Apache Spark vs. Microsoft Fabric

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Apache Spark
Score 9.1 out of 10
N/A
Apache Spark is a multi-language engine for executing data engineering, data science, and machine learning on single-node machines or clusters.N/A
Microsoft Fabric
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Fabric: A Comprehensive Data Management Solution Microsoft Fabric presents a unified, robust platform designed to optimize data management, enhance AI model development, and empower users across an organization. It focuses on integrating data seamlessly, ensuring governance and security, and providing AI capabilities. Microsoft Fabric is presented as an all-encompassing data management solution, providing organizations with tools for efficient data integration,…N/A
Pricing
Apache SparkMicrosoft Fabric
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Apache SparkMicrosoft Fabric
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsUse Microsoft Fabric by purchasing Fabric Capacity, a billing unit that enables each Fabric experience. Pay for every data tool in one transparent, simplified pricing model and save time for other business needs. Fabric Capacity is priced uniquely across regions.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Apache SparkMicrosoft Fabric
Best Alternatives
Apache SparkMicrosoft Fabric
Small Businesses

No answers on this topic

No answers on this topic

Medium-sized Companies
Cloudera Manager
Cloudera Manager
Score 9.9 out of 10
Snowflake
Snowflake
Score 8.7 out of 10
Enterprises
IBM Analytics Engine
IBM Analytics Engine
Score 7.2 out of 10
Snowflake
Snowflake
Score 8.7 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Apache SparkMicrosoft Fabric
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(24 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(4 ratings)
4.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
8.7
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Apache SparkMicrosoft Fabric
Likelihood to Recommend
Apache
Well suited: To most of the local run of datasets and non-prod systems - scalability is not a problem at all. Including data from multiple types of data sources is an added advantage. MLlib is a decently nice built-in library that can be used for most of the ML tasks. Less appropriate: We had to work on a RecSys where the music dataset that we used was around 300+Gb in size. We faced memory-based issues. Few times we also got memory errors. Also the MLlib library does not have support for advanced analytics and deep-learning frameworks support. Understanding the internals of the working of Apache Spark for beginners is highly not possible.
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Microsoft
I would highly recommend Microsoft Fabric, especially for medium to large enterprises aiming to build a robust, scalable, and secure data analytics platform. It effectively unifies various data workloads, streamlining data integration, engineering, and particularly enhancing our ability to create and share reliable Power BI dashboards. The deep integration with Azure AD for features like Row-Level Security is a significant advantage for data governance.
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Pros
Apache
  • Rich APIs for data transformation making for very each to transform and prepare data in a distributed environment without worrying about memory issues
  • Faster in execution times compare to Hadoop and PIG Latin
  • Easy SQL interface to the same data set for people who are comfortable to explore data in a declarative manner
  • Interoperability between SQL and Scala / Python style of munging data
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Microsoft
  • Access Control / Security & Governance
  • Collaborative Work up to Visualization
  • Data Ingestion
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Cons
Apache
  • Memory management. Very weak on that.
  • PySpark not as robust as scala with spark.
  • spark master HA is needed. Not as HA as it should be.
  • Locality should not be a necessity, but does help improvement. But would prefer no locality
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Microsoft
  • Clarity and Documentation on Power BI Integration Changes and Best Practices
  • More Flexible and Advanced Scheduled Report Delivery Options
  • Enhanced Data Export Control Based on Sensitivity Labels
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Likelihood to Renew
Apache
Capacity of computing data in cluster and fast speed.
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Usability
Apache
If the team looking to use Apache Spark is not used to debug and tweak settings for jobs to ensure maximum optimizations, it can be frustrating. However, the documentation and the support of the community on the internet can help resolve most issues. Moreover, it is highly configurable and it integrates with different tools (eg: it can be used by dbt core), which increase the scenarios where it can be used
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Microsoft
I've rated Microsoft Fabric's overall usability as a 4, primarily due to its extensive and multifaceted feature set, which can make it challenging to navigate and determine the optimal functionality for a given task.While the breadth of capabilities is a core strength for large enterprises, it often leads to a sense of being "lost" or overwhelmed for teams like ours that do not have highly formalized roles or dedicated specialists for each Fabric "experience" (e.g., Data Engineering, Data Warehousing, Data Science).
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Support Rating
Apache
1. It integrates very well with scala or python. 2. It's very easy to understand SQL interoperability. 3. Apache is way faster than the other competitive technologies. 4. The support from the Apache community is very huge for Spark. 5. Execution times are faster as compared to others. 6. There are a large number of forums available for Apache Spark. 7. The code availability for Apache Spark is simpler and easy to gain access to. 8. Many organizations use Apache Spark, so many solutions are available for existing applications.
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Apache
Spark in comparison to similar technologies ends up being a one stop shop. You can achieve so much with this one framework instead of having to stitch and weave multiple technologies from the Hadoop stack, all while getting incredibility performance, minimal boilerplate, and getting the ability to write your application in the language of your choosing.
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Microsoft
Microsoft Fabric integrates data ingestion, engineering, warehousing, and Power BI visualization into one cohesive environment. This "one-stop shop" approach dramatically reduces complexity, minimizes operational overhead, and eliminates the need to integrate disparate tools and manage data across multiple systems. It provides superior scalability for large datasets, supports open data formats, and offers a much broader suite of data engineering and data science capabilities.In essence, Fabric's integrated ecosystem and streamlined operational management were key differentiators, providing a more cohesive, scalable, and efficient solution for our evolving data strategy than combining specialized tools.
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Return on Investment
Apache
  • Business leaders are able to take data driven decisions
  • Business users are able access to data in near real time now . Before using spark, they had to wait for at least 24 hours for data to be available
  • Business is able come up with new product ideas
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Microsoft
  • Transformation from Monthly Reports to Daily Insights, Accelerating Decision-Making
  • Streamlined Reporting: Enhanced Data Consistency and 30% Reduction in Reports Provided
  • Empowered Self-Service Analytics Through Elevated Employee Data Literacy
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ScreenShots

Microsoft Fabric Screenshots

Screenshot of Microsoft Fabric - AI-powered capabilitiesScreenshot of Microsoft Fabric -  Unified data foundationScreenshot of Microsoft Fabric - Uncover InsightsScreenshot of Microsoft Fabric - Cost Management