Azure vs Firebase – Which is the best?

This article will explore the differences and similarities between Azure vs Firebase. It will provide an overview of each platform, core features, and pricing structure.

As the cloud-based approach is outgrowing in popularity, more and more businesses are adopting it for their own use.

Cloud computing offers benefits for both businesses and end-users, similarly, to web-based email clients.

Several cloud hosting tools allow businesses to manage challenges and meet organisational goals, and Azure and Firebase are the most notable ones equipped with power-packed features.

Let us explore more about Azure and Firebase, their features, and pricing to understand the best tool for your business needs. 

Azure Overview

Created in 2010 by Microsoft, Azure provides cloud services for users to test, build, manage and deploy applications in the data centres of Microsoft.

It helps businesses manage challenges and meet organisational goals and offers tools that support all kinds of industries, including finance, e-commerce, a software company, and more.

This facilitates users to use the preferred tools and technologies. Additionally, Azure offers distinct forms of cloud platform computing service, platform as a service, infrastructure as a service, software as a service, and other serverless services.  

Core features

• Infrastructure as a service

Microsoft Azure has spearheaded the development of laaS, allowing businesses to deploy and manage applications easily. Furthermore, Azure organisations customise software and meet the business requirements.  

• Strong support in analytics

Microsoft Azure is largely equipped with built-in support for analysing data and key insights. In addition, the service offers stream analytics, Cortana Analytics, SQL services, machine learning, etc.

The features help businesses explore new business opportunities, make the right decision and enhance customer service.  

• Enhanced IT support

This is one of the best things that integrate with the existing IT department. This is performed through storage solutions, hybrid databases, and secure private connections.

So, it can exist in the business environment and your data centre. This is what makes Azure the easiest and most cost-effective place to access cloud services.  

• Improved scalability

Azure offers pay-as-you-go services that can be adjusted as per the capacity of the business needs and environment. This makes it convenient for businesses that otherwise tend to fluctuate in size.  

Azure pricing

• Pay as you go

Azure primarily uses a pay-as-you-go pricing model which changes based on usage. It works according to actual usage, which is billed per second, having no long-term commitment or any upfront payment. It offers flexible payment policy, letting users increase or decrease resources whenever required.  

• Reserved Instances

As the second pricing model, the tier grants a discount of up to 72% as compared to pay-as-you-go prices.

It also enables users to replace reserved instances with others, whilst cancelling reserved instances before ending the term. This furthermore incurs an early termination fee.  

• Spot pricing

Azure lets users purchase unused computing power at a discounted rate of up to 90%. The costs however can get interrupted on short notice.  

Firebase Overview

Firebase is a product of Google helping developers to create and manage whilst growing the apps easily. In addition, it helps developers to create the apps faster in a secure manner.

By providing services to iOS, android, unity, and the web, it offers cloud storage whilst using NoSQL for a database storing data. 

Features of Firebase

•  Realtime database

 It is a cloud-based NoSQL database managing the data at the blazing speed of milliseconds. As you connect the app to Firebase, you connect through a WebSocket, not a normal HTTP.

You no longer need to make individual WebSocket calls. All the data syncs through the single WebSocket as early as the client’s network can carry it.

Firebase sends new data as soon as it is updated. When the client saves a change, the connected clients receive the data instantly.  

• Authentication

 Google Firebase offers an email/password authentication system and supports OAuth2 for Facebook, Google, GitHub, and Twitter. It further integrates into Firebase Database for you to control access to the data. 

•  Quick backend development

 Building the backend of the application is a constraint. However, Firebase enables faster backend development with ready-made backend services.

As a result, it will dramatically reduce the cost, effort, and time required to develop feature-rich applications in the best way.  

 Firebase pricing

 It offers a free tier pricing plan for all products. Usage continues at free cost, irrespective of the level of use. If you need a high level of use, then you might need to switch the project to a paid-tier pricing plan.  

 It offers two different pricing plans such as:

•  Spark plan

It is a no-cost tier and offers a generous limit to initiate with Firebase 

What it includes:

• Analytics  
• Dynamic Links
• A/B Testing
• Crashlytics
• App Distribution  
• Performance monitoring
• Remote Config
• App Indexing
• Cloud Messaging  
• In-app messaging  

• Blaze plan

It is a paid-tier and offers prices for apps  

 What it includes:  

 It includes the options available in the free tier and the following:

• Authentication  
• Cloud Functions  
• Hosting  
• Realtime database  
• Cloud storage  
• Test lab  

Firebase vs Azure Comparison

Azure is an Infrastructure as a Service provider owned by Microsoft. It offers a comprehensive range of products and services, including virtual machines, storage, and databases.

Most Azure products are non-managed offerings, but several services add a managed service layer. One example is the Azure App Service, a managed backend that resembles Firebase and helps users to build mobile and web apps quickly.

Firebase is a backend as a service owned by Google. It runs on the Google Cloud Platform, a fully managed platform, and helps developers to accelerate web and mobile application development.

Conclusion

 Application development processes are getting more complex each day. Irrespective of whether you want to develop an application for web or mobile, it is essential to know the best hosting services.

Firebase and Azure are prominent hosting services, each of which has its strengths and limitations. Check out the features and pricing of the two platforms in depth to make the ideal pick for your business needs.