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Government · head to head

Azure Government vs Sardine

Azure Government logo

Azure Government

Government

Trusted Cloud for Government

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite
Sardine logo

Sardine

Cybersecurity

Device intelligence and behaviour biometrics for fraud and compliance

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Azure Government restricted to US government entities, their solution providers and contractors handling government data, with Microsoft validating eligibility first; Sardine signal quality depends on the SDK being embedded in your own web and mobile clients, so fraud improvements become dependent on your app release cycle and any coverage gap is a blind spot.
  • They diverge on capability: Azure Government covers FedRAMP High Authorized, Sardine covers Device intelligence.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Azure Government and Sardine actually diverge.

Attributes where Azure Government and Sardine differ
AttributeAzure GovernmentSardine
Pricing modelusage-basedquote
PlatformsWeb, Cli, SdkWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryGovernmentCybersecurity
Founded1975Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Azure Government

  • FedRAMP High Authorized
  • DOD IL5 Approved
  • Isolated Datacenters
  • Hybrid Cloud
  • AI & ML Services
  • Microsoft 365
  • Dynamics 365
  • Power Platform

Only in Sardine

  • Device intelligence
  • Behaviour biometrics
  • Scam detection
  • Onboarding risk scoring
  • AML transaction monitoring
  • Dispute and chargeback handling
  • Rules editor

What people use each for

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

Azure Government

  • Hosting US government workloads in dedicated domestic datacentresnot Sardine
  • Systems needing FedRAMP High, DoD IL2 to IL5, CJIS or ITAR authorisationnot Sardine
  • State, local and tribal government cloud servicesnot Sardine
  • Contractors processing controlled government datanot Sardine

Sardine

  • A neobank losing money to authorised push payment scams where the customer genuinely approved the transfernot Azure Government
  • A crypto exchange trying to detect accounts being operated by remote access rather than by their ownernot Azure Government
  • A fintech seeing synthetic identity signups that pass document verification but share device characteristicsnot Azure Government
  • A lender wanting first party fraud signals at application time that a credit bureau file does not containnot Azure Government

Where each one falls short

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

Azure Government

  • Restricted to US government entities, their solution providers and contractors handling government data, with Microsoft validating eligibility first
  • A narrower service catalogue than commercial Azure
  • New features arrive later than in the commercial regions
  • Pricing is not published and runs through federal contract vehicles such as JWCC, GSA and NASA SEWP

Sardine

  • Signal quality depends on the SDK being embedded in your own web and mobile clients, so fraud improvements become dependent on your app release cycle and any coverage gap is a blind spot.
  • Behavioural and device telemetry collection needs a documented lawful basis under GDPR, and EU privacy reviews frequently delay rollouts that were scoped as engineering work.
  • Pricing is per session or per active user, so a consumer product with many low value sessions pays in proportion to traffic rather than to fraud exposure.
  • As a younger private company it lacks the enforcement-tested audit history that a bank examiner expects, which makes it a harder sell inside a regulated bank than inside a fintech.
  • It is strongest on session-time signals and weaker as a system of record for long horizon AML typologies, so larger institutions end up running it alongside a traditional monitoring platform rather than instead of one.

Pricing, plan by plan

Azure Government

On request
  • Pay-as-you-goFree
    • Virtual Machines
    • Azure SQL
    • Storage

Sardine

On request
  • Sardine$undefined/year
    • Priced per user session or per monthly active user
    • Annual contract with volume commitment
    • SDK for web, iOS and Android

Which should you pick?

Choose Azure Government if

  • You need fedramp high authorized.
  • You work on Web, Cli, Sdk.
  • You also want dod il5 approved.
Azure Government review

Choose Sardine if

  • You need device intelligence.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want behaviour biometrics.
Sardine review

Questions people ask

Is Azure Government or Sardine better?
Neither clearly leads. Azure Government starts at On request and Sardine at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Azure Government or Sardine?
Azure Government starts at On request and Sardine at On request.
Does Azure Government or Sardine run on more platforms?
Azure Government runs on Web, Cli, Sdk. Sardine runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Azure Government best used for?
Azure Government is most often used for hosting us government workloads in dedicated domestic datacentres, systems needing fedramp high, dod il2 to il5, cjis or itar authorisation, state, local and tribal government cloud services, contractors processing controlled government data. Of those, hosting us government workloads in dedicated domestic datacentres and systems needing fedramp high, dod il2 to il5, cjis or itar authorisation are not what Sardine is typically brought in for.
What can Azure Government do that Sardine cannot?
Azure Government covers FedRAMP High Authorized, DOD IL5 Approved, Isolated Datacenters, Hybrid Cloud. Sardine covers Device intelligence, Behaviour biometrics, Scam detection, Onboarding risk scoring.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Azure Government: How is Azure Government pricing determined?

Azure pricing follows a pay-as-you-go model where you only pay for services you use. Prices vary by product, region, and usage patterns. Committed use discounts and reserved instances can save up to 65% for compute services.

Source
Sardine: Does Sardine do document verification?

It focuses on device, behavioural and transaction signals, and integrates identity verification providers rather than being one. Treat it as complementary to a KYC vendor.

Sardine: What does it need from us to work?

An SDK in your web and mobile applications plus transaction feeds. Without the client side collector you lose the signals that differentiate it.

Sardine: Is pricing published?

No. It is quoted, typically per session or per monthly active user with an annual volume commitment.

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