AWS Shield
DDoS protection software
Web security software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
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$3,000 per month
Free Trial unavailable
Free version
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Large
- Public sector and nonprofit organizations
- Banking and insurance
- Healthcare and life sciences
What is AWS Shield
AWS Shield is a managed distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) protection service for applications running on Amazon Web Services. It helps security and cloud operations teams detect and mitigate DDoS attacks against AWS resources such as CloudFront distributions, Route 53 hosted zones, and Elastic Load Balancers. The service is offered in tiers (Standard and Advanced) and integrates with other AWS security and networking services for monitoring, response workflows, and cost protections related to certain attack scaling events.
Native AWS edge integration
AWS Shield is tightly integrated with AWS edge and networking services, including CloudFront, Route 53, and Elastic Load Balancing. This reduces deployment effort compared with products that require separate appliances, agents, or third-party routing changes. It also centralizes DDoS posture for workloads already fronted by AWS-managed endpoints. For AWS-centric architectures, this alignment can simplify operations and incident response.
Managed response with Advanced
AWS Shield Advanced includes access to the AWS DDoS Response Team (DRT) for assistance during attacks. It supports additional detection and mitigation features beyond the baseline tier and is designed for higher-risk internet-facing workloads. Advanced also integrates with AWS WAF for application-layer protections and with AWS tooling for alerting and visibility. This can reduce the need to build a fully in-house DDoS response capability for AWS-hosted services.
Cost protection for scaling events
Shield Advanced provides DDoS cost protection for certain charges that can result from scaling during a verified DDoS event, subject to service terms and eligibility. This addresses a practical risk where mitigation relies on elastic capacity that can increase spend during an attack. For organizations with strict budget controls, this feature can be a meaningful part of risk management. It is most relevant when workloads are heavily dependent on AWS autoscaling and managed edge services.
Primarily AWS workload coverage
AWS Shield is designed to protect resources that are hosted on or fronted by AWS services. Organizations with significant non-AWS, multi-cloud, or on-premises internet-facing infrastructure may need additional tooling to achieve consistent protection across environments. This can lead to split visibility and separate operational processes. It is less suitable as a single, vendor-neutral DDoS layer for heterogeneous networks.
Advanced tier required for depth
The Standard tier provides baseline protections, but many operationally important capabilities (such as DRT engagement and broader feature set) are tied to Shield Advanced. This can create a step-function in cost and governance when moving from basic coverage to enterprise-grade response. Buyers should validate what is included in each tier for their specific endpoints and threat model. Some comparable offerings in the space package more features into a single plan structure.
Limited as full web security suite
While it contributes to web security, Shield is primarily focused on DDoS mitigation rather than a comprehensive application security platform. Capabilities such as bot management, advanced API protection, and broader web application security controls typically require additional AWS services and configuration. This increases architectural complexity for teams seeking an all-in-one web security control plane. It also means security outcomes depend on correct integration with adjacent services (for example, WAF rules and logging pipelines).
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| AWS Shield Standard | $0 (included) | Protection from common network & transport layer DDoS events for AWS customers at no additional charge; automatically enabled for ELB, Application Load Balancer, Amazon CloudFront, and Route 53. |
| AWS Shield Advanced | $3,000 per month + usage fees | Paid subscription requiring a 1-year commitment; billed per payer account. Includes access to application-layer (L7) DDoS protection (AWS Managed Rule group), DDoS cost protection, and up to 50 billion AWS WAF requests per subscribed payer ID per calendar month. Additional usage fees apply (Data Transfer Out usage per GB and additional WAF/request or WCU charges). Example usage fees shown on the official site: $0.050/GB (regional Data Transfer out example for ALB), $0.025/GB (regional Data Transfer out example when protecting CloudFront); additional request charges examples: $0.15 per million requests and WCU-related request rates up to $0.20 per million requests in given examples. |
Seller details
Amazon Web Services, Inc.
Seattle, Washington, USA
2006
Subsidiary
https://aws.amazon.com/
https://x.com/awscloud
https://www.linkedin.com/company/amazon-web-services/
