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Databases · head to head

Amazon RDS vs Canary Labs

Amazon RDS logo

Amazon RDS

Databases

Set up, operate, and scale a relational database in the cloud

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Canary Labs logo

Canary Labs

Databases

Industrial process historian with published per-tag pricing and no client licence fees

From
$3000/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Amazon RDS has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Amazon RDS no super-user access or direct host connectivity limits advanced customization; Canary Labs pricing steps by tag band rather than actual tags, so a site sitting just above a threshold pays the next band in full; growth from 3,400 to 3,600 tags is a licence purchase, not a rounding error.
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon RDS covers Multiple DB Engines, Canary Labs covers Loss-less compression.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon RDS and Canary Labs actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon RDS and Canary Labs differ
AttributeAmazon RDSCanary Labs
Starting priceFree$3000/year
Pricing modelusage-basedPer tag band per year
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsAWS Cloud, Multi-AZ, Multi-regionWindows, Web
Founded2006Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Databases).

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 Amazon RDS

  • Multiple DB Engines
  • Automated Backups
  • Multi-AZ Deployment
  • Read Replicas
  • Encryption
  • Performance Insights
  • Automatic Scaling
  • MySQL

Only in Canary Labs

  • Loss-less compression
  • Unlimited clients
  • Store and forward
  • Views service
  • Sparkplug B
  • Calculation engine
  • Axiom
  • ODBC and REST

What people use each for

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

Amazon RDS

  • Transaction processingnot Canary Labs
  • Data storagenot Canary Labs
  • Application backendnot Canary Labs
  • Reportingnot Canary Labs
  • Data analyticsnot Canary Labs

Canary Labs

  • A manufacturer that needs a compliant historian but cannot justify a PI System enterprise agreementnot Amazon RDS
  • A water utility replacing SCADA-embedded logging with a historian that survives the next SCADA replacementnot Amazon RDS
  • An Ignition site that wants long-term storage and trending without paying per-client for dashboardsnot Amazon RDS
  • A plant with regulatory data-retention obligations where swinging-door compression would not survive an auditnot Amazon RDS

Where each one falls short

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

Amazon RDS

  • No super-user access or direct host connectivity limits advanced customization
  • Pricing unpredictable and expensive compared to GCP alternatives with equivalent features
  • Limited access to system procedures and tables requiring advanced permissions
  • No Oracle RAC (Real Application Clusters) support for high-availability Oracle deployments

Canary Labs

  • Pricing steps by tag band rather than actual tags, so a site sitting just above a threshold pays the next band in full; growth from 3,400 to 3,600 tags is a licence purchase, not a rounding error.
  • CustomerCare at 18 percent of licence cost is effectively mandatory on perpetual licences because lapsing it removes upgrades, so the perpetual option is not really a one-time cost.
  • The storage format is proprietary; getting data out at volume means the ODBC connector, an additional 2,500 USD one-time or 1,000 USD a year, or writing against the REST API.
  • Canary is a small vendor with a limited partner network outside North America, so support coverage and integrator availability in Europe and Asia are thinner than for AVEVA or Ignition.
  • It is a Windows-only server product with no Linux or container deployment, which complicates placing collectors in modern edge estates.

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon RDS

Free
  • On-Demand Instances$undefined/per second
  • Reserved Instances$undefined/mo
  • Database Savings Plans$undefined/mo

Canary Labs

$3000/year
  • Subscription, 3,500 tags$3000/year
    • Unlimited Axiom clients
    • Unlimited Excel clients
    • Support and upgrades included
  • Perpetual, 3,500 tags$8730/one-time
    • 7,400 USD licence plus 1,330 USD first-year CustomerCare
    • CustomerCare renews at 18 percent of licence cost per year
    • Unlimited clients
  • Private cloud, 3,500 tags$12320/year
    • Hosted by Canary
    • 1,500 USD one-time setup fee per system
    • Scales to around 58,684 USD per year at 60,000 tags
  • Enterprise unlimited$undefined/year
    • Unlimited tags
    • Negotiated licensing terms
    • Quoted pricing

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon RDS if

  • You need multiple db engines.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS Cloud, Multi-AZ, Multi-region.
  • You also want automated backups.
Amazon RDS review

Choose Canary Labs if

  • You need loss-less compression.
  • You work on Windows, Web.
  • You also want unlimited clients.
Canary Labs review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon RDS or Canary Labs better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon RDS starts at Free and Canary Labs at $3000/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon RDS or Canary Labs?
Amazon RDS has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Amazon RDS and $3000/year for Canary Labs.
Does Amazon RDS or Canary Labs run on more platforms?
Amazon RDS runs on AWS Cloud, Multi-AZ, Multi-region. Canary Labs runs on Windows, Web.
Can I use Amazon RDS for free?
Yes. Amazon RDS has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Canary Labs starts at $3000/year.
What is Amazon RDS best used for?
Amazon RDS is most often used for transaction processing, data storage, application backend, reporting. Of those, transaction processing and data storage are not what Canary Labs is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon RDS do that Canary Labs cannot?
Amazon RDS covers Multiple DB Engines, Automated Backups, Multi-AZ Deployment, Read Replicas. Canary Labs covers Loss-less compression, Unlimited clients, Store and forward, Views service.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon RDS: What is included in the AWS Free Tier for RDS?

For signups before July 15, 2025: 750 hours per month of single-AZ database instance usage (12 months), 20 GB General Purpose SSD storage monthly, 20 GB automated backup storage monthly, available engines include MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, SQL Server Express Edition. For signups after July 15, 2025: choice between Free Plan or Paid Plan, $100 in credits plus up to $100 additional credits for activating foundational services, credits valid 12 months. Free Tier unavailable in AWS GovCloud (US) and China (Beijing) regions.

Source
Canary Labs: What does Canary cost?

8,730 USD for a 3,500 tag perpetual system including first-year CustomerCare, or 3,000 USD a year on subscription.

Amazon RDS: How is data transfer priced in RDS?

Same Availability Zone (EC2 to RDS) is free. Multi-AZ replication is free. Cross-AZ within same region is 0.01 USD per GB in and out. Cross-region snapshots and backups follow standard data transfer charges.

Source
Canary Labs: Are client licences extra?

No. Unlimited Axiom browser clients and unlimited Excel clients are included on every tier.

Amazon RDS: What database engines are supported by RDS?

Aurora, MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB, Oracle, SQL Server, and IBM Db2. Pricing varies by engine.

Source
Canary Labs: Is perpetual cheaper than subscription?

Canary states perpetual pays off after roughly three years, and after that you still pay 18 percent CustomerCare annually.

Amazon RDS: What cost components are included in RDS monthly pricing?

DB instance hours (billed in 1-second increments, 10-minute minimum), storage per GB per month, I/O requests (Aurora and magnetic storage only), provisioned IOPS per month, backup storage, and data transfer fees.

Source
Canary Labs: Does it use lossy compression?

No. Canary stores every collected value rather than approximating the trend, which matters for regulated data retention.

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