Cyso Cloud vs Microsoft Azure
Cyso Cloud is a European alternative to Microsoft Azure: same cloud & hosting use case, headquartered in Netherlands and governed by EU GDPR, while Microsoft Azure is based in the United States.
By the EU Alternatives team Last updated
Delivers secure, high-performance cloud solutions built on open standards. Ensure GDPR compliance and data sovereignty with expert support and transparent pricing.
- Jurisdiction
- EU / EEA
- Primary privacy law
- EU GDPR
- US CLOUD Act exposure
- No
- Open source
- No
- Free tier
- No
Runs the workloads most large organisations already depend on, and the identity link between Entra ID, Microsoft 365 and Azure resources is what makes leaving genuinely painful. Billing is consumption-based, with 200 dollars of credit for the first 30 days and roughly 65 services that stay free. Microsoft Corporation is in Redmond, Washington, so EU regions still sit under a US parent.
- Jurisdiction
- United States
- GDPR by default
- Requires DPA + TIA
- US CLOUD Act exposure
- Yes
Cyso Cloud vs Microsoft Azure at a glance
| Cyso Cloud | Microsoft Azure | |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Netherlands | United States |
| Data jurisdiction | EU / EEA | United States |
| Primary privacy law | EU GDPR | Requires DPA + transfer assessment |
| US CLOUD Act exposure | No | Yes |
| Best for | Teams that need cloud & hosting built for European data-protection requirements | Teams already invested in the Microsoft Azure ecosystem |
Choose Cyso Cloud if…
- You want a provider governed by a European privacy regime
- GDPR or public-sector data-protection requirements apply to you
- You'd rather back the European tech ecosystem
Stick with Microsoft Azure if…
- You depend on integrations only available in the Microsoft Azure ecosystem
- Your organisation has no EU data-residency constraints
- Migration costs outweigh the jurisdiction benefits for now
About Cyso Cloud
Cyso Cloud is a Dutch managed cloud and hosting provider delivering managed private cloud, OpenStack public cloud, managed Kubernetes and colocation from its own data centres in the Netherlands. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Alkmaar, it is one of the Netherlands' longest-running independent cloud operators, focused on mid-market and enterprise customers with European sovereignty requirements.
The platform pairs VMware, Nutanix and OpenStack-based infrastructure with 24/7 Dutch-speaking NOC and security operations teams, managed database services, backup, disaster-recovery and professional services. Cyso's architecture runs entirely outside the US hyperscalers and allows customers to contractually exclude any non-EU sub-processor.
Key benefits:
- Managed private cloud on VMware, Nutanix or OpenStack with dedicated resources
- Public cloud on OpenStack with pay-as-you-go VMs, object storage and networking
- Managed Kubernetes with cluster lifecycle, upgrades and observability handled by Cyso
- Disaster recovery and backup with geo-redundant replication across NL sites
- 24/7 NOC and SOC staffed by Dutch engineers with ISO 27001 and NEN 7510 processes
- Colocation and hybrid cloud from Alkmaar and Amsterdam data centres
- No US hyperscaler dependency, so customers can exclude any non-EU sub-processor
Cyso Cloud is headquartered in Alkmaar, Netherlands, and operates from Dutch data centres under GDPR, the Dutch AVG and the EU Data Act. ISO 27001, ISO 9001, NEN 7510 (healthcare), ISAE 3402 and a full DPA are standard, and customers can sign SCCs that prohibit any US transfer.
Trusted by Dutch healthcare, government, finance and media organisations for decades, Cyso Cloud is the reference choice for enterprises that want fully sovereign, CLOUD-Act-free Dutch cloud infrastructure with 24/7 local support.
Why choose Cyso Cloud over Microsoft Azure?
The decisive argument is data jurisdiction. Microsoft Azure is headquartered in the United States, which means personal data processed through it can be subject to non-EU legal regimes: the US CLOUD Act, FISA 702, or similar laws depending on the provider. After the 2020 Schrems II ruling, EU organisations must carry out a transfer impact assessment for every such data flow.
Cyso Cloud removes that overhead. As a Netherlands-based provider, it operates under EU GDPR, and data stays inside the EU/EEA by default. For regulated sectors such as health, public administration, and finance, that's not a nice-to-have but a requirement. For everyone else, it's concentration-risk insurance: you avoid depending on a single jurisdiction that can change the rules without warning.