Why use this calculator
Cloud infrastructure costs can vary significantly across providers depending on your resource requirements. This calculator provides side-by-side cost estimates for AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud Platform, helping you make data-driven decisions about where to host your workloads. Even small differences in per-unit pricing can add up to thousands of dollars annually at scale.
How to use it
Enter your compute requirements (vCPUs and memory), storage needs, expected monthly usage hours (730 hours represents 24/7 usage), and anticipated data transfer. The calculator estimates costs using approximate on-demand pricing for each major cloud provider.
The formula
Monthly Cost = (vCPUs x CPU Rate + Memory x Memory Rate) x Hours + Storage x Storage Rate + Data Transfer x Transfer Rate. Each provider has different rates per resource. Estimates use general-purpose instance pricing and standard storage tiers.
Worked examples
4 vCPUs, 16GB RAM, 500GB storage, 730 hours, 100GB transfer
AWS ~$220/mo, Azure ~$225/mo, GCP ~$210/mo with GCP being most cost-effective
16 vCPUs, 64GB RAM, 2TB storage, 730 hours, 500GB transfer
Costs ranging from $850-$950/mo with annual savings of over $1,000 by choosing the cheapest provider
When people use it
- Evaluating cloud providers for new project deployments
- Comparing costs before migrating workloads between providers
- Building business cases for multi-cloud or cloud migration strategies
- Estimating infrastructure budgets for startup planning
Tips
- On-demand pricing is the most expensive option; reserved instances or committed use discounts can save 30-60%
- Data transfer costs are often the most overlooked expense in cloud budgets
- Consider the total cost of ownership including support plans, monitoring tools, and team expertise
- Free tier offerings from each provider can significantly reduce costs for smaller workloads
Questions people ask
- Are these prices exact?
- These are approximate estimates based on general-purpose on-demand pricing. Actual costs depend on specific instance types, regions, commitment discounts, and additional services used. Always verify with each provider's pricing calculator for precise quotes.
- What about reserved instances or committed use?
- All three providers offer significant discounts (30-60%) for 1-3 year commitments. AWS has Reserved Instances and Savings Plans, Azure has Reserved VM Instances, and GCP has Committed Use Discounts. These can dramatically change the cost comparison.
- Should cost be the only factor in choosing a cloud provider?
- No. Consider factors like specific service offerings, compliance certifications, geographic availability, existing team expertise, vendor lock-in risk, and the overall ecosystem of tools and integrations.