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AWSvsAzure
What is the difference between AWS and Azure?
Updated 2 min read7 differences
In short
AWS is Amazon's cloud, the oldest and largest with the most services, while Azure is Microsoft's, strongest where companies already use Microsoft products.
AWS
Amazon Web Services
AWS (Amazon Web Services) is Amazon's cloud platform: more than 200 pay-as-you-go services for servers, storage, databases and much more.
Read the page on AWSAzure
Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure is Microsoft's cloud computing platform, offering hundreds of on-demand services such as virtual machines, databases and AI models worldwide.
Read the page on AzureAWS and Azure compared
| Aspect | AWS | Azure |
|---|---|---|
| Launched | 2006 | 2010 |
| Market position | Largest public cloud | Second largest |
| Virtual machines | EC2 | Azure Virtual Machines |
| Object storage | S3 | Blob Storage |
| Serverless functions | Lambda | Azure Functions |
| Identity | IAM | Microsoft Entra ID and Azure RBAC |
| Strongest when | You want the broadest catalog and ecosystem | You already rely on Microsoft products |
The difference, explained
Amazon Web Services launched its core services in 2006 and still holds the largest share of the public cloud market. Microsoft Azure launched in 2010 and is the clear second. Both offer hundreds of services in data centers worldwide: virtual machines, containers and Kubernetes, serverless functions, object storage, managed databases, networking, analytics and AI.
Their names differ more than their capabilities. EC2 corresponds to Azure Virtual Machines, S3 to Blob Storage, Lambda to Azure Functions, EKS to AKS, RDS to Azure SQL Database, and IAM to Microsoft Entra ID with Azure role-based access control. Both have free tiers, pay-as-you-go pricing and discounts for committed use.
Azure's main advantage is integration with the Microsoft world: Entra ID shares identities with Microsoft 365, Windows Server and SQL Server licenses can be reused, and enterprise agreements often bundle Azure credits. It is also a gateway to OpenAI models through Azure OpenAI. AWS's advantages are its breadth, maturity, huge community and the many third-party tools built around it first.
A common misconception is that one is clearly cheaper or better. Prices depend on the exact services, region and discounts, and both are reliable at enormous scale. The choice usually follows from existing skills, Microsoft licensing, specific services a company needs and where its partners already run.
Which one should you use?
Choose AWS when…
- You want the widest choice of services and the largest community.
- Your team or partners already build on AWS.
- You need a specific service that is most mature on AWS.
Choose Azure when…
- Your company uses Microsoft 365, Entra ID and Windows Server.
- You can reuse Microsoft licenses or enterprise agreements.
- You want Azure OpenAI and tight .NET integration.
Readers ask
Is AWS bigger than Azure?
Yes. AWS has the largest share of the cloud infrastructure market, with Azure second and Google Cloud third, although Azure has grown quickly.
Which is cheaper, AWS or Azure?
Neither is cheaper in general. Costs depend on the services, region, discounts and licensing; companies with Microsoft licenses often save on Azure.
Can I use AWS and Azure together?
Yes. Multi-cloud setups are common, often using Terraform or Kubernetes to keep deployments consistent, though running two clouds adds complexity and networking costs.