AWS IoT Core
aws.amazon.com/iot-coreBuild Difficulty: 4/5
A few focused days to build a solid replacement
Easily and securely connect devices to the cloud
How to Replace AWS IoT CoreOverview
Features
29 features across 11 categories
Automation(1)
Define programmable rules for MQTT messages to efficiently process and route messages with features like shared subscription, user properties, and session expiry
Connectivity(5)
Secure, long-range network connectivity across 90% of US population for Sidewalk-enabled devices without managing infrastructure
Capability to configure device endpoints for transitioning infrastructures with minimal impact to existing architectures
Manages all active device connections and implements semantics for multiple protocols supporting MQTT, WebSockets, and HTTPS with automatic scaling
Maintain connectivity with keep-alive messages at frequencies from 20 minutes to every 30 seconds with no additional cost
Support for MQTT, HTTPS, MQTT over WSS, LoRaWAN, and CoAP protocols
Data Processing(3)
Filter, transform, and act upon device data on the fly, based on defined business rules
Rules Engine capability to decode Protocol Buffer encoded messages to JSON format
Gathers, processes, analyzes, and acts on device data using SQL-like language to filter, transform, and deliver messages to AWS services and HTTP endpoints
Developer Tools(1)
SDKs for C, JavaScript, and Arduino that help devices connect, authenticate, and exchange messages using MQTT, HTTP, or WebSockets protocols
Device Management(6)
Connect, manage, and scale device fleets easily and reliably without provisioning or managing servers
Track and manage IoT device location using latitude and longitude coordinates without requiring GPS hardware
Creates a persistent virtual version of each device storing desired and actual state, persisting state even when device is offline
Create and manage dynamic groups, add and remove devices from dynamic thing groups
Remotely deliver secure and reliable firmware updates to LoRaWAN devices using Multicast and fragmentation mechanisms
Establishes device identity and tracks metadata such as device attributes and capabilities
Messaging(4)
Reserved MQTT topic allowing message ingestion without incurring messaging charges when using MQTT or HTTP
Native MQTT broker supporting persistent connections, advanced message retention, and handling millions of devices and topics simultaneously
High throughput Pub/Sub messaging agent based on MQTT Version 5.0 supporting one-to-one to one-to-million broadcast patterns with fine-grained access controls
Support for sending and receiving messages up to 128 KB in size with metering in 5 KB increments
Monitoring(1)
Premium feature for monitoring LoRaWAN device and gateway fleet with signal strength, data rate, and uptime/downtime tracking
Optimization(1)
Ability to batch rule actions to optimize message processing and reduce metering costs
Protocol Support(3)
Fully managed LoRaWAN Network Server enabling connection of low-power, long-range wireless devices without developing or operating a LoRaWAN Network Server
Constrained Application Protocol support for battery-powered IoT sensors and cellular devices using NB-IoT technology
Support for the latest MQTT 5 standard with backward compatibility with MQTT 3 standard
Security(3)
Fine-grained access control policies to safeguard solutions against vulnerabilities
Secure device connections and data with mutual authentication and end-to-end encryption
Support for SigV4, X.509 certificate-based authentication, and custom token-based authentication through custom authorizers
Testing & Validation(1)
Pre-built test suites to validate device MQTT functionality during development before on-boarding to the cloud
Pricing
AWS Free Tier
Popular- ✓2,250,000 minutes of connection
- ✓500,000 messages
- ✓225,000 Registry or Device Shadow operations
- ✓250,000 rules triggered and 250,000 actions applied
- ✓Example: 50-device workload with 24/7 connectivity, 300 messages/day, 130 registry operations/day, 150 rule executions/day
Pay-as-You-Go - Connectivity
- ✓Metered in one-minute increments
- ✓Based on total connection time
- ✓No additional cost for keep-alive ping messages
Pay-as-You-Go - Messaging
- ✓MQTT and HTTP messaging
- ✓No charge for messages sent via Basic Ingest
- ✓Metered in 5 KB increments (up to 128 KB messages)
- ✓LoRaWAN messaging: $2.3/1,000,000 messages
Pay-as-You-Go - Device Shadow & Registry
- ✓Metered by number of operations
- ✓Metered in 1 KB increments of record size
- ✓Includes dynamic group operations
Pay-as-You-Go - Rules Engine
- ✓Metered per rule evaluation and action execution
- ✓Minimum of one action per rule
- ✓Metered in 5 KB increments
- ✓Protobuf-to-JSON decoding: 1 Action per message (up to 128 KB)
Pay-as-You-Go - Device Location
- ✓Free tier: First 1,000 locations within 12 months
- ✓Semtech Advanced Transport (ROSE): $0.145/MB for first 50 MB, $0.116/MB above 50 MB
- ✓BLE Location lookup: 835 free per month
AWS IoT Core for Amazon Sidewalk
- ✓Free tier: 100,000 messages for 6 months
- ✓Messaging-based pricing: $6 per million messages
- ✓BLE location lookup: 835 per month free
AWS IoT Core for LoRaWAN
- ✓Fully managed LoRaWAN Network Server
- ✓FUOTA tasks: First 100 free, then standard pricing
- ✓LoRaWAN Metrics: Record-based metering for uplink/downlink metadata
Device Advisor
- ✓Pre-built test suites
- ✓Signed qualification report
- ✓Only AWS resource usage (IoT Core, CloudWatch) is charged
Cost Calculator
Pricing data not available for AWS IoT Core. Check their website for current pricing.
Build vs Buy
Should you build a AWS IoT Core alternative or buy the subscription? Estimate based on 29 features.
Buy AWS IoT Core
Better ValueBuild Your Own
Buying AWS IoT Core saves ~$36,960 over 3 years vs building.
Estimates based on 29 features and a BuildScore of 4/5. Actual costs vary.
Integrations
6 known integrations