Microsoft SQL Server Alternatives, Free and Commercial

Microsoft SQL Server is alive and current. Microsoft announced at Ignite that SQL Server 2025 is generally available from November 18, 2025. The release adds vector search and AI model calls inside T-SQL, native JSON, regular expressions and change event streaming. Standard edition now goes up to 32 cores and 256 GB of memory, Express allows 50 GB per database, and the Web edition is gone.

Licensing is what sends people looking. SQL Server 2025 list prices are the same as Microsoft's published SQL Server 2022 prices, per Licensing School's 2025 datasheet: $15,123 per 2-core pack for Enterprise and $3,945 per 2-core pack for Standard, or $989 per server plus $230 per client access licence. Subscriptions run $5,434 and $1,418 a year per 2-core pack. A 16-core Enterprise server costs $120,984 before Software Assurance. The six picks below run from free open source servers to Microsoft's own cloud service and two commercial rivals. If MySQL is on your list, our MySQL alternatives page covers its own replacements.

Prices below are as of November 8, 2026. Our method is on How we review tools.

Quick comparison

PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL is where most SQL Server migrations end up. It has the features SQL Server teams rely on: stored procedures and functions, CTEs and window functions, partitioning, row-level security, logical replication and JSON columns. Extensions fill the rest: pgvector for embeddings, PostGIS for spatial data, and pg_cron for scheduled jobs. Every major cloud sells it as a managed service.

The PostgreSQL License lets you run it on any number of cores for free. According to the PostgreSQL site, PostgreSQL 18 is the current major version, with 19 in release candidate since October 15, 2026; version 14 reaches end of life in November 2026.

Best for: Teams that want to drop per-core licensing and accept a one-time migration project.

Pricing:

• Free and open source, PostgreSQL License
• Managed hosting billed by the cloud provider

Watch out for:

• T-SQL does not run as is. Procedures move to PL/pgSQL, and SQL Server Agent jobs, SSIS packages and SSRS reports need replacements.
• Each major version gets about five years of fixes, so plan regular upgrades rather than a ten-year install.

Official site: PostgreSQL.

Azure SQL Database

Not every SQL Server user wants a new engine. Azure SQL Database runs the same engine as a managed service, so T-SQL, SSMS and most drivers work unchanged, while Microsoft handles patching, backups and high availability. Serverless compute bills per second and pauses when idle.

The Azure SQL free offer gives each database 100,000 vCore seconds of compute, 32 GB of data and 32 GB of backups a month, for up to 10 databases per subscription, for the life of the subscription. Paid use is billed in US dollars per vCore and per GB of storage, and rates vary by region.

Best for: SQL Server shops that want to stop managing servers but keep their code.

Pricing:

• Free offer: 100,000 vCore seconds, 32 GB data and 32 GB backup per database a month, up to 10 databases
• Serverless: billed per vCore-second; provisioned: per vCore-hour
• Storage: per GB a month, by region

Watch out for:

• The free databases have no SLA and pause after 15 minutes of inactivity, so they suit development rather than production.
• SQL Server Agent is not part of Azure SQL Database. Scheduled jobs move to elastic jobs or Azure automation.

Official site: Azure SQL Database.

MySQL

For web applications, MySQL is often the cheaper fit. Most hosting panels, PHP frameworks and CMS platforms assume it, and InnoDB handles transactional workloads well. Oracle ships two tracks. Long-term support lines, now 8.4 and 9.7, get fixes for years, and Innovation releases such as 26.10 add features every few months.

Oracle's October 21, 2026 release post covers MySQL 26.10, 9.7.4 and 8.4.13. Community Edition is free under the GPL. Enterprise Edition, sold through MySQL sales, adds a thread pool, hot backup, transparent data encryption, a firewall, auditing and 24x7 support.

Best for: Web and SaaS teams that want a free, widely hosted transactional database.

Pricing:

• Community Edition: free, GPL
• Enterprise Edition: contact sales

Watch out for:

• Stored procedures and triggers are more limited than T-SQL, and there is nothing like SSIS or SSRS in the box.
• MySQL 8.0 reached end of life in April 2026, per endoflife.date, so start on 8.4 or 9.7 LTS.

Official site: MySQL.

MariaDB

MariaDB began as a fork of MySQL and keeps the same protocol and most of the syntax, but it has grown its own features: system-versioned temporal tables, sequences, and an Oracle compatibility mode for PL/SQL-style code. Temporal tables are a direct match for SQL Server's own system-versioned tables.

The MariaDB download page lists Q3 2026 maintenance releases for 12.3, 11.8, 11.4 and 10.11. Starting with 12.3, the .3 release of each major version is the long-term one, and 12.3 gets community fixes until June 2029. MariaDB plc sells an Enterprise build with support on request.

Best for: Teams that want a free MySQL-compatible server with temporal tables.

Pricing:

• Community Server: free, GPL
• MariaDB Enterprise: price on request

Watch out for:

• Rolling releases such as 12.2 are supported only until the next one ships, so production should stay on an LTS line.
• It has drifted from MySQL. Tools that target MySQL 8.4 or 9.x features may not work against MariaDB.

Official site: MariaDB.

Oracle Database

Oracle Database is the only pick here that is usually more expensive than SQL Server. Teams choose it for Real Application Clusters, partitioning at very large scale and the Oracle application stack. The free edition, now called Oracle AI Database 26ai Free, runs on Linux and Windows and in Docker on Macs, capped at 2 CPU threads, 2 GB of RAM and 12 GB of user data.

Oracle's technology price list of September 15, 2026 shows Enterprise Edition at $47,500 per processor or $950 per named user, and Standard Edition 2 at $17,500 per processor or $350 per named user. Yearly support adds $10,450 and $3,850 per processor.

Best for: Large enterprises that need RAC clustering or already run Oracle applications.

Pricing:

• Oracle AI Database 26ai Free: free, 2 CPU threads, 2 GB RAM, 12 GB data
• Standard Edition 2: $17,500 per processor or $350 per named user; support $3,850 per processor a year
• Enterprise Edition: $47,500 per processor or $950 per named user; support $10,450 per processor a year

Watch out for:

• Enterprise Edition uses a core factor, and options such as RAC and partitioning cost extra, so audits are a real risk.
• PL/SQL is as far from T-SQL as PostgreSQL is, so the migration effort is no smaller.

Official site: Oracle Database.

IBM Db2

IBM Db2 is the choice for companies that already run IBM systems or need to sit close to Db2 on z/OS. Db2 12.1 runs on Linux, Windows and AIX, supports HADR replication for failover, and comes as a managed service on IBM Cloud and Amazon RDS.

The Db2 pricing page lists a free Db2 12.1 AI Community edition capped at 4 cores and 16 GB of memory, and AI Standard up to 16 cores and 128 GB, with AI Advanced unlimited. Self-managed AI Standard and AI Advanced prices are not published. Db2 SaaS on IBM Cloud starts at USD 630 a month, billed hourly, for 4 vCPUs and 50 GB, and IBM notes that SaaS prices are indicative and vary by country.

Best for: IBM customers who want a commercial engine with a free tier for small servers.

Pricing:

• AI Community: free, 4 cores, 16 GB memory
• AI Standard and AI Advanced: price on request
• Db2 SaaS Performance plan: from USD 630 a month, billed hourly; indicative, varies by country
• Amazon RDS for Db2: bring your own licence

Watch out for:

• Community support only on the free edition, and the hiring pool for Db2 is smaller than for PostgreSQL or SQL Server.
• Self-managed AI Standard and AI Advanced prices are quote-only, which slows a cost comparison.

Official site: IBM Db2.

How to choose

When to stay with Microsoft SQL Server

Stay on SQL Server if your business logic lives in T-SQL, SSIS and SSRS, or if Express and Standard Developer cover your needs for free. The 2025 release raised Standard to 32 cores and 256 GB, which removes the most common reason to buy Enterprise. Check the SQL Server 2025 pricing page against a PostgreSQL migration estimate before deciding.

Frequently asked questions