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AWS Lambda vs Google Cloud Dataflow 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
7.1
AWS Lambda offers cost savings and high ROI through its pay-as-you-go model, auto-scaling, and serverless infrastructure.
Sentiment score
5.6
Google Cloud Dataflow was appreciated for cost savings and time efficiency, though some considered its impact not fully assessable yet.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.9
AWS Lambda support is efficient and knowledgeable, but some users find cost a barrier for higher service levels.
Sentiment score
6.6
Google Cloud Dataflow support varies, with users praising technical resolution but highlighting inconsistent response times and accessibility.
When we raise a ticket or have an issue, the support team is responsive.
Co-Founder and CTO at Gamucopia Creatives
Google's support team is good at resolving issues, especially with large data.
Senior Data Engineer at Accruent
The fact that no interaction is needed shows their great support since I don't face issues.
Data Engineer at Accenture
Whenever we have issues, we can consult with Google.
Senior Software Engineer at Dun & Bradstreet
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
AWS Lambda efficiently scales with demand, offering seamless serverless operations, integration with AWS services, but may become costly.
Sentiment score
7.3
Google Cloud Dataflow excels in scalability and efficiency, making it ideal for real-time data processing and dynamic needs.
I would rate how scalable AWS Lambda is a nine on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 would be the lowest and 10 would be the highest level of scalability.
Assistant Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Whenever the number of requests increases, the system automatically scales up to the target we have set and scales down once the requests are resolved.
Co-Founder and CTO at Gamucopia Creatives
As a team lead, I'm responsible for handling five to six applications, but Google Cloud Dataflow seems to handle our use case effectively.
Senior Software Engineer at Dun & Bradstreet
Google Cloud Dataflow has auto-scaling capabilities, allowing me to add different machine types based on pace and requirements.
Data Engineer at Accenture
Google Cloud Dataflow can handle large data processing for real-time streaming workloads as they grow, making it a good fit for our business.
Senior Data Engineer at Accruent
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
AWS Lambda is highly stable, reliable, and integrates well, though limited by timeout constraints, rated 8-9 for stability.
Sentiment score
8.3
Google Cloud Dataflow is stable, reliably handles tasks, and benefits from automatic scaling, with minor issues on complex tasks.
The job we built has not failed once over six to seven months.
Senior Software Engineer at Dun & Bradstreet
I have not encountered any issues with the performance of Dataflow, as it is stable and backed by Google services.
Data Engineer at Accenture
The automatic scaling feature helps maintain stability.
Senior Data Engineer at Accruent
 

Room For Improvement

AWS Lambda users desire improved integration, user-friendliness, language support, execution speed, monitoring, setup, customization, and computational capabilities.
Google Cloud Dataflow needs better Kafka integration, improved error logs, reduced startup time, and enhanced Python SDK features.
AWS Lambda needs to improve cold start time.
Co-Founder and CTO at Gamucopia Creatives
Outside of Google Cloud Platform, it is problematic for others to use it and may require promotion as an actual technology.
Data Engineer at Accenture
I would like to see improvements in consistency and flexibility for schema design for NoSQL data stored in wide columns.
Senior Data Engineer at Accruent
Dealing with a huge volume of data causes failure due to array size.
Senior Software Engineer at Dun & Bradstreet
 

Setup Cost

AWS Lambda offers cost-effective, pay-per-use pricing, ideal for low-traffic workloads, with potential cost escalation if unmonitored.
Google Cloud Dataflow is praised for cost-effectiveness and scalability, offering competitive pricing influenced by pipeline complexity and company size.
It is part of a package received from Google, and they are not charging us too high.
Senior Software Engineer at Dun & Bradstreet
 

Valuable Features

AWS Lambda provides serverless architecture, automatic scaling, seamless integrations, cost efficiency, and simplified deployment for efficient application development.
Google Cloud Dataflow offers seamless integration, multi-language support, scalability, and serverless data handling for efficient batch and streaming processes.
Automatic scaling is a valuable feature. When the number of requests increases, the system automatically scales up to the target we have set and scales down once the requests are resolved.
Co-Founder and CTO at Gamucopia Creatives
It supports multiple programming languages such as Java and Python, enabling flexibility without the need to learn something new.
Data Engineer at Accenture
Google Cloud Dataflow's features for event stream processing allow us to gain various insights like detecting real-time alerts.
Senior Data Engineer at Accruent
The integration within Google Cloud Platform is very good.
Senior Software Engineer at Dun & Bradstreet
 

Categories and Ranking

AWS Lambda
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
90
Ranking in other categories
Compute Service (1st)
Google Cloud Dataflow
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
Streaming Analytics (9th)
 

Mindshare comparison

AWS Lambda and Google Cloud Dataflow aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. AWS Lambda is designed for Compute Service and holds a mindshare of 15.2%, down 20.3% compared to last year.
Google Cloud Dataflow, on the other hand, focuses on Streaming Analytics, holds 4.6% mindshare, down 7.8% since last year.
Compute Service Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
AWS Lambda15.2%
AWS Batch14.1%
Apache Spark11.4%
Other59.300000000000004%
Compute Service
Streaming Analytics Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Google Cloud Dataflow4.6%
Apache Flink13.4%
Databricks10.8%
Other71.2%
Streaming Analytics
 

Featured Reviews

Rajaraman Ramachandran - PeerSpot reviewer
Co-Founder and CTO at Gamucopia Creatives
Has enabled us to manage compute resources efficiently while supporting multiple languages
AWS Lambda needs to improve cold start time. Some AWS Lambda functions require a cold start, and if you need AWS Lambda to provide quick responses, you need some of the AWS Lambdas to be always on, which is risky. We need AWS Lambda's cold start time to be reduced so that we can use it much faster than now. We need a better way to handle the cold start. We should be able to start AWS Lambda much before in a predictable way instead of just calling and then having it start.
Jana Polianskaja - PeerSpot reviewer
Data Engineer at Accenture
Build Scalable Data Pipelines with Apache Beam and Google Cloud Dataflow
As a data engineer, I find several features of Google Cloud Dataflow particularly valuable. The ability to test solutions locally using Direct Runner is crucial for development, allowing me to validate pipelines without incurring the costs of full Dataflow jobs. The unified programming model for both batch and streaming processing is exceptional - requiring only minor code adjustments to optimize for either mode. This flexibility extends to language support, with robust implementations in both Java and Python, allowing teams to leverage their existing expertise. The platform's comprehensive monitoring capabilities are another standout feature. The intuitive interface, Grafana integration, and extensive service connectivity make troubleshooting and performance tracking highly efficient. Furthermore, seamless integration with Google Cloud Composer (managed Airflow) enables sophisticated orchestration of data pipelines.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Educational Organization
6%
Financial Services Firm
19%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Retailer
11%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business35
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise43
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise10
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better, AWS Lambda or Batch?
AWS Lambda is a serverless solution. It doesn’t require any infrastructure, which allows for cost savings. There is no setup process to deal with, as the entire solution is in the cloud. If you use...
What do you like most about AWS Lambda?
The tool scales automatically based on the number of incoming requests.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Lambda?
The pricing of AWS Lambda is reasonable. It's beneficial and cost-effective for users regardless of the number of instances used.
What do you like most about Google Cloud Dataflow?
The product's installation process is easy...The tool's maintenance part is somewhat easy.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud Dataflow?
Pricing is normal. It is part of a package received from Google, and they are not charging us too high.
What needs improvement with Google Cloud Dataflow?
It can be improved in several ways. The system could function in an automated fashion and provide suggestions based on past transactions to achieve better scalability. Implementing AI-based suggest...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Google Dataflow
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Netflix
Absolutdata, Backflip Studios, Bluecore, Claritics, Crystalloids, Energyworx, GenieConnect, Leanplum, Nomanini, Redbus, Streak, TabTale
Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon Web Services (AWS), Apache, Zadara and others in Compute Service. Updated: November 2025.
879,259 professionals have used our research since 2012.