AWS Lightsail is Amazon's simplified cloud platform with predictable, fixed monthly pricing. Unlike EC2 where you pay per-hour with separate charges for compute, storage, and bandwidth, Lightsail bundles everything into a single price. See the Lightsail pricing page for all plans. It's ideal for small applications, WordPress sites, dev environments, and anyone who wants AWS reliability without AWS complexity. The Lightsail user guide covers setup and management.
TL;DR: Lightsail instances start at $3.50/month (512 MB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20 GB SSD, 1 TB bandwidth). The $5/month plan (1 GB RAM) handles most WordPress sites. Managed databases start at $15/month. Lightsail is 30-50% cheaper than equivalent EC2 setups for small workloads, mainly because bandwidth is included. First 3 months are free for new Lightsail customers.
Instance Pricing
Linux/Unix Instances
| Plan | RAM | vCPUs | SSD | Bandwidth | Price/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $3.50 | 512 MB | 1 | 20 GB | 1 TB | $3.50 |
| $5 | 1 GB | 1 | 40 GB | 2 TB | $5.00 |
| $10 | 2 GB | 1 | 60 GB | 3 TB | $10.00 |
| $20 | 4 GB | 2 | 80 GB | 4 TB | $20.00 |
| $40 | 8 GB | 2 | 160 GB | 5 TB | $40.00 |
| $80 | 16 GB | 4 | 320 GB | 6 TB | $80.00 |
| $160 | 32 GB | 8 | 640 GB | 7 TB | $160.00 |
Windows Instances
| Plan | RAM | vCPUs | SSD | Bandwidth | Price/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $8 | 512 MB | 1 | 30 GB | 1 TB | $8.00 |
| $12 | 1 GB | 1 | 40 GB | 2 TB | $12.00 |
| $20 | 2 GB | 1 | 60 GB | 3 TB | $20.00 |
| $40 | 4 GB | 2 | 80 GB | 4 TB | $40.00 |
| $70 | 8 GB | 2 | 160 GB | 5 TB | $70.00 |
| $120 | 16 GB | 4 | 320 GB | 6 TB | $120.00 |
| $240 | 32 GB | 8 | 640 GB | 7 TB | $240.00 |
Managed Database Pricing
| Plan | RAM | vCPUs | SSD | Price/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $15 | 1 GB | 1 | 40 GB | $15.00 |
| $30 | 2 GB | 1 | 80 GB | $30.00 |
| $60 | 4 GB | 2 | 120 GB | $60.00 |
| $115 | 8 GB | 2 | 240 GB | $115.00 |
High availability (Multi-AZ) doubles the price. Supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB.
Additional Services
| Service | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Container services | Nano: $7/mo, Micro: $10/mo, Small: $25/mo |
| Block storage | $0.10/GB/month (up to 16 TB) |
| Snapshots (instance) | $0.05/GB/month |
| Snapshots (database) | $0.05/GB/month |
| Static IP | Free (when attached), $0.005/hr when unattached |
| Load balancer | $18/month |
| CDN distribution | First 50 GB free, then $0.09/GB |
| DNS management | Free (3 million queries/month per zone) |
Lightsail vs EC2 Cost Comparison
| Workload | Lightsail | EC2 Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| 1 vCPU, 1 GB, WordPress | $5/mo (2 TB bandwidth) | ~$15/mo (t4g.micro + 20GB EBS + bandwidth) |
| 2 vCPU, 4 GB, web app | $20/mo (4 TB bandwidth) | ~$40/mo (t4g.medium + EBS + bandwidth) |
| 4 vCPU, 16 GB, database | $80/mo (6 TB bandwidth) | ~$110/mo (r6g.large + EBS + bandwidth) |
Lightsail is cheaper primarily because data transfer is included. EC2 charges $0.09/GB for outbound data, which adds up fast.
When Lightsail Doesn't Make Sense
- Auto-scaling needed: Lightsail doesn't auto-scale. Use EC2 Auto Scaling Groups.
- Advanced networking: No VPC peering, Transit Gateway, or PrivateLink.
- Over 32 GB RAM: Lightsail maxes out at 32 GB. EC2 goes up to 24 TB.
- Reserved Instance savings: EC2 RIs can be cheaper than Lightsail for 1-3 year commitments.
- GPU workloads: No GPU instances available in Lightsail.
Related Guides
- AWS EC2 Pricing Guide
- AWS Credits for Startups
- Deploy a Private AI Agent on Lightsail
- AWS S3 Pricing Guide
FAQ
Is Lightsail really cheaper than EC2?
For small workloads (under 8 GB RAM) with moderate bandwidth usage, yes — typically 30-50% cheaper. For larger workloads with EC2 Reserved Instances, EC2 can be cheaper. The break-even is usually around the $80/month Lightsail plan.
Can I upgrade from Lightsail to EC2 later?
Yes. You can export Lightsail snapshots to EC2 AMIs. This enables a smooth migration path as your application grows beyond Lightsail's limits.
Does the free trial include all services?
The first 3 months are free for the $3.50, $5, and $10 Linux plans and the $8, $12, and $20 Windows plans. Databases, container services, and block storage are not included in the free trial.
Lower Your Lightsail Costs with Wring
Wring helps you access AWS credits and volume discounts to lower your Lightsail costs. Through group buying power, Wring negotiates better rates so you pay less per instance.
