Amazon Redshift vs Snowflake

Updated November 2026 · AppBreakup editorial

Amazon Redshift

AWS's managed cloud data warehouse, available as provisioned clusters or a serverless option.

Paid

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Snowflake

A fully managed cloud data platform for warehousing, analytics, data sharing and AI workloads.

Paid

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The short answer

Both are managed, paid cloud data warehouses for SQL analytics at scale. Redshift is AWS's own warehouse and fits teams already built on AWS, with provisioned or serverless options and deep IAM and S3 integration. Snowflake runs on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud, separates compute per team, and adds data sharing. Pick Redshift if you're committed to AWS; pick Snowflake for multi-cloud or many teams sharing one warehouse.

Amazon Redshift or Snowflake: our take

Amazon Redshift and Snowflake solve the same problem, running large SQL analytics queries over a columnar, managed warehouse, but they come at it from different directions. Redshift is part of Amazon Web Services. You can size provisioned clusters yourself or use Redshift Serverless, which bills compute per second with a 60-second minimum. Provisioned pricing starts at $0.543 per hour and Serverless from $1.50 per hour, and new Serverless users get $300 credit for 90 days. Snowflake is independent of any one cloud and runs on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud, with consumption-based pricing for compute credits and storage across Standard, Enterprise and Business Critical editions.

Redshift's main draw is how tightly it ties into the rest of AWS: IAM for access, Lake Formation, QuickSight and SageMaker, Spectrum for querying files in S3 without loading them, and zero-ETL replication from AWS databases. It speaks a PostgreSQL-flavoured SQL that most BI tools connect to. The trade-off is that it runs only on AWS, and provisioned clusters need sizing and tuning.

Snowflake's design separates storage from compute, so different teams can run their own virtual warehouses against the same data without slowing each other down, and it handles tuning and encryption for you. It adds secure data sharing between accounts, a data marketplace, Time Travel for querying past versions of tables, Snowpark for Python and other languages, and AI features under the Cortex name.

Both bill by usage, and both can get expensive without monitoring. Teams whose data and applications already live in AWS, and who want their warehouse governed by the same IAM policies, will usually be better served by Redshift. Companies spread across several clouds, with many teams querying one governed dataset, or that need to share data with partners, tend to choose Snowflake.

Choose Amazon Redshift if…

Teams on AWS that want a managed SQL warehouse integrated with their other AWS services
Serverless option bills compute per second
Queries data in S3 directly with Spectrum

Choose Snowflake if…

Companies that want a managed, governed warehouse shared across many teams and clouds
Little infrastructure or tuning work compared with running your own database
Separate compute warehouses stop teams from slowing each other down

What is Amazon Redshift?

Amazon Redshift is the data warehouse service from Amazon Web Services. It stores data in columns across many nodes so large SQL analytics queries run in parallel, and it speaks a PostgreSQL-flavoured dialect that most BI tools connect to. You can run it as provisioned clusters you size yourself, or as Redshift Serverless, which bills for compute by the second while it runs queries. Redshift Spectrum queries files sitting in S3, including open table formats, without loading them first, and zero-ETL integrations replicate data from AWS databases. It also ties into IAM, Lake Formation, QuickSight and SageMaker, which is the main reason AWS-centred teams choose it. It suits companies already on AWS that want SQL analytics at scale without leaving that ecosystem. It is paid, with usage-based pricing and a credit-based trial for Serverless; costs can be harder to predict than flat plans, and it runs only on AWS, so multi-cloud teams often prefer Snowflake or Databricks.

What is Snowflake?

Snowflake is a cloud data warehouse that runs as a managed service on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. It separates storage from compute, so different teams can run their own virtual warehouses against the same data without slowing each other down, and it handles infrastructure, tuning and encryption for you. Beyond SQL analytics it offers Snowpark for Python and other languages, secure data sharing between accounts, a data marketplace, Time Travel for querying past versions of tables, and a growing set of AI features under the Cortex name. It is aimed at mid-sized and large companies that want one governed place for their analytics data. Pricing is consumption-based: you pay for compute credits and storage, with higher editions (Enterprise, Business Critical) adding features such as multi-cluster compute and stronger compliance controls. There is no self-hosted version, and costs can climb quickly without monitoring of warehouse usage.

Side by side

Attribute	Amazon Redshift	Snowflake
Pricing	Paid	Paid
Open source	No	No
Self-hostable	No	No
Platforms	Web	Web
Best for	Teams on AWS that want a managed SQL warehouse integrated with their other AWS services	Companies that want a managed, governed warehouse shared across many teams and clouds
Status	Active	Active