Amazon DynamoDB is a NoSQL database powered by Amazon Web Services, while MongoDB Atlas is a database-as-a-service used to maintain and administer MongoDB instances. Though they fall into different categories, both Amazon DynamoDB and MongoDB Atlas in combination with MongoDB instances, allow for the storing, management and querying of data. Businesses of various sizes use both database solutions.
Features
Amazon DynamoDB and MongoDB Atlas both have strong data management features, but have some significant differences that set them apart from each other. Both software options also specialize in slightly different areas, since MongoDB Atlas manages instances of MongoDB while Amazon DynamoDB is a NoSQL database.
Amazon DynamoDB provides an easy to use interface and automates many maintenance features. These usability features make Amazon DynamoDB an excellent choice for businesses with fewer technical staff that need to use database services. Additionally, since Amazon DynamoDB performs all operations through HTTPs endpoints, it is very scalable. Scalability can be important for small businesses that plan to increase their data needs over time.
MongoDB Atlas is highly optimized for work with MongoDB instances. High optimization means users can expect high performance and reliability when working with their databases. Additionally, MongoDB offers continuous backups, meaning that databases can be backed up at any time. Complete database backups are created daily. MongoDB Atlas also provides a free instance that can be used by developers for testing purposes.
Limitations
Amazon DynamoDB and MongoDB Atlas both have essential features, but they also each have some limitations.
Amazon DynamoDB can create on-demand copies of databases, but it’s back up features aren’t as robust as MongoDB Atlas’ out of the box. Additionally, while Amazon DynamoDB can integrate with many AWS technologies, it is not as optimized with them as MongoDB Atlas is with MongoDB instances. This lack of optimization results in lower efficiency compared to MongoDB Atlas.
MongoDB Atlas performs operations using socket connections, meaning it can only manage a certain number of concurrent connections. Limited simultaneous connections make MongoDB Atlas scalability worse compared to Amazon DynamoDB. Lastly, MongoDB Atlas lacks the integrations with AWS technologies that Amazon DynamoDB offers. Lack of integrations can make MongoDB Atlas a poor choice for organizations that use many AWS technologies.
Pricing
MongoDB Atlas pricing depends on multiple factors such as cloud provider, region, cluster size, and storage needs. Pricing can vary greatly but starts as low as $0.08 per hour. MongoDB Atlas also provides a free instance for developers to use for testing purposes.
Amazon DynamoDB offers two pricing packages. The on-demand pricing package bills depending on how much storage is used and provides a free version for up to 25GB of data storage. Pricing is also offered for provisioned capacity and is priced based on the number of reads and writes per second that the organization expects to need.
