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Amazon EC2 Reviews

Vendor: Amazon Web Services (AWS)
4.3 out of 5
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What is Amazon EC2?

Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) is a web service that provides secure, resizable compute capacity in the cloud. It is designed to make web-scale cloud computing easier for developers.

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Amazon EC2 is the #6 ranked solution in top Compute Service solutions. PeerSpot users give Amazon EC2 an average rating of 8.6 out of 10. Amazon EC2 is most commonly compared to Apache Spark: Amazon EC2 vs Apache Spark. Amazon EC2 is popular among the large enterprise segment, accounting for 61% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a computer software company, accounting for 10% of all views.
Buyer's Guide
Amazon EC2
August 2025
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Amazon EC2 mindshare

As of August 2025, the mindshare of Amazon EC2 in the Compute Service category stands at 6.5%, down from 7.3% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Compute Service Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Amazon EC26.5%
AWS Lambda19.4%
AWS Batch18.9%
Other55.2%
Compute Service

PeerResearch reports based on Amazon EC2 reviews

TypeTitleDate
CategoryCompute ServiceAug 29, 2025Download
ProductReviews, tips, and advice from real usersAug 29, 2025Download
ComparisonAmazon EC2 vs AWS LambdaAug 29, 2025Download
ComparisonAmazon EC2 vs AWS FargateAug 29, 2025Download
ComparisonAmazon EC2 vs Amazon EC2 Auto ScalingAug 29, 2025Download
Suggested products
TitleRatingMindshareRecommending
Apache Spark4.212.0%90%67 interviewsAdd to research
AWS Lambda4.319.4%94%89 interviewsAdd to research
 
 
Key learnings from peers

Valuable Features

Key attributes of Amazon EC2 include its serverless architecture, scalability, and reliability. Users appreciate easy provisioning, cost flexibility, and integration with various operating systems. Security measures like Key Management Service and Trend Micro Security are valued. Auto-scaling and load balancing enhance performance and resource management. EC2's diverse instance types and pay-as-you-go model offer strong flexibility. It supports dynamic configurations, easy setup, and the ability to handle various workloads efficiently.
  • "From the features perspective, I find the most beneficial features of Amazon EC2 for server management to be very impactful."
  • "There is no better place to enjoy a relaxing afternoon with friendly staff, great coffee, and a cozy atmosphere that makes you feel right at home."
  • "EC2 instances on AWS allow users to run virtual servers based on the CPU, memory, storage, and networking capacity."

Room for Improvement

Amazon EC2 users highlight high costs and pricing issues that could be improved, especially for users with significant demand. They indicate a need for better integration with other AWS services and cloud systems. Simplification of customization, configuration, and migration is desired. Issues with network connectivity and manual processes during upgrades are noted. Users suggest improvements in technical support and a more user-friendly dashboard and UI. Additionally, features like direct console access would enhance user experience.
  • "There are some specific features, such as ML features and AI features, that I would to see included in the next releases of Amazon EC2."
  • "The pricing of Amazon EC2 can be expensive, so I would rate the pricing seven out of ten, where one is very cheap and ten is very expensive."
  • "One of the things that need to be looked into is the complex pricing, which is rather intense."

ROI

Amazon EC2 delivers a financial return through reduced infrastructure costs and operational efficiency by minimizing server management time and enabling rapid deployment. Users find value in its flexibility, cost savings, and ability to handle peak load demands without downtime. Despite being pricier than on-premises options with AWS rates varying by usage, many see a positive return as EC2 proves cheaper than traditional setups when accounting for installation, maintenance, and disaster recovery expenses.

Pricing

Enterprise users find Amazon EC2's pricing attractive for pay-as-you-go and reserved instance models, though costs often escalate with increased usage and high-demand workloads. Accurate cost prediction is challenging, with unseen expenses from storage and data transfers impacting budgets. The pricing structure is diverse, with licensing typically integrated or BYOL. While some users find the cost manageable, others report it as expensive compared to competitors like Google Cloud and Azure. Effective management and utilizing AWS's pricing tools could mitigate unexpected costs.
  • "We are paying about $1,500 a month for one of the services."
  • "It's competitive but can vary based on instance types and usage patterns."
  • "The price can be improved."

Popular Use Cases

Organizations use Amazon EC2 primarily to replicate physical VMs, host web servers and applications, manage development and staging environments, and enable cloud migration. They employ EC2 for database hosting, file transfer, and data transformation. EC2 supports various operating systems, allowing for flexible resource scaling and quick server provisioning. It is essential for running containerized applications, supporting front-end and back-end deployments, and integrating with infrastructure services like Kubernetes.

Service and Support

Amazon EC2 support is generally responsive and helpful. Customers find the team reacts quickly, with reliable service for technical issues. Some note responsiveness improves with a premium support package. Feedback varies on free support’s effectiveness. Documentation is often adequate for self-resolution. Users praise dedicated support partners for complex needs. Instances of slow issue resolution occur but are exceptions. Many rate the service highly, emphasizing satisfaction with the support experience.

Deployment

Many find Amazon EC2's initial setup straightforward, especially with prior technical knowledge, while some note complexity when integrating multiple services or non-standard configurations. Familiarity with AWS services aids in ease of deployment. Most setups are completed quickly, within minutes to a few hours, depending on requirements and expertise. Experienced users appreciate EC2's flexibility and efficiency, but initial challenges may arise for complex enterprise implementations, emphasizing the importance of understanding AWS best practices.

Scalability

Amazon EC2 is praised for its impressive scalability, allowing flexible growth on demand. Users appreciate its horizontal and vertical scaling capabilities, facilitated by auto-scaling features. While some encounter challenges switching instance types, many find EC2 to efficiently manage resource allocation during demand fluctuations. Organizations utilize EC2 to efficiently expand resources, benefiting from its robust architecture. Its scaling ability is rated highly, often close to perfect, enabling businesses to optimize costs and enhance operational efficiency.

Stability

Amazon EC2 is highly stable, with only occasional downtime and minimal performance degradation affecting some users. Instances are generally reliable, not prone to bugs or crashes. Many find its stability impressive, rating it between 8 and 10 out of 10. Issues arise with misconfigurations and availability zones, but tools like CloudWatch provide effective management. Auto scaling and load balancing improve reliability, making EC2 suitable for both small and large deployments.
These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.
Download our Amazon EC2 Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise22
By reviewers
By visitors reading reviews
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise21
Large Enterprise80
By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Educational Organization
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Performing Arts
5%
Transportation Company
5%
Media Company
4%
Government
4%
Real Estate/Law Firm
4%
Renewables & Environment Company
4%
University
4%
Healthcare Company
4%
Retailer
3%
Wholesaler/Distributor
2%
Outsourcing Company
2%
Hospitality Company
1%
Logistics Company
1%
Pharma/Biotech Company
1%
Wellness & Fitness Company
1%
Consumer Goods Company
1%
Construction Company
1%
Energy/Utilities Company
1%
Legal Firm
1%
Marketing Services Firm
1%
Engineering Company
1%
Non Profit
1%
Venture Capital & Private Equity Firm
1%
Recreational Facilities/Services Company
1%
Insurance Company
1%

Compare Amazon EC2 with alternative products

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Learn more about Amazon EC2

Amazon EC2’s simple web service interface allows you to obtain and configure capacity with minimal friction. It provides you with complete control of your computing resources and lets you run on Amazon’s proven computing environment. Amazon EC2 reduces the time required to obtain and boot new server instances to minutes, allowing you to quickly scale capacity, both up and down, as your computing requirements change. Amazon EC2 changes the economics of computing by allowing you to pay only for capacity that you actually use. Amazon EC2 provides developers the tools to build failure resilient applications and isolate them from common failure scenarios.

Amazon EC2 was previously known as Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud, EC2.

Amazon EC2 customers

Netflix, Expedia, TimeInc., Novaris, airbnb, Lamborghini

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Product Categories

Product Categories
Compute Service

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Amazon EC2 Reviews Summary
Author infoRatingReview Summary
AWS Architect at Corvit Networks4.5I've used Amazon EC2 for two years across various projects and found it scalable, reliable, and feature-rich, though somewhat expensive. Its elasticity, instance variety, and integration with AWS services have been especially valuable for efficient cloud operations.
senior Engineer manager at Poshmark Inc.4.0No summary available
Sr. Big data engineer at B-CITI Solutions Inc.5.0I find Amazon EC2 reliable for server management, security, and scalability, with smooth setup and good performance, though I hope for more AI/ML features in future. Overall, it’s cost-effective and I highly recommend it.
Senior AWS Account Manager at Silicon Overdrive4.5No summary available
Chief Technology Officer at Prognosys Medical Systems4.5No summary available
DevOps Engneer at SCL IT Technologies Pvt Ltd5.0No summary available
Solution Architect at Virtusa Global4.0I work for a company undergoing a cloud migration using Amazon EC2 for our infrastructure. Its valuable features include scalable resources and regional deployment, but pricing and instance detachment complexity need improvement. Competitors like Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud offer unique features.
AWS Lead at +OneX5.0We use Amazon EC2 for running containerized applications, appreciating its quick server setup and integration with AWS services like ECS and EKS. Despite its high cost, EC2 delivers consistent customer service, unlike our previous solution, Fargate, which had limitations.