GCP Cloud Run vs AWS Lambda - A comparison of serverless computing platforms

February 21, 2022

GCP Cloud Run vs AWS Lambda - A comparison of serverless computing platforms

Welcome back to another edition of Flare Compare, where we put the hottest tech trends head to head. Today, we’re taking a look at two of the biggest names in serverless computing: Google Cloud Platform’s Cloud Run and Amazon Web Services’ Lambda. Let’s dive in and see how they compare.

Features

Both Cloud Run and Lambda offer powerful and flexible features that make developing and deploying serverless applications a breeze. Here are some of the key features of each platform:

GCP Cloud Run

  • Container-based: Cloud Run uses containers to package your code and its dependencies, meaning you can bring your own language runtime, OS, and middleware.
  • Autoscaling: The platform provides automatic scaling to handle traffic spikes as well as the ability to scale to zero, which means you only pay for what you use.
  • Integrations: Cloud Run integrates with other GCP services, including Stackdriver Logging, Stackdriver Monitoring, and Cloud Build.

AWS Lambda

  • Multiple language support: Lambda supports a wide range of programming languages including Node.js, Python, Java, Go, C#, and Ruby, among others.
  • Serverless: Just like Cloud Run, Lambda removes the need to manage servers and infrastructure, allowing you to focus on building your applications.
  • Integrations: Lambda integrates with a range of AWS services, including API Gateway, S3, DynamoDB, and many others.

Performance

When it comes to performance, speed is everything. Here’s how Cloud Run and Lambda stack up in terms of speed and latency.

GCP Cloud Run

According to Google, Cloud Run delivers sub-millisecond cold start times and can handle up to 80 concurrent requests per container, with an upper limit of 1,000 concurrent requests per service.

AWS Lambda

Amazon claims that Lambda can handle up to 1,000 concurrent executions and has an average start time of fewer than 100 milliseconds.

Pricing

Last but not least, let’s take a look at how these two serverless platforms compare in terms of pricing.

GCP Cloud Run

With Cloud Run, you pay only for the resources you use, with the option to scale to zero when traffic is low. The pricing model is based on the number of container instances and their usage per second, with a generous free tier and no upfront costs.

AWS Lambda

Lambda also offers a generous free tier, allowing you to run up to one million requests per month at no charge. Beyond that, you pay per request, with additional charges for memory and duration.

Conclusion

So, which serverless platform is better? It all depends on your specific needs and use case. Both Cloud Run and Lambda offer powerful tools and features, as well as fast speeds and flexible pricing. Ultimately, your decision should be based on your application requirements, your preferred programming language, and your existing infrastructure.

We hope you found this comparison helpful. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.

References


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