Firebase vs AWS Amplify: Complete Comparison Guide
Compare Firebase and AWS Amplify on ease of setup, scalability, API options, and cost. Discover which Backend-as-a-Service platform best fits your application.
Firebase
Firebase is Google's Backend-as-a-Service platform offering a complete suite for app development. With Firestore (NoSQL database), Firebase Authentication, Cloud Functions, Hosting, and Analytics, Firebase provides an accessible way to quickly build applications. The platform is known for its simple setup, real-time synchronization, and excellent mobile SDKs.
AWS Amplify
AWS Amplify is Amazon's answer to Firebase — a set of tools and services to build full-stack applications on AWS infrastructure. Amplify offers a GraphQL API via AppSync, authentication via Cognito, storage via S3, and hosting for web apps. The platform is more powerful and scalable than Firebase but comes with more complexity in setup and management.
Comparison table
| Feature | Firebase | AWS Amplify |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of setup | Very simple — Firebase console and SDK operational within minutes | More complex — CLI-driven setup with multiple AWS services under the hood |
| Database | Firestore (NoSQL document database) with real-time sync | DynamoDB (NoSQL) or Aurora (SQL) via AppSync GraphQL layer |
| API type | REST via Cloud Functions — no native GraphQL | Native GraphQL via AWS AppSync with real-time subscriptions |
| Authentication | Firebase Auth — simple, 20+ providers, free up to 50K MAU | AWS Cognito — powerful, enterprise SSO, but more complex configuration |
| Scalability | Automatic but with Firestore limits at 10K writes/second | Virtually unlimited scalability thanks to underlying AWS services |
| Vendor lock-in | High — no self-hosting, Google Cloud dependent | Medium — AWS-bound but more migration paths via open standards |
Verdict
Firebase and AWS Amplify serve the same market but with different philosophies. Firebase opts for simplicity and speed — you can have a working backend within minutes with authentication, database, and hosting. Amplify offers more power and flexibility but requires more knowledge of the AWS ecosystem. Firebase is the better choice for rapid prototypes and mobile apps; Amplify is better suited for enterprise projects requiring maximum scalability and GraphQL support.
Our recommendation
At MG Software, we recommend neither Firebase nor Amplify as the primary backend — we choose Supabase for its combination of an open-source relational database, Row Level Security, and full control over your data. When clients are considering one of these two, we recommend Firebase for quick MVPs and mobile apps, and Amplify for organizations already deeply invested in the AWS ecosystem. Our advice is always to minimize vendor lock-in.
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