What are the Differences Between Azure Data Factory and Synapse Analytics?

The main difference is that Azure Data Factory is primarily an ETL service that helps in data integration and workflow management, while Synapse Analytics is more of a comprehensive analytics service that provides data integration, big data, and data warehousing capabilities all in one. Think of Data Factory as the tool for moving and transforming data, whereas Synapse Analytics focuses on querying and analyzing that data.

Azure Data Factory is great for orchestrating data workflows, but Synapse Analytics takes it a step further by integrating data with analytics, offering features like serverless SQL pools and advanced analytics capabilities. You’d use Data Factory to gather and prepare data, then leverage Synapse for deeper insights.