Hi,
This detailled guide will help you understand: https://www.cloudzero.com/blog/savings-plans-vs-reserved-instances
In essence, Reserved Instances are based on the commitment to use an instance at a particular price over a specific period, while Savings Plans are based on the commitment to spend a particular dollar amount per hour over a specific period.
Best,
Didier Answer from Didier Durand on repost.aws
AWS
docs.aws.amazon.com › savings plans › user guide › what are savings plans? › compute savings plans and reserved instances
Compute Savings Plans and Reserved Instances - Savings Plans
Compute Savings Plans are a flexible pricing model that offers low prices, just like Amazon EC2 Reserved Instances (RI), but with added flexibility. With Savings Plans, you can reduce your bill by committing to a consistent amount of compute usage (measured in $/hour), instead of specific instance ...
AWS
docs.aws.amazon.com › amazon ec2 › user guide › amazon ec2 instances › amazon ec2 billing and purchasing options › reserved instances for amazon ec2 overview
Savings Plans - Amazon EC2 Reserved Instances and ...
With Reserved Instances, you make a commitment to a specific instance configuration, whereas with Savings Plans, you have the flexibility to use the instance configurations that best meet your needs. To use Savings Plans, you make a commitment to a consistent usage amount, measured in USD per hour.
Videos
54:54
Savings Plans and Reserved Instances - What purchase strategy is ...
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Comparison of Amazon EC2 Reserved Instances vs. AWS Saving Plans ...
07:02
AWS Savings Plans vs Reserved Instances - YouTube
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AWS Interview Question | Difference between Saving Plan and Reserved ...
03:30
AWS Savings Plans Explained: Save Big Without Overcommitting - YouTube
Finout
finout.io › blog › aws-savings-plans-vs-reserved-instances-5-key-differences-in-2025
AWS Savings Plans vs Reserved Instances: 5 Key Differences in 2025
August 13, 2025 - AWS Savings Plans and Reserved Instances offer compute discounts in exchange for 1- or 3-year usage commitments, with RIs tied to specific EC2 configs.
CloudZero
cloudzero.com › home › blog › a roadmap to aws savings plans vs. reserved instances
A Roadmap To AWS Savings Plans Vs. Reserved Instances
June 10, 2025 - AWS Reserved Instances (RIs) is a discount pricing model that enables organizations to save up to 75% on On-Demand Instances when they purchase them in advance for a fixed term of one or three years.
nOps
nops.io › blog › aws-savings-plan-vs-reserved-instances
AWS Savings Plan VS Reserved Instances: The Complete Guide
February 7, 2025 - AWS Reserved Instances (RI) and AWS Savings Plans (SP) are pricing models offering lower prices than On-Demand pricing in exchange for a specific usage commitment (measured in $/hour) for a one- or three-year period.
Top answer 1 of 3
2
Hi,
This detailled guide will help you understand: https://www.cloudzero.com/blog/savings-plans-vs-reserved-instances
In essence, Reserved Instances are based on the commitment to use an instance at a particular price over a specific period, while Savings Plans are based on the commitment to spend a particular dollar amount per hour over a specific period.
Best,
Didier
2 of 3
1
Hi Steven,
It really depends on the resources you would like to cover, if you want to cover compute resources (EC2, Lambda, Sagemaker), I recommend SP as the pricing model is basically the same as RI, and it has more flexibility and you are commiting to the hourly cost, unless you have requirement to resell the Standard RI. Of course for other resources such as RDS, RedShift and OpenSearch (ElasticSearch) you can only purchase RI.
You can also get some insights from this YouTube video created by AWS: Savings Plans and Reserved Instances - What purchase strategy is right for you?
Hope it helps.
VMware
vmware.com › docs › white-paper-the-ultimate-guide-to-aws-reserved-instances-and-savings-plans pdf
White Paper: March 2023 The Ultimate Guide to AWS Reserved Instances
c5 .2xlarge instances will cost you about $250 per month . If you modify and split · your two c5 .4xlarge reservations into four c5 .2xlarge reservations, you will · benefit immediately from the cost savings, all while ensuring that your prepaid ... Figure 2: Laying an AWS Savings Plan on ...
Amazon Web Services
docs.aws.amazon.com › amazon ec2 › user guide › amazon ec2 instances › amazon ec2 billing and purchasing options › reserved instances for amazon ec2 overview
Reserved Instances for Amazon EC2 overview - Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud
With Reserved Instances, you make a commitment to a specific instance configuration, whereas with Savings Plans, you have the flexibility to use the instance configurations that best meet your needs. To use Savings Plans, you make a commitment to a consistent usage amount, measured in USD per hour.
Stormit
stormit.cloud › blog › aws-savings-plans-vs-reserved-instances
AWS Savings Plans vs Reserved Instances: Pick the Right One
If the company’s actual usage exceeds $10/hour, the additional consumption is charged at On-Demand rates. AWS Reserved Instances (RIs) provide a commitment-based pricing model that offers up to 72% savings compared to On-Demand pricing.
Amnic
amnic.com › blogs › aws-savings-vs-reserved-instances
AWS Savings Plans vs Reserved Instances: Choosing the Right Commitment for Your Cloud Costs | Amnic
Reserved Instances (especially Standard RIs with 3-year, all-upfront payments) can provide the deepest discounts, up to 72%. Savings Plans max out at around 66%, but offer far more flexibility across services and regions.
AWS
docs.aws.amazon.com › aws whitepapers › aws whitepaper › amazon ec2 reserved instances › savings plans
Savings Plans - Amazon EC2 Reserved Instances and Other AWS Reservation Models
This pricing model offers lower prices on Amazon EC2 instances usage, regardless of instance family, size, OS, tenancy or AWS Region, and also applies to AWS Fargate and AWS Lambda usage. Savings Plans offer significant savings over On-Demand Instances, just like EC2 Reserved Instances, in exchange for a commitment to use a specific amount of compute power (measured in $/hour) for a one or three-year period.
Simple AWS
newsletter.simpleaws.dev › p › aws-savings-plans-reserved-instances
Cost Optimization with AWS Savings Plans and Reserved Instances
February 15, 2025 - AWS Savings Plans and Reserved Instances are two pricing models offered by AWS as an alternative to On-Demand. You are asked to commit to a specific usage level for a defined period of time (1 or 3 years), and in exchange you get a price reduction ...
cloudkeeper
cloudkeeper.com › home › insights › blog › ask the cloud expert: the truth about aws savings plans & aws reserved instances
Ask the Cloud Expert: The Truth About AWS Savings Plans & AWS Reserved Instances | CloudKeeper
September 26, 2025 - On the surface, AWS RIs offer up to 75% discount on certain configurations, whereas AWS Savings Plans offer up to 72% discount, based on their commitment model. However, it’s not all a rosy picture.
AWS
aws.amazon.com › amazon ec2 pricing › reserved instances › pricing
EC2 Reserved Instance Pricing
4 days ago - For example, as soon as you have aggregated active Reserved Instances with a List Value totaling more than $500,000 in a single AWS Region, you will automatically receive a 5% discount on both upfront and hourly fees for all future Standard Reserved Instance purchases in that AWS Region, and those ...
AWS
docs.aws.amazon.com › savings plans › user guide › what are savings plans?
What are Savings Plans? - Savings Plans
Savings Plans offer a flexible pricing model that provides savings on AWS usage. You can save up to 72% on your AWS compute workloads. Compute Savings Plans provide lower prices on Amazon EC2 instance usage regardless of instance family, instance size, OS, tenancy, or AWS Region.
Harness
harness.io › harness devops academy (glossary) › what is an aws savings plan?
What is an AWS Savings Plan?
1 week ago - An AWS Savings Plan is a flexible ... It provides a discounted rate for committed usage of specific AWS services, such as Amazon EC2 instances or Amazon RDS databases, in exchange for a one- or three-year commitment...
AWS
docs.aws.amazon.com › aws billing and cost management › user guide › consolidating billing for aws organizations › reserved instances › reserved instances and savings plans discount sharing
Reserved Instances and Savings Plans discount sharing - AWS Billing
You can use the console to activate Reserved Instance sharing discounts for an account. You can share Savings Plans with a set of accounts. You can either choose to not share the benefit with other accounts, or to open up line item eligibility for the entire consolidated billing family of accounts. Sign in to the AWS Management Console and open the AWS Billing and Cost Management console at https://console.aws.amazon.com/costmanagement/
ProsperOps
prosperops.com › home › aws savings plans vs. reserved instances: how to choose the best fit
AWS Savings Plans vs. Reserved Instances: How To Choose the Best Fit - ProsperOps
October 15, 2024 - EC2 Savings Plans and Standard Reserved Instances offer similar discounts that can go as high as 72%. The discounts are tied to a particular usage, and maximizing savings requires committing to specific Instance types and regions.
AWS re:Post
repost.aws › knowledge-center › ec2-savings-plan-reserved-instances
Decide on Savings Plans or Reserved Instances for EC2 instances | AWS re:Post
June 2, 2025 - Savings Plans and Reserved Instances offer cost savings compared to On-Demand pricing. Typically, longer term commitment results in higher savings, such as a three-year term instead of a one-year term.
Umbrella
umbrellacost.com › home › aws savings plan vs reserved instances: your complete guide
AWS Savings Plan vs Reserved Instances 101: A Complete Guide - Umbrella
July 29, 2025 - AWS Reserved Instances (RIs) are another discount pricing model that can help you save up to 75% on On-Demand Instances—–so long as you purchase your Instances in advance for a one to three-year period.