SQL Server 2016 reached End of Support on 14 July 2026, and Microsoft has now switched on Extended Security Updates (ESUs) for organisations that still need time to migrate or upgrade. If you’re running SQL Server 2016 in production, here’s what’s changed, what ESUs will cost, and what to do next.
What End of Support Means
- No more free security patches — even Critical vulnerabilities go unpatched unless you’re covered by ESUs.
- No new features or bug fixes, on top of what you’ve already missed since Mainstream Support ended in July 2021.
- No Microsoft support tickets for SQL Server 2016 itself, ESU or not — cover only extends to issues caused by the ESU patches.
Source: SQL Server 2016 – Microsoft Lifecycle | Microsoft Learn
ESU Coverage Windows
- Year 1: 15 July 2026 – 13 July 2027
- Year 2: 14 July 2027 – 18 July 2028
- Year 3: 19 July 2028 – 17 July 2029
After July 2029 there’s no further ESU option — an upgrade or migration becomes unavoidable by then.
Two Ways to Buy ESUs
- Pay-as-you-go via Azure Arc. Connect your instances to Azure Arc and subscribe on hourly billing. If you haven’t subscribed yet, note that you’ll be back-billed to 15 July 2026.
- 1-year Extended Security Updates licences. Bought upfront in 2-core packs or per server, through your normal SQL Server licensing channel. Cover must be continuous, and you need at least a month of active Software Assurance remaining to qualify.
Both routes carry a 4-core minimum per VM or physical processor, and the ESU edition (Standard or Enterprise) has to match how the underlying SQL Server is licensed.
Key Impact: the SQL Server 2014 “free ESU” Route Doesn’t Work Anymore
If you migrated SQL Server 2014 workloads to an Azure VM, you may remember getting ESUs for free. That concession has been removed for SQL Server 2016 — moving to Azure now makes you eligible to subscribe, not exempt from paying. It’s a common assumption we’d flag early in any migration conversation.
What It Costs
Pricing is aligned to the cost of a new SQL Server licence of the same edition. Microsoft has also standardised pricing so Azure, on-premises and other clouds are now charged the same rate — Azure ESUs no longer carry the pricing advantage they used to.
Reported Year 1 list pricing:
- SQL Server Standard, 2-core pack: ~$3,353/year
- SQL Server Enterprise, 2-core pack: ~$12,854/year
With the 4-core minimum, that’s your starting cost per VM or processor before scaling to your actual core count — an 8-vCore Enterprise VM, for example, needs four 2-core packs, putting Year 1 alone at roughly $51,000.
Source: SQL Server 2016 ESU Pricing and End of Support Facts | John Deardurff
Need Help With Your SQL Server 2016 Estate?
ESUs are a bridge, not a strategy — the costs above rarely justify running them for the full three years when weighed against migrating or upgrading.
Contact us at The SAM Club if you’d like a SQL Server assessment and licence review, help confirming what you’re eligible for, or a second opinion on an ESU quote.