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Databases · head to head

Amazon Aurora vs Confluent Cloud

Amazon Aurora logo

Amazon Aurora

Databases

MySQL and PostgreSQL-compatible relational database built for the cloud

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Confluent Cloud logo

Confluent Cloud

Technology

The data streaming platform built on Apache Kafka, delivered as a fully managed cloud service

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Aurora aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services; Confluent Cloud requires understanding of eCKU (Elastic Confluent Unit) billing

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon Aurora and Confluent Cloud actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon Aurora and Confluent Cloud differ
AttributeAmazon AuroraConfluent Cloud
PlatformsAWS CloudWeb
CategoryDatabasesTechnology
Founded2006Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Amazon Aurora

  • MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible
  • 5x MySQL Performance
  • Auto-scaling Storage
  • Global Database
  • Serverless v2
  • Multi-master
  • Fault Tolerant
  • AWS Lambda

Only in Confluent Cloud

Nothing recorded that Amazon Aurora does not also cover.

What people use each for

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

Amazon Aurora

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

Confluent Cloud

  • Apache Kafka event streaming and processingnot Amazon Aurora
  • Real-time data pipeline architecturenot Amazon Aurora
  • Multi-cloud event broker deploymentnot Amazon Aurora
  • Stream processing and analyticsnot Amazon Aurora
  • Microservices data synchronizationnot Amazon Aurora

Where each one falls short

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

Amazon Aurora

  • Aurora requires AWS ecosystem knowledge and integration with other AWS services
  • Pricing can become expensive with high-traffic applications using many read replicas
  • Limited support for non-relational data types compared to NoSQL alternatives

Confluent Cloud

  • Requires understanding of eCKU (Elastic Confluent Unit) billing
  • Data in/egress costs add $0.014-$0.050 per GB
  • Storage costs of $0.03-$0.08 per GB-month
  • Minimum commitment recommended for cost optimization

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon Aurora

Free
  • Serverless v2$0.12/hour
    • Auto-scaling
    • Pay per ACU
    • Instant scaling
  • Provisioned$29/month
    • Dedicated instances
    • Predictable performance
    • Reserved capacity

Confluent Cloud

Free
  • BasicFree
    • Free first eCKU
    • Then $0.14 per eCKU-hour
    • 99.5% uptime
  • Standard$385/month
    • $0.75 per eCKU-hour
    • 99.99% uptime with 2+ eCKUs
    • Infinite storage
  • Enterprise$895/month
    • $1.75-$2.25 per eCKU-hour
    • Private networking
    • GBps+ scaling
  • Freight$2300/month
    • $2.25 per eCKU-hour
    • Specialty logging tier
    • Highest throughput requirements

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon Aurora if

  • You need mysql/postgresql compatible.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on AWS Cloud.
  • You also want 5x mysql performance.
Amazon Aurora review

Choose Confluent Cloud if

  • You want to start without paying.
Confluent Cloud review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Aurora or Confluent Cloud better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Aurora starts at Free and Confluent Cloud at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Aurora or Confluent Cloud?
Amazon Aurora starts at Free and Confluent Cloud at Free.
Does Amazon Aurora or Confluent Cloud run on more platforms?
Amazon Aurora runs on AWS Cloud. Confluent Cloud runs on Web.
Can I use Amazon Aurora for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Amazon Aurora best used for?
Amazon Aurora is most often used for transaction processing, data storage, application backend, reporting. Of those, transaction processing and data storage are not what Confluent Cloud is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Aurora do that Confluent Cloud cannot?
Amazon Aurora covers MySQL/PostgreSQL Compatible, 5x MySQL Performance, Auto-scaling Storage, Global Database.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon Aurora: Is Amazon Aurora compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL?

Yes, Amazon Aurora offers MySQL and PostgreSQL compatibility with full compatibility to their open-source counterparts, allowing you to migrate existing databases with standard tools.

Source
Confluent Cloud: How much does Confluent Cloud cost?

Confluent Cloud pricing starts free on Basic tier with $0.14 per eCKU-hour, Standard at $0.75 per eCKU-hour (~$385/month base), Enterprise at $1.75-$2.25 per eCKU-hour (~$895/month base), and Freight specialty tier at $2.25 per eCKU-hour (~$2300/month).

Source
Amazon Aurora: What uptime SLA does Amazon Aurora provide?

Aurora is designed for up to 99.99% single-region uptime and 99.999% multi-region uptime with automatic failover.

Source
Confluent Cloud: Is there a free tier for Confluent Cloud?

Yes, the Basic tier is free with one eCKU credit included. Additional usage is billed at $0.14 per eCKU-hour, plus data transfer and storage fees apply.

Source
Amazon Aurora: How much does Amazon Aurora cost?

Aurora uses serverless, usage-based pricing where you pay only for consumed capacity. Typical pricing ranges from $50-70 per month for minimal setups to $400-600 per month for small production clusters.

Source
Confluent Cloud: What additional fees does Confluent Cloud charge?

Beyond eCKU hours, Confluent charges data in/egress at $0.014-$0.050 per GB and storage at $0.03-$0.08 per GB-month. Costs vary by tier and region.

Source
Amazon Aurora: Can Amazon Aurora scale automatically?

Yes, Aurora automatically scales to match workload demands without performance degradation, supporting both read and write scaling.

Source
Confluent Cloud: Does Confluent offer discounts for higher usage?

Yes, volume discounts are negotiated upfront based on annual consumption estimates. Annual commitments allow flexible cross-product allocation with guaranteed cost savings.

Source
Amazon Aurora: How many read replicas does Aurora support?

Aurora supports up to 15 low-latency read replicas for distributing read traffic across your application.

Source
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