Software & AI

AWS vs Google Cloud vs Azure: Database Migration Costs

Compare database migration cost drivers across AWS, Google Cloud and Azure, including tooling, replication, egress, destination compute and downtime.

✓ Practical checklist✓ Primary sources where available✓ No signup✓ Clear limitations
Decision framework

What this guide helps you evaluate

Engineering and finance teams budgeting a database move to AWS, Google Cloud or Azure.

This page is designed to help you compare the moving parts, organize due diligence and ask better questions before you commit money, sign a contract or change an operating process.

What to compare first

  • Migration service charges and replication compute
  • Network egress from the source environment
  • Temporary dual-running of source and destination
  • Destination database compute, storage, backups and I/O
  • Engineering labor, testing, downtime and rollback capacity

Step-by-step process

  1. 01

    Measure database size, change rate, peak load and required downtime.

  2. 02

    Classify the migration as homogeneous or heterogeneous.

  3. 03

    Use each provider's current migration and destination pricing calculator.

  4. 04

    Budget a period where both environments run simultaneously.

  5. 05

    Run a pilot and record actual transfer rate, replication lag and destination resource usage.

Common mistakes and risk checks

  • Comparing migration-tool fees while ignoring the destination database bill.
  • Assuming data transfer is free in every direction and region.
  • Under-budgeting application testing, schema conversion and rollback.

Primary and official references

Rules, pricing and requirements can change. Use these sources to verify the latest details that apply to your situation.