Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head
Akamai vs Google Cloud Platform
Akamai
Cloud & Infrastructure
Leading content delivery and security platform
- From
- $1000/month
- Rated
- -
Google Cloud Platform
Cloud & Infrastructure
Trusted by millions of enterprises
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Google Cloud Platform has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Akamai only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price; Google Cloud Platform the $300 Free Trial credit expires 90 days from signup, whichever comes first with spending it
- They diverge on capability: Akamai covers CDN, Google Cloud Platform covers Compute Engine.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Akamai and Google Cloud Platform actually diverge.
| Attribute | Akamai | Google Cloud Platform |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $1000/month | Free |
| Pricing model | quote | usage-based |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Web, Api | Web, Api, Cli |
| Founded | 1998 | 2008 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud & Infrastructure).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Akamai
- CDN
- DDoS Protection
- Web Application Firewall
- Bot Management
- Image Optimization
- Video Platform
- API Gateway
- Analytics
Only in Google Cloud Platform
- Compute Engine
- App Engine
- Cloud Run
- Cloud Storage
- Cloud SQL
- BigQuery
- Dataflow
- Cloud Pub/Sub
Both cover
- Cloud deployment
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Akamai
- Content delivery and web performance through Ion and adaptive media deliverynot Google Cloud Platform
- DDoS protection, bot management and API securitynot Google Cloud Platform
- Running compute, Kubernetes and managed databases on Akamai's cloudnot Google Cloud Platform
- Edge compute with EdgeWorkersnot Google Cloud Platform
- Zero trust access for enterprise applicationsnot Google Cloud Platform
Google Cloud Platform
- Running compute, storage and managed data services on Google's cloudnot Akamai
- Hosting Kubernetes workloads on GKE alongside BigQuery analyticsnot Akamai
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Akamai
- Only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price
- Cloud pricing varies by region across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific rather than being a single rate
Google Cloud Platform
- The $300 Free Trial credit expires 90 days from signup, whichever comes first with spending it
- Free Tier Compute Engine is limited to one non-preemptible e2-micro instance per month and only in the us-west1, us-central1 or us-east1 regions
- Free Tier Compute Engine includes only 30 GB-months of standard persistent disk and 1 GB of outbound North America data transfer per month
- Free Tier Cloud Storage covers 5 GB-months of regional storage in US regions only, 5,000 Class A and 50,000 Class B operations per month
- Free Tier outbound data transfer allowances exclude destinations in China and Australia
- Compute Engine resources are governed by allocation quotas that require a quota increase request to exceed
Pricing, plan by plan
Akamai
$1000/month- CDN$1000/month
- Content delivery
- Global edge network
- Real-time analytics
- Security Suite$2000/month
- DDoS protection
- WAF
- Bot management
Google Cloud Platform
Free- Free TierFree
- Compute Engine 744 hours/month
- Cloud Storage 5GB
- Cloud SQL 250MB storage
Which should you pick?
Choose Google Cloud Platform if
- You need compute engine.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api, Cli.
- You also want app engine.
Questions people ask
- Is Akamai or Google Cloud Platform better?
- Neither clearly leads. Akamai starts at $1000/month and Google Cloud Platform at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Akamai or Google Cloud Platform?
- Google Cloud Platform has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $1000/month for Akamai and Free for Google Cloud Platform.
- Does Akamai or Google Cloud Platform run on more platforms?
- Akamai runs on Web, Api. Google Cloud Platform runs on Web, Api, Cli.
- Can I use Google Cloud Platform for free?
- Yes. Google Cloud Platform has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Akamai starts at $1000/month.
- What is Akamai best used for?
- Akamai is most often used for content delivery and web performance through ion and adaptive media delivery, ddos protection, bot management and api security, running compute, kubernetes and managed databases on akamai's cloud, edge compute with edgeworkers. Of those, content delivery and web performance through ion and adaptive media delivery and ddos protection, bot management and api security are not what Google Cloud Platform is typically brought in for.
- What can Akamai do that Google Cloud Platform cannot?
- Akamai covers CDN, DDoS Protection, Web Application Firewall, Bot Management. Google Cloud Platform covers Compute Engine, App Engine, Cloud Run, Cloud Storage. Both handle Cloud deployment.