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Alibaba Cloud vs Amazon RDS

Alibaba Cloud logo

Alibaba Cloud

Software

Asia's leading cloud computing provider

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Amazon RDS logo

Amazon RDS

Software

Set up, operate, and scale a relational database in the cloud

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Alibaba Cloud has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Alibaba Cloud technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included; Amazon RDS no super-user access or direct host connectivity limits advanced customization
  • They diverge on capability: Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Amazon RDS covers Multiple DB Engines.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Alibaba Cloud and Amazon RDS actually diverge.

Attributes where Alibaba Cloud and Amazon RDS differ
AttributeAlibaba CloudAmazon RDS
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelusage-basedUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Api, CliAWS Cloud, Multi-AZ, Multi-region
Founded20092006

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Alibaba Cloud

  • Elastic Compute Service
  • Object Storage Service
  • RDS Database
  • MaxCompute
  • Function Compute
  • CDN
  • Load Balancer
  • API Gateway

Only in Amazon RDS

  • Multiple DB Engines
  • Automated Backups
  • Multi-AZ Deployment
  • Read Replicas
  • Encryption
  • Performance Insights
  • Automatic Scaling
  • MySQL

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in China and Asia Pacificnot Amazon RDS
  • Pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitmentnot Amazon RDS
  • Committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloadsnot Amazon RDS
  • CDN and data transfer packages for content deliverynot Amazon RDS

Amazon RDS

  • Transaction processingnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Data storagenot Alibaba Cloud
  • Application backendnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Reportingnot Alibaba Cloud
  • Data analyticsnot Alibaba Cloud

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Alibaba Cloud

  • Technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included
  • Service prices are not shown as a rate card and route through a calculator or sales
  • Committed discounts require savings plans, reserved instances or capacity packages rather than being automatic

Amazon RDS

  • No super-user access or direct host connectivity limits advanced customization
  • Pricing unpredictable and expensive compared to GCP alternatives with equivalent features
  • Limited access to system procedures and tables requiring advanced permissions
  • No Oracle RAC (Real Application Clusters) support for high-availability Oracle deployments

Pricing, plan by plan

Alibaba Cloud

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • Free tier credits
    • ECS instances
    • Cloud storage
  • Pay-as-You-GoFree
    • Flexible billing
    • No commitments
    • Global reach

Amazon RDS

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Amazon RDS review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Alibaba Cloud if

  • You need elastic compute service.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli.
  • You also want object storage service.
Alibaba Cloud review

Choose Amazon RDS if

  • You need multiple db engines.
  • You work on AWS Cloud, Multi-AZ, Multi-region.
  • You also want automated backups.
Amazon RDS review

Questions people ask

Is Alibaba Cloud or Amazon RDS better?
Neither clearly leads. Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and Amazon RDS at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Alibaba Cloud or Amazon RDS?
Alibaba Cloud has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Alibaba Cloud and On request for Amazon RDS.
Does Alibaba Cloud or Amazon RDS run on more platforms?
Alibaba Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. Amazon RDS runs on AWS Cloud, Multi-AZ, Multi-region.
Can I use Alibaba Cloud for free?
Yes. Alibaba Cloud has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Amazon RDS starts at On request.
What is Alibaba Cloud best used for?
Alibaba Cloud is most often used for cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific, pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment, committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloads, cdn and data transfer packages for content delivery. Of those, cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific and pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment are not what Amazon RDS is typically brought in for.
What can Alibaba Cloud do that Amazon RDS cannot?
Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Object Storage Service, RDS Database, MaxCompute. Amazon RDS covers Multiple DB Engines, Automated Backups, Multi-AZ Deployment, Read Replicas.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon RDS: What databases does Amazon RDS support?

Amazon RDS supports Amazon Aurora, PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, Oracle Database, and Microsoft SQL Server as managed database engines.

Source
Amazon RDS: Does Amazon RDS handle backups automatically?

Yes. Amazon RDS automates backup configuration, backing up your database and transaction logs. Blue/Green Deployments allow safer updates by mirroring production in staging before applying changes.

Source
Amazon RDS: How does Amazon RDS Proxy improve performance?

Amazon RDS Proxy is a managed database proxy that makes applications more scalable by reducing database connection overhead, more resilient to database failures, and more secure through built-in authentication.

Source
Amazon RDS: Does Amazon RDS provide read replicas?

Yes. Amazon RDS supports read replicas across availability zones and regions, enabling horizontal scaling of read capacity while maintaining a single write primary.

Source
Amazon RDS: Can I access the host directly via SSH or Remote Desktop?

No. Amazon RDS does not allow direct host access via SSH, Telnet, or Windows Remote Desktop Connection. Database access is limited to database clients and management console.

Source
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