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Amplitude vs Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Amplitude logo

Amplitude

Technology

The digital analytics platform to understand your users

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lambda (AWS Serverless) logo

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Cloud & Infrastructure

Run code without thinking about servers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amplitude metered on event volume, so instrumenting more of a product raises the bill even if the audience does not grow; Lambda (AWS Serverless) billed on two axes at once, $0.20 per million requests plus $0.0000166667 per GB-second of duration, so memory settings change the bill as much as traffic does
  • They diverge on capability: Amplitude covers Event tracking, Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amplitude and Lambda (AWS Serverless) actually diverge.

Attributes where Amplitude and Lambda (AWS Serverless) differ
AttributeAmplitudeLambda (AWS Serverless)
Pricing modelUnknownusage-based
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, ApiWeb, Api
CategoryTechnologyCloud & Infrastructure
Founded20122014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), 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 Amplitude

  • Event tracking
  • User segmentation
  • Funnel analysis
  • Retention analysis
  • Cohort analysis
  • A/B testing
  • Revenue analytics
  • Predictive analytics

Only in Lambda (AWS Serverless)

  • Function-as-a-Service
  • Event-driven execution
  • Auto-scaling
  • Pay-per-use
  • Multiple languages
  • Concurrency limits
  • Dead Letter Queues
  • Environment variables

Both cover

  • Encryption

What people use each for

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

Amplitude

  • User behavior analysisnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Feature adoption trackingnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Conversion rate optimizationnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Customer journey mappingnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Retention improvementnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

  • Event-driven functions without managing serversnot Amplitude
  • API backends behind API Gatewaynot Amplitude
  • Processing S3, DynamoDB, SQS and Kinesis eventsnot Amplitude
  • Scheduled jobs without a always-on instancenot Amplitude
  • Edge compute through Lambda@Edgenot Amplitude

Where each one falls short

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

Amplitude

  • Metered on event volume, so instrumenting more of a product raises the bill even if the audience does not grow
  • The free plan covers 2M events a month
  • The Plus plan scales to 70M events, above which pricing is custom
  • Growth and Enterprise pricing is not published

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

  • Billed on two axes at once, $0.20 per million requests plus $0.0000166667 per GB-second of duration, so memory settings change the bill as much as traffic does
  • Provisioned concurrency, used to avoid cold starts, is charged separately at $0.0000041667 per GB-second whether or not the function runs
  • Ephemeral storage beyond the included 512 MB is metered
  • Lambda@Edge costs $0.60 per million requests, three times the standard request rate
  • VPC use and cross-region data transfer carry EC2 charges on top

Pricing, plan by plan

Amplitude

Free
  • StarterFree
    • 2 million events per month
  • Plus$49/month
    • $0.049 per MTU
    • Up to 300k MTUs
    • Advanced analytics
  • GrowthFree
    • Causal insights
    • Feature experimentation
    • Real-time streaming
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Cross-product analysis
    • Advanced permissions
    • Dedicated account manager

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • 1M free requests/month
    • 400,000 GB-seconds/month
    • Always free

Which should you pick?

Choose Amplitude if

  • You need event tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want user segmentation.
Amplitude review

Choose Lambda (AWS Serverless) if

  • You need function-as-a-service.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want event-driven execution.
Lambda (AWS Serverless) review

Questions people ask

Is Amplitude or Lambda (AWS Serverless) better?
Neither clearly leads. Amplitude starts at Free and Lambda (AWS Serverless) at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amplitude or Lambda (AWS Serverless)?
Amplitude starts at Free and Lambda (AWS Serverless) at Free.
Does Amplitude or Lambda (AWS Serverless) run on more platforms?
Amplitude runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Lambda (AWS Serverless) runs on Web, Api.
Can I use Amplitude for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Amplitude best used for?
Amplitude is most often used for user behavior analysis, feature adoption tracking, conversion rate optimization, customer journey mapping. Of those, user behavior analysis and feature adoption tracking are not what Lambda (AWS Serverless) is typically brought in for.
What can Amplitude do that Lambda (AWS Serverless) cannot?
Amplitude covers Event tracking, User segmentation, Funnel analysis, Retention analysis. Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Event-driven execution, Auto-scaling, Pay-per-use. Both handle Encryption.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amplitude: Does Amplitude have a free plan?

Yes, Amplitude offers a free Starter plan with 2 million events per month and access to the entire platform including analytics, session replay, and experimentation features.

Source
Amplitude: What is Amplitude's pricing based on?

Amplitude's pricing is based on the number of monthly tracked users (MTUs), data volume, and advanced features selected. The Plus plan starts at $49 per month with a rate of $0.049 per MTU.

Source
Amplitude: What analytics features does every Amplitude plan include?

Every plan includes access to the full platform: analytics, session replay, feature experimentation, web experimentation, guides and surveys, activation, and AI tools like AI Feedback and AI Assistant.

Source
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