Cloud Cost Estimator: compare AWS, Azure and Google Cloud costs
Cloud Cost Estimator is a free calculator that shows what a cloud architecture will cost before you build it. Drag services onto a canvas or import your Terraform, set sizes and run times, and see the cost of each service, the total, and the same design priced on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. There's no sign-up, and it doesn't need access to your cloud account.
How it works
- Pick a cloud: AWS, Azure or Google Cloud. You can switch at any time without redrawing.
- Add services: drag them from the left panel, or click Import Terraform to build the diagram from your existing code.
- Configure each one: set the instance size, quantity, run time in hours, days or months, and usage such as GB stored or requests per month.
- Wire them together: each wire carries data transfer, so egress and cross-zone costs are counted.
- Read the estimate: see a breakdown by service group and the same diagram priced on all three clouds.
Supported services
| Service | AWS | Azure | Google Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual machine | EC2 | Virtual Machines | Compute Engine |
| Containers (serverless) | ECS on Fargate | Container Apps | Cloud Run (always on) |
| Kubernetes control plane | EKS | AKS Standard | GKE |
| Functions | Lambda | Functions | Cloud Run (per request) |
| Managed SQL | RDS PostgreSQL | PostgreSQL Flexible | Cloud SQL PostgreSQL |
| Redis cache | ElastiCache | Cache for Redis | Memorystore Redis |
| Object storage | S3 Standard | Blob Storage Hot | Cloud Storage |
| Block storage | EBS gp3 | Managed Disk SSD | Persistent Disk |
| Container registry | ECR | Container Registry Basic | Artifact Registry |
| Load balancer | Application LB | Load Balancer | Cloud Load Balancing |
| NAT gateway | NAT Gateway | NAT Gateway | Cloud NAT |
| CDN | CloudFront | Front Door CDN | Cloud CDN |
| Message queue | SQS | Service Bus | Pub/Sub |
| Logging | CloudWatch Logs | Log Analytics | Cloud Logging |
Example cloud costs per month
A month is counted as 730 hours, so one m5.large at $0.096 an hour costs $0.096 × 730 = $70.08. These figures come from the same price data the calculator uses.
| Example | AWS | Azure | Google Cloud |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mid-size VM | $70.08 (m5.large) | $70.08 (D2s v5) | $70.88 (n2-standard-2) |
| 1 managed SQL database | $129.94 (db.m5.large) | $129.94 (D2s v3) | $97.82 (2 vCPU / 8 GB) |
| 1 load balancer | $16.43 | $18.25 | $18.25 |
| 1 NAT gateway + 100 GB processed | $37.35 | $37.35 | $8.59 |
| 100 GB object storage | $2.30 | $1.80 | $2.00 |
Approximate on-demand list prices for AWS us-east-1, Azure East US and Google Cloud us-central1. Excludes tax, free tiers and discounts. Check the provider's calculator before committing a budget.
Estimate costs from Terraform
Add .tf and .tfvars files, a whole folder, or pasted code. The tool reads them in your browser, without uploading them, and builds an editable diagram with services, sizes, quantities and connections for AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. An import report lists what to check: usage amounts that are placeholders, sizes missing from the price list, and resources it couldn't price.
Frequently asked questions
What is Cloud Cost Estimator?
Cloud Cost Estimator is a free browser tool that estimates what a cloud architecture will cost on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. You draw the architecture by dragging services onto a canvas, or import it from Terraform, then set sizes and run times to see the cost of each service and the total.
Is Cloud Cost Estimator free?
Yes. It is free to use, needs no account or sign-up, and does not ask for access to your cloud account. The source code is on GitHub.
How do I compare AWS, Azure and Google Cloud costs?
Build one diagram and the estimate panel prices it on all three clouds side by side. Each service type maps to its equivalent on every cloud, for example EC2, Azure Virtual Machines and Compute Engine, so you can switch clouds without redrawing anything.
Can I estimate cloud costs from Terraform?
Yes. Add .tf and .tfvars files, a whole folder, or pasted code, and the tool builds an editable diagram with services, sizes, quantities and connections. Terraform does not say how much traffic or storage you will use, so usage-billed services start with placeholder amounts that you should replace. An import report lists these placeholders, any sizes missing from the price list, and resources it could not price.
Is my Terraform code uploaded anywhere?
No. Terraform files are read in your browser and never sent to a server, because the tool has no backend. The site does use Google Analytics and Hotjar to understand usage, and the import dialog is marked to be excluded from Hotjar session recordings.
How is the monthly cost calculated?
Hourly services cost the hourly price × quantity × hours, using 730 hours per month, the convention all three clouds use. Usage-billed services such as storage, CDN and functions cost their unit price × your monthly usage. Wires add data transfer: internet egress is charged, and traffic between availability zones is charged if you mark the wire as crossing zones.
How accurate are the estimates?
They are approximate. Prices are on-demand list prices for one region per cloud (AWS us-east-1, Azure East US and Google Cloud us-central1), entered by hand from public pricing pages. Tax, free tiers, reserved or committed-use discounts and some secondary charges are not included. Use it to compare designs and spot big costs, then confirm with the provider's own calculator before committing a budget.
Does it include data transfer and NAT gateway costs?
Yes. Each wire between services carries a data transfer amount in GB per month, and a NAT gateway node charges both its hourly fee and the data it processes. These are two of the costs most often missed in an early estimate.