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AWS Lambda vs Amazon EC2 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

Amazon EC2
Ranking in Compute Service
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
63
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
AWS Lambda
Ranking in Compute Service
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
74
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Compute Service category, the mindshare of Amazon EC2 is 6.8%, up from 6.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of AWS Lambda is 20.1%, down from 28.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Compute Service
 

Featured Reviews

Julius Mboya - PeerSpot reviewer
Ensures we can provision resources on demand, and we can grow and shrink them as per the traffic
We faced a challenge in regard to billing. There was a time when we were working on changing the mode of payment from card to wire. It took a lot of time because our state is set up in Kenya, so we needed to pay in Kenya currency. We have to go around in circles. There was a lot of documentation required, but we managed to go through successfully.
Wai L Lin O - PeerSpot reviewer
A serverless solution with easy integration features
We use AWS Lambda because it provides a solution for our needs without requiring us to manage our infrastructure. With the tool, we only pay for the resources we use. Additionally, it is straightforward to implement and integrates with other services like API Gateway. The tool's serverless nature has had the most significant impact on our workflow. I find it particularly attractive because it eliminates the need for managing servers. In my previous experience, managing upgrades and updates was quite challenging. The solution's integration process with other AWS services was relatively easy. We primarily use AWS services such as EventBridge for scheduling processes and log management.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Amazon EC2's most valuable feature I have heard from clients is easy provisioning. Provisioning is very quick and easy."
"We find it easy to scale."
"EC2 has the typical advantages of using the cloud. It's easy to provision and set up."
"The platform has been quite stable and reliable."
"Amazon EC2 is really reliable and provides great flexibility."
"Its ease of use is valuable."
"EC2 is flexible when we need to increase its resources (memory, boosting, and storage) based on our usage. That is the power of EC2."
"There's a lot of encryption across the setups to ensure that database credentials and everything related to security are well managed."
"Lambda being serverless is a great feature that is appropriate for our use cases."
"I have found all of the features valuable. It's an easy and cheap solution."
"Lambda has improved our organization by making it possible to transform data."
"The solution integrates well with API gateways and S3 events via its AWS ecosystem."
"The programming language and the integration with other AWS services are the most valuable features."
"We are building a Twitter-like application in the boot camp. I have used Lamda for the integration of the post-confirmation page in the application. This will help you get your one-time password via mail. You can log in with the help of a post-confirmation page. We didn’t want to setup an instance specifically for confirmation. We used the Lambda function so that it goes back to sleep after pushing up."
"The most valuable features of AWS Lambda are a serverless and event-driven architecture."
"I have used AWS Lambda for simple messaging for SQS, creating a cron job, and delay messaging."
 

Cons

"The initial setup could be easier because many keys are required for access."
"Amazon EC2 could improve by having integration with other cloud systems, such as Azure, and Google Cloud which would be good. Additionally, having integration with on-premise systems would be appreciated."
"Technical itself could be a bit more helpful, especially when it comes to integration assistance. When we talk to the technical team, often it's some issue with integration and they'll tell us to talk to the other company. Often, the other company will look at everything and not see an issue from their end and then we are at an impasse."
"The solution is pretty expensive."
"An area for improvement in Amazon EC2 is the cost because it's a bit higher than competitor pricing."
"The initial deployment was complex."
"We found Amazon EC2 to be pricey."
"Amazon EC2 could improve the stability."
"Security needs to be improved."
"We need to better understand Lambda for different scenarios. We need some joint effort between Amazon and the users to have the users identify how they can really leverage Lambda. It's not about Lambda itself; it's about the practice, the guidance. There needs to be very good documentation. From the user perspective, what exists now is not always enough."
"The runtime for the solution can be improved."
"I think that perhaps Lambda could explore its functionality more."
"Lambda's dashboard could be more user-friendly and customizable. I want the dashboard to have more information to quickly identify what functions and events are running. Also, we want to be able to add more trigger points, push notifications, and events."
"It would be ideal if we could use the solution across different platforms."
"Lambda can only be used in one account; there's no possibility to utilize it in another account."
"AWS Lambda could improve by having no-code or low-code options because currently, you need to be able to write code well to use it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Amazon EC2 could improve. The Google Cloud Platform is more cost-effective."
"It's competitive but can vary based on instance types and usage patterns."
"I am using the tier three Amazon service. I am not going to use another solution other than Amazon EC2 because here in Pakistan there are some payment issues for solutions abroad."
"It has helped to reduce costs with infrastructure."
"The clients have found the billing of Amazon EC2 good, but the price could be less high. There is a monthly subscription to use the solution."
"EC2 pricing is somewhat transparent, in that AWS provides pricing for all instance types. However, the number of pricing options can be confusing."
"You pay as you use it."
"The price is reasonable, but there is definitely an opportunity to lower it in instances which are of a higher configuration, because they have been typically used for the long term."
"The fees are volume-based."
"AWS Lambda cost is pretty decent."
"AWS is slightly more expensive than Azure."
"AWS Lambda is a very inexpensive solution. They charge for the number of times we run it. If you run AWS Lambda for one time, they charge around 50 cents or 25 cents for the use. I don't know the exact price, but it's less than a dollar."
"AWS Lambda is not expensive for micro testing but is expensive if used for long deployment or long services."
"Price-wise, AWS Lambda is a five out of ten."
"The price of AWS Lambda is priced very low."
"The pricing is on-demand and based on runs or times that are billed out monthly."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
23%
Computer Software Company
18%
Retailer
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Educational Organization
59%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
6%
Manufacturing Company
3%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Amazon EC2?
The scalability and elasticity are helpful.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon EC2?
We are paying about $1,500 a month for one of the services. I'd rate the pricing as six out of ten for being expensive.
What needs improvement with Amazon EC2?
The pricing model could be improved. We found Amazon EC2 to be pricey.
Which is better, AWS Lambda or Batch?
AWS Lambda is a serverless solution. It doesn’t require any infrastructure, which allows for cost savings. There is no setup process to deal with, as the entire solution is in the cloud. If you use...
What do you like most about AWS Lambda?
The tool scales automatically based on the number of incoming requests.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Lambda?
AWS Lambda is very cost-effective. It allows for one hundred thousand requests for free per month, and subsequent requests incur a very low cost per trigger.
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud, EC2
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Netflix, Expedia, TimeInc., Novaris, airbnb, Lamborghini
Netflix
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Lambda vs. Amazon EC2 and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
816,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.