AWS CloudFormation vs AWS Systems Manager comparison

AWS CloudFormation and AWS Systems Manager are both solutions in the Configuration Management category. AWS CloudFormation is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.8, while AWS Systems Manager is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.1. AWS CloudFormation holds a 1.2% mindshare in CM, compared to AWS Systems Manager’s 10.9% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of AWS CloudFormation users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of AWS Systems Manager users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 2025

AWS CloudFormation and AWS Systems Manager cater to the AWS ecosystem in infrastructure management and operational automation, respectively. AWS CloudFormation holds an advantage due to its robust infrastructure management capabilities and cost-effectiveness, although it has a steep learning curve, while Systems Manager is favored for its operational automation and integration but is affected by variable pricing.

Features: AWS CloudFormation streamlines infrastructure management through infrastructure as code, utilizing YAML or JSON templates. It supports multi-region deployments, offers versioning, rollback, and integrates strongly with AWS services. AWS Systems Manager excels in operation management, providing effective patch management and automation of EC2 state management. Its strong integration with AWS CloudWatch and features like Session Manager and parameter storage enhance its operational strength.

Room for Improvement: AWS CloudFormation needs improvements in usability for non-technical users and support for multi-cloud environments. Challenges exist with verbosity, syntax, and cross-account dynamic references. Expanding support for on-premise infrastructures is also noted. AWS Systems Manager could improve automation features, OS coverage for patch management, deployment integration, and cost optimization options, while also enhancing multi-account management capabilities.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: AWS CloudFormation supports public, private, and hybrid cloud deployments, with generally well-rated support though sometimes slow. AWS Systems Manager is focused on public cloud deployments with satisfactory support described as responsive. Both provide comprehensive technical support, but perceptions vary based on feedback and subscription levels.

Pricing and ROI: AWS CloudFormation is free, charging only for deployed resources, thus offering cost-efficiency and a positive ROI. AWS Systems Manager is typically affordable but can see price fluctuations with demand spikes. CloudFormation's cost-effectiveness is praised for infrastructure use, while Systems Manager requires better pricing alerts despite its valued cost optimizations by AWS cloud engineers.

To learn more, read our detailed AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager

April 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Configuration Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 10.3%, up from 9.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of AWS CloudFormation is 1.2%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of AWS Systems Manager is 10.9%, up from 10.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Configuration Management

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi

Collaborations engineer at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

Everything has worked better since we started using it

Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.

Read full review

Mbula Mboma

AWS Cloud Re-Start Program Specialist at Orange RDC (Congo)

Facilitates efficient infrastructure deployment with visibility into resource connections

I primarily use AWS CloudFormation for deploying infrastructure efficiently. For instance, if I want to create load balancers with target groups and EC2 instances, I find CloudFormation simplifies the process of deployment and configuration, reducing the possibility of errors AWS CloudFormation…

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Ambe Frankline

Cloud/DevOps Engineer at Innovative Technology Systems

Tracks every action on AWS accounts in a centralized way

Setting up AWS Systems Manager to monitor and control other services is easy. You need to link the services you want to observe and track. The time it takes to deploy depends on factors like connectivity, latency, and the complexity of the services. For example, setting up a simple application is faster than setting up a more complicated three-tier or multi-tier system. Using the solution for batch updates varies depending on the number of servers involved and the commands needed. Personally, when I do small projects at home, deploying a few servers doesn't take long. But at work, where we handle larger deployments with hundreds of servers, it's faster due to better connectivity and resources.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"One valuable feature of Microsoft Intune is the enrollment process, which is user-based, making it easier to manage compared to AirWatch."

"I can reach devices or computers over the internet. I don't need to worry about the network connectivity between the offices. I can manage any device. That is the most important part."

"Microsoft Intune has been a time saver and reduces the time and effort IT admins have to invest."

"The insights, even though we're talking about charts and graphs, are super valuable to customers who might not otherwise know what's in their ecosystem or the current state of things within their ecosystem."

"Intune's most valuable features are the device, compliance, and configuration policies."

"The standout features of Intune are its excellent mobile device management and highly effective application management capabilities."

"The automatic patching is the most valuable feature of Intune."

"It is a cloud solution, and you can easily scale as your needs grow."

More Microsoft Intune pros

"What I like best about AWS CloudFormation is that it is a quick and simple way to deploy various applications, like WordPress."

"By using AWS CloudFormation, I can automate tasks like creating VPCs and load balancers instead of doing them manually each time. The features I like most include improved scalability, resource management, ease of deployment, template creation, and resource provisioning."

"The most beneficial aspect lies in its capability to handle input acquisition and assessment."

"CloudFormation has helped automate the infrastructure in AWS, making the process more efficient."

"The solution has helped with automation. I don't have to worry about provisioning machines and ensuring everything is set up. AWS CloudFormation takes care of the entire infrastructure for me."

"The product uses a simple JSON file format, so it's easy for a beginner to start. But you can use Terraform once you get good hands-on experience and know the infrastructure and resources well."

"The nested stacks would be one of the more valuable features."

"CloudFormation itself is free to use. You will be charged for the resources you deploy using CloudFormation."

More AWS CloudFormation pros

"It is beginner-friendly with extensive features that can be learned gradually based on the user's needs and tasks."

"The solution is user-friendly"

"The solution's most valuable feature is the change management option. It tracks every action on my AWS accounts in a centralized way, acting like a control tool for me. This is especially useful when working with Kubernetes and AWS ECS services. Additionally, my colleagues and clients often use the application management tools for configuration, parameters, and installations."

"The solution's ability to scale is good."

"AWS Systems Manager's most valuable feature is its ability to dynamically export and import values in various AWS accounts"

"Has a variety of automation options."

"I use AWS Systems Manager primarily for infrastructure management and automation. One of its key benefits is managing patches and updates for our EC2 instances, including both Windows and Linux workloads. It can perform compliance checks on all managed workloads, identifying which systems aren't compliant or haven't been patched."

"AWS provides Auto Scaling groups."

More AWS Systems Manager pros

Cons

"The reporting dashboard is really limited."

"There can be delays in the deployment of new policies."

"The pricing could be improved."

"While Intune works perfectly well, the only potential downside is that the deployment could be a bit complex for some users."

"Microsoft Intune lacks the ability to provide seamless remote assistance or remote control."

"We had an APNS certificate set to expire last week. We tried to renew it two days before it expired. We logged in to the APNS portal but could not find that certificate. We didn't know where it went. All the iOS devices stopped working. We contacted the Apple and Microsoft teams, and each blamed the other. This is something that Microsoft should take care of. Last week, we had so many escalations from high-profile users who couldn't access corporate data on their devices."

"In terms of what can be improved, I am looking for better enhancements regarding Apple management, not only on the mobile device, but also on the laptop."

"Intune could add more Linux security features and more integration with on-prem devices. The application deployments can also be improved."

More Microsoft Intune cons

"There is less support for on-premise environments."

"It would help all users if AWS improved the auto-generation of the CloudFormation file."

"CloudFormation is not particularly good at handling cross-account dynamic references. If you try to refer to an object that CloudFormation has created in a separate AWS account, it tends to fall apart. That's because it is a byproduct of the multi-tenant configuration. This is the most glaring shortcoming in my perspective because you can't dynamically reference objects in other accounts that CloudFormation has created, but it is not a shortcoming that you can't overcome. This is the only pain point that I've come across that didn't have a workaround natively. Sometimes the confirmation is slow, and it could be faster. The downside to CloudFormation when you're fully embracing it is that the AWS services do not get released immediately fully CloudFormation enabled. If you need to use the latest AWS service that just got announced or reinvented, you're not going to be able to continue with CloudFormation for the first X number of months. This is because they develop the products separately, and then they hand it to the CloudFormation team, which later on develops a CloudFormation integration. So, if you need to be on the newest thing AWS has, CloudFormation is often going to be a constraint that prevents you from doing that."

"For improvement, it's crucial that AWS provides options in terms of computing services, DB related services, and machine learning solutions. If I'm not hands-on with a particular service, like machine learning applications, I struggle to write the CloudFormation code."

"For a beginner, it's kind of difficult to set up. So, the user does need some knowledge in order to do it."

"Provisioning a large environment or a large number of services takes a bit more time than with Terraform."

"AWS CloudFormation allows you to use the code templates written in JSON and YAML, but not directly in Python. Adding this feature would be beneficial."

"The solution needs to offer better support to other cloud vendors."

More AWS CloudFormation cons

"Lacks sufficient integrations."

"I'd like to see more automation for monitoring and managing things like AWS CloudWatch and AWS Config. It would be a significant improvement if it could automatically handle these tasks and address issues as they arise."

"Ensuring broader OS coverage in patch management could be beneficial for the product."

"We formerly used third-party products to analyze the log, give us information, and find bottlenecks. Systems Manager could provide more tools that conduct this analysis, so we don't have to do it ourselves."

"One area that could be enhanced is dynamic configuration management. Additionally, improving integration with other AWS services like Lambda and CloudFormation would be beneficial."

"Additional features can be added as per customer requirements."

"The fact that AWS Systems Manager takes time to complete the patching process, makes it an area where improvements are required."

"It could be agentless if there's room for improvement in the AWS Systems Manager. Currently, you have to install agents, although, for most of the latest EC2 images, the agents come preinstalled. If it could be at the level of Ansible, which is agentless, that would be fantastic. When you compare the solution to Ansible, one of the most widely accepted tools, the agentless feature stands out. So, if the AWS Systems Manager could become agentless, that would be a significant improvement."

More AWS Systems Manager cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Intune is included in the Microsoft 365 licensing package that we have."

"Microsoft Intune is expensive."

"I would rate the price a four out of ten with ten being the most expensive."

"We are partners, so we receive some discount. However, from the customer's perspective, Microsoft Intune's pricing is competitive with non-Microsoft technology, and the price is good compared to other market competitors."

"Its price is fair. It's a normal price. It isn't too expensive or too cheap."

"It's affordable. It's cheaper if you have an Office 365, E5, or E3 subscription because everything is there."

"Its licensing model is not complex, but it is very expensive compared to other solutions. They can bring more models and reduce the pricing. They should allow customers to select the features they want and price it accordingly."

"There are licenses required for this solution. We enable licenses on the devices we need to manage."

More Microsoft Intune pricing and cost advice

"There's no cost for launching any template using CloudFormation."

"In general, pricing within AWS is relatively affordable."

"The tool's pricing depends on the page model."

"The pricing is not notably high."

"AWS CloudFormation's pricing is cheaper than that of other cloud providers."

"If you compared serverless and container-based, serverless is less expensive. If you use certain instances the price can increase and become too expensive."

"The price of the solution is good because it is scalable."

"The tool is free for the AWS environment."

More AWS CloudFormation pricing and cost advice

"An AWS cloud engineer can bring down the costs."

"The platform provides excellent value for the capabilities it offers when compared to third-party tools for similar tasks."

"Most of the features are free. I'm not entirely certain, but I believe the pricing is generally very low. Some services that are part of Ops Manager might have associated costs."

"As we were doing a government project so the government got the project at a very nominal cost."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

19%

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

23%

Financial Services Firm

18%

Government

University

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

14%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?

Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...

See all answers

What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...

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How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...

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What do you like most about AWS CloudFormation?

AWS Cloud automation reduces the time needed to create AWS resources.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS CloudFormation?

AWS CloudFormation is free. However, there may be unexpected costs if developers deploy services incorrectly without ...

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What needs improvement with AWS CloudFormation?

Improvements are needed for sharing resources between template files, especially when using AWS ( /products/amazon-aw...

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What do you like most about AWS Systems Manager?

With AWS Systems Manager, our company can patch our systems directly from it, so we don't need to patch our systems m...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Systems Manager?

Every AWS service comes with some associated costs. While using AWS Systems Manager, we continually monitor to optimi...

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What needs improvement with AWS Systems Manager?

There isn't anything specific I remember at the moment.

See all answers

Comparisons

Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 13% of the time

Workspace ONE UEM vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 9% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 8% of the time

ManageEngine Endpoint Central vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 6% of the time

IBM MaaS360 vs Microsoft Intune

Compared 3% of the time

More Microsoft Intune Competitors

Red Hat Satellite vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 20% of the time

VMware Aria Automation vs AWS CloudFormation

Compared 14% of the time

More AWS CloudFormation Competitors

Microsoft Configuration Manager vs AWS Systems Manager

Compared 15% of the time

AWS Config vs AWS Systems Manager

Compared 13% of the time

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform vs AWS Systems Manager

Compared 10% of the time

Red Hat Satellite vs AWS Systems Manager

Compared 9% of the time

BigFix vs AWS Systems Manager

Compared 5% of the time

More AWS Systems Manager Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Intune

April 2025

Download Microsoft Intune product report

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation

May 2025

Download AWS CloudFormation product report

Buyer's Guide

Configuration Management

April 2025

Download AWS Systems Manager product report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

CloudFormation

Amazon Elastic Container Registry

Overview

Microsoft Intune provides centralized management of mobile devices and applications, ensuring security, compliance, and productivity through integration with Microsoft services like Microsoft 365 and Azure Active Directory.

Organizations use Intune for managing mobile devices and applications, enhancing security and compliance across platforms. With features like single sign-on, conditional access, and zero-touch deployment via Autopilot, it facilitates efficient operations. Intune's scalability, easy enrollment, and capabilities such as remote wipe support diverse device management, offering robust data protection and efficient operation. Despite its features, improvement areas include reporting, compatibility with non-Microsoft devices, and better support for macOS and Linux devices.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Seamless Integration: Works with Microsoft 365, Azure Active Directory, and System Center for streamlined management.
Conditional Access: Enhances security with policies that restrict access based on conditions.
Autopilot: Provides zero-touch deployment for setting up new devices efficiently.
Mobile Device Management: Enables control over both personal and corporate devices.
Application Deployment: Facilitates app delivery across a range of devices.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Centralized Management: Reduces complexity by managing devices and applications in one place.
Security Enhancement: Protects data with features like remote wipe and compliance monitoring.
Improved Productivity: Enhances efficiency with seamless integration and automation features.
Device Scalability: Supports diverse device management for growing business needs.

In industries such as finance, healthcare, and education, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure secure and compliant device management. Companies leverage its capabilities to deploy security policies and manage both corporate-owned and BYOD environments, facilitating a unified approach to data protection and compliance.

Microsoft

AWS CloudFormation provides a common language for you to model and provision AWS and third party application resources in your cloud environment. AWS CloudFormation allows you to use programming languages or a simple text file to model and provision, in an automated and secure manner, all the resources needed for your applications across all regions and accounts. This gives you a single source of truth for your AWS and third party resources.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

AWS Systems Manager is a management service that helps you automatically collect software inventory, apply OS patches, create system images, and configure Windows and Linux operating systems. These capabilities help you define and track system configurations, prevent drift, and maintain software compliance of your EC2 and on-premises configurations. By providing a management approach that is designed for the scale and agility of the cloud but extends into your on-premises data center, Systems Manager makes it easier for you to seamlessly bridge your existing infrastructure with AWS.

Systems Manager is easy to use. Simply access Systems Manager from the EC2 Management Console, select the instances you want to manage, and define the management tasks you want to perform. Systems Manager is available now at no cost to manage both your EC2 and on-premises resources.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

Nextdoor, Coinbase, Expedia

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers

Buyer's Guide

AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager

April 2025

Free Report: AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager

Find out what your peers are saying about AWS CloudFormation vs. AWS Systems Manager and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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