |  |
| Object storage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Block storage | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Managed** |  |  |
| Managed Kubernetes | ✓ | ✓ |
| Managed databases | ✓ | ✓ |
| Serverless / FaaS | - | ✓ |
| **Network** |  |  |
| VPC / private networking | - | ✓ |
| **Pricing** |  |  |
| Free / low egress | - | ✗ |
| **Compliance** |  |  |
| Data-residency / sovereign options | - | - |
| **Ecosystem** |  |  |
| Partner marketplace | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T19:04:35.837Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*