Choose SPSync when a busy list makes monthly record volume hard to predict or you want lookups normalised; choose Skyvia when you need two-way sync with a list today or a no-cost plan for a small one.
Documentation reviewed
Where Skyvia fits
- Cloud-hosted with nothing to install
- broad connector catalogue
- easy point-and-click setup
- no-cost entry plan for small volumes
- two-way sync between a list and a database on every plan, the no-cost one included
Where it breaks
- runs in Skyvia's cloud; on-prem sources are reached through Skyvia's agent rather than a desktop app
- plans are sized by monthly record volume, so cost follows how many records move
- lookups need relation mapping you set up; managed-metadata columns are not documented as normalised
- the no-cost plan is capped at 10,000 records a month and runs once a day; the once-a-minute schedule needs the Professional plan
- multi-value columns are not documented as split into child tables
- the SharePoint Lists integration page says nothing about conflicts; Skyvia's synchronization docs say that when a record changes on both sides, the source's version wins and the target's edits to that record are lost, even in other fields
Feature by feature
| Feature | SPSync | Skyvia |
|---|---|---|
| SharePoint Online support | Core product | Yes, via Skyvia's SharePoint connector |
| On-prem SharePoint support | On the roadmap | No |
| Destinations | Relational, warehouse, lake and search/vector destinations: 20 destination engines (30+ named targets such as Azure SQL, MariaDB and Supabase), including SQL Server, Postgres, BigQuery, Databricks, ClickHouse, Parquet, Iceberg, pgvector and Azure AI Search; see /destinations/ | SQL Server, MySQL, Postgres and other cloud and database targets |
| Lookup normalisation | Lookups become joinable key columns automatically | Relation mapping you configure, not automatic relational normalisation |
| Multi-value columns | Child tables | Not automatically split into child tables |
| Deletes | Soft delete by default, hard delete with the command-line tool | Configurable per integration |
| Two-way sync | No. SPSync reads from SharePoint and never writes to it; write-back is on the roadmap | Yes, Skyvia's Synchronization runs both ways on every plan; when a record changes on both sides, the source's version wins (checked 2026-10-20) |
| Schedule interval | Every few minutes by default, adjusted to the tenant's throttling budget | Down to once a minute on the Professional plan; once a day on Free and Basic, hourly on Standard (checked 2026-10-20) |
| Delta sync | Every few minutes by default, plus a reconcile, weekly by default | Changed records only, found by timestamp fields in SharePoint and by triggers and tracking tables Skyvia creates in your database |
| Schema evolution | New columns appear automatically; on SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, ClickHouse, Oracle, SQLite and DuckDB retyped columns get a _v2 column | Mappings typically need updating for new columns |
| Hosted option | SPSync in your Azure | Skyvia is always cloud-hosted |
| Desktop app | macOS and Windows | Runs in the vendor's cloud; not a desktop application |
| CLI / CI | Built-in CLI | See Skyvia's documentation |
| Per-site least-privilege permissions | Delegated sign-in or app-only with Sites.Selected, bring-your-own-app | Connector-level SharePoint authentication |
| Pricing model | Licensed per installation and per target family, on annual terms, with Standard Support included; no public price list, quoted after a call | Plan-based, with a monthly record allowance |
Skyvia keeps things simple. It is a cloud-hosted, point-and-click integration platform with a broad connector list and a usable no-cost entry plan for small volumes. To get a small SharePoint list into a database quickly, without installing anything or thinking about infrastructure, Skyvia’s setup is about as low-friction as it gets.
Record allowances as volumes grow
Skyvia’s plans are sized by a monthly record allowance, so cost follows how many records move each month. A SharePoint list with regular edits moves records every time it syncs, so estimate your monthly volume before choosing a plan. Skyvia’s SharePoint mapping is also general-purpose. Its relation mapping can rebuild a lookup as a relation in the target once you set it up, and we found no documentation of multi-choice or managed-metadata columns being split out on their own (checked 2026-10-20).
Skyvia two-way sync with SharePoint lists
Skyvia can write back to SharePoint, and SPSync cannot today. Its Synchronization integration copies changes in both directions between a list and a database, and the SharePoint Lists to PostgreSQL page offers a schedule as tight as once a minute. That interval needs the Professional plan; the no-cost plan runs once a day. If people edit rows in a database or an app and those edits have to reach the list, Skyvia does that now.
Read the conflict rule before you rely on it. The SharePoint Lists page does not mention conflicts, and Skyvia’s synchronization documentation fills the gap. When the same record changes on both sides between runs, the source’s version is written to the target and the target’s edits to that record are lost, even when someone changed a different field. Skyvia also adds triggers and tracking tables to your database to spot changes on that side, and the synced tables need auto-generated primary keys (checked 2026-10-20).
That rule is easy to live with when one side owns the edits and the other adds the odd correction. It hurts when a team edits the same items in the list and in an app all day. SPSync stays one-way for now and reads SharePoint without ever writing to it. Write-back, with rules for what happens when both sides change the same item, is on our roadmap.
SharePoint’s column types, mapped for you
SPSync replicates lists into a schema built around SharePoint’s column types. Lookups become key columns you can join on and multi-value columns become child tables without you designing the mapping, and licensing is per installation and per target family, with no record count to track.
If you cannot estimate a busy list’s monthly record volume with any confidence, that alone can settle it. The table covers the desktop app and on-prem support.
Leaving Skyvia
These steps assume your Skyvia integration copies one way. If it is a two-way Synchronization that people depend on to edit the list from the database, keep it running until SPSync’s write-back ships.
- Note which lists and destination tables your Skyvia integration covers.
- In SPSync, sign in to SharePoint and tick the same lists.
- Choose a destination database, let the first full load run, then set the delta sync schedule.
- Check the new tables against Skyvia’s output, especially lookup and multi-value columns, and repoint downstream queries.
- Pause or cancel the Skyvia integration once you are satisfied.
SPSync as a Skyvia alternative for SharePoint lists
For one-way copies, SPSync replaces the Skyvia integration with a schema built from SharePoint's column types and a licence that ignores record counts. Two-way Synchronizations that people rely on to edit the list from the database stay on Skyvia until SPSync's write-back ships.
Other alternatives
- Coupler.io: another cloud option, refreshing Microsoft Lists into warehouses and BI tools on flat-priced plans.
- Layer2 Cloud Connector: two-way sync installed as a Windows service, with field-to-field mapping you configure.
- Stacksync: two-way sync priced by records in sync, though its SharePoint pages say support is not established.
- CData Sync: replication priced by connections and a monthly row band, deployable on-prem or in the cloud.
Frequently asked questions
What happens in Skyvia when a record changes on both sides?
Skyvia's synchronization documentation says source changes are applied to the target and the target's changes to that record are lost, even when a different field was edited (checked 2026-10-20). SPSync copies one way today; its planned write-back is opt-in per list and lets SharePoint win a conflict.
Is Skyvia's no-cost plan enough for a SharePoint list?
For a small list that changes slowly, it can be. Skyvia's entry plan, which costs nothing, is capped at 10,000 records a month and runs once a day (checked 2026-10-20), so a list with regular edits soon needs a paid plan.
Does Skyvia change my database?
For two-way Synchronization, Skyvia's documentation says it creates tracking tables and triggers in the database and needs auto-generated primary keys on the synced tables (checked 2026-10-20). SPSync creates its own tables, sp_users among them, and adds no triggers.
Desktop, Azure or command line
All three editions run the same engine, write the same tables and use the same licence key, so the choice comes down to who looks after the sync.
Desktop app
For macOS and Windows. Sign in with Microsoft, tick the lists, choose a database and sync from your own machine on the schedule you set. Delegated sign-in needs no admin unless your tenant requires admin consent for apps.
In your Azure
SPSync in your Azure, a managed application for your own subscription, is deployed with you on a call while the Marketplace listing is prepared. Once deployed it is always on, so the sync keeps running with every laptop closed.
Command line
Every replication is a YAML file you can review and commit. Run it from a server, a container or a CI pipeline, and re-run it safely any time.