VPC Cost Comparison AWS vs GCP vs Azure
When it comes to virtual private clouds (VPC), the major players in the cloud computing industry are Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure. Each of these cloud providers offers VPC services with their own unique features and pricing models. In this blog post, we'll compare the VPC costs across these three cloud providers to help you make an informed decision.
VPC Pricing Models
Before we dive into the specific costs for VPCs, it's important to understand each provider's pricing model. AWS, GCP, and Azure all have different approaches to billing for VPCs:
AWS: AWS offers VPCs as a free service as long as you use one of their other services that requires a VPC. There are no additional charges for creating or using a VPC itself, but you will be charged for other AWS services (such as EC2 instances) that are part of your VPC.
GCP: GCP charges a small fee for VPCs that is calculated based on the number of network interfaces in use. You'll also be charged for the other GCP services (such as Compute Engine) that you use within your VPC.
Azure: Azure does not charge separately for VPCs. Instead, you only pay for the individual resources (such as virtual machines) that you create inside your VPC.
Now that we have a better understanding of each provider's pricing model, let's get to the specifics.
VPC Costs Comparison
To compare the costs of VPCs across AWS, GCP, and Azure, we'll use a sample scenario of a VPC with four subnets, each with a /24 IP address range. We'll assume that each subnet has two virtual machines running, bringing the total number of VMs to eight. Here's how the costs break down for this scenario:
| Cloud Provider | VPC Monthly Cost | VM Monthly Cost | Total Monthly Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| AWS | $0 (included in other service costs) | $82.32 | $658.56 |
| GCP | $0.1045 per hour | $82.08 | $609.12 |
| Azure | $0 (included in resource costs) | $68.40 | $547.20 |
As you can see, GCP is the most expensive option for this scenario, followed closely by AWS. Azure is the most cost-effective option, as expected.
It's important to remember that these costs are based on a specific scenario, and your costs may vary depending on the number of subnets, IP address ranges, and virtual machines you use.
Conclusion
When it comes to VPC costs, AWS, GCP, and Azure each have their own pricing models and costs. It's important to carefully consider your specific needs and usage patterns when choosing a cloud provider. While AWS and GCP may be more expensive for this specific scenario, they may still be the best option for some use cases.
No matter which provider you choose, make sure to keep an eye on your VPC costs and optimize your usage to avoid unnecessary expenses.