Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head
Lambda (AWS Serverless) vs Akamai
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Cloud & Infrastructure
Run code without thinking about servers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Akamai
Cloud & Infrastructure
Leading content delivery and security platform
- From
- $1000/month
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Lambda (AWS Serverless) has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: 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; Akamai only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price
- They diverge on capability: Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Akamai covers CDN.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Lambda (AWS Serverless) and Akamai actually diverge.
| Attribute | Lambda (AWS Serverless) | Akamai |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $1000/month |
| Pricing model | usage-based | quote |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Founded | 2014 | 1998 |
Identical on both: platforms (Web, Api), 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 Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Function-as-a-Service
- Event-driven execution
- Auto-scaling
- Pay-per-use
- Multiple languages
- Concurrency limits
- Dead Letter Queues
- Environment variables
Only in Akamai
- CDN
- DDoS Protection
- Web Application Firewall
- Bot Management
- Image Optimization
- Video Platform
- Analytics
- AWS
Both cover
- API Gateway
- Cloud deployment
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Event-driven functions without managing serversnot Akamai
- API backends behind API Gatewaynot Akamai
- Processing S3, DynamoDB, SQS and Kinesis eventsnot Akamai
- Scheduled jobs without a always-on instancenot Akamai
- Edge compute through Lambda@Edgenot Akamai
Akamai
- Content delivery and web performance through Ion and adaptive media deliverynot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- DDoS protection, bot management and API securitynot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Running compute, Kubernetes and managed databases on Akamai's cloudnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Edge compute with EdgeWorkersnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Zero trust access for enterprise applicationsnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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
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
Pricing, plan by plan
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Free- Free TierFree
- 1M free requests/month
- 400,000 GB-seconds/month
- Always free
Akamai
$1000/month- CDN$1000/month
- Content delivery
- Global edge network
- Real-time analytics
- Security Suite$2000/month
- DDoS protection
- WAF
- Bot management
Which should you pick?
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.
Questions people ask
- Is Lambda (AWS Serverless) or Akamai better?
- Neither clearly leads. Lambda (AWS Serverless) starts at Free and Akamai at $1000/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Lambda (AWS Serverless) or Akamai?
- Lambda (AWS Serverless) has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Lambda (AWS Serverless) and $1000/month for Akamai.
- Does Lambda (AWS Serverless) or Akamai run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, Api, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Lambda (AWS Serverless) for free?
- Yes. Lambda (AWS Serverless) has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Akamai starts at $1000/month.
- What is Lambda (AWS Serverless) best used for?
- Lambda (AWS Serverless) is most often used for event-driven functions without managing servers, api backends behind api gateway, processing s3, dynamodb, sqs and kinesis events, scheduled jobs without a always-on instance. Of those, event-driven functions without managing servers and api backends behind api gateway are not what Akamai is typically brought in for.
- What can Lambda (AWS Serverless) do that Akamai cannot?
- Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Event-driven execution, Auto-scaling, Pay-per-use. Akamai covers CDN, DDoS Protection, Web Application Firewall, Bot Management. Both handle API Gateway, Cloud deployment, Web support.