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Database & Data Management · head to head

Amazon Redshift vs DynamoDB

Amazon Redshift logo

Amazon Redshift

Database & Data Management

Fast, scalable cloud data warehouse from AWS

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
DynamoDB logo

DynamoDB

Database & Data Management

Fast, flexible NoSQL database service for any scale

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Amazon Redshift has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Amazon Redshift on-demand pricing runs up to 75% higher than competitors like Snowflake and BigQuery; DynamoDB noSQL-only; does not support complex relational queries or SQL joins
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon Redshift covers Columnar Storage, DynamoDB covers Single-digit Millisecond Latency.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon Redshift and DynamoDB actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon Redshift and DynamoDB differ
AttributeAmazon RedshiftDynamoDB
Starting priceFreeOn request
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebAWS
Founded20122006

Identical on both: pricing model (usage-based), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Database & Data Management).

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 Redshift

  • Columnar Storage
  • Massively Parallel
  • Machine Learning
  • AQUA Acceleration
  • Data Sharing
  • Federated Query
  • Concurrency Scaling
  • S3

Only in DynamoDB

  • Single-digit Millisecond Latency
  • Serverless
  • Auto-scaling
  • Global Tables
  • Point-in-time Recovery
  • Encryption
  • Streams
  • Lambda

Both cover

  • Glue
  • Kinesis
  • Web support
  • Aws support

What people use each for

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

Amazon Redshift

  • Business intelligencenot DynamoDB
  • Data warehousingnot DynamoDB
  • Real-time analyticsnot DynamoDB
  • Reportingnot DynamoDB
  • Machine learningnot DynamoDB

DynamoDB

  • High-scale, variable-workload applicationsnot Amazon Redshift
  • Mobile and IoT device backendsnot Amazon Redshift
  • Real-time analytics and dashboardsnot Amazon Redshift
  • Multi-region, globally distributed applicationsnot Amazon Redshift

Where each one falls short

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

Amazon Redshift

  • On-demand pricing runs up to 75% higher than competitors like Snowflake and BigQuery
  • Requires significant manual tuning including managing concurrency scaling costs and configuring Workload Management queues
  • Performance degrades without proper design of distribution keys and sort keys
  • Limited elastic resize options - can only halve or double current cluster size
  • AWS lock-in makes it unsuitable for multi-cloud architectures

DynamoDB

  • NoSQL-only; does not support complex relational queries or SQL joins
  • Limited query flexibility; requires thinking in terms of keys and indexes rather than ad-hoc queries

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon Redshift

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • 750 DC2.Large hours
    • 2 months free
    • Full features
  • On-Demand$0.25/hour
    • Pay per node hour
    • All features
    • Standard support

DynamoDB

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the DynamoDB review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon Redshift if

  • You need columnar storage.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want massively parallel.
Amazon Redshift review

Choose DynamoDB if

  • You need single-digit millisecond latency.
  • You work on AWS.
  • You also want serverless.
DynamoDB review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon Redshift or DynamoDB better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon Redshift starts at Free and DynamoDB at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon Redshift or DynamoDB?
Amazon Redshift has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Amazon Redshift and On request for DynamoDB.
Does Amazon Redshift or DynamoDB run on more platforms?
Amazon Redshift runs on Web. DynamoDB runs on AWS.
Can I use Amazon Redshift for free?
Yes. Amazon Redshift has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. DynamoDB starts at On request.
What is Amazon Redshift best used for?
Amazon Redshift is most often used for business intelligence, data warehousing, real-time analytics, reporting. Of those, business intelligence and data warehousing are not what DynamoDB is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon Redshift do that DynamoDB cannot?
Amazon Redshift covers Columnar Storage, Massively Parallel, Machine Learning, AQUA Acceleration. DynamoDB covers Single-digit Millisecond Latency, Serverless, Auto-scaling, Global Tables. Both handle Glue, Kinesis, Web support, Aws support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon Redshift: What deployment options does Amazon Redshift offer?

Redshift offers Provisioned Cluster (with RA3 or DC2 nodes) and Serverless options to match varying workloads. The new Redshift RG instance family, powered by Graviton, delivers 2.4x faster performance than RA3 at 30% lower cost per vCPU.

Source
Amazon Redshift: What does Amazon Redshift cost?

Provisioned cluster pricing: RA3 on-demand starts at $1.086/hour for ra3.xlplus. Serverless costs approximately $0.375 per RPU-hour with 4-RPU minimum (roughly $1.50/hour active workload). Managed storage costs $0.024/GB-month.

Source
Amazon Redshift: Does Redshift work with data lakes?

Yes, Redshift's integrated data lake query engine processes workloads on Apache Iceberg tables and other supported formats in Amazon S3, allowing you to run SQL analytics across your data warehouse and data lake from the same engine.

Source
Amazon Redshift: Is there a free tier for Amazon Redshift?

AWS offers a free trial with $300 USD in Serverless credits valid for 90 days, but Redshift is not part of the permanent AWS Free Tier.

Source
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