Organising AWS Services by the Problem They Solve
6 entriesThis page follows a list of 35 AWS services organised by the problems they solve rather than alphabetically. The list is grouped into eight areas: compute and containers, storage, databases and search, networking and APIs, workflows and messaging, data and analytics, AI and machine learning, and security and operations. Each entry gives a one-line purpose, for example Amazon EC2 to run virtual servers, Amazon S3 to store objects, datasets and artifacts, and Amazon Bedrock to build applications using foundation models. Every service links to its official AWS product page, where the current features, regions and pricing are described. Service names, scope and pricing change, so check the AWS pages for current details. Descriptions here are short paraphrases and are not rankings or recommendations.
1. Compute and Containers
9 entriesRun code and containers, from virtual servers to event-driven functions.
2. Storage
4 entriesObject, block and shared file storage.
3. Databases and Search
9 entriesManaged relational, key-value, in-memory, search and graph databases.
4. Networking and APIs
8 entriesVirtual networks, DNS, content delivery, API management and load balancing.
5. Workflows and Messaging
6 entriesQueues, notifications, event routing and workflow orchestration.
6. Data and Analytics
6 entriesIntegrate, query and warehouse data.
7. AI and Machine Learning
4 entriesFoundation models and machine learning model development.
8. Security and Operations
10 entriesAccess control, secrets, encryption, monitoring, auditing and infrastructure as code.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main AWS service categories?
This page groups 35 services into eight areas: compute and containers, storage, databases and search, networking and APIs, workflows and messaging, data and analytics, AI and machine learning, and security and operations.
Which AWS services run code?
Amazon EC2 runs virtual servers, AWS Lambda runs event-driven functions, Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS orchestrate containers, and AWS Fargate runs containers without managing servers.
Which AWS services store data?
Amazon S3 stores objects, datasets and artifacts, Amazon EBS provides block storage for EC2, and Amazon EFS provides shared file storage. Databases such as Amazon RDS, Aurora, DynamoDB, ElastiCache, OpenSearch Service and Neptune are listed separately.
How do SQS, SNS, EventBridge and Step Functions differ?
Amazon SQS queues messages between components, Amazon SNS publishes notifications to subscribers, Amazon EventBridge routes events between systems, and AWS Step Functions orchestrates workflows.
What is the difference between Amazon Bedrock and Amazon SageMaker AI?
Amazon Bedrock is for building applications using foundation models. Amazon SageMaker AI is for building, training and deploying machine learning models. See each AWS page for current capabilities.
Which AWS services help secure and monitor an account?
AWS IAM controls access, AWS Secrets Manager manages application secrets, AWS KMS manages encryption keys, Amazon CloudWatch provides metrics, logs and alarms, and AWS CloudTrail records account activity and API events.
Where can I find current AWS pricing and regions?
On each service's AWS page and in the AWS documentation. This page does not repeat prices or regional availability because they change.
How current is this page?
Links to the 35 AWS product pages and four general AWS pages were checked on 1 November 2026. Descriptions are short paraphrases of each service's purpose and are not rankings or endorsements.