Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head
Oracle Cloud vs Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Oracle Cloud
Cloud & Infrastructure
Enterprise cloud computing services
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Cloud & Infrastructure
Run code without thinking about servers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Oracle Cloud the free trial gives US$300 of credit that expires when consumed or after 30 days, whichever comes first; 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: Oracle Cloud covers Autonomous Database, Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Oracle Cloud and Lambda (AWS Serverless) actually diverge.
| Attribute | Oracle Cloud | Lambda (AWS Serverless) |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Linux, Windows, Api, Cli | Web, Api |
| Founded | 2019 | 2014 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), 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 Oracle Cloud
- Autonomous Database
- Compute Instances
- MySQL Database Service
- Object Storage
- Block Volume
- Load Balancers
- Virtual Cloud Network
- Terraform
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
- API Gateway
- Cloud deployment
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Oracle Cloud
- Running virtual machines, databases and storage on Oracle's cloud infrastructurenot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Hosting Oracle Database workloads on infrastructure from the same vendornot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Event-driven functions without managing serversnot Oracle Cloud
- API backends behind API Gatewaynot Oracle Cloud
- Processing S3, DynamoDB, SQS and Kinesis eventsnot Oracle Cloud
- Scheduled jobs without a always-on instancenot Oracle Cloud
- Edge compute through Lambda@Edgenot Oracle Cloud
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Oracle Cloud
- The free trial gives US$300 of credit that expires when consumed or after 30 days, whichever comes first
- The US$300 cloud credit is available only in select countries
- Only one Oracle Cloud Free Trial or Always Free account is permitted per person
- Accounts left idle for 30 days or more are eligible for suspension or termination as abandoned
- Always Free NoSQL Database is restricted to the Phoenix region
- Free Tier availability is subject to capacity limits, and the published per-service capacity figures are estimates that assume the entire credit is spent on that one service
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
Oracle Cloud
Free- Always FreeFree
- Oracle Autonomous Database
- 2 compute instances
- 100 GB storage
- Pay-as-You-GoFree
- Flexible pricing
- No long-term commitment
- Enterprise support
Lambda (AWS Serverless)
Free- Free TierFree
- 1M free requests/month
- 400,000 GB-seconds/month
- Always free
Which should you pick?
Choose Oracle Cloud if
- You need autonomous database.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli.
- You also want compute instances.
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 Oracle Cloud or Lambda (AWS Serverless) better?
- Neither clearly leads. Oracle Cloud 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, Oracle Cloud or Lambda (AWS Serverless)?
- Oracle Cloud starts at Free and Lambda (AWS Serverless) at Free.
- Does Oracle Cloud or Lambda (AWS Serverless) run on more platforms?
- Oracle Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. Lambda (AWS Serverless) runs on Web, Api.
- Can I use Oracle Cloud for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Oracle Cloud best used for?
- Oracle Cloud is most often used for running virtual machines, databases and storage on oracle's cloud infrastructure, hosting oracle database workloads on infrastructure from the same vendor. Of those, running virtual machines, databases and storage on oracle's cloud infrastructure and hosting oracle database workloads on infrastructure from the same vendor are not what Lambda (AWS Serverless) is typically brought in for.
- What can Oracle Cloud do that Lambda (AWS Serverless) cannot?
- Oracle Cloud covers Autonomous Database, Compute Instances, MySQL Database Service, Object Storage. Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Event-driven execution, Auto-scaling, Pay-per-use. Both handle API Gateway, Cloud deployment.