Looking for Amazon VPS pricing? You’ve probably noticed that cloud computing costs can get confusing fast.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers virtual private servers through services like Lightsail with several pricing options to fit different needs.
Lightsail offers affordable, predictable pricing for cloud hosting, making it ideal for small businesses, developers, and startups.
AWS Lightsail pricing starts at just $3.50 per month for basic plans, while more robust options with 8GB memory and 2 core processors cost around $44 monthly.
This guide covers Lightsail’s pricing for virtual servers, containers, databases, storage, and more, including free tier details.
Why Choose Amazon Lightsail?
Lightsail simplifies cloud computing with bundled plans that include memory, vCPUs, SSD storage, and data transfer.
Its straightforward monthly pricing eliminates billing surprises, letting you focus on your projects.
All plans come with features like static IP addresses, DNS management, server monitoring, and one-click SSH/RDP access (Linux/Windows).
Note: Some features are unavailable in Lightsail for Research. Check the Lightsail for Research FAQs for details.
AWS Free Tier for Lightsail
New users can start with Lightsail’s free tier, which includes:
- 12 months free: 50 GB CDN distributions and 5 GB object storage.
- 3 months free on select bundles (Linux/Unix: $3.50–$12/month; Windows: $8–$22/month; $15/month database; $10/month container micro service).
This offer, available for accounts starting Lightsail usage on or after July 8, 2021, is limited to one bundle per account. Standard rates apply after 750 hours/month of usage.
Note that only one account per AWS Organization qualifies. Visit the AWS Free Tier FAQs for more information.
Virtual Server Pricing
Lightsail’s virtual server bundles vary by memory, vCPUs, storage, and data transfer.
Pricing also depends on whether you use a public IPv4 or IPv6-only address.
Bundles with Public IPv4 Address
| Price (USD/mo) | Memory | vCPUs | SSD Disk | Data Transfer |
| $5 | 0.5 GB | 2 | 20 GB | 1 TB |
| $7 | 1 GB | 2 | 40 GB | 2 TB |
| $12 | 2 GB | 2 | 60 GB | 3 TB |
| $24 | 4 GB | 2 | 80 GB | 4 TB |
| $44 | 8 GB | 2 | 160 GB | 5 TB |
| $84 | 16 GB | 4 | 320 GB | 6 TB |
| $164 | 32 GB | 8 | 640 GB | 7 TB |
| $384 | 64 GB | 16 | 1280 GB | 8 TB |
Note: Servers created before June 29, 2023, have 1 vCPU. Mumbai and Sydney regions have half the listed data transfer allowances.
Bundles with IPv6 Address Only
| Price (USD/mo) | Memory | vCPUs | SSD Disk | Data Transfer |
| $3.50 | 512 MB | 2 | 20 GB | 1 TB |
| $5 | 1 GB | 2 | 40 GB | 2 TB |
| $10 | 2 GB | 2 | 60 GB | 3 TB |
| $20 | 4 GB | 2 | 80 GB | 4 TB |
| $40 | 8 GB | 2 | 160 GB | 5 TB |
| $80 | 16 GB | 4 | 320 GB | 6 TB |
| $160 | 32 GB | 8 | 640 GB | 7 TB |
| $380 | 64 GB | 16 | 1280 GB | 8 TB |
Overage charges apply for outbound data transfer exceeding the allowance (starting at $0.09/GB, region-dependent).
Container Service Pricing
Lightsail’s container services support containerized apps with pricing per node:
| Price (USD/mo) | Size | vCPU | RAM |
| $7 | Nano | 0.25 (shared) | 512 MB |
| $10 | Micro | 0.25 (shared) | 1 GB |
| $15 | Small | 0.5 (shared) | 1 GB |
| $40 | Medium | 1 | 2 GB |
| $80 | Large | 2 | 4 GB |
| $160 | XLarge | 4 | 8 GB |
Each service includes 500 GB/month data transfer. Overages start at $0.09/GB. The $10 Micro service offers 3 months free for one node.
Object Storage Pricing
Lightsail’s object storage bundles include storage and data transfer:
| Price (USD/mo) | Storage | Transfer |
| $1 | 5 GB | 25 GB |
| $3 | 100 GB | 250 GB |
| $5 | 250 GB | 500 GB |
The 5 GB bundle is free for the first year. Overage charges vary by region (e.g., $0.023/GB storage, $0.09/GB transfer in US East).
Managed Database Pricing
Lightsail offers standard and high-availability database plans:
| Price (USD/mo) | Plan | Memory | Processor | SSD Disk | Transfer | Encryption |
| $15 | Standard | 1 GB | 1 Core | 40 GB | 100 GB | No |
| $30 | High Availability | 1 GB | 1 Core | 40 GB | 100 GB | No |
| $30 | Standard | 2 GB | 1 Core | 80 GB | 100 GB | Yes |
| $60 | High Availability | 2 GB | 1 Core | 80 GB | 100 GB | Yes |
| $60 | Standard | 4 GB | 2 Core | 120 GB | 100 GB | Yes |
| $120 | High Availability | 4 GB | 2 Core | 120 GB | 100 GB | Yes |
| $115 | Standard | 8 GB | 2 Core | 240 GB | 200 GB | Yes |
| $230 | High Availability | 8 GB | 2 Core | 240 GB | 200 GB | Yes |
Databases created before May 15, 2022, have 1 core processor. Overage charges apply for excess data transfer.
CDN Distribution Pricing
Distribute content globally with fixed monthly pricing:
| Price (USD/mo) | Transfer |
| Free (1st year), $2.50 thereafter | 50 GB |
| $10 | 200 GB |
| $35 | 500 GB |
Additional Services
Load Balancer
$18/month, no additional charges for bandwidth or connections.
Block Storage
Starts at 8 GB ($0.80/month) up to 256 GB ($25.60/month) at $0.10/GB/month.
Snapshots
Instance and disk snapshots cost $0.05/GB/month for backups.
Lightsail for Research Pricing
Lightsail for Research supports cloud-based research applications. Pricing varies by region and bundle.
Check the official pricing page for details.
Strategies for Cost Optimization and Management
Controlling your AWS spending requires smart planning and the right tools.
Amazon offers several powerful options to reduce costs while maintaining performance for your virtual private server needs.
Leveraging Reserved Instances and Savings Plans
Reserved Instances (RIs) provide significant discounts compared to On-Demand pricing when you commit to consistent usage.
You can save up to 72% by purchasing RIs for 1-3 year terms. The longer your commitment, the deeper your discount.
Choose between Standard RIs (non-changeable but highest discount), Convertible RIs (flexibility to change instance types), and Scheduled RIs (reserved for specific time windows).
AWS Cost Optimization also offers Savings Plans as a flexible pricing model.
These plans provide similar discounts to RIs but with more flexibility. You commit to a specific dollar amount per hour rather than instance types.
Key benefits of Savings Plans:
- Apply to EC2, Fargate, and Lambda usage
- Allow instance family, size, OS, and region changes
- Offer up to 72% savings with 1-3 year commitments
Use the AWS Cost Management suite to analyze usage patterns and identify the best mix of reserved and on-demand resources.
Utilizing Spot Instances and On-Demand Capacity
Spot Instances let you access unused EC2 capacity at discounts of up to 90% off On-Demand prices.
These are perfect for fault-tolerant, flexible, or batch processing workloads.
Your applications must handle potential interruptions when AWS reclaims capacity. Set a maximum price you’re willing to pay, and your instances run when the Spot price is below your threshold.
Create a mixed strategy using Spot Fleet to manage multiple Spot Instance types together, increasing availability while maintaining cost efficiency.
Best practices for Spot Instances:
- Use for stateless, fault-tolerant applications
- Implement checkpointing to save progress
- Diversify across multiple instance types and zones
On-Demand Instances work best for unpredictable workloads or short-term projects.
While more expensive, they require no upfront commitment and can be activated instantly, making them ideal for testing new applications or handling unexpected traffic spikes.
Managing AWS Regions and Availability Zones
AWS pricing varies significantly across its global regions.
US East (N. Virginia) and US West (Oregon) typically offer lower prices than regions in Europe, Asia, or South America.
When selecting regions, balance cost against performance needs.
A cheaper region far from your users may save money but introduce latency issues.
The AWS Cost Optimization Hub can help identify optimal region placement.
Availability Zones (AZs) within regions offer redundancy without data transfer costs.
Use multiple AZs for high availability while keeping inter-AZ traffic minimal.
Data transfer considerations:
- Inbound data transfer is typically free
- Outbound transfer between AZs in the same region incurs charges
- Cross-region transfers are more expensive
- Use CloudFront to reduce data transfer costs for content delivery
Implement a tagging strategy to track spending across regions and zones.
This helps identify cost centers and enables precise budget allocation for better AWS cost management.
How to Get Started
Sign up for an AWS account and explore Lightsail’s free tier. Use the AWS Pricing Calculator to estimate costs. For custom quotes, request pricing directly from AWS.
Conclusion
Amazon Lightsail offers cost-effective cloud hosting with transparent pricing. From $3.50/month virtual servers to free tier benefits, it’s a great choice for small-scale projects. Visit aws.amazon.com/lightsail/pricing for the latest details.
