Amazon Aurora vs Azure SQL Database

Amazon Aurora9.0Visit Azure SQL Database8.9Visit

Higher score Amazon Aurora #5 in Relational Databases 9.0/10 Paid ✓ 4 of 4 features Visit AWS Aurora

vs

Azure SQL Database #6 in Relational Databases 8.9/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit Azure SQL

• Amazon Aurora fits best

  Scalable managed PostgreSQL or MySQL

• Azure SQL Database fits best

  Low-cost managed SQL Server

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Side by side

Feature	Amazon Aurora 9.0/10 Visit ↗	Azure SQL Database 8.9/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.0	8.9
Ranking	#5 in Relational Databases	#6 in Relational Databases
Best for	Scalable managed PostgreSQL or MySQL	Low-cost managed SQL Server
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	—	—
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud	Cloud
Platforms	Web	Web, Windows, macOS, Linux
Support	Email, Live chat, Phone, Tickets, Community, Docs · 24/7	Docs, Community
Compliance	SOC 2, HIPAA, PCI DSS	2FA
Integrations	9 integrations	4 integrations
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Amazon Aurora 4/4 · Azure SQL Database 4/4
Managed service	✓	✓
High availability	✓	✓
Read replicas	✓	✓
JSON data support	✓	✓
Specs
Deployment model	Cloud	Cloud
Backup retention	Not checked yet	7 days
Maximum connections	Not checked yet	30 connections
Our review
Pros	PostgreSQL- and MySQL-compatible engines with serverless options Automatic scaling, failover, backups, and point-in-time recovery Up to 15 read replicas plus multi-Region database support	Free offer supports up to 10 databases Serverless compute, backups, failover, and replicas Integrates with Azure Functions, Power BI, and Microsoft Fabric
Cons	No permanent free plan Pricing varies by region, engine, capacity, storage, and I/O Cloud-based service with AWS ecosystem dependencies	Basic allows 30 maximum concurrent logins Free usage is capped at 100,000 vCore seconds monthly Cloud and API coverage may not suit broader deployment needs
Our verdict	Amazon Aurora is a fully managed, cloud-based relational database service from Amazon Web Services. It supports PostgreSQL- and MySQL-compatible engines, along with Aurora DSQL, a distributed SQL engine. Provisioned and serverless… Read the review →	Azure SQL Database is a cloud-native relational database service built on Microsoft’s SQL Server engine. It is designed for development teams and organizations building or modernizing cloud applications on Azure. The service supports… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Amazon Aurora — where it wins

  • PostgreSQL- and MySQL-compatible engines with serverless options
  • Automatic scaling, failover, backups, and point-in-time recovery
  • Up to 15 read replicas plus multi-Region database support

  Where it doesn't

  • No permanent free plan
  • Pricing varies by region, engine, capacity, storage, and I/O
  • Cloud-based service with AWS ecosystem dependencies

• Azure SQL Database — where it wins

  • Free offer supports up to 10 databases
  • Serverless compute, backups, failover, and replicas
  • Integrates with Azure Functions, Power BI, and Microsoft Fabric

  Where it doesn't

  • Basic allows 30 maximum concurrent logins
  • Free usage is capped at 100,000 vCore seconds monthly
  • Cloud and API coverage may not suit broader deployment needs

• Amazon Aurora9.0/10 · Paid

  A managed AWS database for scalable PostgreSQL, MySQL, and distributed SQL workloads.

  Visit AWS AuroraFull verdict →
• Azure SQL Database8.9/10 · Free plan

  A low-cost managed SQL Server service with a free offer and Azure-native features.

  Visit Azure SQLFull verdict →