AWS vs Fly.io
Compare detailed pricing, resource constraints, and overage fees to see how AWS scales against Fly.io.
AWS
db.t4g.micro plan
Fly.io
Fly Postgres Shared-1GB plan
- AWS RDS pricing starts at $11.68/mo for 1 GB of RAM, while Fly.io allows a much smaller entry point at $1.94/mo for 0.256 GB of RAM.
- Storage overages are cheaper on AWS RDS at $0.12/GB compared to Fly.io’s $0.15/GB.
- Fly.io dominates on bandwidth, charging only $0.02/GB for egress, which is significantly lower than the $0.09/GB rate applied by AWS.
- Fly.io offers higher scaling ceilings, reaching 16 GB of RAM and 160 GB of disk, whereas standard RDS tiers evaluated here cap out at 8 GB of RAM.
AWS RDS operates on mature, specialized hardware instances that favor predictable performance for standard relational workloads. You pay a premium for the managed high-availability features and the ecosystem reliability associated with AWS data centers. The $11.68/mo floor is effectively the price of entry for managed replication and automated snapshots. If your database requires consistent disk throughput and you are already deep within the AWS VPC, the extra cost for storage is often offset by the lack of architectural friction.
Fly.io, often compared to platforms like Render or Railway, uses a different approach by running databases closer to the compute edge. The hardware is lighter, utilizing smaller vCPU allocations starting at 1 vCPU. While the $0.15/GB storage cost is higher, the aggressive $0.02/GB egress rate makes Fly.io a better financial fit for applications that pull large datasets from the database to the application server frequently. AWS remains the standard for heavy, persistent relational data, while Fly.io provides a cheaper, more flexible path for smaller, bandwidth-heavy application stacks that do not require the full weight of an RDS instance.
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Frequently asked questions
Is AWS more cost-effective than Fly.io?
The starting price for AWS is $11.68 per month, whereas Fly.io starts at $7.88. The true cost-effectiveness depends heavily on your specific resource requirements beyond these base tiers.
How do resource limits and scaling fees compare between AWS and Fly.io?
When scaling, overages dictate the final bill. For AWS, extra storage is billed at $0.12/GB and network egress is billed at $0.09/GB. In contrast, for Fly.io, storage is billed at $0.15/GB and egress is billed at $0.02/GB.
Should I choose AWS or Fly.io for my infrastructure?
When evaluating the AWS vs Fly.io comparison, choose AWS if your workload strictly aligns with their base limits and penalty structure. Choose Fly.io if their starting footprint offers a more predictable financial trajectory for your specific application requirements.
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Pricing metrics are updated automatically from official provider data. Last synced:
November 3, 2026