Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head
Lambda (AWS Serverless) vs Render
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Cloud & Infrastructure
Run code without thinking about servers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Render
Cloud & Infrastructure
A modern cloud platform for the next generation
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- 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; Render the free Hobby workspace is limited to 25 services and 5 GB of bandwidth
- They diverge on capability: Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Render covers Web services.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Lambda (AWS Serverless) and Render actually diverge.
| Attribute | Lambda (AWS Serverless) | Render |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2014 | 2019 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), 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
- API Gateway
Only in Render
- Web services
- Static sites
- Background workers
- Postgres database
- Redis database
- Scheduled jobs
- Custom domains
- GitHub
Both cover
- Environment variables
- 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 Render
- API backends behind API Gatewaynot Render
- Processing S3, DynamoDB, SQS and Kinesis eventsnot Render
- Scheduled jobs without a always-on instancenot Render
- Edge compute through Lambda@Edgenot Render
Render
- Deploying web services, static sites and cron jobs from a Git repository without managing serversnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Running managed Postgres and Redis alongside application servicesnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Preview environments per pull request for small teamsnot 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
Render
- The free Hobby workspace is limited to 25 services and 5 GB of bandwidth
- Every paid plan charges the workspace fee plus compute on top, so $25 per month for Pro is a floor rather than a total
- SAML SSO and SCIM require the Scale plan at $499 per month
- HIPAA-compliant workspaces, inbound IP rules and advanced RBAC roles are Scale plan features
- Organization-level audit logs require Scale; Pro provides only workspace audit logs
- Contractual uptime SLAs, support response SLAs and a technical account manager are Enterprise only, and Enterprise is custom priced with no published rate
- Included bandwidth is 25 GB on Pro and 1 TB on Scale, with usage beyond that billed separately
Pricing, plan by plan
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Free- Free TierFree
- 1M free requests/month
- 400,000 GB-seconds/month
- Always free
Render
Free- FreeFree
- 1 web service
- 1 static site
- Shared CPU
- Starter$7/month
- Unlimited services
- Dedicated CPU
- 2GB RAM
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.
Choose Render if
- You need web services.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want static sites.
Questions people ask
- Is Lambda (AWS Serverless) or Render better?
- Neither clearly leads. Lambda (AWS Serverless) starts at Free and Render at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Lambda (AWS Serverless) or Render?
- Lambda (AWS Serverless) starts at Free and Render at Free.
- Does Lambda (AWS Serverless) or Render 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?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- 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 Render is typically brought in for.
- What can Lambda (AWS Serverless) do that Render cannot?
- Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Event-driven execution, Auto-scaling, Pay-per-use. Render covers Web services, Static sites, Background workers, Postgres database. Both handle Environment variables, Cloud deployment, Web support.