Comparing AWS, Google Cloud, And Azure: Which Is Right For You?

Cloud computing uses an internet-connected remote server to store and process data instead of doing it locally, which can have multiple limitations. As the internet has become more accessible to the general public, the need for efficient cloud computing services has heightened more now than ever. 

If you are running an online business, you may have to use cloud computing services to streamline your operations. Today you can find several cloud computing services online with varying features and subscription plans the most popular ones are AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure. They can be used for both business and personal use. 

AWS (Amazon Web Services), Google Cloud, and Azure has been dominating the cloud-computing industry for many years now. Each has millions of active users, and they have been behind many successful businesses. In this article, we will be conducting a comparison study between each of these popular cloud computing services to find out which is the best. 

Basics of Cloud Computing

Before diving into exploring individual cloud computing services in detail, it is important to have a clear understanding of what cloud computing is, and how they help a business and an individual. 

Cloud computing is the process of storing managing, and processing data, through an internet-connected remote server. This enables users to access more storage, and computational power using a device that conventionally doesn’t have the same.

It needs complex infrastructure and constant maintenance to run a robust network of servers, this can be highly costly for businesses, especially startups. 

Instead of setting up their cloud infrastructure, businesses can rely on other companies that offer the service in return for payment. Majorly there are five types of cloud computing: 

1. Software as a service (SaaS): Cloud computing services that can be accessed through a web browser without having to install and maintain software. It usually works on a pay-as-you-go basis, so it is also called on-demand software.
   
2. Platform as a Service (PaaS): In the PaaS model, the users are presented with a platform that they can use to build their applications. So, the developers can use advanced computational functions without needing to deal with installing and maintaining complex infrastructures.
   
3. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): Offering computer infrastructure on an outsourced basis can be considered an IaaS service model. The infrastructure offered often includes networking equipment, devices, databases, and web servers which can support various operations.
   
4. Anything as a Service (XaaS): Cloud providers these days do not limit their service to one model or the other, instead they offer everything we have discussed above and more. This operation of offering any cloud service is called XaaS or Anything as a Service.
   
5. Function as a Service (FaaS): FaaS offers a platform for businesses to develop and deploy their program on their servers. While it works similarly to PaaS, the fundamental difference is the scalability, FaaS automatically configures itself according to the users connected and the execution of the program happening. Meanwhile, in PaaS, businesses have to manually configure the computational power they need according to their needs. 

AWS (Amazon Web Services)

AWS is the cloud computing platform offered by the revered online retailer Amazon. Amazon first launched the service in 2002, from the internal network of servers they built for the online retail operation of the company.

Like most of the biggest cloud providers, AWS offers a mixture of services such as IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS. Users can utilize the computing power, database storage, and content management storage of AWS to optimize their operation. 

AWS is a global network that offers its service in more than 250 countries and territories. They offer a wide range of products and services including storage, AI infrastructure, Financial Services, computing, and more. AWS assures that moving to their cloud infrastructure can be a faster, easier, and more cost-effective way for migrating anyone’s application to the cloud. 

Products:

• Financial Services
• Analytics 
• Application Integration
• Artificial Intelligence
• Blockchain 
• Business Application’
• Compute 
• Contact Center
• Database 
• Developer tools 
• End-user computing 
• Front-end web and mobile
• Games 
• Internet of things 
• Management and governance 
• Media services 
• Migration and modernization
• Networking and content delivery 
• Quantum technologies 
• Robotics
• Satellite 
• Security, identity, and compliance 
• Serverless 
• Storage 
• Supply chain 

How AWS Pricing Works?

AWS follows a pay-as-you-go model for the majority of the services it provides. Here, the users only have to pay for the particular service they need for how long they are using them. This pricing model limits the need for complex licensing and brain-freezing billings. This is like paying the water bill or electricity bill in your home, where the service provider measures your consumption and charges you just for that. You can stop the service when you want without paying a termination fee.

The individual pricing of each service varies and you need to have a clear understanding of what you need, to limit the pricing to a minimum and to make the most out of it. You may also use the AWS pricing calculator to estimate the cost of AWS products and services. 

In the pricing calculator, you first need to add the services you want, by searching for them, and configure them according to your usage to see the service costs. Based on the estimate you have given, you may reconfigure the services and optimize the pricing. 

AWS Free Tier

AWS offers free accounts and free tiers in addition to its paid plans. This allows users to get a hands-on experience on the hundreds of products and services from AWS, and then decide whether they want to go for the paid version or not.

There are three types of free tiers: free trials, 12 months free, and always free. The free trial and 12 months free options are reserved for new AWS customers, whereas the “Always Free” tier is available for both existing and new customers. 

Benefits of AWS

AWS is an easily accessible cloud computing service provider that serves millions of customers worldwide. Here are some of the aspects that make AWS a worthy selection:

1. User-friendly: Many users have reported that AWS is easier to use than other cloud providers including Google Cloud and Azure. The platform makes it easy for users to navigate through hundreds of the services provided, by providing proper documentation, and video tutorials.
   
2. Cost-effective: AWS offers a pay-as-you-go service model, in which users only have to pay for the service they are using. Additionally, the platform provides free trials, making AWS a cost-effective cloud solution.
   
3. Security: AWS employs industry-best security protocols for protecting against data loss and online attacks. They constantly audit their security features and fix vulnerabilities if found.
   
4. Flexibility: AWS is highly flexible. It lets the user choose the combination of permutation of the technologies used such as the programming language, operating system, and web applications. This assures that you are not boxed into an environment that you are not comfortable with. 

Limitations of AWS

While AWS has a lot of advantages, it is not immune to limitations or cons. Here are some of the cons we have found about AWS: 

1. Lack of Professionals: Since AWS provides complex and innovative cloud computational services, businesses require the service of experienced professionals in their teams. A cloud computing professional specialized in AWS is hard to find.
   
2. Varying Price: Pricing can vary from region to region, which can be confusing for some people. Moreover, it will cost extra to utilize services that are not covered in your original plan, which may blow up your monthly bill.
   
3. Occasional Downtime: Since AWS serves millions of users, the network may get congested at times and users may experience downtime due to external causes such as infrastructure maintenance. But they don’t last that long and will be back online eventually. 

Google Cloud 

Google Cloud is a cloud provider that helps businesses go online by providing various internet-connected computing infrastructures. The cloud service is owned and operated by Google, around the world with data centers distributed in major Asian, Australian, European, African, Middle Eastern, North American, and South American regions. 

The Google Cloud considers each data center from each region independently, with its identifiers which can help the technicians to identify and resolve issues immediately and reduce downtime. 

The platform offers many advanced computational features that may require custom infrastructures otherwise such as AI and machine learning, enhanced computing, bigger storage, large databases, and data analytics among others. The platform undergoes timely changes to incorporate more and more features as they are introduced to the market. 

There are over 150 products, from the below categories: 

• AI/ML
• Infrastructure
• Data and analytics 
• Developer tools 
• App development 
• Compute
• Networking 
• Serverless 
• Storage 
• Web 3 
• Containers 
• Hybrid and multi-cloud 
• Integration services 
• Management tools 
• Security and identity 
• Web and app hosting 
• Productivity and collaboration tools
• Retail
• Healthcare 
• Government 
• Financial services 
• Education 
• Gaming 
• Telecommunications 
• Manufacturing 

How Does Google Cloud Payment Work?

Google Cloud employs a pay-as-you-go pricing structure. You do not have to make any payment upfront, instead only pay for the services you use. You will be only charged as long as you are using the service. You can easily terminate Google Cloud at any time you want, without an extra cost. 

The platform allows users to set their spending budget, configure alerts to go off if the limit exceeds, and even set quota limits to prevent overspending. These tools are offered for free and users can configure them according to their preferences.

Additionally, the users can rely on AI-powered intelligent recommendations to further optimize the costs. Head over to the Google Cloud platform to calculate an estimated cost using a pricing calculator. 

Google Cloud Free Tier

The free tier offered by Google Cloud is great for people who are not one hundred percent sure about what they can expect to achieve from the service. There are three ways to get started for free on Google Cloud.

Every new customer in the free tier will receive $300 in free credit which can be used for trying out various Google Cloud products and getting a hands-on experience with the services.

You will be only charged once you activate the full paid account. You can also use the welcome bonus of $300 for deploying Google-recommended pre-built solutions including dynamic websites, load0balanced VM, and more. Last but not least, new users are provided with access to 20+ products with a free tier which is not charged against the welcome bonus. 

Benefits of Google Cloud

Here are some of the most notable benefits of Google Cloud:

1. Security: Google Cloud provides various security features such as critical management service, GCP security features, identity access management, and more to protect user data.
   
2. Global Datacenters: Google Cloud has data centres in all major parts of the works, in addition to localizing any issues or bugs, this global connectivity ensures compliance with government regulations that dictate using local data centres.
   
3. Integration of Innovative Technologies: Google Cloud continuously strives to better the services it offers by integrating new technologies and services into the mix. This is one of the major aspects that has contributed to the growth of Google Cloud.
   
4. A Large Variety of Products: Google Cloud provides more than 150 products from various categories, making it a comprehensive cloud provider. 

Limitations Google Cloud

Below are some of the limitations or drawbacks of Google Cloud: 

• Security Concerns: While Google Cloud ensures industry-best security practices, no measures can be 100% foolproof. The threats are becoming more and more advanced and all service providers including Google Cloud may need to be vigilant and constantly update their security protocols.
  
• Dynamic Pricing: Like most cloud services, Google Cloud employs a dynamic pricing mechanism that varies according to various factors including the region, features utilized, and even the number of requests.
  
• Limitation in Customer Support: Since Google Cloud has millions of customers, connecting to its customer support might not be too easy. So, it might take a bit more time to resolve your issues. 

Azure 

Azure is the cloud computing platform of Microsoft. They are one of the most popular cloud providers along with Google Cloud, and AWS. Azure offers more than 200 products and cloud services, that can help users find solutions for challenging computational storage problems without needing to install and maintain complex infrastructures. 

The platform has security at its core and is backed by a team of experts that regularly audits and amends the security measures. The millions of customers of Azure include several Fortune 500 companies, startups, small-scale and large-scale businesses, professionals, and even students.

You can use Azure for a wide range of products and services from categories such as 

• AI + machine learning
• Analytics
• Compute
• Containers
• Databases
• Developer tools
• DevOps
• Hybrid + multi-cloud
• Identity
• Integration
• Internet of Things
• Management and governance
• Media
• Migration
• Mixed reality
• Mobile
• Networking
• Security
• Storage
• Virtual desktop infrastructure
• Web

How Does Azure Payment Work?

Like the other service providers mentioned in this article, Azure also works in a pay-as-you-go payment model. The platform will notify the users at least 30 days in advance if there is any change in the rates of the services offered.

As the platform periodically adds new services to the portfolio, you may use it on a pay-as-you-go model. In this case, the platform will notify you in advance regarding any new fees related to the newly added services. Users can opt out of using such new additions to avoid confusion. 

Azure Free Tier

There are two groups of services that Azure provides for free accounts. While some are completely free, certain types of services can be partially free for a limited monthly amount.

Firstly, some of the most popular services on the Azure platform such as Azure Virtual machines, Azure blob storage, etc are offered free for the first 12 months of creating an account. Whereas services such as Azure SQL database, Azure app service, Azure functions, etc are kept always free for certain amounts, that renew every month. 

Advantages of Azure 

Here are some of the most noticeable benefits of Azure cloud computing service from Microsoft: 

1. Availability: Azure is a global platform that has regional data centres in various parts of the world, making it easily accessible. This availability can potentially reduce downtime and enhance the service’s bandwidth.
   
2. Security: Azure follows strong cybersecurity protocols that comply with industry standards to protect users against a host of cybersecurity threats.
   
3. Scalability: The services offered by Azure are scalable, meaning that you can reconfigure them to support more devices easily. You may also scale down your projects with just a click. 

4. Cost-Effective: Pay only for the services you are using, in a pay-as-you-go pricing model, which can be beneficial for better budgeting. 

Limitations Azure

Let’s examine some of the biggest drawbacks of Azure: 

• Requires Expertise: Users may require enough experience and expertise in Azure to use the services efficiently. However, as with many other cloud computing services finding someone with enough expertise in Azure can be a bit challenging.
  
• Confusing Pricing: While being cost-effective. pay-as-you-go method can be confusing for a lot of people.
  
• Requires Management: You may have to manage your services and monitor the processes to ensure seamless operation. 

Which Cloud Service Should You Choose?

There is no argument that all three cloud services mentioned in this article – AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure can be offer advanced solutions for your business in their own unique way. So, it is not about figuring out which one is the best among them, but which one is the best suited for your unique needs, and budget. 

The first thing you need to do is to outline all the services you would need, also consider the services you may require in the future as well. Then you can find a platform that offers those services. You may also want to prepare a budget and see if the platform’s pricing aligns with your budget. 

Explore More: Quantum Computing: Why We Need It? 

Final Thoughts

Cloud computing services have revolutionized online business dramatically over the years. They have become essential for businesses to thrive in the digital world.

In this article, we have explored deep into the differences between the most popular cloud services which are AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure. While all of them work similarly, they have their differences. To choose the best-suited cloud provider, you need to evaluate what your needs and budget are.