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Cloud Software Engineer at a comms service provider with 51-200 employees
Real User
Top 5
Security measures in accessing files enhanced with acceptable pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "Amazon CloudFront provides valuable security by ensuring secure file access when accessing files from S3."
  • "It might benefit from multi-region support to enhance performance."

What is our primary use case?

My primary use case involves setting up Amazon CloudFront and then using C# code to generate a token to get files from the S3 bucket. It mainly provides an additional security layer when accessing files.

What is most valuable?

Amazon CloudFront provides valuable security by ensuring secure file access when accessing files from S3. This security layer is essential for maintaining privacy and data protection in our operations.

I recommend Amazon CloudFront for situations requiring secure file management in the cloud environment.

What needs improvement?

I haven't worked extensively with CloudFront to identify any specific areas that need improvement. However, it might benefit from multi-region support to enhance performance.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Amazon CloudFront for one year.

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Amazon CloudFront
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Amazon CloudFront. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Amazon CloudFront has been very stable and reliable in my experience. It has performed well for our specific use cases.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have not yet performed any large-scale performance tests, so I cannot comment on the scalability of Amazon CloudFront.

How are customer service and support?

I have not contacted Amazon for any technical issues, so I cannot comment on their technical support. However, in general service interactions, they have been very helpful.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I also use Azure's cloud environment.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of CloudFront is not straightforward and requires some research, however, it is not overly complicated. On a scale of one to ten, where ten is the easiest, I would rate it a five.

What about the implementation team?

I handle the deployment and implementation of Amazon CloudFront by myself.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing for Amazon CloudFront is acceptable and comparable to similar solutions.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I have experience with Azure's cloud environment - not with other CDN services like Fastly or Azure Front Door.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend Amazon CloudFront when security for files is a priority. Overall, I would rate the solution at eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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RamaChandra Rao Vadranam - PeerSpot reviewer
AWS Developer at a insurance company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 5
Boosts global reach with effective content delivery and cache management
Pros and Cons
  • "The most beneficial feature is capturing the static data, which is crucial for our operations."
  • "There is a bit of a workaround required for custom domain management on CloudFront."

What is our primary use case?

I primarily use it to serve static content and to provide an additional call drive to the API Gateway.

How has it helped my organization?

It is very effective in enhancing our application's global reach with its distributed network across geographical locations. It has improved both the performance and reach of our applications.

What is most valuable?

The most beneficial feature is capturing the static data, which is crucial for our operations.

What needs improvement?

There is a bit of a workaround required for custom domain management on CloudFront. Mapping the domain involves some complexity with the domain provider, and it's tricky when doing it for the first time.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using CloudFront for five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability is good. It does not face significant issues or break down.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability is good, there are no issues observed.

How are customer service and support?

Customer support is rated six out of ten due to knowledge-related aspects.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is not straightforward and requires some prior knowledge and experience.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

CloudFront is relatively cheap and worth the money.

What other advice do I have?

One needs to be aware of how data caching works, especially when trying to refresh data, as it involves cache invalidation, which requires some management.

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Buyer's Guide
Amazon CloudFront
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Amazon CloudFront. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Consultant at NatWest Group
Real User
Top 5
Easy to use, easy to configure, reduces latency, and enables quicker site refreshes
Pros and Cons
  • "The product provides reduced latency and quicker site refreshes."
  • "The support must be improved."

What is our primary use case?

We work for a bank. We use the solution to host some public websites. The CDN hosts images and static content related to the website. We are not working in an active production environment. Currently, we are conducting User Acceptance Testing. We have only released it to a few focus development groups to check how the site is used.

What is most valuable?

I like the solution’s ease of use and configuration. Getting the certificate signed and using it in CDN was easy. It is easy to configure. The product is easy to configure compared to other AWS services. We can choose locations close to our users. It helps reduce latency and improves the time it takes to refresh the site.

What needs improvement?

It normally takes over a day to get a reply from the support team. The support must be improved.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for seven months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We are still testing the tool in the UAT phase. So far, our experience with the tool’s stability has been good.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Globally, we have 60,000 to 80,000 users. We plan to deploy a full-scale production. We might have almost five million users.

How are customer service and support?

The support team does not provide immediate responses.

How was the initial setup?

The setup was straightforward. Most of the features are available out of the box. The learning experience was very straightforward. The answers to a lot of our questions were available in the UI. There is a link that we can click to learn more about the features. It was quite user-friendly. The tool is deployed on the cloud.

The setup time was much less when we deployed the tool on the cloud. The procurement of the services, testing, and deployment was quick and easy compared to on-premise provisioning. We have a team of eight people for deployment, including managers, developers, and testers. The setup was very smooth and easy to configure.

What was our ROI?

The product provides reduced latency and quicker site refreshes. We have seen a significant improvement over the on-premise version we used earlier. The sites appear faster to the users.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The product must enable cost optimization. We do not have many options to optimize costs. Most of the prices are fixed. It would be good if the vendor could provide different tiers or allow users to optimize prices.

What other advice do I have?

We have not used the security features to the fullest extent. Initially, we had an on-premises solution. I recommend that people use the tool. Overall, I rate the product an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Consultant at NatWest Group
Real User
Top 5
The support team is knowledgeable, but the user interface could be more user-friendly
Pros and Cons
  • "The support team is knowledgeable."
  • "The UI could be more user-friendly."

What is our primary use case?

We used the solution to host a public website.

What is most valuable?

The support team is knowledgeable.

What needs improvement?

The UI could be more user-friendly. There were a lot of technical terms on the UI page.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for three to four months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Once the product was deployed, it was stable. Other than human errors, we did not face any issues. I rate the stability an eight out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The product is quite scalable. Even high-definition images load up pretty quickly. I rate the scalability an eight out of ten. We have 20,000 users.

How are customer service and support?

The response time is better than that of Microsoft.

How was the initial setup?

Getting the correct documents for the setup was a little difficult. It was easier to find information on Microsoft. It took us a few weeks to deploy the tool. It is a cloud-based solution. Some configuration parameters were a little difficult to understand. I had to go through a lot of documents to understand the configurations.

What about the implementation team?

The deployment was done in-house. We had five members, including managers, on our technical team.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We developed POCs using Amazon CloudFront and Windows Azure CDN. The functionalities of both products are the same. We used Amazon S3 and Amazon CloudFront for hosting. We also did automation using AWS Lambda.

What other advice do I have?

People who want to use the solution must first go through the documentation. It is much easier than directly jumping into the service. The documentation helps us understand what we need to get the configuration done. Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Infrastructure manager
Real User
Top 5
A CDN solution that has rich documentation and resources
Pros and Cons
  • "The beneficial feature for the entire AWS community is the presence of edge location servers. These servers are strategically located in multiple locations, allowing efficient content delivery from the nearest server."
  • "The solution can benefit from expanding its data center and server locations to multiple places for smoother content delivery with even lower latency. The latency we experience is sufficient for our needs, and we are doing well. However, if they expand their locations in the future, it could be a positive factor. Its competitors have multiple data and server locations."

What is our primary use case?

We use Amazon CloudFront for various purposes based on our needs and budget considerations. For instance, if we have live content like static images or videos that should be quickly accessible on our website, the tool is handy. It enables us to deliver content swiftly to end users. The cache features also reduce the need to access the origin server, optimizing our website speed.

How has it helped my organization?

Previously, we were directly fetching videos from our Amazon S3 URL, resulting in slow image loading and high latency on our landing page. To address this, we explored Amazon CloudFront features with edge locations to improve content delivery speed. We integrated Amazon S3 with Amazon CloudFront, and now all content is served through the product, leading to better optimization than our previous setup.

What is most valuable?

The beneficial feature for the entire AWS community is the presence of edge location servers. These servers are strategically located in multiple locations, allowing efficient content delivery from the nearest server. 

We opted for the tool because we already used the Amazon S3 bucket. Since Amazon CloudFront is an AWS feature, integrating it with our S3 bucket was easy. Transferring data from one source to another within AWS is straightforward. The process might have been more time-consuming if we had chosen a different CDN provider. Amazon CloudFront, a managed service by AWS, offers an easy integration solution.

What needs improvement?

The solution can benefit from expanding its data center and server locations to multiple places for smoother content delivery with even lower latency. The latency we experience is sufficient for our needs, and we are doing well. However, if they expand their locations in the future, it could be a positive factor. Its competitors have multiple data and server locations. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with the product for five years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the tool's stability a nine out of ten. Customization is easy with the product. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate Amazon CloudFront's scalability a ten out of ten. I use it 24/7. 

How are customer service and support?

AWS technical support can't be fully assessed at the moment. In the basic support plan, users have the option to open basic support tickets, and AWS provides choices for responses through calls or live chat. To access advanced technical support, users need to subscribe to premium plans. Its response time is quick. Though they give a timeframe of 24 hours, support is immediately initiated.  

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I have used Akamai CDN before. I chose the product since it integrates easily with my internal system. It is widely used and comes with rich documentation and resources. 

How was the initial setup?

The tool's deployment is easy. For inexperienced resources, I rate deployment difficulty an eight out of ten. For me, it's nine point five out of ten. The product comes with a vast amount of resources and documentation. 

We had a deadline of one and a half months. However, we could go into production within four weeks, i.e., 25 days. Deployment includes quality assurance and staging processes. One resource is enough to handle the deployment process. The person responsible for deploying the solution should know CI/CD processes. They should understand security compliance, gate methodologies, and the functioning of code push and pull. Familiarity with Webhooks and the dashboard of AWS CodePipeline or check kits is necessary.

Once the setup is done, the tool doesn't require frequent changes. Two resources are needed for maintenance, and one would be enough later. 

What was our ROI?

We have seen an ROI of 45 percent with the tool's use. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I rate the product's pricing an eight out of ten. The licensing follows a pay-as-you-go model. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Muhammad Burhan Sultan - PeerSpot reviewer
Wordpress Developer & AWS Solution Architect at Seahorse Data
Real User
Top 5
Simplified integration and easy to scale up or down with effective speed optimization
Pros and Cons
  • "The best feature of Amazon CloudFront is its simplified process and easy integration."
  • "There are some solutions needed for integration that are not free."

What is our primary use case?

We use Amazon CloudFront for offloading our media libraries for WordPress. It is mostly used for our clients' websites where we need to use a CDN for speed optimization of websites.

How has it helped my organization?

Using Amazon CloudFront drastically increases the performance of websites. The integration process is simplified and clear, especially with the plugin we use. This has improved our speed optimization effectively.

What is most valuable?

The best feature of Amazon CloudFront is its simplified process and easy integration. The plugin we use does most of the work, making it easy for us. The speed optimization is another valuable feature.

What needs improvement?

There are some solutions needed for integration that are not free. It would be better if there was a straightforward way to configure it without additional costs.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Amazon CloudFront for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I do not remember having any difficulty with stability while using Amazon CloudFront.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Amazon CloudFront is easy to scale up or down as needed.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of Amazon CloudFront requires experience and expertise.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I haven't compared pricing with other solutions, so I can't comment on it. Usually, it depends on the number of files you are uploading and the resources you are distributing. It is a pay-as-you-go model.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend Amazon CloudFront to other people.

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Elham AlMoosawi - PeerSpot reviewer
Global Business Client Partnership Management at Bahrain Telecommunication Company BSC (Batelco)
Reseller
Top 20
Commendable solution enhancing regional connectivity and efficiency
Pros and Cons
  • "Its main advantage is that it offers something in this region that wasn't available before; previously, you had to go outside of the region to get the same level of service that you can now access right here in Bahrain. It's truly incredible. Building this IX has significantly changed how traffic is handled. The technical support is good. The initial setup is very straightforward. I rate the solution a perfect ten."
  • "The only issues we've faced were when AWS itself had problems, and that's very rare. I can only recall one instance when they had issues, but they managed to resolve it quickly."

What is our primary use case?

Our newest AWS connection was initially in Europe and we experienced very high latency. However, bringing it to Bahrain has drastically improved performance, not just for us but for all the regional operators connected to our ISN, including entities in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. The ultimate users of these services are the enterprises themselves. However, we don't sell directly to them. Instead, we sell to operators, both Bahraini and regional, who then sell the services to the enterprises.

How has it helped my organization?

Its main advantage is that it offers something in this region that wasn't available before; previously, you had to go outside the region to get the same level of service you can now access right here in Bahrain. It's truly incredible. Our customers are more interested in accessing CDNs and peering with each other. Moreover, building this IX has significantly changed how traffic is handled. It has enabled better regional connectivity and access to content, which was our main goal. It has saved us money and time.

What needs improvement?

The only issues we've faced were when AWS itself had problems, and that's very rare. I can only recall one instance when they had issues, but they managed to resolve it quickly.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for three years now.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is good.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very straightforward. We support our customers by shipping the equipment and providing all the necessary information they need. Our team receives and keeps the equipment until the customer is ready to install it. The deployment time depends on the customer, but we provide all the support and cross-connects they need. We've even done same-day setups when needed. While not everything is urgent, we're happy to accommodate when there is a sense of urgency.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The tool is affordable.

What other advice do I have?

Going for the tool really depends on the preferences of the company. Both Azure and AWS have their own advantages and disadvantages, which is why they're both in the market today. Some people prefer using Microsoft Azure, while others prefer AWS. However, it's important to note that switching from one cloud provider to another is not an easy decision. It requires a significant investment of time and effort in training and setting up equipment on a particular cloud platform.

Overall, I rate the solution a perfect ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. reseller
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Guilherme Golabek Brein - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager Consultant at Alvarez & Marsal
Consultant
Top 10
A stable CDN that distributed content much closer to users
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is the number of servers they can put your content in while being reliable."
  • "The user interface could be improved."

What is our primary use case?

I've used CloudFront, as the company's CDN, to distribute content across better local servers to help the final user perform better.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature is the number of servers they can put your content in while being reliable. They are stable. It's a strong feature that helps distribute content close to the users.

What needs improvement?

The user interface could be improved. It's much easier to control or see financial results from similar solutions from Google.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is very stable. I can only remember one or two times that the product was unstable, but overall, it is very hard for something to go wrong.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very scalable.

How are customer service and support?

In the free tier, you receive very little support from Amazon. You get more support with premium support, but I believe Amazon lacks documentation. This is mainly a problem with people like us from abroad because it's not common for them to translate materials, and they are closed off from the community, so they do not offer the greatest support.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Neutral

How was the initial setup?

It takes a long time to deploy the solution, but the most difficult part is deploying it nicely. The user should fine-tune the configuration to achieve the solution's full potential.

Depending on the complexity of the deployment, the number of people required varies. Just deploying the CDN on the cloud is not hard. If you have one or two good developers, they can deploy the solution themselves.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I rate Amazon CloudFront's pricing a five out of ten.

What other advice do I have?

Amazon CloudFront is not the most complex application for Amazon to set up, but some complexities could be improved to get the most of the power out of this service. However, the solution works perfectly when designed well by the architect.

I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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