Amazon AWS Reviews, Competitors and Pricing

SathishKumar

Project Specialist at integra software

Apr 19, 2021

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Stable, flexible, and easy to configure and implement

Pros and Cons

"It is flexible. It is quite comfortable to use for organizations."

"It just needs to be improved from the security perspective."

What is our primary use case?

We are using it for File Transfer Protocol (FTP) services. We are using it for file transfers from the US to India via FTP.

What is most valuable?

It is flexible. It is quite comfortable to use for organizations.

What needs improvement?

It just needs to be improved from the security perspective.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for five years.

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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is scalable. We have 200 to 300 users currently, and we might increase its usage.

How are customer service and support?

We don't have any challenges with technical support. We are fine with it.

How was the initial setup?

There isn't much installation. It is just about hosting things, which doesn't take that much time. It was quite easy configuration-wise and implementation-wise.

What about the implementation team?

We did it ourselves.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Azure and other products.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution. I would rate Amazon AWS a ten out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

reviewer1462632

IT Project Manager / Manager / Consultant at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

Feb 4, 2021

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Reliable, scalable, and simple installation

Pros and Cons

"We found the solution to be reliable."

"The customization could be improved."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution only internally as a private cloud to store our files, our projects, and to keep our servers running.

What needs improvement?

The customization could be improved.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We found the solution to be reliable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In my experience the scalability is good. We have six people using the solution in my organization.

How are customer service and technical support?

We never had to use the support but I have heard the support was good.

How was the initial setup?

The installation was simple because we already have set it up before, it was very quick.

What about the implementation team?

We did the deployment ourselves. Since we only use the solution for our internal files it allowed us to do the deployment in just one day.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The price could be better.

What other advice do I have?

I rate Amazon AWS a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

Buyer's Guide

Amazon AWS

February 2025

Free Report: Amazon AWS Reviews and More

Learn what your peers think about Amazon AWS. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: February 2025.

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reviewer932685

VP at a computer software company with 201-500 employees

Jan 30, 2021

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Good support, stable, and easy to scale according to our clients' needs

Pros and Cons

"The most valuable feature is scalability, as it is very easy to scale."

"It should be easier to monitor the performance and generate analytic information so that we can determine how to provide better support for our clients."

What is our primary use case?

We are a software company and we use Amazon AWS as part of the solutions that we provide to our clients. The primary use case is an internet banking system. It is used in mobile banking, digital internet banking, and corporate banking.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is scalability, as it is very easy to scale.

What needs improvement?

One of the things we are concerned about is the amount of memory because when we deploy the products, we have to make sure that the client has sufficient resources.

It should be easier to monitor the performance and generate analytic information so that we can determine how to provide better support for our clients. I believe that they have a lot of information available, so maybe they can have better analytic reporting.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using Amazon AWS for approximately five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We have faced no major issues with AWS. So far, so good, and we plan to continue using it.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is very good and easy to do.

We have three or four clients using this platform. Most of our clients start with something small, and they are looking for growth. This is one of the reasons that we are using this cloud-based system. It gives them something small to start with, that fits their requirements.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have seen the email exchange on consulting an issue, and so far, their support is okay.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We did not use another cloud platform prior to AWS.

How was the initial setup?

Installation is not a concern for this product, as it is handled by Amazon.

The only concern is during deployment and integrating with other products. However, there are solutions in place for this and it takes between one and two days to complete.

What about the implementation team?

We have an in-house team for deployment and maintenance, but we also have a consultant to assist us.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

This is a subscription-based service and there are licensing fees.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We explored using Microsoft Azure and another cloud, but we did not implement either one.

What other advice do I have?

In summary, this is definitely a product that I recommend because it's stable. Also, The capabilities and features are better than some of the competitors.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

Kaushik Bhaduri

Co-Founder at a consultancy with 1-10 employees

Oct 28, 2020

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A broad set of global cloud-based products with a steep price tag

Pros and Cons

"It has a dynamic scaling capacity which is very helpful."

"Some of their well-listed services are not super configurable."

What is most valuable?

We like how the scalability is kind of built-in. It has a dynamic scaling capacity which is very helpful.

The dashboard allows us to configure the amount of storage we might need — It's sort of predictive. It predicts the kind of consumption that we are anticipating, which is a very helpful feature. These are some of the things that we gravitate to.

They're pretty economical as well, regarding bite and gigabytes storage. They have a very economical approach compared to other storage services.

What needs improvement?

It's not our favorite for sure. Some of their well-listed services are not super configurable — at least to the extent that we would like to configure and customize them. Some of them are not that considerable as per our requirements. We have tried Dropbox and some other solutions as well, including One Drive, Dropbox, etc. It seems as if some of those solutions can be configured and customized a little more — like it's built into their fabric. AWS doesn't have that feel, but understandably, as they're such a behemoth.

They still haven't managed to crack some of the advanced think features, which are important especially if you're dealing with Mongo or any of the databases which are sort of non-sequel — like non-relational databases.

They have some sync related problems that we had noticed that we are trained to work around. Those are some of the things that our development team is struggling with.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Amazon AWS since 2018.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

So far, so good. It has met every challenge we have provided. It has worked. Never failed. We have never experienced any kind of downtime. We are very happy so far.

It's not like we have attempted a really sprawling, multi-talented, multi-national kind of integration, so I should not be commenting very much on it. To date, whatever we have tried, we have never faced any problems.

How are customer service and technical support?

The technical support is okay. It takes a while to get their attention; maybe they are small players — they have bigger fish to fry. I'm not very involved in talking to technical support, our engineering team deals with them.

We have a team of around four or five engineers who handle all maintenance-related issues.

How was the initial setup?

Regarding the initial setup, it took a while for us to get up to speed.

It was fairly complicated actually. It doesn't have many serverless services. Some of them (if the client is actually paying for them) need to be optimized. You also have to be sure to only use the ones that are absolutely the barest minimum or at least the most optimum set of solutions for the client, as it adds to their month to month costs. To configure and to decide what services to buy and what services to build as microservices and how to orchestrate those microservices in the middle base, that took us a while to sort out.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Considering the kind of services they provide and the space they play in, compared to other solutions like Microsoft and Google, I think they've done a pretty good job with their pricing. The pricing tiers; I like the way that they have dynamically structured the pricing mechanism; however, for small players, it's pretty expensive.

They're a successful company so I suppose many clients are willing to pay that kind of money for the services that they provide.

What other advice do I have?

On a scale from one to ten, I would give Amazon AWS a rating of seven.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

it_user6186

Independent Analyst and Advisory Consultant at Server StorageIO - www.storageio.com

Sep 27, 2015

EFS is NFS version 4 based however it does not support Windows SMB/CIFS, HDFS or other NAS access protocols.

Cloud Conversations: AWS EFS Elastic File System (Cloud NAS) First Preview Look

Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently announced new Elastic File System (EFS) providing Network File System (NFS) NAS (Network Attached Storage) capabilities for AWS Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2) instances. EFS AWS compliments other AWS storage offerings including Simple Storage Service (S3) along with Elastic Block Storage (EBS), Glacier and Relational Data Services (RDS) among others.

Ok, that’s a lot of buzzwords and acronyms so lets break this down a bit.

AWS EFS and Cloud Storage, Beyond Buzzword Bingo

EC2 – Instances exist in various Availability Zones (AZ’s) in different AWS Regions. Compute instance with various operating systems including Windows and Ubuntu among others that also can be pre-configured with applications such as SQL Server or web services among others. EC2 instances vary from low-cost to high-performance compute, memory, GPU, storage or general purposed optimized. For example, some EC2 instances rely solely on EBS, S3, RDS or other AWS storage offerings while others include on-board Solid State Disk (SSD) like DAS SSD found on traditional servers. EC2 instances on EBS volumes can be snapshot to S3 storage which in turn can be replicated to another region.
EBS – Scalable block accessible storage for EC2 instances that can be configured for performance or bulk storage, as well as for persistent images for EC2 instances (if you choose to configure your instance to be persistent)
EFS – New file (aka NAS) accessible storage service accessible from EC2 instances in various AZ’s in a given AWS region
Glacier – Cloud based near-line (or by some comparisons off-line) cold-storage archives.
RDS – Relational Database Services for SQL and other data repositories
S3 – Provides durable, scalable low-cost bulk (aka object) storage accessible from inside AWS as well as via externally. S3 can be used by EC2 instances for bulk durable storage as well as being used as a target for EBS snapshots.
Learn more about EC2, EBS, S3, Glacier, Regions, AZ’s and other AWS topics in this primer here

What is EFS

Implements NFS V4 (SNIA NFS V4 primer) providing network attached storage (NAS) meaning data sharing. AWS is indicating initial pricing for EFS at $0.30 per GByte per month. EFS is designed for storage and data sharing from multiple EC2 instances in different AZ’s in the same AWS region with scalability into the PBs.

What EFS is not

Currently it seems that EFS has an end-point inside AWS accessible via an EC2 instance like EBS. This appears to be like EBS where the storage service is accessible only to AWS EC2 instances unlike S3 which can be accessible from the out-side world as well as via EC2 instances.

Note however, that depending on how you configure your EC2 instance with different software, as well as configure a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) and other settings, it is possible to have an application, software tool or operating system running on EC2 accessible from the outside world. For example, NAS software such as those from SoftNAS and NetApp among many others can be installed on an EC2 instance and with proper configuration, as well as being accessible to other EC2 instances, they can also be accessed from outside of AWS (with proper settings and security).

AWS EFS at this time is NFS version 4 based however does not support Windows SMB/CIFS, HDFS or other NAS access protocols. In addition AWS EFS is accessible from multiple AZ’s within a region. To share NAS data across regions some other software would be required.

EFS is not yet as of this writing released and AWS is currently accepting requests to join the EFS preview here.

Where to learn more

Here are some links to learn more about AWS S3 and related topics

What this all means and wrap-up

AWS continues to extend its cloud platform include both compute and storage offerings. EFS compliments EBS along with S3, Glacier and RDS. For many environments NFS support will be welcome while for others CIFS/SMB would be appreciated and others are starting to find that value in HDFS accessible NAS. In addition, AWS has also added a new tier for inactive data in S3 for nearline storage as opposed to having to use Glacier.

Overall I like this announcement and look forward to moving beyond the preview.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

it_user7707

Owner at a tech consulting company with 51-200 employees

Aug 23, 2015

Amazon Web Services: Security Processes in the EC2 Cloud

Customer trust and confidence is at the heart of Amazon’s business and with so many customers using Amazon’s platforms to run their business securely and efficiently, Amazon has gone to great lengths to operate and manage a comprehensive control environment. The environment supports secure Amazon Web Services cloud web offerings by ensuring that all necessary policies and processes are used in compliance with AWS certifications.

Within the last few years Amazon Web Services security has achieved notable certifications which include SAS70 Type II audits, PCI DSS Level 1 which involves meeting Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, ISO 27001 for Information Security Management Systems, and compliance within the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) to properly serve government agency FedRAMP requirements for AWS GovCloud on the Amazon platform.

When Amazon introduced Amazon EC2 it started a process rolling for business customers to run their applications in Amazon’s computing environment. EC2 is the Elastic Compute Cloud which allows business customers to access Amazon’s secure cloud environment through a virtual machine. The platform deploys EC2 security which also supports Amazon Web Services for FedRAMP compliance.

Using Amazon EC2 business customers can create an image of their operating system and applications which is known as an Amazon Machine Image. Once the image is created it is uploaded to Amazon S3 which is Amazon’s Simple Storage Service. The AMI is then registered in Amazon EC2 allowing the customer to summon virtual machines as they are needed. The result is an AWS Virtual Private Cloud for business customers to conduct operations without the exorbitant expense of IT infrastructure. For this reason, Amazon must ensure the environment meets all compliance and security standards hence the acquisition of the certification described earlier.

Amazon EC2 Security Processes

Amazon’s approach to AWS security involves layered security processes which maintain data integrity and provide secure EC2 instances while still maintaining configuration flexibility to meet the individual requirements of EC2 business customers.

Administration Hosts: For business customers who require access to the management platform, Amazon uses a level of security to accommodate administration hosts without posing a risk to data integrity and other users. Through the use of AWS Identity and Access Management, this is accomplished by auditing all access activity and using a log to track the activity. If the user accessing the management platform terminates their authentication privileges then the privileges are automatically discontinued which ensures secure AWS applications.
Customer Controlled Instances: Amazon EC2 allows for virtual instances which are solely controlled by the customer. Business customers exercise full control and at no time can Amazon intervene by logging in to the customer’s operating system. For this reason, a set of practices is in place to guide the customer on authentication processes for AWS VPC in order to access the virtual instances. This involves designing an authentication and privilege system which can be enabled and disabled according to changing needs of virtual machine users.
Firewall: As part of the AWS Security Center, EC2 Business customers have access to a complex firewall solution which can be configured to meet the individual needs of each business customer. For example, the firewall for Amazon EC2 is typically configured by default to block all traffic. If the customer wants to allow inbound traffic they must open the necessary ports to allow inbound traffic while blocking unwanted traffic. The firewall also provides a host of options for setting specific protocols for inbound traffic such as by IP address and other identifications. Added security is in place since the business customer must use their x.509 certificate to change firewall configurations.
Xen: Another layer of AWS security for EC2 is the Xen Hypervisor which separates different instances running on the same virtual machine. The firewall is situated in the Xen Hypervisor which means packets for instances must pass through the firewall thereby adding enhanced security to isolated instances.

Finally, Amazon Web Services Cloud uses a layer of security known as Amazon EBS or Elastic Block Storage which restricts access to data snapshots to the specific Amazon Web Services account which created it. Business customers can make the data snapshots available to other AWS accounts however; this process should be carefully considered since there may be files with sensitive information.

Prior to releasing Elastic Block Storage to the customer, Amazon wipes old data in accordance with the National Industrial Security Program guidelines. Plus EBS allows business customers to encrypt their data on the block device using algorithms that comply with individual security standards.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

it_user7707Owner at a tech consulting company with 51-200 employees

Report as inappropriate

Aug 23, 2015

Hi Henry,

we'll post something on S3 security as well soon. aws.amazon.com

See all 2 comments

reviewer1314195

Digital Services- Cloud Solutions Architect at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees

Jan 16, 2022

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You can quickly build and release applications, but performance is weaker than on-prem solutions

Pros and Cons

"You can build and release applications quickly with AWS instead of waiting for months to get the necessary hardware. That's the real benefit. The time-to-market for developing applications is much shorter."

"One problem is that the AWS public cloud doesn't have shared storage capabilities. The second thing is the cloud performance versus on-prem."

What is our primary use case?

We use it to run workload applications, ERP systems, LISAP systems, etc. Everything is on the cloud, including our technical infrastructure for computing, storage, and networking. You can deploy applications like SAP or Oracle or run any website with applications on it.

How has it helped my organization?

You can build and release applications quickly with AWS instead of waiting for months to get the necessary hardware. That's the real benefit. The time-to-market for developing applications is much shorter.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable thing about AWS is its ease of use and agility. You can quickly deploy it, and there are no upfront costs.

What needs improvement?

One problem is that the AWS public cloud doesn't have shared storage capabilities. The second thing is the cloud performance versus on-prem. I also have one suggestion that's solution-based. For example, if I want to deploy a medical solution, I would like to have a medical template, so I don't have to set up the infrastructure from scratch. They should provide everything in a pre-defined custom solution blueprint.

For how long have I used the solution?

We've been using AWS for four years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

AWS is generally reliable, but we've seen a lot of issues lately, so I would say they have some room for improvement. For example, if the user doesn't configure something correctly, it might fail. Even if AWS is reliable, that doesn't guarantee that all the users will be reliable. They need to make the design foolproof.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

AWS is a cloud provider, so the scalability is almost infinite. Our company currently has around 500 users on AWS.

How are customer service and support?

We have enterprise support, so they have different levels. If you have enterprise support, they have obligations they must meet. In our experience, Amazon support is above average. Sometimes we get good support. Sometimes we don't. I would rate it six out of 10.

How was the initial setup?

The AWS initial setup is seamless and straightforward. We set it up ourselves, and we have a 10-person team to manage and maintain the solution. Including design and planning, it took us about three months.

What other advice do I have?

I rate AWS seven out of 10. My advice is to watch out for the cost. A public cloud means you can use any resource, and there is no upfront cost. That means someone can use an expensive computing solution that might cost them tons of money. No one is holding your hand, so you can use it, but you need to be conscious of the cost before using the solution.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

Mitul Rajput

GM COE at Anuntatech Management Services Ltd

Jan 13, 2022

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Easy to implement, with good technical support and great performance

Pros and Cons

"The solution can scale well."

"There's a huge cost for support."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use it for our clients, for infrastructure purposes.

What is most valuable?

The solution has been stable.

The solution can scale well.

Implementing the solution is very simple.

What needs improvement?

There are a lot of scripts and data forms are available. For us, it's not required as much now. I don't know what should do that could be extra.

They should offer fixed costs instead of basing it on consumption. There's a huge cost for support.

For how long have I used the solution?

We've used the solution for two years. It's been a while.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable and reliable. The performance is good. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We have four customers as of now in AWS.

Right now, they are developing in India. more regions are coming online as they grow.

Scalability is quite good.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support has been very good. We don't have any complaints. We are satisfied with the level of support on offer.

How was the initial setup?

The installation of AWS is straightforward. It's not overly complex or difficult. They make it pretty simple.

If you have past experience with deploying AWS, then it shouldn't take more than a week.

We have 15-20 team members that work across different technologies and they can handle deployment. We have a team of just over 20 that can handle maintenance. They are admins.

What about the implementation team?

We can deploy the solution for our clients. We have a team that can manage the process.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing and licensing are good. It's a bit better than, for example, Azure. They have a different model for charging clients.

Technical support costs extra. It could be cheaper.

What other advice do I have?

We have customers who use the solution.

I would rate the solution at a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner