Azure Data Factory
by Microsoft · ETL & Data Extraction
Serverless, code-free ETL/ELT service for hybrid data integration across 90+ connectors.
Updated August 2026 · By the ERP Research Editorial Team · Independent and vendor-neutral.
- Works with
SAPSAP S/4HANA
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance
Oracle- Deployment
- Cloud, Hybrid
- Pricing
- Consumption-based, no seat licence
- Founded
- 1975
- Headquarters
- Redmond, Washington, USA
Overview
Azure Data Factory is Microsoft's fully managed, serverless cloud service for hybrid data integration. It lets data engineers build code-free, visually authored data-driven workflows called pipelines that ingest data from disparate on-premises, cloud, and SaaS sources, transform it, and load it into analytics destinations such as Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure SQL Database, or Azure Data Lake Storage. It is Microsoft's primary Azure-native ETL/ELT and orchestration service and is billed purely on consumption, with no upfront licensing cost.
A data factory is composed of pipelines, activities, datasets, linked services, integration runtimes, and triggers. Copy Activity moves data between more than 90 built-in connectors at no extra connector charge, including dedicated connectors for SAP ECC, SAP HANA, SAP BW, and SAP Business Suite tables, plus Dynamics 365 (Dataverse/CRM), Dynamics AX/Finance and Operations, Salesforce, Oracle, Amazon Redshift, Google BigQuery, and generic REST/OData/ODBC/HTTP endpoints for anything not natively covered. Mapping Data Flows provide a visual, no-code transformation layer that Data Factory executes on managed, autoscaling Apache Spark clusters, so engineers never provision or maintain the underlying compute themselves.
Data Factory also rehosts existing on-premises SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) packages in the cloud via the Azure-SSIS Integration Runtime, and connects to on-premises and private-network data stores through a self-hosted integration runtime for hybrid scenarios. Pipeline runs are monitored visually (list and Gantt views, per-activity drill-down, consumption reporting, alerting) and pipelines support full CI/CD via Azure DevOps or GitHub.
Screenshots & demo
Screenshots sourced from Microsoft.
Modules & capabilities
Azure Data Factory covers 24 of 52 capabilities we track in this category (+4 partial)
46%- Pre-built connector library90+ built-in connectors at no additional connector chargeCore strength
- Dedicated ERP-specific connectorsDedicated SAP ECC, HANA, BW (Open Hub/MDX), Table, CDC and Cloud for Customer connectors, plus Dynamics AX/F&OCore strength
- Custom connector SDK / builderNot evidenced
- Generic database & API accessGeneric HTTP, OData, ODBC and REST connectorsSupported
- Legacy ERP application adaptersNot evidenced
- Community vs. vendor-maintained connector tiersNot evidenced
“Not evidenced” means our research found no public documentation of this capability — the vendor may still offer it. Confirm on a demo.
Common use cases
- Extracting SAP ECC, SAP HANA or SAP S/4HANA transactional data into a cloud data warehouse for reporting
- Consolidating Dynamics 365, Salesforce and on-premises database data into Azure Synapse Analytics
- Rehosting on-premises SSIS ETL packages in the cloud without rewriting them
- Building code-free ETL/ELT pipelines that blend multiple ERP, CRM and SaaS sources into one destination
- Orchestrating scheduled or event-triggered data movement between hybrid on-premises and cloud systems
- Feeding Power BI or other BI tools from transformed ERP data via Azure Synapse or Azure SQL Database
- Automating pipeline monitoring and alerting for enterprise data-engineering operations
Strengths & considerations
Strengths
- 90+ built-in connectors, including dedicated SAP ECC, SAP HANA, SAP BW, SAP Table and SAP CDC connectors, at no extra connector charge
- Native SSIS package rehosting via the Azure-SSIS Integration Runtime, with up to 88% cost savings cited via Azure Hybrid Benefit
- Code-free visual pipeline authoring plus managed, autoscaling Spark-based Mapping Data Flows with no cluster management required
- Deep native integration with the rest of the Azure data estate (Synapse Analytics, Data Lake Storage, Databricks) and Microsoft Entra ID security
- Pure consumption pricing (pay-as-you-go, no minimum spend) backed by a 99.9% SLA and Microsoft's broad compliance certification portfolio
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Rate itERP integrations
Family of dedicated connectors: SAP ECC, SAP HANA, SAP BW (Open Hub and MDX), SAP Table (explicitly supports S/4HANA), SAP CDC, SAP Cloud for Customer.
Also has separate Amazon RDS for Oracle and Oracle Cloud Storage connectors.
Dynamics AX connector explicitly supports copying data from Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations via its OData endpoint.
Connector details independently verified against vendor marketplaces and documentation; last checked 2026-08-20.
Pricing
Full Azure Data Factory pricing breakdown — cost at 25/100/500 seats, competitor rates & FAQs
Azure Data Factory is pure pay-as-you-go with no seat licence: you are billed for pipeline orchestration activity runs, data movement volume, and data-flow integration runtime hours. That makes it very cheap for low-volume orchestration and unpredictable at scale, which is the standard trade-off with consumption pricing. Cost is materially lower when the rest of your estate is already on Azure, because egress and networking charges fall away — the comparison against Fivetran or Matillion should include those. Get an independent shortlist with pricing guidance below.
What does Azure Data Factory cost?
Azure Data Factory prices by quote, like most of this category. Here is what actually drives your number — and what to ask before you get one.
4 of the 13 vendors we track in this category publish no list price at all.
Technical & security
- Hosting
- Serverless, multi-tenant PaaS on Microsoft Azure, with a self-hosted integration runtime option for on-premises/private-network connectivity
- Compliance
- ISO 27001:2013, ISO 27017:2015, ISO 27018:2014, ISO 9001:2015, ISO 20000-1:2011, ISO 22301:2012, SOC 1, SOC 2, SOC 3, HIPAA BAA, HITRUST, CSA STAR Certification
About the vendor
- Founded
- 1975
- Headquarters
- Redmond, Washington, USA
- Employees
- Part of Microsoft (~228,000)
- Ownership
- Public (Microsoft Corporation; NASDAQ: MSFT)
Alternatives to Azure Data Factory in ETL & Data Extraction
Azure Data Factory — frequently asked questions
Does Azure Data Factory connect directly to SAP systems?
Yes. It ships dedicated connectors for SAP ECC, SAP HANA, SAP BW (via Open Hub or MDX), SAP tables/views/CDS views, and change-data-capture via the SAP CDC connector, which covers SAP ECC, S/4HANA, SAP BW and SAP BW/4HANA. No third-party middleware is required for these scenarios.
Can Azure Data Factory pull data from Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations?
Yes, via the Dynamics AX connector, which Microsoft documents as also supporting Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations through its OData endpoint. The separate Dynamics 365 (Dataverse)/Dynamics CRM connector instead covers the Sales, Customer Service, Field Service, Project Service Automation and Marketing applications.
How is Azure Data Factory priced?
It is consumption-based with no upfront cost: you pay per 1,000 pipeline orchestration runs, per DIU-hour for data movement, per vCore-hour for Mapping Data Flow execution, and per 50,000 Data Factory operations. The first 5 low-frequency activities each month are free.
Can Data Factory rehost existing on-premises SSIS packages?
Yes, through the Azure-SSIS Integration Runtime, which lets you lift-and-shift SQL Server Integration Services packages into Azure with minimal changes; Microsoft cites up to 88% cost savings when combined with Azure Hybrid Benefit.
Does Data Factory require managing Spark clusters for transformations?
No. Mapping Data Flows are authored visually and executed on Azure Data Factory-managed Apache Spark clusters that spin up and down automatically, so no cluster provisioning or maintenance is required.
Compare Azure Data Factory head-to-head
The ETL & Data Extraction Buyer's Guide
Before you commit to Azure Data Factory, see how it sits against the 13 ETL & data extraction systems we track — on capability, ERP integration depth and what each one actually charges for.
ETL & Data Extraction Buyer's Guide
13 systems compared · 2026
ERP Research
- Azure Data Factory compared side-by-side with 12 alternatives
- ERP integration checklist — what to verify before you shortlist
- The pricing questions that change the quote
- A Azure Data Factory evaluation brief, included with the guide
ETL & Data Extraction Buyer's Guide
Get a quote for Azure Data Factory
Azure Data Factory publishes a list price, but the number you pay depends on volume, modules and integration scope. Tell us your setup and we'll come back with a realistic figure and the alternatives worth quoting against it.