# Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) vs SimpleDB Comparison

| | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Star Rating** | 4.5 out of 5 | 4.1 out of 5 | 
| **Total Reviews** | 908 | 51 | 
| **Largest Market Segment** | Mid-Market (37.6% of reviews) | Small-Business (36.7% of reviews) | 
| **Entry Level Price** | No pricing available | $0.14 per Amazon SimpleDB Machine Hour | 

---
## Top Pros & Cons

### Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)

Pros:
- Ease of Use (32 reviews)
- Scalability (30 reviews)

Cons:
- Expensive (34 reviews)
- Cost Issues (10 reviews)

### SimpleDB

Pros:
- Cloud Storage (1 reviews)
- Customer Support (1 reviews)

Cons:
- Limited Free Access (1 reviews)

---
## Ratings Comparison
| Rating | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
  | **Meets Requirements** | 9.0 (745 reviews) | 9.0 (44 reviews) | 
  | **Ease of Use** | 8.8 (753 reviews) | 8.5 (45 reviews) | 
  | **Ease of Setup** | 8.9 (529 reviews) | 8.4 (17 reviews) | 
  | **Ease of Admin** | 8.7 (436 reviews) | 7.9 (15 reviews) | 
  | **Quality of Support** | 8.6 (717 reviews) | 8.6 (40 reviews) | 
  | **Has the product been a good partner in doing business?** | 8.8 (424 reviews) | 8.5 (14 reviews) | 
  | **Product Direction (% positive)** | 9.5 (705 reviews) | 6.9 (38 reviews) | 

---
## Pricing

### Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)

#### Entry-Level Pricing

No pricing available

#### Free Trial

Yes

### SimpleDB

#### Entry-Level Pricing

Plan:  Machine Utilization

Price: $0.14 per Amazon SimpleDB Machine Hour

Description: First 25 Amazon SimpleDB Machine Hours consumed per month are free


[Browse all 3 editions](https://www.g2.com/products/simpledb/pricing)

#### Free Trial

Yes

---
## Features Comparison By Category

### Data Replication

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)** | N/A | N/A |
| **SimpleDB** | N/A | N/A |

#### Management

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Real-Time Analytics** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Solution Integration** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Infrastructure Compatibility** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Monitoring** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

#### Solution Provision

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **System Failover** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Pay by Usage** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Service Provision** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

### Relational Databases

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)** | 8.8/10 | 468 |
| **SimpleDB** | N/A | N/A |

#### Management 

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Data Schema** | 8.8 (306 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Query Language** | 8.9 (310 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **ACID - Complaint** | 8.8 (295 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Data Replication** | 8.9 (304 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Support 

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Text Search** | 8.3 (300 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Data Types** | 8.7 (312 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Languages** | 8.6 (306 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Operating Systems** | 8.8 (310 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Security

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Database Locking** | 8.6 (299 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Access Control** | 8.7 (315 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Encryption** | 8.9 (309 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Authentication** | 8.8 (312 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Performance 

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Disaster Recovery** | 8.8 (305 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Data Concurrency** | 8.6 (299 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Workload Management** | 8.7 (307 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Advanced Indexing** | 8.5 (293 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Query Optimizer** | 8.5 (297 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Database Features

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Storage** | 9.0 (438 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Availability** | 9.2 (438 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Stability** | 9.0 (435 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Scalability** | 9.2 (425 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Security** | 9.1 (432 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Data Manipulation** | 8.5 (403 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Query Language** | 8.8 (420 reviews) | Not enough data | 

### Backup

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)** | N/A | N/A |
| **SimpleDB** | N/A | N/A |

#### Management

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Disaster Recovery** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Remote Backup** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Storage Formats** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Scheduled Backups** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **On-Demand Restoration** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

#### Reporting

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Activity Monitoring** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Documentation** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Alerts/Notifications** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

#### Security

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Data Encryption** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Security and Compliance** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 
| **Deduplication ** | Not enough data | Not enough data | 

### Database as a Service (DBaaS)

| Product | Score | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| **Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)** | 8.7/10 | 282 |
| **SimpleDB** | 7.8/10 | 18 |

#### Configuration

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Application Performance** | 8.8 (248 reviews) | 8.0 (17 reviews) | 
| **Orchestration** | 8.4 (243 reviews) | 7.3 (16 reviews) | 
| **Database Monitoring** | 8.6 (252 reviews) | 7.6 (17 reviews) | 
| **Anomaly Detection** | 8.1 (228 reviews) | Feature Not Available | 
| **Network Security** | 8.9 (245 reviews) | 7.9 (17 reviews) | 

#### Database Administration

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Provisioning** | 8.8 (242 reviews) | 7.8 (15 reviews) | 
| **Governance** | 8.6 (232 reviews) | 8.3 (15 reviews) | 
| **Auditing** | Feature Not Available | 7.6 (13 reviews) | 

#### Availability

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Scalability** | 9.1 (250 reviews) | 8.3 (16 reviews) | 
| **Backup** | 9.1 (253 reviews) | 7.8 (16 reviews) | 
| **Archiving** | Feature Not Available | 7.8 (16 reviews) | 
| **Indexing** | 8.7 (232 reviews) | 7.8 (16 reviews) | 

#### Security

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Data Masking** | 8.4 (171 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Authentication And Single Sign-On** | 8.6 (181 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Data Anonymization** | 8.4 (170 reviews) | Not enough data | 

#### Data Management

| Feature | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Data Replication** | 8.8 (188 reviews) | Not enough data | 
| **Advanced Data Analytics** | 8.6 (175 reviews) | Not enough data | 

---
## Categories
**Shared Categories (1):** [Database as a Service (DBaaS) Providers](https://www.g2.com/categories/database-as-a-service-dbaas)

**Unique to Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) (1):** [Relational Databases](https://www.g2.com/categories/relational-databases)

**Unique to SimpleDB (1):** [Data Replication Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/data-replication)


---
## Reviewer Demographics

### By Company Size

| Segment | Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) | SimpleDB | 
|---|---|---|
| **Small-Business** | 28.9% | 36.7% | 
| **Mid-Market** | 37.6% | 26.5% | 
| **Enterprise** | 33.4% | 36.7% | 

### By Industry

#### Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)

- **Information Technology and Services:** 22.6%
- **Computer Software:** 17.1%
- **Financial Services:** 6.0%
- **Computer & Network Security:** 3.7%
- **Telecommunications:** 3.2%
- **Hospital & Health Care:** 3.1%
- **Health, Wellness and Fitness:** 2.7%
- **Banking:** 2.5%
- **Retail:** 2.4%
- **Internet:** 2.2%
- **Other:** 34.4%

#### SimpleDB

- **Information Technology and Services:** 22.4%
- **Computer Software:** 16.3%
- **Telecommunications:** 6.1%
- **Higher Education:** 6.1%
- **Research:** 4.1%
- **Online Media:** 4.1%
- **Internet:** 4.1%
- **Financial Services:** 4.1%
- **Accounting:** 2.0%
- **Automotive:** 2.0%
- **Other:** 28.6%

---
## Alternatives

### Alternatives to Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)

- [Oracle Database](https://www.g2.com/products/oracle-database/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (1012 reviews)
- [IBM Db2](https://www.g2.com/products/ibm-db2/reviews) — 4.1/5 stars (682 reviews)
- [SAP HANA Cloud](https://www.g2.com/products/sap-hana-cloud-2025-10-01/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (621 reviews)
- [Google Cloud SQL](https://www.g2.com/products/google-cloud-sql/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (366 reviews)
- [Azure SQL Database](https://www.g2.com/products/azure-sql-database/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (241 reviews)
- [EDB Postgres Advanced Server](https://www.g2.com/products/edb-postgres-advanced-server/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (37 reviews)
- [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.g2.com/products/microsoft-sql-server/reviews) — 4.4/5 stars (2284 reviews)
- [MySQL](https://www.g2.com/products/mysql/reviews) — 4.4/5 stars (1680 reviews)
- [MongoDB Atlas](https://www.g2.com/products/mongodb-atlas/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (899 reviews)
- [DigitalOcean](https://www.g2.com/products/digitalocean/reviews) — 4.6/5 stars (749 reviews)

### Alternatives to SimpleDB

- [MongoDB Atlas](https://www.g2.com/products/mongodb-atlas/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (899 reviews)
- [IBM Db2](https://www.g2.com/products/ibm-db2/reviews) — 4.1/5 stars (682 reviews)
- [Oracle Database](https://www.g2.com/products/oracle-database/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (1012 reviews)
- [SAP HANA Cloud](https://www.g2.com/products/sap-hana-cloud-2025-10-01/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (621 reviews)
- [Google Cloud SQL](https://www.g2.com/products/google-cloud-sql/reviews) — 4.5/5 stars (366 reviews)
- [Fivetran](https://www.g2.com/products/fivetran/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (796 reviews)
- [Workato](https://www.g2.com/products/workato/reviews) — 4.7/5 stars (777 reviews)
- [DigitalOcean](https://www.g2.com/products/digitalocean/reviews) — 4.6/5 stars (749 reviews)
- [Acronis Cyber Protect](https://www.g2.com/products/acronis-acronis-cyber-protect/reviews) — 4.3/5 stars (742 reviews)
- [Veeam Data Platform](https://www.g2.com/products/veeam-data-platform/reviews) — 4.6/5 stars (721 reviews)

---
## Top Discussions

### Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS)

- Title: [What is Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) used for?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/what-is-amazon-relational-database-service-rds-used-for) — 2 comments, 2 upvotes
  > **Top comment:** "Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) is a cloud-based service offered by Amazon Web Services (AWS) that is used for managing and operating relational..."
- Title: [An Amazon RDS performance best practice is to allocate enough RAM so that your working set resides almost completely in memory.](https://www.g2.com/discussions/an-amazon-rds-performance-best-practice-is-to-allocate-enough-ram-so-that-your-working-set-resides-almost-completely-in-memory) — 1 comment, 1 upvote
  > **Top comment:** "nice"

### SimpleDB

No discussions available for this product.

---
**Source:** [G2.com](https://www.g2.com) | [Comparison Page](https://www.g2.com/compare/amazon-relational-database-service-rds-vs-simpledb)