AWS vs GCP Which Is Cheaper for Cloud Billing and Cost Management
Welcome to our unbiased comparison between AWS and GCP for cloud billing and cost management! As the competition between cloud computing providers heats up, it can be a challenge to make the right decision. Which of these giants provides better cost management tools? In this article, we'll examine everything you need to know to make an informed choice.
Billing Models
Both GCP and AWS support the pay-as-you-go billing model. However, GCP takes it one step further with sustained-use discounts. Customers who use a particular instance for a long time get a discount on their bill, which offers an excellent benefit for long-running workloads. AWS offers a similar model with its reserved instances, which can give customers up to a 70% discount for running instances.
Comparison of Cloud Instances for Cost Management
We compared the prices of EC2 instances of AWS with Compute Engine instances of GCP. We found that AWS offers instances at a more competitive price than GCP. For example, let's compare the cost of a t3a.medium EC2 instance in the US East region (N. Virginia) to a similar n1-standard-2 instance on GCP. The cost of the t3a.medium instance is approximately $0.0404 per hour, while the cost of the n1-standard-2 instance is about $0.0704 per hour. Therefore, AWS is nearly 30% cheaper for similar instances.
Comparison for Cloud Storage
Both AWS and GCP offer object storage, block storage, and file storage solutions. They also provide automated storage tiering and lifecycle policies to manage data and allow users to optimize costs. However, when it comes to pricing, GCP is cheaper for standard storage classes, while AWS is cheaper for infrequently accessed storage classes. In general, we found that GCP is around 20% cheaper than AWS for standard storage classes, while AWS is 25% cheaper for infrequently accessed storage classes.
Comparison for Cloud Data Transport
GCP offers sustained-use discounts for network egress rates, while AWS offers savings through data transfer discounts. GCP offers a 30% automatic discount on network egress charges when this usage is sustained for more than 50% of the month. In contrast, AWS offers 5% savings for data transfers between their servers in the same region. However, customers can get as much as 75% savings for data transfers when it is between different regions.
Conclusion
In conclusion, GCP is generally cheaper than AWS for standard storage classes and network egress rates. AWS is more cost-effective for reserved instances, infrequently accessed storage classes, and data transfer between different regions. When it comes to pricing of instances, AWS is the clear winner, with nearly 30% cheaper than GCP for similar instances.
Before making your choice, it's essential that you consider your business's unique needs and long-term goals. However, we hope that we have provided an excellent overview that will help you make a more informed decision.