| Feature | Amazon EFS | Amazon EBS | Amazon S3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Storage Type | File Storage (NFS-compatible) | Block Storage | Object Storage |
| Max Volume Size | Virtually unlimited (scales automatically) | 16 TiB per volume | Unlimited (per bucket) |
| Max File Size | 52 TiB per file | 16 TiB per volume | 5 TiB per object |
| Throughput | Scales with volume size; configurable with provisioned throughput | Scales with volume size (with provisioned throughput) | Scales with requests (standard class offers eventual consistency) |
| Latency | Low latency (milliseconds) | Very low latency (milliseconds, block-level access) | Higher latency due to HTTP(S) access and object-level requests |
| IOPS | Scalable, depending on data size, up to thousands of IOPS | Up to 64,000 IOPS (with io2 volumes) | Not applicable (S3 is object storage, not block-based) |
| Performance Modes | – General Purpose (Low-latency, use for interactive applications) – Max I/O (higher IOPS and throughput for large-scale, parallel workloads) | – General Purpose (gp3, balanced performance) – Provisioned IOPS (io1/io2, high-performance, critical workloads) | Standard and Intelligent-Tiering (automatic cost optimization) |
| Availability | 99.99% availability (multi-AZ, regional redundancy) | 99.99% availability for EBS volumes (single AZ) | 99.99% availability (multiple AZ replication available) |
| Durability | 99.999999999% (11 nines) durability (across multiple AZs) | 99.999% durability (snapshots stored in S3) | 99.999999999% (11 nines) durability (replication in multiple AZs) |
| Price | – Standard Storage: $0.30 per GB-month (varies by region) – Infrequent Access Storage: $0.025 per GB-month | – gp3: $0.08 per GB-month – io2: $0.125 per GB-month (higher for provisioned IOPS) | – Standard Storage: $0.023 per GB/month – Intelligent-Tiering: $0.0125 per GB/month |
| Data Access | Shared access to multiple instances (simultaneous mount on multiple EC2 instances) | Single EC2 instance (with Multi-Attach support for some volume types) | Accessed via HTTP(S) API; can be configured with cross-region replication |
| Backup | Integrated with AWS Backup for snapshots and automated backups | Integrated with AWS Backup for snapshots | Versioning and cross-region replication; backed by S3’s durability |
| Encryption | At rest and in transit (supports KMS for encryption) | At rest (supports KMS encryption) and in transit | At rest and in transit (supports KMS for encryption) |
| Access Protocol | NFSv4 (file system protocol) | Block-level access (via EC2 and mount points) | HTTP(S) access (REST API) |
Detailed Comparison
Performance (Speed)
EFS: Provides low latency file access and scales automatically in throughput as data is added. Performance depends on the mode selected (General Purpose or Max I/O).
EBS: Provides very low latency and can deliver high throughput, especially for provisioned IOPS volumes (io1/io2) designed for high-performance applications.
S3: Although higher latency compared to block or file storage, S3 offers fast data retrieval through object-level access via HTTP requests, especially for static or archive data.
Scalability and Volume Size
EFS: Scales automatically and virtually unlimited in size. EFS grows and shrinks automatically based on your storage needs.
EBS: Volumes are capped at 16 TiB, but you can attach multiple volumes to an EC2 instance and combine them for larger datasets.
S3: Virtually unlimited storage; ideal for massive datasets, backups, and unstructured data, with no volume size limits.
Availability and Durability
EFS: Provides 99.99% availability across multiple AZs, with data automatically replicated for fault tolerance.
EBS: Offers 99.99% availability within a single AZ. However, data can be protected with snapshots stored in S3 and multi-AZ replication.
S3: Offers 99.99% availability and 11 nines of durability. It supports cross-region replication for high availability and disaster recovery.
Pricing
EFS: The pricing is based on the amount of data stored and the storage class. Infrequent Access (IA) storage is more cost-effective for data that is not accessed often.
EBS: Pricing depends on the storage type (e.g., gp3, io1/io2). Provisioned IOPS volumes (io1/io2) are more expensive than general-purpose SSD volumes.
S3: Incredibly cost-effective, with pricing based on data storage and access frequency. S3 offers Intelligent-Tiering to optimize costs for data with unpredictable access patterns.
Access Protocols:
EFS: NFS protocol, ideal for shared file access across multiple EC2 instances simultaneously.
EBS: Mounted directly to an EC2 instance via block-level access.
S3: Accessed via HTTP(S) API, making it suitable for web-based access.
Data Backup and Recovery:
EFS: Supports snapshots and integrates with AWS Backup for automated backup and recovery solutions.
EBS: Supports snapshots and integrates with AWS Backup for disaster recovery and backup automation.
S3: Built-in versioning and cross-region replication for backup and disaster recovery.