Fastly vs AWS CloudFront(2026)
Fastly is better for teams that need excellent performance. AWS CloudFront is the stronger choice if deep aws integration. Fastly is paid (from $0.12/GB) and AWS CloudFront is paid (from $0.0085/GB).
Full feature breakdown, pricing details, and pros & cons below.
By Bikram Nath
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Fastly
Fastly is an edge cloud platform with CDN, streaming delivery, and compute@edge capabilities used by Shopify and GitHub.
Starting at $0.12/GB
Visit Fastly
AWS CloudFront
Amazon CloudFront is a fast CDN that integrates with AWS services for delivering websites, APIs, and video with low latency.
Starting at $0.0085/GB
Visit AWS CloudFrontHow Do Fastly and AWS CloudFront Compare on Features?
| Feature | Fastly | AWS CloudFront |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | paid | paid |
| Starting price | $0.12/GB | $0.0085/GB |
| CDN | ✓ | — |
| Compute@Edge (WebAssembly) | ✓ | — |
| Image optimization | ✓ | — |
| Streaming | ✓ | — |
| Security (WAF) | ✓ | — |
| Real-time analytics | ✓ | — |
| Global edge locations | — | ✓ |
| Lambda@Edge | — | ✓ |
| CloudFront Functions | — | ✓ |
| WAF integration | — | ✓ |
| S3 integration | — | ✓ |
| Real-time logs | — | ✓ |
Fastly Pros and Cons vs AWS CloudFront
Fastly
AWS CloudFront
Should You Use Fastly or AWS CloudFront?
For most teams, Fastly is the better default: it offers excellent performance and is paid (from $0.12/GB). Choose AWS CloudFront instead if deep aws integration matters more than no real free tier. There is no universal winner — the right pick depends on your budget, team size, and whether you value excellent performance or deep aws integration more.
Choose Fastly if…
- •Excellent performance
- •Compute@Edge is powerful
- •Real-time config changes
Choose AWS CloudFront if…
- •Deep AWS integration
- •Edge computing (Lambda@Edge)
- •Reliable and scalable