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Amazon Linux vs Docker on Ubuntu comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
3.9
Amazon Linux enhances ROI by reducing costs, increasing efficiency, and simplifying AWS integration, resulting in significant savings and productivity.
Sentiment score
3.7
Docker on Ubuntu boosts productivity by reducing setup time and errors, enhancing application deployment and overall efficiency.
With Amazon Linux, selecting and launching instances on a public cloud provider means the machine spins up in fewer than ten seconds, making it efficient.
Cloud Solution Engineer at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees
One great feature is LTS, which is long-term support provided by Amazon itself.
Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators
We saved 30% in terms of the cloud infrastructure.
Level 2 Software Engineer at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
The main return is time-saving, as it provides less setup time, fewer errors, and improved developer productivity.
DevOps at Chill Flow
You need some type of operating system and a container engine, and these two are best in class.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
There is a pipeline for it, and the time saving occurs because whenever a developer pushes anything, that goes into the Docker container and builds it.
Senior DevOps engineer at Elevenxcapital
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.4
Amazon Linux support is praised for prompt, knowledgeable service, 24/7 availability, and effective response, influenced by support plans.
Sentiment score
6.3
Docker on Ubuntu features strong documentation and community support, reducing the need for direct customer service engagement.
Amazon has the best expertise and they are available 24/7.
Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators
Timely and helpful responses for performance, updates, or AWS integration issues.
QA Engineer at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
It offers specific advantages and constraints depending on the use case.
Cloud Architect at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
The customer service for Docker on Ubuntu and their technical support are pretty good, especially since the documentation is pretty robust.
Founder at Asynka
Amazon's customer support is brilliant, with very quick response times.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
The documentation is good, especially when using AI tools that utilize Docker's information for support.
Chief Technology Officer at ML Cloud LLC
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.3
Amazon Linux excels in scalability, optimizing AWS integration for efficient, reliable performance and cost-effective dynamic scaling events.
Sentiment score
6.0
Docker on Ubuntu provides scalability and integration for organizations but may require Kubernetes for complex applications, influencing scalability.
The beauty here is that we can scale it immediately, which also saves cost.
Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators
The scalability of Amazon Linux is very good; we run it on top of scalable EC2 instances, and we do not find any issues there.
Senior Software Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Amazon Linux is highly scalable because it allows for EC2 instances to scale up and down based on what you want.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
In some cases, Docker on Ubuntu is not enough for all the complexity of the applications, and I have to go to the next level with Kubernetes.
Founder at Asynka
Ubuntu is very stable as an operating system, and Docker scales well when used properly across projects and environments.
DevOps at Chill Flow
Using Docker on Ubuntu together is a common configuration, and you can deploy it directly on server hardware using virtual machines or in the cloud, scaling however you wish.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.3
Amazon Linux is praised for reliability, stability, and security, ensuring minimal issues and no downtime in production environments.
Sentiment score
8.0
Docker on Ubuntu is described as stable and reliable, with seamless integration and minimal stability or security issues.
My applications had a high availability (HA) environment, so even when one availability zone was down, traffic moved to a different availability zone without any issues.
Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators
We evaluated Amazon Linux, and it is very stable.
Senior Software Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Amazon Linux is very stable and is continually maintained by Amazon.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Docker on Ubuntu is very stable.
Software Engineer at Bounteous
Docker is continually optimized by the Docker company, and Ubuntu is also continually optimized.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Docker on Ubuntu is very much stable; it is one of the most stable solutions that you can find.
Senior DevOps engineer at Elevenxcapital
 

Room For Improvement

Amazon Linux requires improvements in vendor integration, community support, GUI, documentation, flexibility, and package management for enhanced usability.
Docker on Ubuntu needs UI improvements, simpler networking, better documentation, and cost-effective solutions for enhanced user experience.
Documentation explaining the differences between Ubuntu and Amazon Linux would be valuable.
full stack developer at 71Lbs
Since we are working in a real-time manner and need to scale things immediately, the time it takes to boot an instance and then deploy things is preventing me from giving it a perfect rating.
Level 2 Software Engineer at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
My advice for others looking into using Amazon Linux is to make sure the command line is easy and that Amazon Linux has more performance than other Linux environments and is more secure than other Linux environments as well.
DevOps Engineer at Wissen infotech
Code sharing ability exists in GitHub and other tools, but in Docker on Ubuntu, other users we are sharing with do not have options like edit and update the code.
Software Engineer at Bounteous
While Docker itself has no cost, the Docker repository and Docker Hub could improve their pricing, especially for startup companies.
Chief Technology Officer at ML Cloud LLC
It is completely complex to understand the networking in Docker on Ubuntu and Kubernetes clusters, as well as the ephemeral nature of the network and storage.
Founder at Asynka
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise buyers favor Amazon Linux for its cost efficiency, free-tier usage, and reduced expenses with Graviton instances.
With Amazon Linux itself, there is no cost associated with using it, so I would say it is very good from a pricing perspective.
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
I am paying around $300 to $400 per month because I use many services.
Software Engineer at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
The pricing is free compared to many other operating systems that charge.
Cloud Solution Engineer at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees
I find the pricing for Docker on Ubuntu is not expensive because basically, it is zero.
Founder at Asynka
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Docker on Ubuntu is that it was free to use.
Automations Engineer at Ad Up
I do not have a problem with the pricing for Docker on Ubuntu because I do not pay for that; my boss does.
DevOps at Chill Flow
 

Valuable Features

Amazon Linux excels in AWS integration, security, and performance, featuring fast boot, auto-scaling, and efficient resource management.
Docker on Ubuntu enhances development with containerization, portability, and strong support, offering reliable and scalable infrastructure solutions.
Amazon Linux handles this automatically. It is optimized for EC2, AWS hardware and software, mostly secure and stable, and there is no additional cost.
Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators
In terms of service security, there are many constraint security protocols and policies that help me create our own networks, security groups, and inline policies.
Software Engineer at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Amazon Linux's security updates have been helpful in general because I have had to be more specific in using the Identity Access Management (IAM) service so that we can have role-based permissions in preference to just keeping it open.
Independent Contractor at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Docker is the heart of many AI tools that are used, and I have an AI workstation that uses Docker to package up certain capabilities for AI engineering.
Chief Technology Officer at ML Cloud LLC
The best features that Docker on Ubuntu offers are container isolation, fast startup time, portability, and strong integration with the Ubuntu Linux ecosystem, making it easy to package applications with their dependencies and run them consistently across systems.
Embedded Linux / BSP Engineer at Veethree
Docker on Ubuntu has positively impacted my workflow primarily through low infrastructure cost, better cloud compatibility, and faster DevOps workflows.
Software Developer at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Amazon Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
16th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Docker on Ubuntu
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
15th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
5.3
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

SAURAB K GANGURDE - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior AWS Consultant at Quantum Integrators
“Amazon Linux delivers automated security updates— including live kernel patching in AL2023—ensuring protected workloads with minimal manual effort and zero-downtime patching.”
One improvement for Amazon Linux would be stronger support for running it outside AWS. Although Amazon provides local VM images for VirtualBox and VMware, they are intended mainly for development and testing. Unlike Ubuntu, Debian, or Red Hat, Amazon Linux is not designed or fully supported as a production OS in on-prem or hybrid environments. Expanding official support outside AWS would offer more flexibility for teams that maintain mixed infrastructure. Another area for improvement is the community ecosystem. Compared to Ubuntu or Red Hat, Amazon Linux has a smaller community and fewer third-party resources or tutorials. A larger ecosystem would make troubleshooting and adoption easier. Finally, improving backward compatibility between Amazon Linux 2 and Amazon Linux 2023—especially around package management (DNF vs yum) and updated toolchains—would simplify upgrades for teams managing large fleets.
reviewer2795433 - PeerSpot reviewer
Enterprise Cloud Operations Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Built a reliable cloud foundation that has supported flexible web applications and smooth scaling
Docker on Ubuntu can be improved because Ubuntu is not minimalist at all; it comes with a lot of software by default. This has led some individuals, including myself, to try using Alpine, which is more lightweight, allowing the container to run on a more lightweight operating system that potentially uses fewer resources and reduces costs. If Ubuntu were a little more minimalist, that would be good, but it's not really aiming for that since it intends to be the baseline. Also, Ubuntu moves very fast, possibly faster than other operating systems like Debian, which could demand operational heavy upgrades to major versions every couple of years if there are many applications running.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
15%
Government
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Computer Software Company
45%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Outsourcing Company
6%
Comms Service Provider
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Amazon Linux?
Right now, I don't think there are any specific areas to improve in Amazon Linux.
What is your primary use case for Amazon Linux?
The use cases for this in our company is that we have a customer that internally uses it for several applications, and they are a telecommunications company that has virtual machines and Linux mach...
What advice do you have for others considering Amazon Linux?
I use AWS, Azure, and I'm starting to use GCP, Google Cloud Platform. I have also used ZoomInfo. I have been using the product since its creation. I have not used the ZoomInfo product. With Amazon,...
What needs improvement with Docker on Ubuntu?
Docker has already integrated AI models into their platform and has covered most of the necessary features. They continuously release new versions of Docker. While Docker itself has no cost, the Do...
What is your primary use case for Docker on Ubuntu?
I develop on-premise but then deliver to AWS and in the cloud in EC2 instances. All development and technical development is done on Linux rather than Windows. The production deployment into AWS is...
What advice do you have for others considering Docker on Ubuntu?
I work with Linux, but not that particular module, mainly in EC2 instances. I use Ubuntu Linux out of the box and do not use Red Hat, especially at the enterprise level. It is convenient and easy s...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon Linux vs. Docker on Ubuntu and other solutions. Updated: January 2026.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.