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Managed relational databases · October 2026 Edition

Google Cloud SQL vs Neon

Two of fourteen models named Google Cloud SQL first on the direct prompt; zero named Neon. Google Cloud SQL was named by fourteen of the fourteen models and Neon by ten and Google Cloud SQL carries 66 labels and Neon 23, so the shares are not directly comparable.

Google Cloud SQL

accepted challenger

Named in one category this edition.

Neon

accepted challenger

Named in two categories this edition.

First-choice share10%10%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate12%0%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#3#4A position in a field of 9; printed, not drawn.
Labels6623A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Google Cloud SQL reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Amazon RDS was named alongside these two in twelve of the fourteen direct answers. Amazon RDS vs Google Cloud SQL · Amazon RDS vs Neon · Amazon Aurora vs Google Cloud SQL

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the managed relational databases page.

By framing

How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Google Cloud SQLFirst choices, of fourteen modelsNeon
Direct20
Paraphrase21
Comparative10
Budget-constrained151 against Google Cloud SQL
Scale-constrained10
Negative007 against Google Cloud SQL
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.

Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, Google Cloud SQL and Neon were named in the same answer fifty-four times, of the 186 answers naming Google Cloud SQL and the 78 naming Neon. In those answers Neon took the first choice twelve times and Google Cloud SQL four.

Every model, every framing

The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Google Cloud SQL and Neon stood in it.
ModelDirectParaphraseComparativeBudget-constrainedScale-constrainedNegative
Claude Haiku 4.5
GPT-5.4 mini
Gemini 3.5 Flash
Perplexity Sonar
Grok 4.1 Fast
Mistral Small
DeepSeek V4 Flash
Llama 4 Maverick
Qwen 3.7 Flash
Kimi K2
GLM 4.7 FlashX
MiniMax M2.5
GPT-6 Luna
Muse Glimmer 30B
Google Cloud SQL Neon first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Google Cloud SQL on the left and Neon on the right.

The direct prompt

The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Google Cloud SQL and Neon stood in it.

Google Cloud SQL first, Neon not the choice

2 of 14 modelsNeon was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.
Grok 4.1 FastGoogle Cloud SQL alternatives: Aiven, Amazon RDS, Azure SQL Database, DigitalOcean Managed Databases
GLM 4.7 FlashXGoogle Cloud SQL alternatives: Amazon RDS, Azure Database

Neither was the first choice, one was named

10 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.
GPT-5.4 miniAmazon Aurora, Amazon RDS alternatives: Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Azure SQL Database, Google Cloud SQL
Gemini 3.5 FlashAmazon Aurora alternatives: Aiven, AlloyDB for PostgreSQL, Azure SQL Database, Neon
Perplexity SonarAmazon RDS alternatives: Azure SQL Database, Google Cloud SQL
Mistral SmallAmazon Aurora alternatives: Azure SQL Database, Google Cloud SQL
DeepSeek V4 FlashAmazon RDS alternatives: Azure SQL Database, Google Cloud SQL
Qwen 3.7 FlashAmazon RDS alternatives: Azure Database for SQL Server / PostgreSQL, Neon, Vercel Postgres
Kimi K2Amazon RDS alternatives: Amazon Aurora, Azure SQL Database, Google Cloud SQL, Neon
MiniMax M2.5Amazon RDS alternatives: Amazon Aurora, DigitalOcean Managed Databases, Google Cloud SQL
GPT-6 LunaAmazon RDS alternatives: Amazon Aurora, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Google Cloud SQL
Muse Glimmer 30BAmazon RDS alternatives: Amazon Aurora, Azure SQL Database, Google Cloud SQL

Neither was named

2 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.
Claude Haiku 4.5Amazon RDS alternatives: Azure SQL Database
Llama 4 MaverickAmazon Aurora, Amazon RDS alternatives: Ntirety, Rackspace Technology

Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.

By buyer segment

The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Google Cloud SQL leads by six points.
Google Cloud SQL16%#3 of 8
Neon10%#5 of 8
The full small business standing →
Mid-marketThe figures above
Level: the same share of first choices.
Google Cloud SQL10%#3 of 9
Neon10%#4 of 9
The full mid-market standing →
Enterprise
Google Cloud SQL leads by nine points.
Google Cloud SQL9%#4 of 8
Neon0%#– of 8
The full enterprise standing →

What the models said about Google Cloud SQL

Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.

“extended support is paid, and Cloud SQL automatically enrolls EOL-version instances. Check the exact engine version and upgrade dates before committing.” GPT-6 Luna · negative prompt · soft negative
“it has the same class of cautions as other DBaaS offerings: you should check pricing, scaling model, maintenance control...” Perplexity Sonar · negative prompt · soft negative
“Less ideal for global/multi-region strong consistency writes.<br>- Scaling not as elastic for extreme loads.” Grok 4.1 Fast · negative prompt · soft negative
“I'd recommend considering Amazon RDS (Relational Database Service) or Google Cloud SQL as your primary options” GLM 4.7 FlashX · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“The top managed relational database services are Amazon RDS, Google Cloud SQL, Azure SQL Database” Perplexity Sonar · comparative prompt · first choice
“Amazon RDS or Google Cloud SQL offer the best balance of features, scalability, and reliability” Claude Haiku 4.5 · paraphrase prompt · first choice

What the models said about Neon

Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Three of four in this category shown.

“Supabase or Neon (both serverless PostgreSQL) stand out as the best managed relational database services” Grok 4.1 Fast · budget prompt · first choice
“or Neon if you have very sporadic usage patterns and want to minimize costs” Kimi K2 · budget prompt · first choice
“For a budget-conscious company using PostgreSQL, I'd start with Neon” GPT-6 Luna · budget prompt · first choice
Also compared

Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.