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Amazon EKS

Container & Kubernetes Mgmt

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★★★★☆ 4.5 / 5 on G2 · 4.5 on Capterra (300 G2 reviews)
4.5 / 5
G2 rating, 300 reviews [source]
AWS
Managed K8s [source]
$0.10/hr
Per cluster + compute [source]
Fargate
Serverless option [source]

Quick facts

CategoryManaged Kubernetes
VendorAWS
Starts at$0.10/hr per cluster + compute
Best forManaged Kubernetes on AWS
DeploymentAWS (and EKS Anywhere)
Free planPay as you go (no free control plane)
IntegrationsAWS services, Fargate, cloud native
G2 rating4.5 / 5
Capterra rating4.5 / 5
ComputeEC2 nodes or Fargate

What is Amazon EKS?

Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) is Amazon's managed Kubernetes on AWS, integrated with AWS services and Fargate serverless compute. It runs the Kubernetes control plane for you on AWS, with high availability, and lets you run worker nodes on EC2 or go serverless with Fargate (no node management), integrated with AWS networking, IAM, storage, load balancing and the broad AWS ecosystem. The natural managed Kubernetes for teams running on AWS, EKS combines Kubernetes with AWS's scale, services and reliability, and also offers EKS Anywhere for on premise. For managed Kubernetes on AWS, EKS is a leading choice.

EKS's distinction is managed Kubernetes deeply integrated with the AWS ecosystem, with Fargate serverless. For the many teams on AWS, EKS ties Kubernetes to AWS networking, IAM, storage and services, and Fargate removes node management, so teams run Kubernetes with AWS's scale and reliability. That AWS integration and serverless option, on the largest cloud, make it the default managed Kubernetes for AWS teams.

Amazon EKS at a glanceAmazon EKS is Amazon's managed Kubernetes on AWS with Fargate serverless compute [AWS]. It holds about a 4.5 out of 5 rating across 300 reviews on G2 and 4.5 on Capterra, the natural managed Kubernetes on AWS.

Who Amazon EKS is best for

Amazon EKS is best for teams running on AWS that want managed Kubernetes integrated with AWS services, with the option of EC2 nodes or Fargate serverless compute, and AWS scale and reliability. It suits AWS centric teams. It is a weaker fit for teams on Google Cloud or Azure (where GKE or AKS fit), those wanting a complete portable enterprise platform, where OpenShift fits, or multi cloud multi cluster management, where Rancher fits.

Key features

The core strengths are a managed, highly available Kubernetes control plane on AWS, worker nodes on EC2 or serverless via Fargate, and deep integration with AWS networking, IAM, storage and load balancing. EKS offers EKS Anywhere for on premise, add ons, and the AWS ecosystem. Its AWS integration, Fargate serverless option, and AWS scale and reliability are its defining advantages.

Amazon EKS pricing

EKS charges around 0.10 US dollars per hour per cluster for the control plane, plus the compute you run, EC2 nodes or Fargate (per vCPU and memory for pods), and associated AWS resources like load balancers and storage. There is no free control plane. So you pay the cluster fee plus compute and AWS resources. Model cluster fees, compute and AWS services. Confirm current figures on the EKS pricing page.

Integrations and ecosystem

EKS integrates deeply with AWS services, networking (VPC), IAM, storage (EBS, EFS), load balancing, CloudWatch and the broad AWS ecosystem, plus Fargate, EKS Anywhere and the cloud native ecosystem. Its deep AWS integration, which ties Kubernetes to the largest cloud's services and scale, is a signature strength for AWS teams.

Amazon EKS and AWS integration

AWS integration with a serverless option is the signature strength: EKS connects Kubernetes to AWS networking, IAM, storage and services, and Fargate lets teams run pods without managing nodes, all on AWS's scale and reliability. For teams on AWS, this integration and the serverless option are the main reasons to choose EKS.

Ease of use and support

EKS is well rated for reliability and AWS integration, with Fargate praised for removing node management, though reviewers note Kubernetes and AWS complexity and that it is less hands off than GKE Autopilot by default. Its G2 reviews highlight AWS integration, reliability and Fargate, with complexity and AWS cost the main considerations.

Is Amazon EKS worth it?

For teams on AWS that want managed Kubernetes integrated with AWS services, with EC2 or Fargate serverless compute and AWS scale, Amazon EKS is a leading, well rated choice. The main caution is Kubernetes and AWS complexity and cost, so teams on Google Cloud or Azure should use GKE or AKS, those wanting a portable enterprise platform OpenShift, and multi cloud management Rancher, but for managed Kubernetes on AWS EKS leads.

Pricing

Control plane

$0.10/hr
per cluster
  • Managed, highly available
  • On AWS
  • Pay per cluster

EC2 nodes

Compute
per node
  • You manage nodes
  • Full control
  • EC2 pricing

Fargate

Per pod
serverless
  • No node management
  • Pay per pod vCPU/memory
  • Serverless

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Deep AWS integration
  • Fargate serverless option
  • Highly available managed control plane
  • AWS scale and reliability
  • EKS Anywhere for on premise

Cons

  • No free control plane
  • Kubernetes and AWS complexity
  • Less hands off than GKE Autopilot by default
  • Tied to AWS

Amazon EKS alternatives

These container & kubernetes mgmt tools come up most often against Amazon EKS.

Red Hat OpenShift

Enterprise Kubernetes platform with developer tooling

Rancher (SUSE)

Multi-cluster Kubernetes management, open source

VMware Tanzu

Enterprise Kubernetes runtime and application platform

Amazon EKS FAQ

What is Amazon EKS used for?
Amazon EKS is used to run containerised applications on managed Kubernetes on AWS: Amazon runs the control plane, and you run workloads on EC2 nodes or serverless with Fargate, integrated with AWS networking, IAM, storage and services.
How much does Amazon EKS cost?
EKS charges around 0.10 US dollars per hour per cluster for the control plane, plus compute (EC2 nodes or Fargate per pod) and AWS resources, with no free control plane. See the EKS pricing page.
What is Fargate on EKS?
Fargate is AWS's serverless compute for containers, and on EKS it lets you run Kubernetes pods without managing nodes, paying per pod vCPU and memory, which removes node operations for a more hands off experience on AWS.
EKS vs GKE, which is better?
Amazon EKS integrates deeply with AWS and offers Fargate, while GKE (from Kubernetes' creators) leads on automation and Autopilot on Google Cloud. Choose EKS if you run on AWS and GKE if you run on Google Cloud.
Does EKS run on premise?
Yes. EKS Anywhere lets teams run Amazon EKS on their own on premise infrastructure, extending the EKS experience beyond AWS, alongside the standard managed EKS service on AWS.
Is Amazon EKS hard to use?
EKS is reliable and well integrated with AWS, but running Kubernetes on AWS involves real complexity, so it rewards AWS and Kubernetes skills, though Fargate reduces node management for a simpler experience.

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