- Managed SQL Server comes in three shapes: a managed instance on AWS or Google Cloud (Amazon RDS, Cloud SQL), Azure's platform services (Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance), and SQL Server on a cloud VM where you still run the database yourself.
- Licensing decides most of the cost. Amazon RDS and Azure accept your own licences under conditions they document (BYOM with Software Assurance on RDS, Azure Hybrid Benefit on Azure); Cloud SQL states it does not support bringing your own licence.
- Azure SQL Managed Instance offers almost full SQL Server engine parity, Azure SQL Database is the most managed option, and SQL Server on Azure VMs gives full compatibility and OS access.
- For small or test workloads there are free routes: the Azure SQL Database free offer, the Azure SQL Managed Instance free offer for 12 months, and Express edition, which carries no licence charge on Cloud SQL.
Managed SQL Server options at a glance
"Managed SQL Server" covers a range of services. The provider always runs the hardware, and in the platform services it also handles patching, backups and high availability. What changes is how much of SQL Server you can reach, who owns the licence, and how you are billed.
| Service | What you get | Editions or tiers | Licence options |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon RDS for SQL Server | Managed SQL Server instance; no shell or Remote Desktop access to the host | Enterprise, Standard, Web, Express (License Included); Enterprise, Standard, Developer (BYOM) | License Included, or Bring Your Own Media with Software Assurance and License Mobility |
| Azure SQL Database | Managed database (single database or elastic pool), serverless option, Hyperscale | DTU tiers (Basic, Standard, Premium) or vCore tiers (General Purpose, Business Critical, Hyperscale) | Licence included, or Azure Hybrid Benefit on vCore tiers |
| Azure SQL Managed Instance | Managed SQL Server instance with almost 100% engine feature parity | General Purpose (including next-generation), Business Critical | Licence included, or Azure Hybrid Benefit |
| SQL Server on Azure VMs | Full SQL Server on a VM with OS access; you manage the database | Any edition; Developer and Express carry no licence cost | Pay-as-you-go images or your own licence |
| Cloud SQL for SQL Server | Managed instance on Google Cloud with SQL Server Agent enabled | Enterprise, Standard, Web, Express | Licence included only; no bring-your-own-licence |
Amazon RDS for SQL Server
Amazon RDS runs SQL Server as a managed DB instance. AWS documents support for SQL Server 2016 through SQL Server 2025, automated backups and Multi-AZ deployments. In exchange, RDS does not provide shell access to the host, does not allow Remote Desktop or SSH connections, and restricts some system procedures; the master user gets db_owner on user databases rather than sysadmin-level control. Services such as Master Data Services and Data Quality Services cannot run on the same server, and AWS points you to SQL Server on EC2 for those.
Licensing on RDS has two models. With License Included, the hourly price covers the SQL Server licence, hardware and RDS management, for Enterprise, Standard, Web and Express. With Bring Your Own Media, AWS charges no SQL Server licence fees and you use existing licences with active Software Assurance through License Mobility, for Enterprise, Standard and Developer. For how editions and instance classes work in detail, see AWS RDS vs Azure SQL Database.
Azure managed SQL: Database, Managed Instance or VM
Microsoft offers three Azure SQL products and describes them differently. Azure SQL Database is a fully managed database service with serverless compute, elastic pools and a Hyperscale architecture for large databases. Azure SQL Managed Instance is a managed instance "with almost 100% feature parity with the SQL Server database engine", which Microsoft calls best for most migrations. SQL Server on Azure VMs keeps 100% SQL Server compatibility and operating system access, but you remain responsible for the database layer.
The licence can be included in the price or covered by Azure Hybrid Benefit, which lets you allocate SQL Server licences with Software Assurance to Azure SQL Database and Managed Instance; Microsoft says this can save "up to 30 percent or more". On VMs, the Developer edition (not for production) and Express edition carry no SQL Server licence cost, so you pay only for the VM. For the trade-offs between the two platform services, see Azure SQL Database vs Managed Instance and Azure SQL Database vs SQL Server.
SQL Server in Google Cloud: Cloud SQL for SQL Server
Google Cloud's managed option is Cloud SQL for SQL Server. Google's feature list includes BAK and BACPAC import and export, automated and on-demand backups with point-in-time recovery, high availability through a regional persistent disk, Extended Events, and SQL Server Agent enabled for replication and other jobs. Cloud SQL runs in Enterprise and Enterprise Plus editions, which set the machine types and availability, separate from the SQL Server edition you license.
The licence rule is simple and strict. Cloud SQL charges the SQL Server licence per core hour, with a four-core minimum per instance, and states that it does not support bringing your own licence. For a high-availability instance, only the active node is licensed. Full Cloud SQL rates are on our Cloud SQL pricing guide.
Licensing: the decisive cost factor
SQL Server licences are sold per core, and every provider passes that cost on: on Cloud SQL the Standard licence costs more per vCPU-hour than the vCPU itself. Three questions decide which service is cheapest for you:
- Do you own licences with Software Assurance? If yes, Azure Hybrid Benefit and RDS Bring Your Own Media can remove the licence charge. Cloud SQL cannot use them.
- Which edition do you really need? Express and Web cost far less than Standard and Enterprise. See SQL Server Express vs Standard and Standard vs Enterprise.
- How many cores do you license? Licences follow vCPU count, with a four-core minimum on Cloud SQL and on RDS for small instances, so a right-sized instance saves licence cost as well as compute.
Free SQL Server hosting options
Truly free managed SQL Server is limited, but there are documented options. The Azure SQL Database free offer gives each database 100,000 vCore seconds, 32 GB of data and 32 GB of backup storage per month for the life of the subscription, for up to 10 General Purpose databases. The Azure SQL Managed Instance free offer gives one instance with up to 500 databases, 720 vCore hours and 64 GB of storage for the first 12 months. On AWS, the RDS pricing page says customers who signed up before 15 July 2025 can use RDS for SQL Server Express free for up to 12 months, while newer accounts get a Free Plan or credits instead. On Cloud SQL, the Express edition has no licence charge, but you still pay for compute and storage.
Pricing
Prices from the provider's official pricing pages, checked 8 October 2026, region East US (Azure); Iowa, us-central1 (Google Cloud), in USD, excluding tax. List prices only; discounts, commitments and your actual usage change the bill.
Prices below are pay-as-you-go list prices. Amazon RDS for SQL Server is billed per instance-hour on demand, with License Included or unbundled licence pricing per vCPU-hour; the RDS instance price tables did not render in our verification tool, so we do not quote RDS instance rates here and recommend the AWS pricing page or calculator. The RDS page does state that T3 instances in Unlimited mode are charged for CPU credits at 0.144 USD per vCPU-hour above baseline.
| Service and size | Pay-as-you-go price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Azure SQL Database, DTU Basic (5 DTUs, 2 GB) | 4.8971 USD per month | Licence included; fixed DTU bundle |
| Azure SQL Database, DTU Standard S0 (10 DTUs, 250 GB) | 14.7187 USD per month | Licence included |
| Azure SQL Database, General Purpose provisioned, 2 vCores | 368.188 USD per month | 222.237 USD per month with Azure Hybrid Benefit |
| Azure SQL Database, General Purpose serverless | 0.5218 USD per vCore-hour | Billed per second of compute used |
| Azure SQL Managed Instance, General Purpose, 4 vCores | 736.378 USD per month | First 32 GB of storage included |
| Cloud SQL, Enterprise edition vCPU / memory | 0.0413 USD per vCPU-hour / 0.007 USD per GiB-hour | Iowa; HA rates are double |
| Cloud SQL, SQL Server licence per core hour | Enterprise 0.47, Standard 0.13, Web 0.01134, Express 0 USD | Four-core minimum; no bring-your-own-licence |
Cloud SQL for SQL Server Standard, 4 vCPUs, single zone
- Enterprise edition machine with 4 vCPUs and 16 GiB memory, Iowa
- SQL Server Standard edition licence
- 100 GiB SSD storage, running 730 hours
- Excludes backups, network egress and taxes
| Item | Basis | Estimated per month |
|---|---|---|
| vCPUs | 4 x 0.0413 USD x 730 hours | 120.60 USD |
| Memory | 16 GiB x 0.007 USD x 730 hours | 81.76 USD |
| SQL Server Standard licence | 4 cores x 0.13 USD x 730 hours | 379.60 USD |
| SSD storage | 100 GiB x 0.000465753 USD x 730 hours | 34.00 USD |
| Estimated total | 615.96 USD per month, of which about 62% is the licence |
Azure SQL Database General Purpose, 2 vCores: licence included vs Azure Hybrid Benefit
- Provisioned compute, Standard-series (Gen 5), East US
- Monthly prices as listed on the Azure pricing page
- Excludes storage, backup storage and taxes
| Item | Basis | Estimated per month |
|---|---|---|
| Pay-as-you-go (licence included) | Listed monthly price | 368.19 USD |
| With Azure Hybrid Benefit | Listed monthly price | 222.24 USD |
| Licence share | 368.188 USD - 222.237 USD | 145.95 USD |
| Estimated total | 145.95 USD per month saved if you already own eligible licences (about 40%) |
Worked examples are estimates calculated from the list prices above; they are not quotes or measured bills.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest way to run managed SQL Server?
For small workloads, the Azure SQL Database free offer or a Basic DTU database costs little or nothing. For production, the cheapest option depends on licences: if you own SQL Server licences with Software Assurance, Azure Hybrid Benefit or RDS Bring Your Own Media removes most of the licence cost; if not, compare the licence-included rates for the edition you need.
Can I run SQL Server in Google Cloud?
Yes. Cloud SQL for SQL Server is Google's managed service, supporting Enterprise, Standard, Web and Express editions with the licence included. Google states that Cloud SQL does not support bringing your own licence; you can also install SQL Server on a Compute Engine VM.
Azure SQL Database or Azure SQL Managed Instance?
Choose Managed Instance when you migrate an existing SQL Server and need instance-level features; Microsoft describes it as having almost 100% feature parity with the SQL Server engine. Choose Azure SQL Database for new applications that work within a single database and benefit from serverless or Hyperscale.
Does Amazon RDS for SQL Server give me sysadmin access?
No. AWS documents that RDS provides no shell or Remote Desktop access to the host and restricts some system procedures and tables. The master user receives db_owner on user databases. If you need full control, run SQL Server on EC2.
Sources
- Amazon RDS for SQL Server pricing
- Amazon RDS User Guide: Microsoft SQL Server
- Amazon RDS User Guide: Licensing SQL Server on RDS
- Microsoft Learn: What is Azure SQL?
- Microsoft Learn: Azure Hybrid Benefit
- Microsoft Learn: Azure SQL Database free offer
- Microsoft Learn: Azure SQL Managed Instance free offer
- Microsoft Learn: Pricing guidance for SQL Server on Azure VMs
- Azure SQL Database pricing
- Azure SQL Managed Instance pricing
- Cloud SQL pricing
- Cloud SQL for SQL Server features
Checked 8 October 2026.
How we research cloud database guides: our editorial method. CodeWithSQL earns nothing from the providers mentioned.