Quick answer
Compute Engine is cheaper than Azure Virtual Machines at all three usage levels Playxoft priced. For two 2 vCPU, 8 GB servers with 50 GB disks in US East, it costs $123.46 a month against $160.57, and it is cheaper in all 12 regions covered. Playxoft's comparison uses official list prices checked October 14, 2026, with the always-free allowances applied.
- Official list prices
- 3 usage levels
- 12 regions
- Feature comparison
- Free calculator
How to compare Compute Engine and Azure Virtual Machines costs
- 1Pick a usage level (1 small server, 2 medium servers, 4 large servers), then change the numbers or add more items with the + buttons.
- 2Choose the Region where your users are. Prices differ by region.
- 3Adjust the numbers in each card. Every field has an i tip explaining it.
- 4Compare the two monthly totals, then open Cost breakdown to see exactly how Compute Engine and Azure Virtual Machines bill each line.
Which is cheaper, Compute Engine or Azure Virtual Machines?
Monthly list prices in US East with the always-free allowances applied:
| Usage per month | Compute Engine | Azure Virtual Machines | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 small server: 2 vCPU, 4 GB burstable, 30 GB disk | $27.46 | $35.65 | Compute Engine by $8.19 |
| 2 medium servers: 2 vCPU, 8 GB each, 50 GB disks | $123.46 | $160.57 | Compute Engine by $37.11 |
| 4 large servers: 4 vCPU, 16 GB each, 100 GB disks | $493.85 | $639.48 | Compute Engine by $145.63 |
Compute Engine is cheaper for 2 medium servers in all 12 regions the calculator covers. The small level uses burstable or shared-core machines (e2-medium against B2s), which get no automatic discount.
What are the Compute Engine and Azure VMs unit prices?
List prices in Google Cloud us-east1 (South Carolina) and Azure eastus (East US), read on October 14, 2026:
| Price (US East, on-demand) | Google Cloud | Azure |
|---|---|---|
| Server, 2 vCPU / 8 GB, per hour | $0.097118 (n2-standard-2) | $0.096 (D2s v5) |
| SSD disk | $0.10 per GB-month (balanced) | $19.71 a month per 128 GiB disk (P10) |
Is Compute Engine or Azure Virtual Machines cheaper in your region?
Two 2 vCPU, 8 GB servers with 50 GB disks, priced in each of the 12 regions the calculator covers:
| Region | Compute Engine | Azure Virtual Machines | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| US East | $123.46 | $160.57 | Compute Engine |
| US West | $123.46 | $158.72 | Compute Engine |
| Canada | $135.91 | $176.64 | Compute Engine |
| Brazil (São Paulo) | $195.10 | $258.65 | Compute Engine |
| Ireland | $134.81 | $176.63 | Compute Engine |
| UK (London) | $158.18 | $186.76 | Compute Engine |
| Germany (Frankfurt) | $158.18 | $190.35 | Compute Engine |
| India | $148.27 | $167.87 | Compute Engine |
| Singapore | $150.97 | $195.61 | Compute Engine |
| Japan (Tokyo) | $158.56 | $204.52 | Compute Engine |
| South Korea (Seoul) | $158.71 | $192.69 | Compute Engine |
| Australia (Sydney) | $174.49 | $195.61 | Compute Engine |
How do Compute Engine and Azure Virtual Machines compare on features?
| Compute Engine | Azure Virtual Machines | |
|---|---|---|
| Comparable machine | n2-standard-2 (2 vCPU, 8 GB) | D2s v5 (2 vCPU, 8 GB) |
| Billing | Per second after a 1-minute minimum | Per minute |
| Automatic discount | Sustained use, up to 20% on N2 (none on E2) | None |
| Commitment discount | Committed use, up to 55% on 3 years | Reserved Instances up to 72%, savings plan up to 65% |
| Spot capacity | Spot VMs, up to 91% off | Spot VMs, up to 90% off |
| SLA, single instance | 99.9% | 99.9% with Premium SSD |
| SLA, across zones | 99.99% | 99.99% |
Facts from each provider's own documentation, checked October 14, 2026.
What are the key differences between Compute Engine and Azure Virtual Machines?
- Discounts. Compute Engine's sustained use discount reaches 20% for a full month of N2, with no commitment. Azure offers up to 72% with Reserved Instances or 65% with a savings plan.
- Billing. Compute Engine bills per second after a 1-minute minimum; Azure per minute.
- Disks. Compute Engine prices balanced persistent disk per GB; Azure Premium SSD by size tier.
- SLA. Both give a single VM 99.9% (Azure with Premium SSD) and 99.99% across zones.
Should you choose Compute Engine or Azure Virtual Machines?
Choose Compute Engine if
- your servers run all month and you want savings without a commitment
- you need disks sized precisely, billed per GB
- your stack is on Google Cloud
Choose Azure Virtual Machines if
- you will commit to a 1- or 3-year reservation
- you use Microsoft licensing or Entra ID
- your workloads are Windows or .NET heavy
More comparisons: Google Cloud vs Azure · Amazon EC2 vs Compute Engine · Amazon EC2 vs Azure Virtual Machines.
Where do these prices come from?
Both sides use the provider's own published price list, read on October 14, 2026, for the same region, with the always-free allowances applied.
- Google Cloud: Compute Engine VM pricing
- Azure: Linux Virtual Machines pricing
Prices are in US dollars, on-demand, for Linux, with no commitments. Every figure on this page is generated from the same price snapshot as the calculator, and automated tests check each claim whenever the prices change. A month is 730 hours and 1 TB is 1,024 GB. Providers change prices from time to time, so for a purchase decision confirm the final figure in the provider's console.
Moving between Compute Engine and Azure Virtual Machines?
Playxoft builds and runs production backends on AWS, Google Cloud, Azure and Cloudflare, and plans migrations between them with no surprise downtime, including white-label work for agencies. Send us your architecture or last month's invoice and we will tell you, free, which side is cheaper for your real usage. Get a free cloud cost review.
Frequently asked questions
Last updated by the Playxoft engineering team.