Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Mender.io VS Azure IoT Edge

Compare Mender.io VS Azure IoT Edge and see what are their differences

Mender.io logo Mender.io

Mender is a secure and robust end-to-end over-the-air (OTA) software update manager for IoT devices. Mender makes it easy to deploy updates to a large number of devices by providing efficiency and risk tolerant OTA deployments.

Azure IoT Edge logo Azure IoT Edge

Connect cloud intelligence to your edge devices with Azure IoT Edge, a comprehensive service that deploys artificial intelligence and custom logic to all IoT devices.
  • Mender.io Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-22
  • Azure IoT Edge Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-02-11

Mender.io features and specs

  • Robust OTA Updates
    Mender.io provides a reliable over-the-air update mechanism, ensuring devices can be updated securely and efficiently without manual intervention.
  • Security Features
    It includes advanced security features such as code signing and encrypted communication, ensuring that updates are not tampered with and data remains confidential.
  • Scalability
    Mender.io can easily scale to accommodate a large number of devices, making it suitable for expanding IoT deployments.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, Mender.io allows for transparency, community contributions, and customizable solutions tailored to specific needs.
  • Device Management
    Offers comprehensive device management capabilities, allowing users to manage their entire fleet of devices from a single interface.

Possible disadvantages of Mender.io

  • Complex Setup
    Initial setup and configuration can be complex, requiring technical expertise to properly integrate Mender.io into existing systems.
  • Limited Support for Non-Linux Devices
    Mender.io primarily supports Linux-based devices, which might limit its applicability for projects using other operating systems.
  • Learning Curve
    Due to its broad set of features, there is a considerable learning curve that users must overcome to effectively use the platform.
  • Cost
    While the open-source version is free, more advanced features available in paid tiers might be costly for some businesses.
  • Dependency on Cloud Services
    For some features, Mender.io depends on cloud services, which might not be suitable for all business models or geographical limitations.

Azure IoT Edge features and specs

  • Cloud Intelligence on Edge
    Azure IoT Edge allows you to bring cloud intelligence locally by running AI, analytics, and machine learning models on edge devices, enabling real-time decision-making and reduced latency.
  • Offline Capabilities
    IoT Edge can operate independently without continuous cloud connectivity, ensuring that operations continue in remote or intermittent connectivity environments.
  • Scalability
    It supports the seamless deployment and scaling of workloads across multiple devices, allowing businesses to expand their IoT infrastructure without substantial overhead.
  • Security
    Azure IoT Edge offers enterprise-grade security, providing features like device authentication and data encryption, enhancing the protection of edge devices and data.
  • Integration with Azure Services
    The platform integrates well with other Azure services, enabling users to leverage a wide range of tools for analytics, monitoring, and management in a cohesive ecosystem.

Possible disadvantages of Azure IoT Edge

  • Complexity
    Setting up and managing IoT Edge solutions can be complex and may require specialized knowledge and expertise, potentially leading to higher development and maintenance costs.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running certain workloads on edge devices can be resource-intensive, potentially requiring more powerful hardware and increasing the cost.
  • Dependency on Azure Ecosystem
    While beneficial in integration, relying heavily on the Azure ecosystem might limit flexibility or increase dependency on Microsoft's platform.
  • Initial Costs
    There may be significant initial costs involved in setting up and deploying IoT Edge infrastructure, which might be a barrier for small or budget-constrained organizations.
  • Updates and Management
    Managing updates and ensuring all edge devices are consistently synchronized and up to date can be challenging, especially in large deployments.

Mender.io videos

Why the Yocto Project for My IoT Project - Drew Moseley, Mender.io

More videos:

  • Review - 2018-11: Mender.io - Software Updates for Linux Devices

Azure IoT Edge videos

Azure IoT Edge: architecture, demo on Raspberry Pi, pricing

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Mender.io and Azure IoT Edge)
IoT Platform
76 76%
24% 24
Data Dashboard
47 47%
53% 53
IoT Management
100 100%
0% 0
IoT
84 84%
16% 16

User comments

Share your experience with using Mender.io and Azure IoT Edge. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Mender.io should be more popular than Azure IoT Edge. It has been mentiond 9 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Mender.io mentions (9)

  • Looking for a way to remote in to K's of raspberry pi's...
    You will need something like https://mender.io https://www.balena.io an over the air update system, you are building and iot system so look into https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over-the-air_update. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • ROS2: Yocto vs. Docker
    Oh, what you are looking for is probably something like Mender. If you use Yocto + Mender you can track what version of the system image all your devices are using + tiered rollouts + other stuff. https://mender.io/. Source: over 2 years ago
  • How popular is balenaOS and balenaCloud?
    We were running balenaOS on several thousand customer devices in field, all managed through balenaCloud. It worked fine and the remote capabilities are extremely useful, but we eventually transitioned the entire fleet to Mender instead. There were several reasons for the transition:. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Ubuntu Core 22 is now available โ€“ optimised for IoT and embedded devices
    I've never used anything in the product space, but I've read through some of the docs because IoT deployment interests me in the context of most network devices having terrible deployment and update strategies. My favorite sales pitch was always Mender (https://mender.io) because it can be as simple as .img files and slice based booting. Unfortunately they changed their pricing a couple years ago and went from a... - Source: Hacker News / over 3 years ago
  • 6 Trending Topics Every Embedded Learner Must Know in 2022
    From what has been stated thus far, it becomes obvious that most of the opportunities would be in enabling containers for embedded targets. Currently companies like pantacor, BalenaOS, Toradex, Mender, and Foundries all offer solutions for containers for Linux-based embedded targets. This means that these solutions cannot support all types of embedded targets as not all have the computational power to support the... - Source: dev.to / over 3 years ago
View more

Azure IoT Edge mentions (3)

  • Top Programming Languages for AI Development in 2025
    Connectivity to edge devices and cloud platforms. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • How to get the EK and Registration ID from a TPM 2.0 module on Raspian
    I am currently working on an IoT Project for my Bachelor's thesis. The goal is to gather data from an existing machine and send it to an Azure cloud via AMQP. To do this I have set up an IoT Hub and will be using the Azure IoT Edge runntime to connect and send the Data. For initial development, I have authenticated my devices to the cloud using symmetric keys generated by the IoT hub. Now I want to switch to... Source: almost 4 years ago
  • How to securely handle Data on Raspberry Pi-based device
    I get my data from an existing machine via Modbus RTU. For the cloud infrastructure, we are working with Microsoft Azure. I am using a Revolution Pi Flat as my edge device (basically an industrial-grade Pi) and plan to use the Azure IoT Edge runtime for added safety and easy deployments of containers from the cloud. There is just one problem. How do I handle data safely while it is on my device so a potential... Source: almost 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Mender.io and Azure IoT Edge, you can also consider the following products

Balena.io - Balena is a container-based platform to develop, deploy, and manage code running on remote devices - quickly, safely, and at scale.

AWS IoT 1-Click - AWS IoT 1-Click is a service that makes it easy for simple devices to trigger AWS Lambda functions that execute a specific action.

Losant - Losant makes building connected experiences and solutions easy.

Evrythng - Evrythng IoT smart products platform connects consumer products to the Web and manages real-time data in the cloud to drive applications.

BalenaCloud - The container-based platform for deploying IoT fleets

SAP Edge Services - Learn how key features of SAP Edge Services can help you connect your edge data with the business world and simplify common Internet of Things (IoT) data processing patterns.