Amazon Web Services (AWS)
7.7/10Amazon's public cloud platform, with over 200 pay-as-you-go services for compute, storage, databases, networking and AI, used by startups through large enterprises and governments.
Data last updated November 2026 · Our methodology
Overview
Amazon Web Services is the cloud computing arm of Amazon. It started selling web services in 2002 and launched its cloud services in 2006. AWS offers more than 200 services, including EC2 virtual machines, S3 object storage, managed databases, Lambda serverless functions, EKS managed Kubernetes, the CloudFront CDN, and AI and machine learning tools. As of October 2025 these ran across 38 geographic regions. It suits engineering-led organisations that want fine-grained control over infrastructure and the ability to scale from a prototype to a global, mission-critical workload. Pricing is usage-based with no fixed plans. Customers pay per resource consumed. New accounts can choose a Free plan that runs up to six months with up to $200 in credits, and more than 30 services have always-free monthly allowances. Paid technical support is a separate charge, billed as a percentage of monthly AWS spend with a minimum fee. Business Support+ starts at $29 a month, Enterprise Support at $5,000, and Unified Operations at $50,000. AWS has the broadest third-party ecosystem in the market, including the AWS Marketplace, Terraform and most DevOps and monitoring tools, alongside its own API, CLI and SDKs. EC2 carries a 99.99% region-level SLA with service credits when it is missed. The main drawback is complexity. Reviewers repeatedly cite a steep learning curve and billing that is hard to predict, which can produce surprise charges unless teams actively monitor costs.
Our Rating
Hosting & Infrastructure7.9/10
AI Software7.6/10
Who Amazon Web Services (AWS) is best for
Good fit
Enterprise and Unified Operations support tiers and a broad compliance and service range are aimed at large organisations.
- Developers9/10
The full API, CLI and SDK tooling and the breadth of services suit engineers, though the learning curve is steep.
- SaaS Companies9/10
Multi-region infrastructure and managed services support running production SaaS workloads.
- Government8/10
AWS runs dedicated GovCloud regions, which have their own support pricing.
The free plan credits and pay-as-you-go billing let startups begin cheaply and scale, which G2 reviewers note.
Less suited
It is affordable at low usage, but complex billing and setup can overwhelm non-technical small teams.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- The service catalogue is unusually broad, with over 200 services across 38 regions, so most infrastructure needs can be met on one platform.
- EC2 has a 99.99% region-level SLA with credits of up to 100%, and instances unavailable for more than six minutes in an hour are not billed for that hour.
- The free plan gives up to $200 in credits, and more than 30 always-free services let new teams experiment at low cost.
- Support scales from a $29 minimum up to dedicated Enterprise and Unified Operations tiers for mission-critical workloads.
- G2 rates it 4.4 across more than 17,000 reviews, and reviewers praise its scalability and global reach.
Cons
- Reviewers widely cite a steep learning curve across the console and services.
- Usage pricing is complex and can produce unexpected bills unless spend is monitored closely.
- Paid support is billed as a percentage of total AWS spend, so support costs rise with usage.
- A July 2025 billing console bug showed customers estimated charges in the billions, which hurt trust in its cost tooling.
Key Features
Amazon Web Services (AWS) Pricing
Free plan
- No charges unless you upgrade
- Access to select services, more than 90
- Account closes after 6 months or when credits run out
- $100 in credits at sign-up, plus up to $100 more for exploring services
Paid plan (pay-as-you-go)
- Basic Support included
- Billed on metered usage
- Access to all AWS services
- New customers eligible for up to $200 in credits
- More than 30 always-free services within monthly limits
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. New accounts can pick a Free plan with $100 in credits plus up to $100 more for exploring services. It lasts up to six months or until the credits are used. More than 30 services also have always-free monthly allowances.
Basic support is included. Business Support+ costs at least $29 a month, Enterprise Support at least $5,000 a month, and Unified Operations at least $50,000 a month. Each is charged as the greater of the minimum or a tiered percentage of your AWS charges.
EC2 commits to 99.99% monthly uptime at region level when instances span two or more Availability Zones, and 99.5% for individual instances. Missed targets earn service credits of 10%, 30% or 100%.
You open a case in the AWS Support Center by the end of the second billing cycle after the incident. Credits apply only to future EC2 bills and are not refundable.
The standard Paid plan is pay-as-you-go with no fixed plan fee. You are billed for metered usage beyond any credits.
As of October 2025, AWS had 38 geographic regions, including separate GovCloud regions for government workloads.
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