The world of containerization has revolutionized application deployment and management, enabling organizations to achieve unprecedented levels of efficiency, scalability, and portability. As the adoption of containerized applications continues to grow, especially in complex and dynamic cloud environments, the need for efficient container orchestration becomes paramount.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers two primary services for container orchestration: Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS) and Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS). Both services simplify the deployment, management, and scaling of containerized applications in the cloud, but they differ in their approach, features, and target use cases.
In this article, we will delve into the key differences between ECS vs EKS, exploring their unique capabilities, advantages, and considerations for businesses looking to leverage container orchestration on AWS. By understanding the strengths and limitations of each service, you can make an informed decision on which one aligns best with your organization's requirements and goals.
ECS vs EKS (Definitions)
The ECS in ECS vs EKS: Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS) is a fully managed container orchestration service native to AWS. It provides a simplified and streamlined experience for deploying, managing, and scaling containerized applications. ECS deeply integrates with other AWS services, such as Elastic Load Balancing, AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM), and Amazon CloudWatch, enabling seamless operation and monitoring of containers within the AWS ecosystem.
The EKS in ECS vs EKS: On the other hand, Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS) is a managed service that allows running Kubernetes on AWS without the need to install, operate, and maintain your own Kubernetes control plane. Kubernetes, an open-source container orchestration platform, has gained immense popularity due to its flexibility, extensibility, and rich ecosystem. Teams that build upon EKS typically do so to leverage the vast Kubernetes feature set and community resources that come with being part of the Kubernetes ecosystem.
ECS vs EKS: Key Differences
ECS vs EKS Orchestration Approach
Amazon ECS simplifies container orchestration by offering a service that integrates seamlessly with AWS infrastructure, providing a user-friendly environment for container management. This integration ensures that ECS operates efficiently within the AWS ecosystem, making it an attractive option for teams that prioritize ease of use and quick deployment without the need for extensive Kubernetes expertise.
In contrast, Amazon EKS leverages the power of Kubernetes, providing a robust platform for managing complex containerized applications. EKS supports advanced use cases with its extensive customization options and the ability to utilize Kubernetes-native tools. This approach suits organizations that require the flexibility to operate across multiple environments and take full advantage of Kubernetes' capabilities.
ECS vs EKS: Pricing Model
ECS is cost-effective, billing solely for the compute resources used, such as EC2 instances or Fargate, without additional charges for the control plane. This pricing structure benefits organizations aiming to optimize costs while maintaining effective container orchestration within AWS.
EKS, however, includes a fixed hourly fee of $0.10 per cluster in addition to resource costs. This fee covers the management of the Kubernetes control plane, providing access to Kubernetes' full feature set. For companies seeking to leverage Kubernetes' extensive capabilities, this extra cost may be a worthwhile investment for the added functionality.
ECS vs EKS Deployment Options
Choosing between both ECS vs EKS shouldn’t be too difficult, because bothoffer flexible deployment options that allow containers to run on EC2 instances or in a serverless environment with AWS Fargate. This versatility enables organizations to choose the infrastructure that best aligns with their operational requirements, whether it's the control offered by EC2 or the simplicity of Fargate.
Additionally, EKS provides a pathway for migrating workloads from ECS to Kubernetes, supporting a hybrid deployment model. This capability caters to organizations looking to evolve their container strategies by integrating the simplicity of ECS with the comprehensive orchestration features of Kubernetes.
Choosing Between ECS vs EKS
Selecting the right container orchestration service depends on your organization's specific needs and strategic objectives. Both ECS and EKS offer unique advantages that cater to different scenarios and requirements. Understanding these differences can help you determine the most suitable service for your projects.
When to Use ECS (rather than EKS)
For teams seeking a straightforward approach, Amazon ECS offers an optimal solution. Its integration with AWS services ensures a streamlined process for deploying and managing containerized applications. This makes ECS particularly attractive for smaller-scale projects where ease of use and rapid deployment are crucial. Organizations without deep Kubernetes expertise will appreciate ECS's user-friendly architecture, which reduces complexity and leverages AWS-native capabilities.
Budget management is another compelling reason to choose ECS. The absence of control plane costs allows for a more economical orchestration option, especially for teams focused on cost efficiency. This pricing model supports organizations aiming to maintain low operational expenses while utilizing AWS's robust infrastructure.
When to Use EKS (rather than ECS)
Conversely, Amazon EKS is ideal for businesses that need the comprehensive capabilities of Kubernetes. EKS grants access to Kubernetes' extensive ecosystem, which is beneficial for supporting sophisticated microservices architectures. This is particularly advantageous for organizations operating in multi-cloud environments or those seeking to expand their infrastructure across various platforms.
EKS is best suited for teams equipped with the necessary skills to handle Kubernetes' complexity and those looking to incorporate its advanced features into their container strategies. Its support for intricate microservices architectures makes it a strategic choice for development teams engaged in innovative and large-scale initiatives. By offering a managed Kubernetes environment, EKS allows organizations to capitalize on Kubernetes' full potential while benefiting from AWS's service reliability.
The Kapstan Opinion ECS vs EKS
When moving from legacy to modern distributed systems, or when choosing your architecture for the first time, the prevailing ‘knowledge’ out there will be to stay away from Kubernetes. Typically people will give one of two reasons:
- “Kubernetes is too costly”
- “There is a high operational burden”
These statements aren’t necessarily false. However, in our experience, we’ve found that many teams make this decision based on a fear of the unknown when it comes to Kubernetes. Kubernetes can indeed be costly—particularly if teams lack the knowledge and best practices to properly configure clusters, manage autoscaling, and leverage tools like Karpenter to optimize resource allocation. Without a strategic approach, organizations often end up over-provisioning resources, leading to unnecessary expenses, or under-provisioning, which can result in performance bottlenecks and service disruptions.
Furthermore, many teams shy away from Kubernetes due to its perceived complexity, fearing the operational overhead required to manage and scale clusters effectively. However, with the right expertise and tooling, Kubernetes can drive cost efficiency and operational agility. For example - check out a case study of a customer that moved to Kapstan and managed EKS to solve their problems of secrets mis-management on ECS. Obviously, we are advocating for EKS in the ECS vs EKS battle, though many move from EC2 to ECS using Kapstan.
Implementing best practices, such as right-sizing workloads, using spot instances strategically, and enforcing governance policies, can significantly reduce waste and maximize infrastructure efficiency.
Ultimately, the key to mitigating costs and complexity isn’t avoiding Kubernetes altogether, but rather investing in the right knowledge, automation, and strategies to make it work effectively. By overcoming the initial learning curve and adopting a well-architected approach, organizations can harness the full potential of Kubernetes while keeping costs under control.
Conclusion ECS vs EKS
When deciding between Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS, your choice ultimately hinges on your organization’s existing expertise, long-term scalability goals, and desired level of control. ECS provides a streamlined, cost-effective solution that deeply integrates with AWS services—perfect for teams who want to get up and running quickly without mastering Kubernetes. Meanwhile, EKS unlocks the power of the Kubernetes ecosystem, making it a compelling choice for organizations that foresee complex, large-scale microservices deployments or plan to expand across multiple cloud environments.
Despite its perceived complexity, Kubernetes can be both efficient and cost-effective with the right expertise and tooling. By carefully implementing best practices around autoscaling, resource provisioning, and governance, teams can harness Kubernetes’ rich ecosystem without incurring undue operational overhead.
This is precisely where Kapstan comes in. Whether you’re in the early stages of architecture planning or seeking to migrate existing workloads to a more flexible platform, Kapstan simplifies Kubernetes adoption, helping you navigate operational challenges and focus on delivering value to your customers. If you’re aiming to build a future-proof infrastructure that seamlessly integrates advanced configurations, supports event-driven architectures, and keeps DevOps overhead low, Kapstan is worth a closer look.
Give Kapstan a shot, for free
If you are an engineering team either considering migrating to ECS, or are in the early stages of your architecture build-out, and the following applies to you:
- Want to build leveraging a microservices and event-driven architecture,
- Want peace of mind as it relates to Kubernetes management (and their respective add-ons),
- Want room for future, unknown, advanced configuration/customization (e.g., an app that will require persistent storage) based on future product pivots,
- Want zero DevOps operational overhead, since your customers care about your product, not your helm charts…
Then Kapstan is worth a look. Explore Kapstan today and see how it can transform your deployment strategy.
