Amazon Cloud Directory
Cloud directory services
Identity management software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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Pay-as-you-go
Free Trial
Free version unavailable
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- Information technology and software
- Banking and insurance
- Energy and utilities
What is Amazon Cloud Directory
Amazon Cloud Directory is a managed cloud directory service on AWS for storing and organizing hierarchical data such as organizational structures, device inventories, and application metadata. It targets developers and architects who need a scalable directory for applications rather than an end-user identity provider. The service supports multi-parent hierarchies and schema-based modeling, and it integrates with AWS IAM for API access control. It is not positioned as a full workforce identity and access management suite (for example, SSO, MFA, and lifecycle workflows are typically handled by other services).
Schema-based hierarchical modeling
Amazon Cloud Directory lets teams define schemas and model complex hierarchies, including nodes with multiple parents. This fits use cases like org charts, product catalogs, and configuration management data where relationships are not strictly tree-based. The API-first approach supports programmatic creation and updates from applications and automation.
Managed AWS-native service
The service is fully managed within AWS, reducing the need to operate directory servers and replication. It integrates with AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) for authentication and authorization to the service APIs. This aligns well with AWS-centric architectures that standardize on AWS security controls, logging, and networking patterns.
Scales for application directories
Amazon Cloud Directory is designed for high-volume directory reads/writes from applications and services. It supports indexing and efficient lookups for directory objects and attributes. This makes it suitable as a backend directory for custom applications where traditional on-prem directory infrastructure is not required.
Not a full IAM suite
Amazon Cloud Directory does not provide core workforce IAM features such as SSO to SaaS apps, adaptive access policies, MFA orchestration, or broad prebuilt application connectors. Organizations typically need additional identity services to handle authentication flows and user lifecycle management. This can increase integration effort compared with dedicated identity management platforms.
AWS lock-in and portability
The service is specific to AWS APIs and operational constructs, which can limit portability to other clouds or on-prem environments. Data models and access patterns may require rework if an organization later standardizes on a different directory or identity platform. Multi-cloud identity strategies may prefer more vendor-neutral directory and IAM components.
Service maturity and roadmap risk
Amazon Cloud Directory has seen less market visibility and ecosystem tooling than many mainstream identity and directory offerings. Fewer third-party integrations and community resources can translate into more custom development and operational knowledge requirements. Buyers should validate current AWS support status, regional availability, and long-term fit for new deployments.
Plan & Pricing
Pricing model: Pay-as-you-go Free tier/trial: AWS Free Tier (first 12 months): 1 GB storage, 100,000 eventually-consistent read API calls, and 10,000 combined strongly-consistent read + write API calls per month (first 12 months). After 12 months, normal usage rates apply.
Example listed prices (may vary by AWS region — examples on the official page use US East (Ohio))
- Storage: $0.25 per GB per month.
- Eventually-consistent read API calls: $0.0049 per 10,000 API calls.
- Strongly-consistent read API calls and write API calls: $0.0053 per 1,000 API calls (these are billed together as a combined metric).
Notes & examples from vendor:
- "Pay only for what you use. There is no minimum fee." (no minimum charge).
- Pricing examples on the official page show calculations (e.g., 10 GB storage + various API call volumes) using the above unit rates.
- Pricing varies by AWS Region and the vendor page points to the Cloud Directory APIs docs for API categorization (which APIs count as eventually-consistent reads vs. strongly-consistent reads).
- Support notice: AWS states Cloud Directory will no longer be open to new customers starting November 7, 2025 and suggests alternatives (Amazon DynamoDB, Amazon Neptune).
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/
