Moving to AWS represents a significant advancement for companies aiming to maximize the benefits of scalable and flexible computing environments. However, without a solid AWS Cloud Migration plan, costs can quickly escalate, impacting the company's finances. Many businesses overlook the initial costs associated with Cloud Migration, which can lead to unexpected bills that may alarm their CFOs. The good news is that you can reduce your AWS cloud migration expenses, and we are here to support you on that journey.
In this article, we will explore the reasons why companies are overspending and the ways to identify and rectify it so that your Cloud budget is not affected adversely. In addition to that, we will give practical examples and introduce you to cutting-edge tools like VPC+ by Wanclouds that can save you money on migration.
Why Cloud Migration Costs Get Out of Hand
To begin with, let’s discuss why the AWS bill is so much for you. Here are the key aspects:
- No Transparency: Not being able to see your spending in real time creates a blind spot. That is similar to buying groceries but forgetting to check the prices—suddenly, you are out of money.
- Overprovisioning: You may think it's a good idea to provision a big instance "to be sure," but in fact, most of the time, it just lies idle, not running.
- Complicated Pricing: The AWS pricing model for customers is relatively complex. Reserved Instances, Savings Plans, Spot Instances—it can be hard to decide which choice benefits you the most at times.
Evaluate Your AWS Cloud Spending
Before optimizing AWS cloud migration costs, you need a clear picture of where your money’s going. Here’s how:
- Audit Current Usage: Use AWS Cost Explorer to break down spending by service (e.g., EC2, S3, RDS). Look for spikes or anomalies.
- Identify Underutilized Resources: Check for instances with low CPU/memory usage (e.g., <10% over 30 days).
- Analyze Trends: Review monthly cost reports to spot patterns—like seasonal workloads that don’t need constant resources.
7 Proven Strategies to Optimize AWS Cloud Migration Costs
Here’s how to slash costs without sacrificing performance during and after your migration to AWS.
1. Right-Sizing Instances
Right-sizing matches your instance type to your workload. For instance:
- A web app with moderate traffic might thrive on a t3.medium (2 vCPUs, 4 GiB RAM) instead of a t3.large (2 vCPUs, 8 GiB RAM).
- Use AWS Compute Optimizer to get recommendations based on usage data.
Savings Potential: Downsizing one overprovisioned instance could save a sufficient amount of your income.
2. Turn Off Unused Environments
Non-production environments (e.g., dev, staging) don’t need to run 24/7. Schedule them to shut down nights and weekends using AWS Instance Scheduler.
Example: Shutting down a dev environment (m5.large, ~$70/month) for 12 hours daily saves ~$35/month per instance.
3. Monitor and Eliminate Idle Resources
Idle resources like unattached EBS volumes or stopped EC2 instances with Elastic IPs add up. Use AWS Trusted Advisor to flag these.
Quick Win: Deleting a 100 GB unused EBS volume saves $10/month.
4. Utilize Purpose Tagging
Tag resources with metadata (e.g., “Department: Marketing,” “App: CRM”) to track costs by team or project. AWS Cost Allocation Tags make this seamless.
Pro Tip: Automate tagging with AWS Tag Policies to enforce consistency.
5. Backup and Delete Strategically
Backup critical setups—like Kubernetes clusters or VPC configurations—to S3, then delete unneeded environments. Restore on demand instead of keeping them live.
Savings: Storing a 50 GB backup in S3 Glacier (~$0.20/month) beats running a $50/month instance.
6. Gain Discovery and Cost Visibility
Tools like AWS Cost Explorer or third-party platforms provide granular insights.
For example:
- AWS Native: Cost Explorer’s “Cost Anomaly Detection” flags unexpected spikes.
- Third-Party: VPC+ by Wanclouds offers auto-tagging and efficiency dashboards.
7. Continuously Track with Alerts
Set up CloudWatch alarms for budget thresholds (e.g., alert at $500/month) and dashboards for real-time usage. React fast to prevent overruns.
Third-party AWS Cost Management Tools
VPC+ Wanclouds
VPC+ by Wanclouds is a comprehensive tool that provides granular visibility into your AWS costs. It offers features like intelligent insights, auto-tagging, and efficiency management, making it a robust choice for AWS cost optimization.
Wanclouds is an AWS partner for its Rapid Migration Offer (RMO) within the Migration Acceleration Program (MAP). To get started, find Wanclouds on the AWS marketplace today or go directly to Wanclouds website for an immediate pricing quote.
How Much Can You Save? A Quick Breakdown
Here’s a hypothetical scenario for a small business migrating to AWS:
- Before Optimization: $2,000/month (oversized instances, idle resources).
- After: Right-sizing (-$400), turn-off schedules (-$300), tagging + backups (-$200) = $1,100/month.
- Annual Savings: $10,800.
Your savings depend on scale, but even a 20% reduction can fund other growth initiatives.
Conclusion
Embracing AWS cloud migration in 2025 doesn’t have to strain your budget. By understanding where costs spiral and applying smart strategies—like right-sizing, scheduling, and leveraging tools like VPC+ by Wanclouds—you can transform migration into a cost-efficient win. It’s about working smarter, not harder, to unlock AWS’s full potential while keeping your finances in check.
