CrateDB vs Microsoft SQL Server
CrateDB
cratedb.comMicrosoft SQL Server
microsoft.comSide by side
| Figure | CrateDB | Microsoft SQL Server |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 17 | 20 |
| Spec score · Spatial Databases | 9.3 (#1) | 8.1 (#16) |
| Spec score · Database Software | 9.0 (#10) | 8.5 (#24) |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Integrations | Documented integrations include Tableau Cloud, Power BI, Kafka, StreamSets, DBeaver, Prometheus, Grafana, Airflow, Superset, Metabase, Excel and n8n. | SQL Server 2025 integrates with LangChain, Semantic Kernel, Entity Framework Core, Microsoft Azure, and Microsoft Fabric. |
| Security | CrateDB describes authentication, authorization, encryption, audit logging and compliance certifications across managed and self-managed deployments. | Microsoft's SQL Server security guidance covers platform and network security, permissions, encryption, and secure connections. |
Plans
CrateDB
- Shared FreeFree
- SharedPrice not published
- DedicatedPrice not published
- CrateDB Cloud Free PlanFree
- Open SourceFree
- CrateDB Cloud Shared$0.07 a month
- CrateDB Cloud Dedicated$0.25 a month
- Shared S2$53 a month
- Shared S4$103 a month
- Shared S6$153 a month
Microsoft SQL Server
- Standard per corePriced on request
- Standard per corePrice not published
- Standard serverPriced on request
- Standard serverPrice not published
- Standard CALPriced on request
- Standard CALPrice not published
- Enterprise pay-as-you-go$274 a month
- Developer – Standard & EnterpriseFree
- ExpressFree
- Standard pay-as-you-go$73 a month
In their own words
Microsoft SQL Server
Microsoft SQL Server is a database platform for storing, processing, and securing data, offered with both deployment models and a free plan. Its Database Engine includes replication, full-text search, relational, XML, and JSON data management, as well as Python and R machine-learning services. Integration Services provides graphical tools and programmable objects for moving and transforming data, while PolyBase can query Azure Storage, S3, and ODBC sources. SQL Server 2025 adds vector search, vector embedding generation, text chunking, and DiskANN vector indexing, and integrates with LangChain, Semantic Kernel, Entity Framework Core, Microsoft Azure, and Microsoft Fabric. Microsoft provides downloads for Windows and Linux and a SQL Server container image for Docker. Express is a free entry-level edition for learning and desktop or small server applications; its single Database Engine instance is limited to the lesser of one socket or four cores. Developer editions provide Enterprise or Standard functionality for development and testing, not production. SQL Server 2025 does not support SUSE Linux Enterprise Server.