When you’re starting your cloud journey, whether you’re moving from an on-premise setup to the cloud, launching a startup, or deciding which cloud certifications to pursue, choosing the right cloud platform is the first key decision that you need to make. There are a lot of options, but three giants stand out:
- Amazon Web Services (AWS or Amazon AWS, or AWS Web Services. I have no idea why people use the last two 😒)
- Microsoft Azure (or Simply Azure or MSFT Azure 😤 or Microsoft Cloud), and
- Google Cloud Platform (or GCP or Google Cloud GCP or simply Google Cloud).
Although these cloud providers may seem interchangeable at first, each one has unique strengths and challenges that can significantly affect cloud costs, ease of use, and overall experience.
Personal Experience
When I started learning the cloud, I faced the same challenge:
- Which one do I learn first?
- Which one will give me better job opportunities?
- But also, from a business perspective, which cloud platform should I pick and build my organization’s products on?
Now, I’ve worked across client projects where we had to migrate not only certain applications but also the total infrastructure to these cloud platforms.
But first, for those who don’t know me, I’m Roosho, Jack of all IT trades. I run my own IT and IaaS Consultancy business, helping startups build their Infrastructure on cloud platforms.
Emerging Cloud Platforms
There are some emerging cloud platforms that you should know about, which we’ll cover later on in this article. To break down which cloud platform is right for you, I’m going to provide a quick overview of the three big players: Amazon AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google GCP, their differences, core product offerings, data center footprints, and pricing, as well as use cases.
Getting Started
Before we get started, you should check out my blog, where I share free resources, tutorials, reviews, and so much more to help you get started in the cloud.
Cloud Market Overview
The cloud computing market is booming and is expected to reach a $2,432 billion market by 2030. AWS, Azure, and GCP are the three big players in this market, and collectively they hold 64% of the total market share.
When it comes to hosting a website or application, these three contenders are likely to be your top choices.
AWS: The Leader of the Pack
Amazon Web Services, also known as AWS or Amazon AWS, or AWS Web Services, or AWS Cloud, or Amazon Cloud (so many names on the market), is the leader of the pack. Launched in 2006 by Amazon, with a 32% market share, it is the go-to choice for many businesses, offering an extensive portfolio of services that cover various areas such as:
- Computing
- Storage
- Networking
- Databases
- Analytics
- Machine Learning
- Artificial Intelligence
Azure: Microsoft’s Cloud Platform
Microsoft Azure entered the cloud market in 2010, four years after AWS, and has grown to become the second-largest cloud provider with a 23% market share. Azure shines in its compatibility with Windows and integration with the Microsoft suite of services, along with a broad spectrum of offerings similar to AWS.
GCP: Google’s Cloud Platform
Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is the youngest among the top three, with Google’s foray into cloud services beginning in 2011. GCP holds 10% of the market share and also has fewer data centers than its competitors. However, it is very well known for its DevOps-friendly solutions and robust selection of services similar to AWS and Azure.
Comparing Core Capabilities
You’ll notice that each one has its own strengths and unique offerings despite their core capabilities. There are some differences in the services that they provide, which means that you can choose a service that suits your project’s specific needs. We are also seeing a lot of multi-cloud strategies where businesses combine services from all of these platforms to avoid vendor lock-in.
Amazon AWS Core Services
Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud)
Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) is one of the most popular services offered by AWS, providing a highly flexible and scalable computing environment. EC2 allows users to create virtual servers, known as instances, which can be configured with a variety of operating systems, storage options, and networking capabilities.
Key Features of Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud or EC2
- Wide Range of Instance Types: EC2 offers a broad selection of instance types to suit different workloads. These include general-purpose instances for a balance of compute, memory, and networking resources; compute-optimized instances for tasks that require high CPU performance; memory-optimized instances for applications needing large amounts of memory; and GPU instances tailored for heavy graphical processing tasks such as machine learning and scientific simulations.
- Scalability: EC2 allows users to scale their infrastructure both vertically (by increasing the power of an instance) and horizontally (by adding more instances). This flexibility ensures that you can adjust resources based on demand, optimizing both performance and cost.
- Elastic Load Balancing and Auto Scaling: EC2 integrates with AWS services like Elastic Load Balancing and Auto Scaling to automatically distribute incoming traffic across multiple instances and adjust the number of running instances based on current demand.
- Security and Compliance: EC2 instances can be launched within a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), providing isolation and robust security controls. Additionally, AWS offers compliance certifications and audit reports to help customers meet regulatory requirements.
EC2’s versatility makes it ideal for a wide range of applications, from simple web hosting to complex enterprise applications and big data analytics.
AWS Lambda
AWS Lambda is Amazon’s serverless compute service that runs code in response to events and automatically manages the underlying compute resources. It allows developers to focus purely on writing their code without worrying about the complexities of server management, scaling, patching, or administrative tasks.
Key Features Amazon Web Services Lambda
- Event-Driven Architecture: Lambda is designed to execute code in response to specific events such as changes in data, shifts in system state, or actions by users. For example, it can automatically run code in response to HTTP requests through API Gateway, file uploads to S3, or messages in an SQS queue.
- Automatic Scaling: Lambda automatically scales your application by running code in parallel in response to the number of incoming events, up to the limit defined by your AWS account. This means you don’t have to pre-provision any infrastructure, and your application can scale seamlessly to handle varying workloads.
- Cost Efficiency: With Lambda, you only pay for the compute time that you actually use. There are no charges when your code is not running, making it an extremely cost-effective solution for applications with unpredictable or spiky traffic.
- Flexible Language Support: Lambda supports multiple programming languages, including Node.js, Python, Java, Ruby, Go, and .NET Core, allowing developers to use the languages and frameworks they are most comfortable with.
AWS Lambda is particularly well-suited for microservices architectures, real-time file processing, data transformation tasks, and creating backend services that need to scale quickly and efficiently.
Microsoft Azure Core Services
Azure Virtual Machines
Azure Virtual Machines provide scalable and flexible cloud computing services similar to AWS EC2. Azure VMs allow you to deploy Windows and Linux virtual machines (VMs) in a matter of minutes, with full control over the operating system, memory, storage, and networking.
Key Features of Azure Virtual Machines or Azure VM
- Variety of Instance Sizes: Azure offers a diverse range of VM sizes, optimized for different use cases. These include B-series burstable VMs for low-cost, general-purpose workloads, D-series VMs optimized for CPU-intensive tasks, and M-series VMs designed for memory-intensive applications like databases. Azure also offers GPU-based VMs for tasks requiring heavy graphical processing or AI workloads.
- Hybrid Cloud Integration: Azure’s VMs integrate seamlessly with on-premises infrastructure, enabling hybrid cloud solutions. This is especially beneficial for businesses that need to extend their existing data centers into the cloud or those that require disaster recovery solutions.
- High Availability and Redundancy: Azure VMs are built with high availability in mind. You can deploy VMs across multiple data centers within a region (Availability Zones) to ensure that your applications remain available even in the case of a data center failure. Azure also provides backup and recovery solutions to protect your data.
- Security and Compliance: Azure VMs offer advanced security features, including Azure Security Center for monitoring and protecting against threats, and integration with Azure Active Directory for identity and access management. Azure also adheres to a wide array of compliance standards, making it suitable for regulated industries.
Azure Virtual Machines are an excellent choice for running enterprise applications, hosting websites, developing and testing software, and extending on-premises data centers to the cloud.
Azure Functions
Function App in Azure or officially Azure Functions is Microsoft’s serverless compute service, enabling you to run event-driven code without having to provision or manage servers. It is similar to AWS Lambda and is designed to simplify the process of building and deploying scalable applications.
Key Features of Function App in Azure
- Event-Driven Execution: Like Lambda, Azure Functions is triggered by events such as changes in data, messages from a queue, HTTP requests, or even timers. This makes it ideal for automation tasks, backend processing, and integrating with other Azure services.
- Scale on Demand: Azure Functions automatically scales to handle the number of incoming requests, providing a seamless experience during traffic spikes or high-demand periods. You can also configure function scaling to meet specific performance or cost objectives.
- Multiple Language Support: Azure Functions supports a variety of programming languages, including C#, JavaScript, F#, Python, and Java, enabling developers to build functions using their preferred languages and frameworks.
- Integration with Azure Services: Azure Functions can be easily integrated with other Azure services such as Azure Cosmos DB, Azure Storage, and Azure Service Bus, enabling you to create complex workflows and processes that span multiple services.
Azure Functions is particularly effective for microservices, real-time data processing, IoT applications, and automating cloud tasks that need to respond quickly to events.
Google GCP Core Services
Google Compute Engine
Google Compute Engine (GCE) or Google GCE is Google’s IaaS offering that allows you to create and run virtual machines on Google’s infrastructure. Compute Engine VMs provide flexible compute options that can be customized to fit the specific needs of your application.
Key Features of Google Cloud Platform Compute Engine
- Customizable Virtual Machines: GCE provides both predefined machine types that are optimized for various workloads and the ability to create custom machine types. Custom VMs allow you to specify the exact number of vCPUs and memory you need, ensuring that you only pay for what you use.
- High-Performance Networking: Compute Engine VMs benefit from Google’s global network infrastructure, which provides high-speed connections, low-latency, and the ability to route traffic efficiently around the world. This makes GCE an ideal choice for latency-sensitive applications.
- Live Migration: One of the standout features of GCE is live migration. This feature allows your VMs to be moved between hosts without needing to be stopped or restarted, minimizing downtime and ensuring continuous availability.
- Flexible Storage Options: GCE offers a range of storage options, including persistent disks that provide reliable, high-performance block storage, and local SSDs for applications requiring ultra-fast, temporary storage. You can also use Google Cloud Storage for object storage that integrates seamlessly with your Compute Engine VMs.
- Security: GCE integrates with Google’s security model, providing encryption at rest by default, IAM policies for resource access control, and integration with Google Cloud’s security services like Google Cloud Armor for DDoS protection.
Google Compute Engine is ideal for applications that require scalable, customizable infrastructure, and benefits from Google’s advanced networking capabilities and global infrastructure.
Google Cloud Functions
Google Cloud Functions or GCP Cloud Functions is Google’s serverless computing platform that allows you to run event-driven functions without managing the underlying infrastructure. Cloud Functions provide a lightweight, flexible environment for building and connecting cloud services.
Key Features of GCP Cloud Functions
- Event-Driven Functions: Cloud Functions are designed to respond to various triggers, such as changes in data, HTTP requests, or messages from other Google Cloud services like Pub/Sub. This makes them ideal for automating tasks, processing data in real-time, and integrating different services.
- Scalable and Flexible: Cloud Functions automatically scale to meet demand, running multiple instances in parallel when necessary. This ensures that your functions can handle varying levels of traffic without requiring manual intervention.
- Language Support: Google Cloud Functions supports multiple languages, including JavaScript (Node.js), Python, Go, and Java, allowing developers to use familiar tools and libraries.
- Tight Integration with Google Services: Cloud Functions are deeply integrated with Google Cloud services, enabling you to easily connect to other Google Cloud products like BigQuery, Cloud Storage, and Firestore. This integration makes it simple to build complex, event-driven workflows that leverage the full power of Google’s cloud ecosystem.
Google Cloud Functions are well-suited for microservices architectures, real-time data processing, lightweight APIs, and building scalable backend systems that require minimal operational overhead.
Data Center Infrastructure
It’s important to understand the data center infrastructure of AWS, Azure, and GCP when choosing between them. The location and performance of these data centers are significant for ensuring that your product or application runs efficiently and smoothly, especially in relation to where your users are located.
AWS Data Centers
Global Reach with Over 200 Data Centers Worldwide
Amazon Web Services (AWS) boasts an extensive global infrastructure with over 200 data centers distributed across various regions, making it one of the most comprehensive cloud platforms in terms of geographical coverage. This widespread network of data centers ensures that AWS can deliver low-latency, high-performance services to customers all over the world.
Key Regions of Amazon AWS Data Centers
- North America: AWS has a significant presence in North America, with key data centers in strategic locations like North Virginia, Ohio, Oregon, and California. These regions provide robust infrastructure for companies looking to serve customers across the United States and Canada.
- Europe: In Europe, AWS has established data centers in major hubs such as Frankfurt, Ireland, and London, ensuring that businesses operating within the European Union and surrounding areas can comply with data residency requirements while benefiting from high-performance cloud services.
- Asia-Pacific: The Asia-Pacific region is well-served by AWS with data centers in key locations like Tokyo, Singapore, Sydney, and Mumbai. This presence is particularly important for businesses targeting fast-growing markets in Asia, providing local users with fast and reliable access to services.
- South America and Australia: AWS also has a strong presence in South America, with data centers in São Paulo, Brazil, and in Australia, with facilities in Sydney. These locations are critical for delivering cloud services to customers in the Southern Hemisphere, ensuring low latency and high availability.
Key Areas of Focus
- North Virginia: Known as one of AWS’s earliest and largest regions, North Virginia serves as a hub for many AWS services and innovations. It’s a critical region for U.S. federal government workloads and many large enterprises.
- Oregon: Oregon is another key region that provides a balance of scalability and reliability, serving as a major node for customers on the West Coast of the United States.
- Frankfurt: Frankfurt is a central hub in Europe, particularly valued for its compliance with European Union regulations and its proximity to major financial centers.
The extensive network of AWS data centers enables customers to deploy their applications close to their end users, minimizing latency and optimizing performance. This global reach also supports disaster recovery and redundancy, ensuring that critical applications remain available even in the event of a regional failure.
Azure Data Centers
A Regionally Diverse Network of Data Centers
Microsoft Azure has built a robust and regionally diverse network of data centers, designed to meet the needs of businesses and organizations across the globe. Azure’s data center strategy focuses on providing a broad geographical footprint while maintaining high availability and compliance with regional regulations.
Azure Regional Coverage
- North America: Azure has a strong presence in North America, with data centers spread across multiple regions, including East US, Central US, and West US. This distribution allows businesses to select data centers that are geographically close to their customers, reducing latency and ensuring high availability.
- Europe: In Europe, Azure offers data centers in key regions such as North Europe (Ireland), West Europe (Netherlands), and UK South (London). Azure’s European data centers are strategically located to comply with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other local data privacy laws.
- Asia-Pacific: Azure’s presence in the Asia-Pacific region includes data centers in East Asia (Hong Kong), Southeast Asia (Singapore), Japan East (Tokyo), and Australia East (Sydney). These locations serve as important hubs for businesses looking to expand their reach in Asia, offering low-latency connections and compliance with local regulations.
- Australia: Azure’s data centers in Australia, particularly in regions like Sydney and Melbourne, are critical for serving the needs of businesses and government agencies in the region. These centers ensure that data residency requirements are met and that services remain fast and reliable.
Advantages of Azure’s Data Center Network
- Regional Diversity: One of Azure’s key strengths is the regional diversity of its data centers. This broad distribution allows customers to deploy applications and services in locations that best meet their regulatory and performance needs.
- Global Expansion: Microsoft is continuously expanding Azure’s global footprint, adding new regions and data centers to meet the growing demand for cloud services. This expansion ensures that Azure remains a competitive option for businesses of all sizes, regardless of their location.
- Integration with Microsoft’s Global Network: Azure benefits from Microsoft’s extensive global network backbone, which provides fast, secure, and reliable connections between data centers. This network integration is particularly beneficial for businesses that rely on Microsoft’s other services, such as Office 365 or Dynamics 365.
Azure’s regionally diverse data center network makes it an ideal choice for businesses with complex global operations, ensuring that services are available where they are needed most, with the compliance and performance required by modern enterprises.
GCP Data Centers
Strategically Placed Data Centers with High-Performance Networking
Google Cloud Platform (GCP) operates a strategically placed network of data centers across the globe, designed to deliver high-performance cloud services with a focus on low-latency connections and fast data transfer. GCP’s infrastructure is built on Google’s world-class network, which powers some of the most demanding applications and services on the internet.
Global Distribution of Google Cloud Server Locations
- North America: GCP has a strong presence in North America, with data centers located in regions such as Iowa, South Carolina, and Oregon. These data centers are strategically placed to serve major markets and provide reliable, low-latency access to Google Cloud services.
- Europe: In Europe, GCP’s data centers are located in major hubs like Belgium, the Netherlands, and the UK. These centers are positioned to meet the needs of businesses operating within the European Union, offering compliance with GDPR and other regional data protection laws.
- Asia-Pacific: GCP has made significant investments in the Asia-Pacific region, with data centers in Tokyo, Singapore, and Sydney. These locations ensure that businesses in Asia can leverage Google’s cloud infrastructure with minimal latency and optimal performance.
- South America and Australia: GCP’s data centers in São Paulo, Brazil, and Sydney, Australia, extend its reach to customers in the Southern Hemisphere, providing robust cloud services that meet regional demands for performance and compliance.
High-Performance Network Infrastructure
- Low-Latency Connections: GCP’s data centers are interconnected through Google’s private global fiber network, which is designed to provide low-latency, high-throughput connections. This network is one of the fastest and most reliable in the world, ensuring that data can move quickly and securely between regions.
- Optimized for Performance: Google’s network infrastructure is optimized for high-performance computing and data-intensive applications, making GCP an excellent choice for businesses that require fast, reliable cloud services. Whether you’re running large-scale analytics, AI workloads, or hosting globally distributed applications, GCP’s network ensures that your data is always where it needs to be, as quickly as possible.
- Advanced Security: GCP’s data centers are built with Google’s security-first approach, incorporating layers of physical and network security measures to protect customer data. This includes end-to-end encryption, robust identity and access management, and regular security audits.
GCP’s strategically placed data centers and high-performance network infrastructure make it a strong contender for businesses that require fast, reliable cloud services with a global reach. Whether you’re working on latency-sensitive projects or need to ensure quick data transfers, GCP’s infrastructure is designed to meet the needs of modern cloud computing.
Pricing Models
When selecting a cloud provider, pricing is a crucial factor that affects the budget for your cloud resources. AWS, Azure, and GCP all follow a pay-as-you-go approach, but the costs for computing power, storage, data transfer, and discounts differ between the providers.
AWS Pricing
- Flexible costs
- Various computing instances
- Storage pricing based on data stored and accessed
- Discounts available with upfront payments
Azure Pricing
- Pay-as-you-go basis
- Reserved virtual machine instances for long-term savings
- Storage costs based on usage
- Discounts through the Azure Hybrid Benefit program
GCP Pricing
- Pay-as-you-go model
- Predefined and customizable machine types
- Storage pricing based on data stored and accessed
- Discounts through committed-use contracts
Use Cases
As they all provide a wide range of services tailored to different business needs, here’s a summary of what each platform excels at:
AWS Use Cases
- Global reach and scalability with a vast network of data centers.
- Diverse service offering from web hosting to AI, analytics, and IoT.
- Mature ecosystem with a large and established user base and strong community.
- Reliability and variety of tools for enterprises requiring reliability.
Azure Use Cases
- Best match for organizations already using Microsoft products.
- Easy integration with hybrid cloud setups and smooth transitions to the cloud.
- Powerful hybrid options for extending the cloud without full migration.
- Security and compliance for sectors with data regulations.
GCP Use Cases
- Strong capabilities in data management and analytics.
- Ideal for organizations relying heavily on big data and machine learning.
- Advanced platform for containerized applications (Kubernetes).
- High-speed global network optimized for applications demanding quick response times and low latency.
Emerging Competitor: DigitalOcean
Before I explain which cloud platform is right for you, let’s cover an emerging competitor: DigitalOcean. DigitalOcean is a simple and developer-friendly cloud provider that offers essential cloud services. Their pricing model is straightforward and predictable, making it appealing for budget-restricted projects. The platform is easy to use, has extensive documentation, and also a vibrant community. DigitalOcean has a global presence of 15 data centers that offer high performance, low latency, and meet data residency needs. It’s a viable alternative for developers, startups, and small businesses looking for an accessible and cost-effective cloud platform. In fact, DigitalOcean was the first cloud platform that I ever used many, many years ago.
If you are getting started on the cloud, you might try Digital Ocean with this link for free $200 credit.
Conclusion: Which Cloud Platform Should You Choose?
So, which cloud platform should you pick for your business? The answer is very easy and straightforward, and the answer is none other than AWS. AWS is the best cloud platform for most people and businesses due to its global reach and scalability, along with its diverse range of services and mature ecosystem. They are also very cost-effective, flexible, and have a strong focus on security and compliance. AWS has over 200 services and also over 200 data centers, offering the most comprehensive range of cloud services, a big ecosystem, and a network of partners. It also provides flexible pricing models that cater to a wide range of budgets. While Azure and GCP have, of course, their own strengths, AWS’s overall offerings and market position make it an excellent starting point for most cloud computing needs.
Now, I know Azure is expected to grow this year and really push AWS, taking some of its market share, but I see it as this: AWS is like Apple, Azure is like Samsung, and GCP is like Sony. Take that as you wish.
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