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Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) vs. IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)

    Score8.8 out of 10
    N/AAmazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) is a web service that provides secure, resizable compute capacity in the cloud. Users can launch instances with a variety of OSs, load them with custom application environments, manage network access permissions, and run images on multiple systems.

    $0.01

    per IP address with a running instance per hour on a pro rata basis

    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC

    Score6.1 out of 10
    N/AIBM Cloud Virtual Servers are customizable, public or private, cloud-based servers available from IBM. User can launch applications and software across blended, hybrid environments as the servers integrate with all cloud models.

    $0.01

    per hour

    Pricing
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Editions & Modules
    Data Transfer
    $0.00 - $0.09
    per GB
    On-Demand
    $0.0042 - $6.528
    per Hour
    EBS-Optimized Instances
    $0.005
    per IP address with a running instance per hour on a pro rata basis
    Carrier IP Addresses
    $0.005 - $0.10
    T4g Instances
    $0.04
    per vCPU-Hour Linux, RHEL, & SLES
    T2, T3 Instances
    $0.05 ($0.096)
    per vCPU-Hour Linux, RHEL, & SLES (Windows)
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (dedicated host)
    starting at $0.22
    per hour
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (dedicated host)
    starting at $149.00
    per month
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (multi-tenant)
    starting at $0.038
    per hour
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (multi-tenant)
    starting at $25.21
    per month
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (reserved)
    starting at $0.02
    per hour
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (reserved)
    starting at $13.27
    per month
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers (transient)
    starting at $0.01
    per hour
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
    Additional DetailsIBM Cloud virtual servers include 250 GB of outbound public bandwidth, unmetered inbound public bandwidth, and unmetered private and management network bandwidth.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Considered Both Products
    Amazon AWS
    No answer on this topic
    IBM
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers offer more customization options than Amazon EC2, with the ability to select from a range of operating systems, storage types, and network configurations. IBM also provides a wide range of tools and services to help manage and optimize your virtual …
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    We have our running cloud projects hosted on Amazon EC2 and our primary option is always amazon because the team are more experienced with AWS, now we are looking into other options in the market
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    IBM APIs are easier to use to create, configure, and destroy VSIs.
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    I chose IBM over others because of many reasons but the top reason is that IBM provided the paid trial for one year to my business which is not even an option for any other provider. This helped us tested IBM thoroughly without spending a dime. Moreover, IBM is the pioneer of …
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    We still haven't reached the critical volumes where every resource is full. For our usage we prefer IBM because it's cheaper than competition plus they have a very generous StartUp programs. The live support chat and debugging is really helpful and it's available even on the …
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Amazon's high IOPS storage devices are more expensive than the ones on the IBM cloud, per singular IOPS (input/output operation per second) so it makes much more sense for us to stick with IBM even if the other services that amazon offers are somewhat less costly, all things …
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    If I had to list a personal "grand total", IBM Cloud would always come last due to the poor integration options and its tooling.
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    We mostly use IBM Cloud Virtual Servers. IBM provides a better choice of locations, easy to use interface and APIs for management, and better pricing compared to similar providers.
    Incentivized
    Chose IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    SoftLayer [now called IBM Cloud Virtual Servers] allows more customization with Disk/Network/etc., and allows for out of the box (OOB) access to their servers.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    93%
    Would buy again
    25 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    5 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    96%
    Delivers good value for the price
    26 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    5 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    27 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    5 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    22 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    96%
    Implementation went as expected
    26 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)
    Comparison of Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) features of Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) and IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Feature
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)
    8.7
    27 Ratings
    5% above category average
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    7.2
    88 Ratings
    14% below category average
    Service-level Agreement (SLA) uptime9.425 Ratings9.181 Ratings
    Dynamic scaling9.226 Ratings9.176 Ratings
    Elastic load balancing9.725 Ratings8.664 Ratings
    Pre-configured templates8.726 Ratings3.072 Ratings
    Monitoring tools8.125 Ratings7.384 Ratings
    Pre-defined machine images8.525 Ratings4.777 Ratings
    Operating system support8.326 Ratings6.984 Ratings
    Security controls8.526 Ratings9.178 Ratings
    Automation8.116 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Small Businesses
    IBM Cloud Object Storage
    Score9 out of 10
    IBM Cloud Object Storage
    Score9 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    IBM Cloud Bare Metal Servers
    Score8.7 out of 10
    IBM Cloud Bare Metal Servers
    Score8.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    SAP on IBM Cloud
    Score9 out of 10
    SAP on IBM Cloud
    Score9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.9
    (73 ratings)
    8.2
    (88 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.2
    (3 ratings)
    Usability
    9.2
    (11 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.5
    (12 ratings)
    8.1
    (5 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Amazon AWS
    Suitable for companies that are looking for performance at a competitive price, flexibility to switch instance type even with RI, flexibility to add-on IOPS, option to lower running cost with the regular introduction of new instance type that comes with higher performance but at a lower cost.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    IBM
    One scenario that immediately came to my mind was large-scale data processing, IBM Cloud Virtual Servers is well-suited for organizations that require high-performance computing capabilities, particularly when processing large amounts of data. It can also be useful for companies or organizations that wish to migrate their workplace to the cloud and it may suite companies that have strict compliance requirements since the servers have robust security features.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Amazon AWS
    • Huge Diverse range of machine shapes are available which cater to our demand.
    • Ability to combine the machines and integrate them with any other service in AWS (Ex: RDS, S3)
    • Handling performance and scalability using auto-scaling, ELB configuration and high performance machine shapes.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    IBM
    • Scalability: IBM Cloud Virtual Servers enable businesses to simply and quickly scale up or down the resources they require in response to changing business demands. This enables firms to respond to traffic spikes, requests for new services, or changes in business size without the need for additional hardware purchases or maintenance.
    • Cost savings: By employing virtual servers in the cloud, enterprises can decrease capital expenditures for hardware and infrastructure while also lowering ongoing operational expenses by removing server maintenance and management costs. This can result in significant cost savings for enterprises, particularly those that need to raise or decrease their computer capacity fast and easily.
    • High availability: IBM Cloud Virtual Servers is built with high availability in mind, giving enterprises the certainty that their applications and data will be available and accessible even if hardware fails or other disruptions occur. This assists enterprises in maintaining business continuity and lowering the chance of downtime, which is crucial for firms that rely on 24/7 access to their systems. Furthermore, IBM's comprehensive network and security features aid in the prevention of data breaches and other security risks, assuring the availability and reliability of their applications and data.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Amazon AWS
    • The choices on AMIs, instance types and additional configuration can be overwhelming for any non-DevOps person.
    • The pricing information should be more clear (than only providing the hourly cost) when launching the instance. AWS DynamoDB gives an estimated monthly cost when creating tables, and I would love to see similar cost estimation showing on EC2 instances individually, as not all developers gets access to the actual bills.
    • The term for reserving instances are at least 12 months. With instance types changing so fast and better instances coming out every other day, it's really hard to commit to an existing instance type for 1 or more years at a time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    IBM
    • It would also be nice if there were more templates to choose from when creating a server. Right now there are only a few options, and we'd like to see more variety.
    • We'd like to see the ability to create server groups. This would make it easier to manage a large number of servers since we could do all of the updates and management tasks for them at once.
    • There doesn't seem to be a way to automatically install updates on all of the virtual servers. We have to go in and manually update each one, which can be time-consuming. It would be really nice if automatic updates can be done.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Amazon AWS
    No answers on this topic
    IBM
    It has a flexible and affordable pricing, easy to configure and manage. It is easy to spawn one or multiple instances and have them up and running in no time
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Amazon AWS
    You an start using EC2 instances immediately, is so easy and intuitive to start using them, EC2 has wizard to create the EC2 instances in the web browser or if you are code savvy you can create them with simple line in the CLI or using an SDK. Once you are comfortable using EC2, you can even automate the process.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    IBM
    No answers on this topic
    Reliability and Availability
    Amazon AWS
    No answers on this topic
    IBM
    Always available when you need an instance.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    Amazon AWS
    No answers on this topic
    IBM
    Most of the instances work on hypervisors with good processors, but not all of them.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Amazon AWS
    AWS's support is good overall. Not outstanding, but better than average. We have had very little reason to engage with AWS support but in our limited experience, the staff has been knowledgeable, timely and helpful. The only negative is actually initiating a service request can be a bit of a pain.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    IBM
    It is adequate, but you need to be ready to argue your point - which is fair enough, I suppose, but being given the opposite of the benefit of the doubt every time does not necessarily result in an enjoyable user experience.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Amazon AWS
    No answers on this topic
    IBM
    We did not use IBM professional services to implement IBM Cloud Virtual Servers.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Amazon AWS
    Amazon EC2 is super flexible compared to the PaaS offerings like Heroku Platform and Google App Engine since with Amazon EC2, we have access to the terminal. In terms of pricing, it's basically just the same as Google Compute Engine. The deciding factor is Amazon EC2's native integration with other AWS services since they're all in the same cloud platform.
    Read full review
    IBM
    IBM Cloud Virtual Servers offer more customization options than Amazon EC2, with the ability to select from a range of operating systems, storage types, and network configurations. IBM also provides a wide range of tools and services to help manage and optimize your virtual servers, including a web-based console, CLI, and API.

    AWS EC2 is a more managed platform, with a focus on providing a simple and easy-to-use interface. Amazon provides a range of predefined instance types, each with different specs and pricing, to make it easy to find the right option for your needs. AWS also offers a number of management and monitoring tools, but these are often more basic than what is available from IBM.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Amazon AWS
    No answers on this topic
    IBM
    It worked well for us in the beginning, it works well for us when we have more instances.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Amazon AWS
    • It reduced the need for heavy on-premises instances. Also, it completely eliminates maintenance of the machine. Their SLA criteria are also matching business needs. Overall IAAS is the best option when information is not so crucial to post on the cloud.
    • It makes both horizontal and vertical scaling really easy. This keeps your infrastructure up and running even while you are increasing the capacity or facing more traffic. This leads to having better customer satisfaction.
    • If you do not choose your instance type suitable for your business, it may incur lots of extra costs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    IBM
    • Supports businesses who want compute power on demand (instances are ready within minutes).
    • It can give you access to a 32-core CPU at $0.29 for short running or interruptible processes - enabling cost-efficient number crunching.
    • Given me a taste of the powers of remote compute power for compilation and development.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
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