DigitalOcean to AWS Migration
Migrating from DigitalOcean to AWS: Service Mapping and Guide
A practical guide to migrating from DigitalOcean to AWS — service equivalents, cost comparison, migration phases, and honest trade-offs for DevOps engineers and engineering managers.
DigitalOcean earns its reputation as the developer-friendly cloud. Flat pricing, a clean control panel, and opinionated defaults let a solo developer go from signup to running server in minutes. That simplicity is genuinely valuable — until it is not. Teams migrating to AWS are typically pushed by one of four forces: compliance requirements their current cloud cannot meet, growth into AI/ML workloads that need Bedrock or SageMaker, Kubernetes complexity that DOKS cannot handle at scale, or an enterprise customer asking for AWS-specific integrations. This guide is written for the engineering team that has hit one of those walls. We are an [AWS Select Tier Consulting Partner](/services/aws-migration), so we are transparent about our perspective — but we will also tell you clearly when DigitalOcean is the better fit. ## When DigitalOcean Starts Showing Its Limits DigitalOcean is purpose-built for simplicity. That simplicity has a cost at scale: - **No native serverless compute.** App Platform runs containers, not functions. There is no equivalent of Lambda or API Gateway. - **DOKS has ceiling limitations.** DigitalOcean Kubernetes Service works well for small-to-medium clusters, but lacks advanced node pool features, Karpenter-style autoscaling, and the operational tooling available in EKS. - **Compliance coverage is narrower.** DigitalOcean holds SOC 2 Type II. If your customers require HIPAA, PCI DSS Level 1, or FedRAMP, you will need to move. - **No AI/ML managed services.** There is no DigitalOcean equivalent of SageMaker for model training or Bedrock for foundational model access. - **Smaller global footprint.** DigitalOcean operates in around 15 regions; AWS operates in 33 geographic regions with 105 Availability Zones. ## DigitalOcean to AWS Service Mapping | DigitalOcean Service | AWS Equivalent | Notes | | ----------------------------------- | ------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Droplets | EC2 (t4g, m7g for Graviton) | Per-second billing vs per-hour; Graviton gives ~20% better price-performance | | Spaces | Amazon S3 | S3-compatible API; S3 has deeper lifecycle and tiering features | | Managed Databases (Postgres, MySQL) | Amazon RDS | RDS adds Multi-AZ, read replicas, automated patching | | App Platform | ECS Fargate or Lambda | Fargate for containers; Lambda for function-based apps | | Load Balancers | Application Load Balancer (ALB) | ALB adds path-based routing, WAF integration, and advanced health checks | | Cloud Firewall | Security Groups + Network ACLs | AWS splits stateful (SG) and stateless (NACL) rules | | CDN | Amazon CloudFront | CloudFront integrates with S3, ALB, Lambda@Edge | | DOKS (Kubernetes) | Amazon EKS | EKS has deeper node pool control, Karpenter, and Fargate profiles | | Managed Redis | ElastiCache for Redis | ElastiCache adds cluster mode, Global Datastore for multi-region | | DigitalOcean Functions | AWS Lambda | Lambda has broader trigger integrations and larger ecosystem | ## Cost Comparison DigitalOcean pricing is simpler and cheaper for small, steady workloads. The calculus changes at scale. | Workload | DigitalOcean | AWS (On-Demand) | AWS (1-yr Savings Plan) | | ---------------------------------- | ------------------------------------ | --------------------------------------- | --------------------------- | | 2 vCPU / 4 GB RAM VM | $24/month (2 GB) or $48/month (4 GB) | t3.medium: ~$30/month | t3.medium: ~$19/month | | 4 vCPU / 8 GB RAM VM | $96/month | m6i.xlarge: ~$138/month | m6i.xlarge: ~$90/month | | 50 GB object storage | Spaces: $5/month (250 GB incl.) | S3: ~$1.15/month | S3: same (no discount) | | Managed Postgres (1 GB) | $15/month | RDS db.t3.micro: ~$14/month | RDS db.t3.micro: ~$10/month | | Managed Kubernetes (control plane) | DOKS: $12/month (control plane) | EKS: $73/month (control plane) | EKS: same ($73/month) | | CDN bandwidth (1 TB/month) | $0 (included with Spaces) | CloudFront: ~$85/month | CloudFront: same | | Managed Redis (1 GB) | $15/month | ElastiCache cache.t4g.micro: ~$12/month | ~$8/month | **The EKS control plane shock:** DigitalOcean's DOKS is free ($0) for the control plane; AWS charges $0.10/hour ($73/month). This is a surprise cost for teams migrating Kubernetes workloads. However, add the full cluster cost (compute nodes) and AWS Savings Plans often win overall. ## Related Comparisons Explore other technical comparisons: - [GCP to AWS Migration](/compare/gcp-to-aws-migration) - [Heroku to AWS](/compare/heroku-postgres-to-aws-rds) ## Why Choose FactualMinds for Your AWS Migration FactualMinds is an **AWS Select Tier Consulting Partner** specializing in cloud platform migrations. We have executed GCP, DigitalOcean, Heroku, and MongoDB migrations to AWS and know the pitfalls. - **Migration architects** — assessment-first methodology mapping your current state before execution - **Zero-downtime cutover** — we execute migrations with minimal business impact - **AWS Select Tier Partner** — [verified on AWS Partner Network](https://partners.amazonaws.com/partners/001aq000008su2EAAQ/Factual%20Minds) - [AWS Marketplace Seller](https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/seller-profile?id=seller-m753gfqftla7y) ---
DigitalOcean earns its reputation as the developer-friendly cloud. Flat pricing, a clean control panel, and opinionated defaults let a solo developer go from signup to running server in minutes. That simplicity is genuinely valuable — until it is not.
Teams migrating to AWS are typically pushed by one of four forces: compliance requirements their current cloud cannot meet, growth into AI/ML workloads that need Bedrock or SageMaker, Kubernetes complexity that DOKS cannot handle at scale, or an enterprise customer asking for AWS-specific integrations. This guide is written for the engineering team that has hit one of those walls.
We are an AWS Select Tier Consulting Partner, so we are transparent about our perspective — but we will also tell you clearly when DigitalOcean is the better fit.
When DigitalOcean Starts Showing Its Limits
DigitalOcean is purpose-built for simplicity. That simplicity has a cost at scale:
- No native serverless compute. App Platform runs containers, not functions. There is no equivalent of Lambda or API Gateway.
- DOKS has ceiling limitations. DigitalOcean Kubernetes Service works well for small-to-medium clusters, but lacks advanced node pool features, Karpenter-style autoscaling, and the operational tooling available in EKS.
- Compliance coverage is narrower. DigitalOcean holds SOC 2 Type II. If your customers require HIPAA, PCI DSS Level 1, or FedRAMP, you will need to move.
- No AI/ML managed services. There is no DigitalOcean equivalent of SageMaker for model training or Bedrock for foundational model access.
- Smaller global footprint. DigitalOcean operates in around 15 regions; AWS operates in 33 geographic regions with 105 Availability Zones.
DigitalOcean to AWS Service Mapping
| DigitalOcean Service | AWS Equivalent | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Droplets | EC2 (t4g, m7g for Graviton) | Per-second billing vs per-hour; Graviton gives ~20% better price-performance |
| Spaces | Amazon S3 | S3-compatible API; S3 has deeper lifecycle and tiering features |
| Managed Databases (Postgres, MySQL) | Amazon RDS | RDS adds Multi-AZ, read replicas, automated patching |
| App Platform | ECS Fargate or Lambda | Fargate for containers; Lambda for function-based apps |
| Load Balancers | Application Load Balancer (ALB) | ALB adds path-based routing, WAF integration, and advanced health checks |
| Cloud Firewall | Security Groups + Network ACLs | AWS splits stateful (SG) and stateless (NACL) rules |
| CDN | Amazon CloudFront | CloudFront integrates with S3, ALB, Lambda@Edge |
| DOKS (Kubernetes) | Amazon EKS | EKS has deeper node pool control, Karpenter, and Fargate profiles |
| Managed Redis | ElastiCache for Redis | ElastiCache adds cluster mode, Global Datastore for multi-region |
| DigitalOcean Functions | AWS Lambda | Lambda has broader trigger integrations and larger ecosystem |
Cost Comparison
DigitalOcean pricing is simpler and cheaper for small, steady workloads. The calculus changes at scale.
| Workload | DigitalOcean | AWS (On-Demand) | AWS (1-yr Savings Plan) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 vCPU / 4 GB RAM VM | $24/month (2 GB) or $48/month (4 GB) | t3.medium: ~$30/month | t3.medium: ~$19/month |
| 4 vCPU / 8 GB RAM VM | $96/month | m6i.xlarge: ~$138/month | m6i.xlarge: ~$90/month |
| 50 GB object storage | Spaces: $5/month (250 GB incl.) | S3: ~$1.15/month | S3: same (no discount) |
| Managed Postgres (1 GB) | $15/month | RDS db.t3.micro: ~$14/month | RDS db.t3.micro: ~$10/month |
| Managed Kubernetes (control plane) | DOKS: $12/month (control plane) | EKS: $73/month (control plane) | EKS: same ($73/month) |
| CDN bandwidth (1 TB/month) | $0 (included with Spaces) | CloudFront: ~$85/month | CloudFront: same |
| Managed Redis (1 GB) | $15/month | ElastiCache cache.t4g.micro: ~$12/month | ~$8/month |
The EKS control plane shock: DigitalOcean’s DOKS is free ($0) for the control plane; AWS charges $0.10/hour ($73/month). This is a surprise cost for teams migrating Kubernetes workloads. However, add the full cluster cost (compute nodes) and AWS Savings Plans often win overall.
Related Comparisons
Explore other technical comparisons:
Why Choose FactualMinds for Your AWS Migration
FactualMinds is an AWS Select Tier Consulting Partner specializing in cloud platform migrations. We have executed GCP, DigitalOcean, Heroku, and MongoDB migrations to AWS and know the pitfalls.
- Migration architects — assessment-first methodology mapping your current state before execution
- Zero-downtime cutover — we execute migrations with minimal business impact
- AWS Select Tier Partner — verified on AWS Partner Network
- AWS Marketplace Seller
Frequently Asked Questions
Is DigitalOcean cheaper than AWS?
For simple, predictable workloads DigitalOcean is typically cheaper — a $6/month Droplet is straightforward, and Spaces pricing is flat. AWS list prices are higher but Reserved Instances and Savings Plans (1- or 3-year commitments) can reduce compute costs by 40–72%. At scale, AWS often wins on cost. For a single VM running a side project, DigitalOcean wins on simplicity and price.
How do I migrate from DigitalOcean to AWS?
The most common approach is a parallel-run migration: provision equivalent AWS infrastructure, replicate your data (using AWS DMS for databases, or a snapshot-and-restore for object storage), test your application, then cut over DNS. For Kubernetes workloads, migrate your manifests from DOKS to EKS or convert to Fargate task definitions. For most teams, the entire migration takes 2–6 weeks depending on workload complexity.
What is the AWS equivalent of a Droplet?
An EC2 instance is the closest equivalent. For a typical 2 vCPU / 4 GB Droplet, the AWS equivalent is a t3.medium or t4g.medium (Graviton). Graviton-based instances (t4g, m7g, c7g families) offer better price-performance than x86 instances for most Linux workloads. Unlike Droplets, EC2 instances are not billed by the month — they are billed per second, which is more flexible for auto-scaling workloads.
Does AWS have something like DigitalOcean Spaces?
Yes — Amazon S3. Spaces is actually built on an S3-compatible API, so most tools and SDKs work with both. S3 has broader feature support: S3 Intelligent-Tiering, lifecycle policies, Object Lock, replication, and deep integration with other AWS services. DigitalOcean Spaces charges a flat $5/month for 250 GB; S3 charges per GB stored ($0.023/GB in us-east-1) with no minimum, which can be cheaper for small amounts and more expensive if you store terabytes without tiering.
Is DigitalOcean good for production workloads?
Yes — DigitalOcean runs serious production workloads at companies of all sizes. Where it falls short relative to AWS: fewer compliance certifications (DigitalOcean has SOC 2 Type II but not HIPAA BAA or PCI DSS for all services), no native serverless compute, limited AI/ML managed services, and a smaller global footprint. For regulated industries or teams that need SageMaker, Bedrock, or the full AWS ecosystem, migration becomes necessary as requirements grow.
Ready to Migrate to AWS?
FactualMinds is an AWS Select Tier Consulting Partner. We run assessment-first migrations — mapping your current architecture, estimating risk, and executing with zero-downtime cutover strategies.