Amazon Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Red Hat are both solutions in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #13 with an average rating of 8.5, while Red Hat is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.8. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 0.7% mindshare in OSB, compared to Red Hat’s 7.4% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Red Hat users who would recommend it.

Amazon Linux

Read 27 Amazon Linux reviews

1,303 Views
873 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...

Read 393 Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) reviews

19,529 Views
19,138 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Amazon Linux

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Amazon Linux compete in the enterprise Linux distribution space. RHEL excels in support and security, while Amazon Linux offers seamless AWS integration, making it often preferable for cloud-native applications.

Features: RHEL offers robust security, a certified ecosystem of hardware partners, and stable long-term support. Amazon Linux integrates with AWS, providing easy access to cloud-native tools without extra cost, and benefits from AWS ecosystem synergy.

Room for Improvement: RHEL could improve cloud-native compatibility and reduce deployment complexity. Amazon Linux could enhance enterprise-level support features, improve adoption for non-technical users, and offer more comprehensive security tools.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: RHEL provides robust deployment tools and professional customer support but can be more complex to deploy. Amazon Linux is known for straightforward AWS deployment and offers strong AWS-specific support.

Pricing and ROI: RHEL requires a subscription model with setup costs but offers solid ROI. Amazon Linux incurs no additional cost with AWS, enhancing immediate cost-effectiveness and rapid ROI for cloud projects.

To learn more, read our detailed Amazon Linux vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Amazon Linux vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

March 2026

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Helped 884,873 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

ROI

Sentiment score

4.8

Amazon Linux users saved costs, improved productivity, and achieved operational stability with quick setups and AWS integration, boosting ROI.

Sentiment score

6.2

RHEL enhances efficiency, reduces costs, ensures stability, and boosts productivity through automation, manageability, and community support.

With Amazon Linux, selecting and launching instances on a public cloud provider means the machine spins up in fewer than ten seconds, making it efficient.

reviewer2797587

Cloud Solution Engineer at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees

One great feature is LTS, which is long-term support provided by Amazon itself.

SAURAB K GANGURDE

Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators

We saved 30% in terms of the cloud infrastructure.

reviewer2785038

Senior Data Engineer at a transportation company with 501-1,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Amazon Linux report

A long lifecycle is key to having a good return on investment.

Troels Hansen

Architect at KnowIT

Being able to transform common manual tasks that previously took all day into processes that take an hour, half an hour, or even less, demonstrates clear value.

Chris Perrault

Systems administrator at a retailer with 501-1,000 employees

Red Hat Enterprise Linux has saved us time and increased productivity.

Syed Azhar

Cloud engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

6.5

Amazon Linux's customer service is praised for round-the-clock support, knowledgeable guidance, and effective support plans tailored to user needs.

Sentiment score

7.1

RHEL's support is efficient and knowledgeable, often surpassing competitors, though response times may vary by support agent.

Amazon has the best expertise and they are available 24/7.

SAURAB K GANGURDE

Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators

Timely and helpful responses for performance, updates, or AWS integration issues.

Anastasiya Sousa

QA Engineer at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

It offers specific advantages and constraints depending on the use case.

reviewer2738745

Cloud Architect at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Amazon Linux report

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) support is great, as they go beyond their duty to help resolve issues and provide solutions even for third-party software such as XRDP.

Antoine Ragland

Senior Infrastructure Systems Administrator at a healthcare company with 1,001-5,000 employees

When we do contact customer service, they are generally very knowledgeable and well-versed in our size.

Tucker Hewitt

Solutions Architect at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees

Usually, I send the information, and they have something for me within hours, sometimes even minutes.

ChristianLopez

Team manager at Evertec

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

6.7

Amazon Linux offers excellent scalability and efficiency in AWS, though instance restart times could be improved for better performance.

Sentiment score

7.2

RHEL excels in scalability, adapting efficiently to diverse needs across platforms while users praise its reliable performance management.

The beauty here is that we can scale it immediately, which also saves cost.

SAURAB K GANGURDE

Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators

The scalability of Amazon Linux is very good; we run it on top of scalable EC2 instances, and we do not find any issues there.

Karthikeyan Janakiraman

Senior Software Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

Amazon Linux is highly scalable because it allows for EC2 instances to scale up and down based on what you want.

reviewer2795433

Cloud Ops Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

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Many of our applications scale really well, with some having several hundreds of VMs, which we couldn't accomplish on Windows.

Sean Doyle

Solutions Architect at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) scales very well with the growing needs of our company.

Sheldon Kroner

Director, DevOps at Lightedge Solutions

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) handles increases in users, applications, or data smoothly, which is why we use it for all our projects, as it provides us with confidence.

reviewer2753943

Cloud Administrator at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

8.4

Amazon Linux is praised for stability, security, and robustness, ensuring minimal downtime and reliable performance in production environments.

Sentiment score

7.8

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is praised for stability, minimal downtime, strong support, efficient patches, and swift bug resolutions.

Combined with AWS managed infrastructure, it provides enterprise-grade reliability suitable for production workloads.

Deva Rugved

Software Engineer at INSTITUTE OF AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING

My applications had a high availability (HA) environment, so even when one availability zone was down, traffic moved to a different availability zone without any issues.

SAURAB K GANGURDE

Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators

We evaluated Amazon Linux, and it is very stable.

Karthikeyan Janakiraman

Senior Software Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Amazon Linux report

It works consistently with minimal downtime and very few bugs or glitches.

reviewer2592627

Senior DevOps Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

It just works, and that's really the key factor; I can't remember the last time we had a system go down and had to restore it due to a bad patch.

Jason Cummings

Senior software engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

We've not had a service outage with Red Hat in six years.

ScottPalmer

Team Lead, Linux Systems & Tools at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Room For Improvement

Amazon Linux needs better vendor integration, frequent updates, compatibility, documentation, support, patch compliance, and hybrid/multi-cloud capabilities.

Enhancing RHEL user experience involves improving documentation, setup, security, training, automation, updates, integration, support, and interface.

Documentation explaining the differences between Ubuntu and Amazon Linux would be valuable.

Tim Robles

full stack developer at 71Lbs

Since we are working in a real-time manner and need to scale things immediately, the time it takes to boot an instance and then deploy things is preventing me from giving it a perfect rating.

reviewer2785038

Senior Data Engineer at a transportation company with 501-1,000 employees

My advice for others looking into using Amazon Linux is to make sure the command line is easy and that Amazon Linux has more performance than other Linux environments and is more secure than other Linux environments as well.

Arjun Parmar

DevOps Engineer at Wissen infotech

For more quotes and insights, download the Amazon Linux report

Addressing these limitations would significantly enhance the operating system's flexibility and efficiency.

reviewer2592627

Senior DevOps Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

The built-in security features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux were insufficient for our needs, necessitating the implementation of supplementary security measures.

reviewer2591346

IT Infrastructure Engineer at a manufacturing company with 11-50 employees

By providing pre-installed, native automation tools within the operating system, Red Hat would streamline processes and improve user efficiency.

reviewer2620827

Systems Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Setup Cost

Amazon Linux is cost-effective with no licensing fees, easy setup, predictable costs, and supports budget-friendly Graviton instances.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux's pricing is cost-effective for enterprises needing support, despite free alternatives, with simplified and appealing licensing.

With Amazon Linux itself, there is no cost associated with using it, so I would say it is very good from a pricing perspective.

reviewer2795433

Cloud Ops Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

If I am a new AWS customer, the AWS Free Tier typically includes, for the first six months, micro instances such as t2.micro or t3.micro for free.

Deva Rugved

Software Engineer at INSTITUTE OF AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING

I am paying around $300 to $400 per month because I use many services.

Jagadeesh J

Software Engineer at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Amazon Linux report

It may be considered expensive compared to other solutions like CentOS or Ubuntu, which offer some of the same features without additional costs.

Sitakanta Chaudhury

Cloud Infrastructure Architect at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees

Its pricing has room for improvement because it's more expensive in the local market due to purchasing power parity in India.

Syed Azhar

Cloud engineer at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

Windows Servers base their cost on the number of users and have high licensing fees, while Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers free versions alongside its paid, supported versions.

reviewer2592627

Senior DevOps Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Valuable Features

Amazon Linux enhances productivity and security with AWS integration, cost-effectiveness, and efficient resource use, boosting overall organizational efficiency.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers robust security, flexibility, and comprehensive management, enhancing reliability, scalability, and operational efficiency for organizations.

Amazon Linux handles this automatically. It is optimized for EC2, AWS hardware and software, mostly secure and stable, and there is no additional cost.

SAURAB K GANGURDE

Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators

In terms of service security, there are many constraint security protocols and policies that help me create our own networks, security groups, and inline policies.

Jagadeesh J

Software Engineer at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees

Amazon Linux's security updates have been helpful in general because I have had to be more specific in using the Identity Access Management (IAM) service so that we can have role-based permissions in preference to just keeping it open.

Steven Alila

Fullstack Developer at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Amazon Linux report

It also has strong security features, is OIS and FIPS certified, and has built-in Linux security configurations.

Sitakanta Chaudhury

Cloud Infrastructure Architect at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees

There is also no downtime.

Siphosethu Ndebele

Linux/DevOps Engineer at Ekwantu Consulting

The operating system allows for the simple addition of kernels, modules, and other applications, making it highly adaptable to various needs.

reviewer2641572

Technical Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) report

Categories and Ranking

Amazon Linux

Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business

13th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (R...

Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business

1st

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

393

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Amazon Linux is 0.7%, up from 0.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is 7.4%, down from 10.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Operating Systems (OS) for Business Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)	7.4%
Amazon Linux	0.7%
Other	91.9%

Operating Systems (OS) for Business

Featured Reviews

SAURAB K GANGURDE

Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators

“Amazon Linux delivers automated security updates— including live kernel patching in AL2023—ensuring protected workloads with minimal manual effort and zero-downtime patching.”

One improvement for Amazon Linux would be stronger support for running it outside AWS. Although Amazon provides local VM images for VirtualBox and VMware, they are intended mainly for development and testing. Unlike Ubuntu, Debian, or Red Hat, Amazon Linux is not designed or fully supported as a production OS in on-prem or hybrid environments. Expanding official support outside AWS would offer more flexibility for teams that maintain mixed infrastructure. Another area for improvement is the community ecosystem. Compared to Ubuntu or Red Hat, Amazon Linux has a smaller community and fewer third-party resources or tutorials. A larger ecosystem would make troubleshooting and adoption easier. Finally, improving backward compatibility between Amazon Linux 2 and Amazon Linux 2023—especially around package management (DNF vs yum) and updated toolchains—would simplify upgrades for teams managing large fleets.

Read full review

Ray Ortega

Server administrator at Northrop Grumman

Empowers collaboration through streamlined integration and extensive documentation

Improving Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) can be tough, however, a significant area is collaboration tools. We have many Windows users that use Outlook and Skype or Teams to collaborate on our network. They want Linux desktops due to the fact that they want to use containers. Their biggest complaint is, 'I need two workstations to do my container work and one to collaborate.' If somehow RHEL can start introducing or collaborating with Teams and Outlook so their users can work with their Windows peers, that would be great. But I don't think that's available yet. Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing, there needs to be more of an education piece to it. For instance, when purchasing 10 or 100 node licenses, they could suggest, 'We also offer this 1,000 node license instead, and it'll save you specific amounts.' Just more education on their offerings would be helpful, because usually, we're coming out with the requirements, and then they just provide it to us. They could inform us about saving by bundling it differently or using alternative approaches.

Read full review

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Comparison Review

it_user281973

Storage and VMware Expert at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Aug 24, 2017

It's improved our company's system environments that run Oracle databases.

Red Hat is mission critical to our environment Red Hat has improved the mission critical environments running Oracle databases, while CentOS has improved our web environment and MySQL. Oracle and SAP Environment and all HPC environments. 10 years No issues Very stable i don´t find any problem…

Read full review

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

15%

Outsourcing Company

12%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Government

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	15

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	91
Midsize Enterprise	49
Large Enterprise	268

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Amazon Linux?

From a technical perspective, Amazon Linux could improve in broader availability of third-party packages, simplified system-level troubleshooting tools, and more beginner-focused system administrat...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Amazon Linux?

My primary use case was Amazon Linux as the default operating system for EC2 instances supporting Docker-based container deployments, CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins, Kubernetes worker nodes, back-en...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Amazon Linux?

Amazon Linux is an operating system, and I can install any of the other tools such as DevOps tools and other back-end services, back-end servers, and also AWS tools. I primarily used it in an EC2 i...

See all answers

Which would you choose - RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux) or CentOS?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is fantastic. It is an inexpensive solution that has excellent security, performance, and stability, and also lots of features. I specifically like that the solution has fe...

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What do you like most about Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?

It is open source. We can customize it as per our requirements.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)?

Regarding the pricing of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) subscription, I believe the pricing is fair. The support that Red Hat provides is very good. Whenever I encounter issues, Red Hat always pro...

See all answers

Comparisons

Debian vs Amazon Linux

Compared 20% of the time

Kali Linux vs Amazon Linux

Compared 10% of the time

CentOS vs Amazon Linux

Compared 9% of the time

Rocky Linux vs Amazon Linux

Compared 9% of the time

AlmaLinux vs Amazon Linux

Compared 9% of the time

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SUSE Linux Enterprise vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 12% of the time

Windows Server vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 10% of the time

Rocky Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 9% of the time

Ubuntu Linux vs Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Compared 8% of the time

More Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Amazon Linux

March 2026

Download Amazon Linux product report

Buyer's Guide

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

March 2026

Download Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) product report

Also Known As

No data available

Red Hat Enterprise Linux, RHEL, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for AWS

Overview

Amazon Linux is a secure and stable distribution for cloud environments, optimized for AWS performance. It is widely adopted by developers seeking minimal disruption in deployment and management, offering a seamless operational experience.

Developed by Amazon Web Services, Amazon Linux provides an environment streamlined for performance on AWS infrastructure. By offering long-term support and regular security updates, it ensures crucial security and reliability. It is tailored to enhance cloud-centric application development, making it a preferred choice for developers needing efficient resource management. Its compatibility with a wide range of AWS tools and services makes it highly adaptable for cloud-native solutions.

What are the key features of Amazon Linux?

Security: Offers frequent updates and security patches for a reliable operating environment.
Performance: Optimized for AWS, improving speed and efficiency.
Flexibility: Easily customizable to meet specific application needs.
Long-term Support: Provides extended software support to reduce maintenance overhead.

What benefits or ROI should users look for in Amazon Linux reviews?

Integrated AWS Tools: Improves workflow efficiency by seamless integration with AWS ecosystem.
Regular Updates: Ensures up-to-date security and performance features.
Cost Efficiency: Reduces operational costs with optimized cloud resources.
Developer Satisfaction: Enhances developer productivity with streamlined resource management.

In industries such as finance and healthcare, Amazon Linux is used to develop cloud applications that require secure data handling and robust performance. Media companies appreciate its flexibility and speed in managing high-demand scenarios, ensuring scalable content delivery and reliable performance.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers stability, security, and support for mission-critical applications with robust tools and scalable architecture, ideal for diverse environments and hybrid cloud compatibility.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux provides organizations with a reliable platform ideal for high-performance computing and virtualization. Known for its robust security and seamless network administration, it integrates well with OpenShift and Ansible, ensuring adaptability and scalability. Despite challenges with documentation, upgrade complexity, and cost, RHEL remains a formidable choice thanks to its comprehensive documentation and extensive community support.

What are the key features of Red Hat Enterprise Linux?

Stability and Security: Maintains high stability and advanced security measures, critical for enterprise environments.
Extensive Support: Offers robust support through community and documentation, assisting with problem-solving and integration.
Automation with Ansible: Simplifies tasks and enhances efficiency, optimizing operations across the infrastructure.
Hybrid Cloud Compatibility: Supports cloud environments, enabling flexibility and strategic deployments.
Scalable Architecture: Adapts to different workloads, making it suitable for growing organizational demands.

What benefits should users look for when evaluating Red Hat Enterprise Linux?

Reliable Performance: Ensures consistent and secure operations across diverse environments, including cloud infrastructure.
Efficient Management: Centralized operations make it easy to manage enterprise workloads effectively.
Community and Documentation: Access to a strong community and comprehensive documentation aids in resolving issues.
Integration Capabilities: Easily integrates with technologies like OpenShift and SAP, enhancing operational versatility.
Adaptability: Supports a wide range of environments and technical requirements, improving strategic deployment.

Organizations across industries like financial services, telecommunications, and application hosting implement Red Hat Enterprise Linux for server and application management. Its compatibility with technologies such as SAP, Oracle, and Ansible supports functions including web, database, and enterprise solutions, ensuring stable and secure performance in high-pressure environments.

Red Hat

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Travel Channel, Mohawk Industries, Hilti, Molecular Health, Exolgan, Hotelplan Group, Emory University, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina, HCA Healthcare, Paychex, UPS, Intermountain Healthcare, Brinker International, TransUnion, Union Bank, CA Technologies

Buyer's Guide

Amazon Linux vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

March 2026

Free Report: Amazon Linux vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon Linux vs. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.

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