Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure are the two largest public cloud platforms in the world. Both are secure, reliable and offer hundreds of services. For most businesses the question is not "which cloud is better?" but "which cloud is better for us?"
As a team that works with both platforms every day, we will walk through the practical differences and the questions that should drive your decision.
A quick overview
AWS launched in 2006 and pioneered cloud computing. It has the broadest catalog of services, a huge ecosystem of partners and tools, and is popular with startups, SaaS companies and digital-native businesses.
Azure is Microsoft's cloud platform. Its biggest strength is deep integration with the Microsoft ecosystem: Windows Server, SQL Server, .NET, Active Directory (now Microsoft Entra ID) and Microsoft 365. It is especially popular with enterprises and organizations that already run on Microsoft.
Key differences that matter
1. Your existing technology
If your business runs on Windows Server, SQL Server, .NET applications and Microsoft 365, Azure usually offers the smoothest path. You can reuse existing licenses with Azure Hybrid Benefit, extend your identity system with Entra ID and manage everything with familiar tools.
If you run Linux, open-source stacks, containers or are building a new cloud-native product, AWS is often the more natural fit thanks to its maturity and breadth of services.
2. Services and features
Both platforms cover the essentials: virtual machines, managed databases, object storage, serverless functions, containers, AI and analytics. AWS generally has the widest range of specialized services. Azure shines in hybrid cloud (Azure Arc), enterprise identity and Microsoft-centric workloads.
3. Pricing
Pricing is broadly competitive and both use pay-as-you-go models with discounts for commitments (AWS Savings Plans and Reserved Instances, Azure Reservations and Savings Plans). The biggest cost differences usually come from licensing (Windows and SQL Server are often cheaper on Azure with Hybrid Benefit) and from how well your environment is optimized. Both platforms can be expensive when poorly managed, which is why cost optimization matters more than list prices.
4. Hybrid and on-premises
If you need to keep some systems on-premises, Azure's hybrid tooling (Azure Arc, Azure Stack) is a strong advantage. AWS offers hybrid options too, such as AWS Outposts, but Azure is often preferred for hybrid Microsoft environments.
5. Security and compliance
Both platforms meet major compliance standards including HIPAA, SOC 2, PCI-DSS and FedRAMP. In both clouds, security is a shared responsibility: the provider secures the infrastructure, and you are responsible for configuring identity, networking and data protection correctly.
6. Team skills
Do not underestimate this. A cloud your team already understands will be cheaper and safer to run. If your IT staff are Microsoft-trained, Azure will feel familiar. If your developers have AWS experience, building on AWS will be faster.
Quick decision guide
- Choose Azure if you are Microsoft-centric, need hybrid cloud, or want to use existing Windows/SQL licenses.
- Choose AWS if you are building cloud-native or SaaS products, use Linux/open-source stacks, or want the broadest set of services.
- Consider both if different workloads have different needs. A multi-cloud approach managed with tools like Terraform is common.
Migrating to either cloud
Whichever platform you choose, a successful move starts with an assessment of your current servers, applications and costs, followed by a phased migration plan. Learn more about our AWS migration services and Azure migration services, or explore our AWS cloud services and Azure cloud services in full.
The bottom line
There is no universal winner. The right cloud is the one that fits your applications, licenses, compliance needs and team. If you are unsure, talk to us. We work with both AWS and Azure and will recommend what is genuinely best for your business.