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Alternatives — Cloud Compute • Switch map

Alternatives to AWS EC2

Common alternatives buyers consider, plus the simplest rule for when switching is worth it.

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Freshness & verification

Last updated 2026-02-09 Intel generated 2026-02-06 3 sources linked

Alternatives to AWS EC2

Google Compute Engine

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Same tier / hyperscaler VMs

Compared when choosing a hyperscaler VM foundation; ecosystem alignment (AWS vs GCP) and org operating model matter more than VM parity.

Azure Virtual Machines

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Same tier / hyperscaler VMs

Evaluated when a Microsoft/Azure-first operating model and governance tooling are a better long-term fit than AWS-first patterns.

DigitalOcean Droplets

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Step-down / simpler VPS

Considered when teams want predictable pricing and a simpler control plane for standard workloads without hyperscaler governance overhead.

Fly.io

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Step-sideways / app platform

Shortlisted when teams prefer a platform abstraction (and sometimes global placement) over owning VM lifecycle and infrastructure standards.

Head-to-head comparisons

AWS EC2 vs Google Compute Engine →

Teams compare EC2 and GCE when selecting a baseline VM foundation and standardizing governance, networking, and cost controls around one…

AWS EC2 vs Azure Virtual Machines →

Teams compare EC2 and Azure VMs when standardizing on a hyperscaler VM foundation and choosing the ecosystem they’ll build and govern…

AWS EC2 vs DigitalOcean Droplets →

Teams compare Droplets and EC2 when deciding between a simpler VPS platform and a hyperscaler VM foundation with deep ecosystem adjacency.

AWS EC2 vs Linode →

Teams compare Linode and EC2 when deciding between VPS predictability and AWS ecosystem depth for their long-term compute foundation.

AWS EC2 vs Oracle Cloud Infrastructure →

Teams compare EC2 and Oracle Cloud when choosing a hyperscaler VM foundation and balancing ecosystem breadth against cost optimization for…

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Sources & verification

Pricing and behavioral information comes from public documentation and structured research. When information is incomplete or volatile, we prefer to say so rather than guess.