Introduction
Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform are the two top cloud computing giants. It is found that among the two, Microsoft Azure proposes the most effective and adaptable software solution, while Google Cloud Platform (GCP) presents sophisticated big data analytics solutions and facilitates simple integration with other vendor products. With a 23% market share at the beginning of 2023, Azure became the second-largest cloud service globally, while Google Cloud simultaneously had a market share of 11%. Let us delve into exploring the difference between Microsoft Azure vs Google Cloud Platform in detail to understand the best option for you.
Table of contents
- Azure vs GCP: An Overview
- What is Azure?
- What is GCP?
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Establishment
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Features
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Market Position
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Pricing
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Storage Services
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Compute Services
- Azure vs Google Cloud: Networking
- Conclusion
- Frequently Asked Questions
Azure vs GCP: An Overview
The comparative chart below shows some key feature differences between Azure Vs GCP.
| Feature | Microsoft Azure | Google Cloud Platform (GCP) |
| Establishment | Launched in 2010 | Began in 2008 |
| Infrastructure | Global data centers | Runs on Google’s internal infrastructure |
| Services Offered | Wide range of services | A suite of cloud computing services |
| Hybrid Cloud | Supports hybrid cloud deployments | Offer hybrid and multi-cloud options |
| Integration with MS Tools | Strong integration with MS products | Integration with the Google ecosystem |
| Market Share | Gaining market share among leaders | Growing presence in the market |
| Strength in AI/ML | Offers AI and ML services | Leading in AI development with TensorFlow |
| Pricing Model | Flexible pricing options | Favorable pricing and discounts |
| Global Footprint | Data centers in various regions | Wide network of data centers globally |
| Usage in Organizations | Increasing adoption in enterprises | Gaining popularity in the business sector |
| User Base | The growing presence among enterprises | Gaining traction with enterprises |
| Documentation & Support | Extensive documentation and support | Offering resources and community forums |
| Pros | Strong integration, hybrid support, AI services | Google infrastructure, AI capabilities |
| Cons | Complex pricing, the learning curve | Service outages, competition |
What is Azure?
Microsoft Azure is a well-known public cloud platform globally. Azure provides different solutions for analytics, networking, virtual computing, storage, and many such services. The solutions that Azure offers are basically three, including PaaS (platform as a service), IaaS (infrastructure as a service), and SaaS (software as a service), especially for Windows applications. Some of the famous user organizations of Microsoft Azure are Bosch, Audi, FedEx, ASOS, HSBC, 3M, Walmart, HP, Starbucks, Walgreens, Mitsubishi Electric, and Renault.
What is GCP?
Originally App Engine, Google Cloud Program or GCP is a cloud computing services platform established by Google. The solutions that GCP offers are PaaS (platform as a service), IaaS (infrastructure as a service), and SaaS (software as a service) for their user enterprises. For example, GCP focuses primarily on providing services for creating and managing original applications that can later be published from its hyper-scale data centers. Some of the noteworthy users of Google Cloud Platform (GCP) are Toyota, Nintendo, Equifax, Spotify, Twitter, Target, Paypal, The Home Depot, and UPS.
Azure vs Google Cloud: Establishment
Microsoft Azure
Earlier, it was known as Azure when it was established in 2010, and it was used to benefit enterprises with a competent Cloud Computing platform. ‘Microsoft Azure’ was the name given to ‘Azure’ in 2014, but the former name is still commonly used. Microsoft Azure has so far been a significant headway compared to competitor GCP.
Google Cloud Platform
In 2008, the Google Cloud Platform was launched, which skyrocketed as a strong contender in the cloud business in less than a decade. Google Cloud improved all of Google’s products, including the highly well-liked Google search engine and YouTube, the video-sharing website. The Google Cloud Platform, which uses the same infrastructure as Google Search and YouTube, is now accessible to everyone through enterprise services.
Azure vs Google Cloud: Features
| Features | Microsoft Azure | Google Cloud |
| Storage | ID drives (transient capacity).Object Storage uses Square Blobs and Files.Page Blobs VM-based volumes stored in Block Storage (Microsoft’s choice). | Offers both brief stockpiling and constant circles. Google Cloud Storage for Object Stockpiling. |
| Compute | Virtual machines and scale sets for virtual machines can be created. | GCE (Google Compute Engine) has a similar function. |
| Pricing | Per-minute basis | Per-second basis |
Azure vs Google Cloud: Market Position
| Year | Market Shares (Quarter) | Market Position | Revenue (Quarter) | |||
| Azure | GCP | Azure | GCP | Azure | GCP | |
| 2021 | 22% | 9% | Second | Third | $17.7 billion | $4.05 billion |
| 2022 | 23% | 10% | Second | Third | $23.4 billion | $5.8 billion |
Azure vs Google Cloud: Pricing
| Machine Type | Azure | GCP |
| Smallest Instance | For a basic instance, like 2 virtual CPUs and 8 GB of RAM, the cost will be around US$70/month. | For virtual CPUs and 8 GB of RAM, the cost will be around US$52/month. |
| Largest Instance | For the largest instance offered, like 3.89 TB of RAM and 128 vCPUs, it will cost around US$6.79/hour. | For 3.75 TB of RAM and 160 vCPUs, the cost will be around US$5.32/hour. |
| Billing Models | Pay-per-minute | Pay-per-second |
| Discounts | Lesser discounts than Google. | Offers deep discounts (50 percent savings) and exceptionally flexible contracts. |
Azure vs Google Cloud: Storage Services
| Services | Azure | GCP |
| Object Storage | Blob Storage | Google Cloud Storage |
| File Storage | Azure File Storage | ZFS/Avere |
| Cold Storage | Azure Archive Blob Storage | Google Cloud Storage Nearline |
| Virtual Server Disks | Managed Disks | Google Compute Engine Persistent Disks |
Azure vs Google Cloud: Compute Services
| Services | Azure | GCP |
| PaaS | App Service and Cloud Services | Google App Engine |
| IaaS | Virtual Machines | Google Compute Engine |
| Serverless Functions | Azure Functions | Google Cloud Functions |
| Containers | Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) | Google Kubernetes Engine |
Azure vs Google Cloud: Networking
| Services | Azure | GCP |
| Virtual Network | Virtual Networks (VNets) | Virtual Private Cloud |
| Peering | ExpressRoute | Google Cloud Interconnect |
| Elastic Load Balancer | Azure Load Balancer | Google Cloud Load Balancing |
| DNS | Azure DNS | Google Cloud DNS |
Conclusion
So far, you got to know about the extensive differences between the two top cloud computing platforms, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Program. Despite the minor differences, both cloud computing platforms are the leading ones to date and are continuing to skyrocket the market through great revenues annually.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. Is Azure better than Google Cloud?
A. Between Azure and Google Cloud, none can be completely considered as a better choice as the betterment depends on the personal requirements of the users.
While Google Cloud specializes in AI and big data analytics via TensorFlow and other services, Azure is excellent for organizations employing Microsoft products and offers constant integration. Therefore, for Microsoft-focused settings, one can choose Azure, whereas for AI and analytics, one can choose Google Cloud.
Q2. Why use GCP instead of Azure?
A. If a person has priorities like AI, data analytics, and ML (machine learning), they may use Google Cloud Program. BigQuery and TensorFlow are the powerful tools that Google Cloud has to offer for advanced analytics. Also, in the presence of a Google ecosystem, GCP might integrate more flawlessly.
Q3. Which is better, Azure, Google Cloud or AWS?
Again the choice of cloud computing platforms depends on the existing ecosystem, requirements, and expertise.
– AWS has the largest market share and offers a wide range of services.
– Azure has excellent integration with Microsoft products.
– Google Cloud stands out in AI.
Q4. What is the main difference between AWS, Azure and Google Cloud?
– AWS: Offers a broad array of services and strong market dominance.
– Azure: Perfectly integrates with Microsoft tools and is growing rapidly.
– Google Cloud: Best in AI, machine learning, and analytics.
