AWS Glue Reviews

Name: AWS Glue
Brand: Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Rating: 3.9 (48 reviews)

Vendor: Amazon Web Services (AWS)

3.9 out of 5

48 reviews
89% willing to recommend

315 followers

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What is AWS Glue?

AWS Glue is a serverless cloud data integration tool that facilitates the discovery, preparation, movement, and integration of data from multiple sources for machine learning (ML), analytics, and application development. The solution includes additional productivity and data ops tooling for running jobs, implementing business workflows, and authoring.

Get the AWS Glue Buyer's Guide and find out what your peers are saying about AWS Glue, Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC), MuleSoft Anypoint Platform and more!

AWS Glue is the #1 ranked solution in top Cloud Data Integration solutions. PeerSpot users give AWS Glue an average rating of 7.8 out of 10. AWS Glue is most commonly compared to Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC): AWS Glue vs Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC). AWS Glue is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 72% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a financial services firm, accounting for 22% of all views.

Helped 839,422 peers since 2012

Featured AWS Glue reviews

Muthuvel Sivaraman

AVP at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees

We use Amazon's services to provide technical support for the product. If you want to have support, Oracle and others offer a single support, and other tools have a direct support window. For Amazon, we need to pay 10 percent of my billing amount for the tool to get support services. Whether to raise a support ticket or not is an issue since ten percent is a huge amount. My company ends up using all the options without help from support. It is very difficult for any common man to understand why there is a need to pay ten percent for support. If I find an issue in the product, and I need to get support from AWS to fix it, then I need to pay ten percent of the tool's bill amount to Amazon. AWS is a very tricky tool because everything is evolving nowadays. AWS engineers are getting hired from other places, and even after that, if I am not getting any technical support, then things will be very nasty. There are some good engineers who help users outside the normal support cycle, but it doesn't meet their needs. I rate the technical support a four out of ten.

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Ajaykumar Myana

Senior Software Developer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees

We no longer had to worry much about infrastructure management because AWS Glue is serverless, and Amazon takes care of the underlying infrastructure. This allowed us to focus on the code and application logic without concerns about scaling, CPU management, or handling fluctuations in flow. The serverless nature of Glue jobs relieved us from these infrastructure-related worries.

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ParamShah

Engineering Manager at Milestone Technologies

There are output limitations and configuration of its three parts. There was a lot of trial and error that we had to go through. It is not clear how the partition discovery would have been affected by more data coming in. We've made some expensive mistakes, which, if there were any tutorials available or if there was easy documentation available with FAQs, could have been avoided. There is documentation, but it doesn't cover all. There are three specific partition changes, and AWS Glue is tightly tied to Athena. We don't have much flexibility in managing the Athena. AWS Glue could integrate with an AI model or a more advanced version that processes chat-based inputs rather than configuration. This would align it more closely with the functionalities of chat-based interfaces, making it easier to adopt.

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AWS Glue mindshare

As of March 2025, the mindshare of AWS Glue in the Cloud Data Integration category stands at 21.4%, down from 21.8% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Cloud Data Integration

PeerAnalyst reports based on AWS Glue reviews

Type	Title	Date
Category	Cloud Data Integration	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	AWS Glue vs AWS Database Migration Service	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	AWS Glue vs Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC)	Mar 4, 2025	Download
Comparison	AWS Glue vs MuleSoft Anypoint Platform	Mar 4, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Informatica Intelligent Data Management Cloud (IDMC)	3.9	6.7%	93%	182 interviews Add to research
MuleSoft Anypoint Platform	4.0	6.9%	91%	57 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

Valuable features of AWS Glue include its data catalog, seamless integration with other AWS services, and user-friendly interface. The drag-and-drop functionality and no-code interface enhance usability. PySpark support, automatic schema detection, and scalability for large data sets are highlights. AWS Glue efficiently manages transformations, integrates with S3, Redshift, and Athena, and is cost-effective. Its ability to automate tasks and schedule ETL processes, along with its serverless architecture, is appreciated by organizations.

"If I'm working with big data, common languages like Python work quite nicely, which is advantageous."
"For ETL, I feel the performance is excellent."
"One aspect that I would like to highlight is the Glue Crawler, which we utilize when working with large datasets to ensure the schema updates seamlessly without requiring end-team knowledge."

Room for Improvement

AWS Glue's start-up time is lengthy and its reliance on AWS can be restrictive. Users encounter learning curves and interface challenges, often needing coding skills for transformation tasks. Technical support and documentation require enhancements. Pricing is high, especially for large datasets. There is a need for better connectors, more programming language support, and faster performance. Improvements in data processing reliability, error handling, and user-friendly interfaces are also necessary for a more seamless experience.

"I am quite technical, yet when it comes to data pipelines, I prefer using GUIs over code-based calls. It might be easier with a different skill set."
"It is quite clunky and code-heavy, which is my biggest problem."
"Improvements in the UI are needed, as it is challenging to understand some functionalities."

ROI

AWS Glue demonstrates effective return on investment due to its cost-efficiency compared to alternatives and increased process efficiency. Some organizations appreciate its time-saving benefits, especially when handling a limited number of pipelines, making it a practical choice when avoiding the overhead of other ETL tools. However, others are considering more budget-friendly options, such as the open-source ClickHouse database. Despite budget challenges, AWS Glue often meets desired ROI expectations within expected timelines.

Pricing

AWS Glue generally follows a pay-as-you-go pricing model, making it adaptable for different enterprise needs, though it can be costly for extensive usage. Many users find its pricing competitive and predictable compared to other ETL tools, yet higher than alternatives like EMR and AWS Lambda. Costs depend on Data Processing Units (DPUs) and runtime, with technical support adding to expenses. Some rate Glue's pricing moderate to high, reflecting mixed views on affordability and value.

"I rate the tool an eight on a scale of one to ten, where one is expensive, and ten is expensive."
"AWS Glue is a paid service that doesn't come under the free trial of AWS."
"If you are using the solution for an enterprise business, it will be expensive."

Popular Use Cases

Organizations primarily use AWS Glue for ETL processes, including data ingestion, transformation, and loading from multiple sources. It is used for migrating data to cloud environments, building data warehouses, handling metadata, and processing real-time data. AWS Glue also aids in normalizing and transforming data for analytics, supporting NoSQL and SQL platforms, and integrating with services like Redshift and S3. It is frequently used for batch processing and data engineering tasks.

Service and Support

AWS Glue's customer service is described as generally good and helpful. Some users report timely assistance within an hour, while others mention delays of a few days. AWS partners experience effective support in resolving issues, often requiring payment for faster service. Some rely on forums and AWS documentation for self-support. While a few mention room for improvement due to inconsistency, most users find AWS Glue's technical support reliable, responsive, and efficient in handling challenges.

Deployment

AWS Glue's initial setup is often described as straightforward with available documentation aiding the process. Some users find the setup easy, accomplished in minutes to a few hours, while others mention complexity requiring experience. The process involves configuring data sources, permissions, and ETL scripts using the AWS Management Console. While setup is generally simple for basic needs, more complex deployments may require advanced knowledge and understanding of AWS Glue's features.

Scalability

AWS Glue is praised for its scalability, highlighted as a strong feature. Users appreciate its serverless architecture and ability to handle varying data loads from enterprise clients. It allows adjustments by adding or reducing DPUs effortlessly, supporting diverse user bases and scenarios. Some rate its scalability highly, while others suggest improvements. There are numerous global customers utilizing it, aided by tools like Docker and Kubernetes. Despite minor suggestions, AWS Glue handles scaling demands efficiently.

Stability

AWS Glue is generally stable with most users rating its stability between seven and ten. Many users find it reliable without encountering major issues, particularly when configured correctly for workloads. It integrates well with other AWS services and is scalable and functional. There are occasional concerns about handling heavy workloads and the need for better scaling in specific functions, but these do not significantly affect its overall performance or reliability.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

Download our AWS Glue Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

22%

Computer Software Company

14%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Insurance Company

Retailer

Healthcare Company

Educational Organization

University

Energy/Utilities Company

Real Estate/Law Firm

Media Company

Non Profit

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

Transportation Company

Outsourcing Company

Hospitality Company

Pharma/Biotech Company

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Logistics Company

Legal Firm

Wholesaler/Distributor

Performing Arts

Consumer Goods Company

Engineering Company

Compare AWS Glue with alternative products

Learn more about AWS Glue

AWS Glue allows users to connect to more than 70 diverse data sources and manage data in a centralized data catalog. The solution facilitates visual creation, running, and monitoring of extract, transform, and load (ETL) pipelines to load data into users' data lakes. This Amazon product seamlessly integrates with other native applications of the brand and allows users to search and query cataloged data using Amazon EMR, Amazon Athena, and Amazon Redshift Spectrum.

The solution also utilizes application programming interface (API) operations to transform users' data, create runtime logs, store job logic, and create notifications for monitoring job runs. The console of AWS Glue connects all of these services into a managed application, facilitating the monitoring and operational processes. The solution also performs provisioning and management of the resources required to run users' workloads in order to minimize manual work time for organizations.

AWS Glue Features

AWS Glue groups its features into four categories - discover, prepare, integrate, and transform. Within those groups are the following features:

Automatic schema discovery: AWS Glue crawlers connect to the organization's source or target data source through a prioritized list of classifiers to determine the schema for users' data. This feature creates metadata in companies' AWS Glue Data Catalog.
Schemas for data stream management: The AWS Glue Schema Registry enables users to validate and control the evolution of streaming data through registered Apache Avro schemas for no additional charge.
Automatic scaling based on workload: This feature dynamically scales resources up and down based on workload. The feature controls job resources, removing them depending on how much the workload can be split up.
FindMatches: This feature is for machine learning-based data deduplication and cleansing, and works by finding records that are imperfect matches of each other to remove useless data copies.
Edit, debug, and test ETL code: This feature helps users who have chosen to interactively develop their ETL code by providing development endpoints for editing, debugging, and testing the code it generates for them.
AWS Glue DataBrew: An interactive, point-and-click visual interface for specialists to clean and normalize data without the need to write any code.
AWS Glue Interactive Sessions: This feature simplifies the development of data integration jobs by enabling data engineers to interactively prepare and explore data.
AWS Glue Studio Job Notebooks: This AWS Glue feature provides serverless notebooks with minimal setup, allowing developers to start working in a timely manner.
Complex ETL pipeline building: This feature allows the product to be invoked on a schedule, on demand, or based on an event, allowing users to start multiple jobs in parallel or specify dependencies to build complex ETL pipelines.
AWS Glue Studio: This AWS Glue feature allows users to visually transform data through a drag-and-drop interface. The product automatically generates the code for ETL processes for users' data.

AWS Glue Benefits

AWS Glue offers a wide range of benefits for its users. These benefits include:

Users of other AWS products can easily onboard with AWS Glue, as it is integrated across a wide range of the company's services.
The solution is serverless, which allows for a lower total cost of ownership.
AWS Glue offers more power for users, as it automates much of the effort in building, maintaining, and running ETL jobs.
The product allows customers to easily discover and search across all their AWS datasets through AWS Glue Data Catalog.
AWS Glue does not require additional payment for managing and enforcing schemas for data streams.
The solution facilitates the authority of scalable ETL jobs for beginners and non-coding experts through a drag-and-drop interface.

Reviews from Real Users

Mustapha A., a cloud data engineer at Jems Groupe, likes AWS Glue because it is a product that is great for serverless data transformations.

Liana I., CEO at Quark Technologies SRL, describes AWS Glue as a highly scalable, reliable, and beneficial pay-as-you-go pricing model.