Difference between AWS App Runner and AWS Elastic Beanstalk

AWS App Runner and AWS Elastic Beanstalk are both platforms provided by AWS for deploying and managing applications, but they cater to different use cases and offer different levels of control and abstraction. Here’s a comparison between AWS App Runner and AWS Elastic Beanstalk:

AWS App Runner

1. Purpose and Use Case:

   • AWS App Runner: App Runner is a fully managed service that makes it easy for developers to quickly deploy containerized web applications and APIs without managing infrastructure. It abstracts away the complexities of container orchestration and scaling.

2. Ease of Use:

   • App Runner: Designed for simplicity, App Runner automates container provisioning, deployment, scaling, and load balancing, allowing developers to focus on building their applications rather than managing infrastructure.

3. Deployment Options:

   • App Runner: Supports Docker containers as the deployment package. You provide the container image, and App Runner handles the rest (deployment, scaling, load balancing).

4. Scaling:

   • App Runner: Automatically scales the infrastructure based on traffic and workload demands. It offers auto-scaling capabilities without requiring manual configuration.

5. Integration:

   • App Runner: Integrates well with other AWS services such as AWS CodePipeline, AWS CodeCommit, and AWS CodeBuild for CI/CD pipelines. It also supports integration with AWS Secrets Manager for managing sensitive information.

6. Cost Management:

   • App Runner: Provides cost optimization with pay-as-you-go pricing based on the number of vCPU and memory resources consumed by your application.

AWS Elastic Beanstalk

1. Purpose and Use Case:

   • AWS Elastic Beanstalk: Elastic Beanstalk is an easy-to-use service for deploying and scaling web applications and services developed in various programming languages (Java, .NET, Node.js, Python, Ruby, Go, etc.).

2. Control and Customization:

   • Elastic Beanstalk: Offers more control over the underlying infrastructure compared to App Runner. You can choose from predefined configurations (platforms) or customize configurations (instance types, load balancers, scaling policies).

3. Deployment Options:

   • Elastic Beanstalk: Supports multiple deployment options including Docker containers, single instances, and multi-instance deployments. It provides flexibility to choose the platform version and configuration.

4. Environment Management:

   • Elastic Beanstalk: Manages application environments including load balancing, auto-scaling, monitoring, and health checks. It supports environment configurations via configuration files (.ebextensions) for customization.

5. Integration:

   • Elastic Beanstalk: Integrates with AWS services for logging (Amazon CloudWatch), monitoring, and security (IAM roles, VPC integration). It supports custom domains, SSL certificates, and integration with AWS CodePipeline for automated deployments.

6. Cost Management:

   • Elastic Beanstalk: Offers cost control with resource management features such as environment tier (free tier, web server tier, worker tier), instance types, and scaling options.