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Alibaba Cloud vs MySQL

Alibaba Cloud logo

Alibaba Cloud

Software

Asia's leading cloud computing provider

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
MySQL logo

MySQL

Software

The world's most popular open source database

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Alibaba Cloud technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included; MySQL hot online backup is not in the free Community Server; MySQL Enterprise Backup is a paid Enterprise Edition component
  • They diverge on capability: Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, MySQL covers ACID compliance.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Alibaba Cloud and MySQL actually diverge.

Attributes where Alibaba Cloud and MySQL differ
AttributeAlibaba CloudMySQL
Pricing modelusage-basedfreemium
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Api, CliWindows, Macos, Linux, Unix
Founded20091995

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Alibaba Cloud

  • Elastic Compute Service
  • Object Storage Service
  • RDS Database
  • MaxCompute
  • Function Compute
  • CDN
  • Load Balancer
  • API Gateway

Only in MySQL

  • ACID compliance
  • SQL support
  • Multi-version concurrency control
  • Replication
  • Partitioning
  • Stored procedures
  • Triggers
  • Views

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in China and Asia Pacificnot MySQL
  • Pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitmentnot MySQL
  • Committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloadsnot MySQL
  • CDN and data transfer packages for content deliverynot MySQL

MySQL

  • Web application backendnot Alibaba Cloud
  • E-commerce platformsnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Content management systemsnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Data warehousingnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Business applicationsnot Alibaba Cloud

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included
  • Service prices are not shown as a rate card and route through a calculator or sales
  • Committed discounts require savings plans, reserved instances or capacity packages rather than being automatic

MySQL

  • Hot online backup is not in the free Community Server; MySQL Enterprise Backup is a paid Enterprise Edition component
  • Transparent Data Encryption, data masking and de-identification are Enterprise Edition only
  • MySQL Enterprise Firewall, which guards against SQL injection, and MySQL Enterprise Audit are both paid components
  • External authentication against PAM or Windows Active Directory requires MySQL Enterprise Authentication
  • The thread pool ships as MySQL Enterprise Scalability rather than in the community build

Pricing, plan by plan

Alibaba Cloud

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • Free tier credits
    • ECS instances
    • Cloud storage
  • Pay-as-You-GoFree
    • Flexible billing
    • No commitments
    • Global reach

MySQL

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • Open source license
    • Full SQL support
    • InnoDB storage engine
  • Standard Edition$2000/year
    • Commercial license
    • Oracle Premier Support
    • MySQL Enterprise backup
  • Enterprise Edition$5000/year
    • Advanced security
    • MySQL Enterprise Monitor
    • High Availability

Which should you pick?

Choose Alibaba Cloud if

  • You need elastic compute service.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli.
  • You also want object storage service.
Alibaba Cloud review

Choose MySQL if

  • You need acid compliance.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Unix.
  • You also want sql support.
MySQL review

Questions people ask

Is Alibaba Cloud or MySQL better?
Neither clearly leads. Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and MySQL at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Alibaba Cloud or MySQL?
Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and MySQL at Free.
Does Alibaba Cloud or MySQL run on more platforms?
Alibaba Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. MySQL runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Unix.
Can I use Alibaba Cloud for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Alibaba Cloud best used for?
Alibaba Cloud is most often used for cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific, pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment, committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloads, cdn and data transfer packages for content delivery. Of those, cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific and pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment are not what MySQL is typically brought in for.
What can Alibaba Cloud do that MySQL cannot?
Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Object Storage Service, RDS Database, MaxCompute. MySQL covers ACID compliance, SQL support, Multi-version concurrency control, Replication.
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