Running containerised applications often means dealing with servers, scaling, and infrastructure management, tasks that slow teams down. As containers become more common, many organisations want a simpler way to run them without managing servers.
AWS Fargate enables a serverless approach to running containers on AWS, working with Amazon ECS and EKS to remove the need for EC2 instance management. This lets teams focus on building and deploying applications while AWS handles the compute layer.
This article covers how AWS Fargate works, its features, pricing, use cases, and limitations, helping you decide when Fargate is the right fit.
Table of Contents:
What is AWS?
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a cloud computing platform that allows organisations to build, deploy, and scale applications without managing physical servers. It provides on-demand access to infrastructure and services over the internet.
With AWS, businesses can:
- Access computing power, storage, databases, and networking services on demand
- Deploy applications globally using multiple regions and availability zones
- Scale resources up or down based on workload requirements
- Improve reliability and performance through built-in redundancy
- Use a pay-as-you-go pricing model, paying only for what they use
By removing the need for upfront hardware investment, AWS helps organisations focus on innovation while maintaining flexibility and cost control.
What is AWS Fargate?
AWS Fargate is a serverless compute engine for containers that allows you to run containerised applications without managing servers, virtual machines, or clusters. It works with Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS, handling the underlying infrastructure so you can focus on building and deploying applications.
With AWS Fargate, you do not need to provision or maintain EC2 instances. Instead, you define your application requirements, and AWS automatically provides the required compute resources.
Key aspects of AWS Fargate include:
- No server or cluster management required
- Supports container orchestration with Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS
- Runs containers in an isolated and secure environment
- Automatically scales compute resources based on workload needs
- Allows you to specify CPU and memory requirements per task
AWS Fargate is ideal for teams that want a simpler, serverless way to run containers while maintaining scalability, security, and operational efficiency.
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How AWS Fargate Works
AWS Fargate lets you run containers without managing the underlying infrastructure. Instead of provisioning servers, you define your application requirements, and AWS takes care of everything else.
Here’s how AWS Fargate works in practice:
1. Create a container image
- Package your application as a Docker container.
- Store the container image in a registry such as Amazon ECR.
2. Define a task or pod
- For ECS, create a task definition specifying CPU, memory, networking, and IAM roles.
- For EKS, define pod specifications as you normally would in Kubernetes.
3. Choose the Fargate launch type
- Select AWS Fargate as the compute option instead of EC2.
- AWS automatically provisions the required compute resources.
4. Run and scale containers
- Fargate launches containers in isolated environments.
- Scaling happens automatically based on defined policies or workload demand.
5. Monitor and secure workloads
- Integrates with Amazon CloudWatch, IAM, and Elastic Load Balancing for logging, monitoring, and security.
With AWS Fargate, AWS manages servers, scaling, and availability in the background, allowing teams to focus entirely on application development and delivery.
Features of AWS Fargate
AWS Fargate is designed to simplify container execution by removing infrastructure management. Below are the key features that make Fargate a popular choice for running containers on AWS:
|
Feature
|
Description
|
| Serverless container execution |
Run containers without managing servers, EC2 instances, or clusters. |
| ECS & EKS integration |
Works natively with Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS for container orchestration. |
| Resource-level isolation |
Allocate CPU and memory per task or pod for better performance and security. |
| Automatic scaling |
Scales containers automatically based on application demand. |
| Built-in security |
Uses IAM roles, VPC networking, and task-level isolation. |
| Pay-as-you-go pricing |
Charges only for vCPU and memory used while containers are running. |
| Monitoring & logging |
Integrates with Amazon CloudWatch, Load Balancers, and AWS logging services. |
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AWS ECS VS AWS Fargate
| AWS ECS | AWS Fargate |
| AWS ECS Offers support in its CLI for Docker Compose. | AWS Fargate Offers the same API actions as ECS, so you can use the ECS console or CLI, or the AWS CLI. |
| It Supports duplicating environments using AWS CLI/SDK calls, thus helping in managing hundreds of containers | It Supports heterogeneous clusters that are made up of tasks running on both EC2 and Fargate launch types. Ideal for rapid horizontal scaling. |
| It Eliminates own registry management. | It Takes care of bin packaging problems. |
| It’s for free, but you have to pay for than underlying resources provisioned to support applications. | Paying for the computing time, rather then the underlying EC2 instances. Works out cheaper, but can spiral out of control, depending on the use case. |
AWS Fargate Benefits
- No server or cluster management: AWS Fargate removes the need to provision, manage, or patch EC2 instances, allowing teams to focus purely on application development.
- Simplified application deployment: Developers can deploy containerized applications faster without worrying about infrastructure setup or capacity planning.
- Automatic scaling: Containers scale automatically based on workload demand, making Fargate suitable for variable and unpredictable traffic.
- Cost-efficient resource usage: You only pay for the vCPU and memory your containers use while running, reducing overprovisioning and idle resource costs.
- Built-in security and isolation: Each task runs in an isolated environment with IAM-based permissions and VPC networking for enhanced security.
- High availability by default: AWS manages availability and fault tolerance across multiple Availability Zones.
- Well-suited for modern workloads: Ideal for microservices architectures, batch processing, and event-driven applications.
AWS Fargate Pricing
AWS Fargate follows a pay-as-you-go pricing model, where you are billed only for the compute resources your containers use while they are running.
How AWS Fargate Pricing Works
AWS Fargate pricing is based on two components:
- vCPU: The amount of compute power allocated to a task or pod
- Memory (GB): The memory allocated to the task or pod
You define these values in your ECS task definition or EKS pod specification. AWS Fargate then charges you for the exact duration the container runs, calculated per second.
Simple pricing formula:
Total cost = vCPU allocated × runtime + memory allocated × runtime
Key Factors That Affect Cost
Your total AWS Fargate cost depends on:
- Number of running tasks or pods
- CPU and memory allocated per task
- Runtime duration of containers
- AWS region where the workload runs
When Is AWS Fargate Cost-Effective?
AWS Fargate is particularly cost-efficient for:
- Microservices with variable traffic
- Short-lived or event-driven workloads
- Applications that benefit from automatic scaling
- Teams that want to avoid EC2 management overhead
For long-running, predictable workloads, EC2-based containers may be more economical, but Fargate often saves operational cost and effort.
For accurate estimates, AWS recommends using the AWS Pricing Calculator.
AWS Fargate Use Cases
AWS Fargate is a serverless container compute engine that simplifies container management, making it ideal for a variety of modern workloads. Its flexibility, automatic scaling, and seamless integration with ECS and EKS make it suitable for organizations looking to focus on application development rather than infrastructure management.
- Microservices Architecture: Run multiple microservices independently without managing underlying EC2 instances. Each microservice can scale automatically based on demand.
- Batch Processing & ETL Jobs: Execute short-lived, event-driven tasks such as data transformation, processing logs, or batch analytics. Fargate handles scaling and execution efficiently.
- Machine Learning Workloads: Deploy containerized ML models for training or inference without worrying about provisioning servers or clusters.
- Web Applications & APIs: Run containerized web applications or RESTful APIs that need to scale automatically during traffic spikes.
- Event-Driven Applications: Perfect for applications triggered by events such as S3 uploads, database changes, or messaging queues.
- CI/CD Pipelines: Run automated build, test, and deployment pipelines using containerized tools without maintaining dedicated servers.
- Hybrid & Multi-Cloud Applications: Fargate’s integration with ECS and EKS allows organizations to deploy consistent container workloads across different environments with minimal operational overhead.
Limitations of AWS Fargate
While AWS Fargate simplifies container management, it does come with certain limitations. Understanding these will help you plan deployments effectively and choose the right workloads for Fargate.
|
Limitation
|
Description
|
| Limited Control Over Infrastructure |
You cannot access underlying EC2 instances, which restricts advanced customizations or low-level optimizations. |
| Higher Cost for Long-Running Tasks |
For predictable, long-running workloads, Fargate can be more expensive than EC2-based container deployment. |
| Resource Limits |
Maximum vCPU and memory per task/pod are constrained, which can impact resource-intensive applications. |
| Cold Start Latency |
Initial container startup may take longer compared to pre-provisioned EC2 instances, affecting latency-sensitive applications. |
| Limited Storage Options |
Only ephemeral storage is included by default; persistent storage requires additional AWS services. |
| Limited Regional Availability |
Some features or Fargate integrations may not be available in all AWS regions. |
| Networking Constraints |
Tasks require VPC networking, and complex networking setups can increase configuration effort. |
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Conclusion
AWS Fargate is a serverless container compute engine that lets you run containerized applications without managing infrastructure. It scales automatically, integrates seamlessly with AWS ECS and EKS, and supports workloads like microservices, batch jobs, and event-driven applications.
To gain hands-on experience and master AWS Fargate, check out Intellipaat’s AWS Certification Training for expert guidance and practical labs.