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AWS Elastic Beanstalk

Deploy source code, a Dockerfile, or a container image and Elastic Beanstalk provisions the infrastructure and keeps it scaled, patched, and healthy. One interface for every application you run.

What is AWS Elastic Beanstalk?

AWS Elastic Beanstalk is the application management service on AWS. Deploy your existing backend and full-stack applications (source code, Dockerfiles, or container images) and AWS takes operational responsibility: scaling, patching, health response, compliance, and platform upgrades

Elastic Beanstalk now offers two deployment modes under one unified interface. Run single applications on dedicated EC2 environments or consolidate multiple containerized applications on shared managed infrastructure powered by Amazon EKS. Elastic Beanstalk provides the same console, CLI, and operational promise for each environment.

How does AWS Elastic Beanstalk work?

Two steps from your code to fully managed production. No infrastructure decisions required.

1. Bring your application

Upload source code, a Dockerfile, or a pre-built container image. Java, .NET, Node.js, Python, PHP, Ruby, Go, or Docker.

2. Choose your mode

Standard (on EC2) for single apps and Windows/.NET Framework workloads. Cluster (powered by Amazon EKS) for multiple applications that share infrastructure.

3. Beanstalk provisions, deploys, and manages

Elastic Beanstalk creates your environment, configures networking, load balancing, auto scaling, and deploys your application automatically, managing operations for the life of the application.

Benefits

Let AWS manage the full lifecycle of every app you ship

Deploy once, stay running

Deploy your application once. AWS handles scaling, patching, health response, and platform upgrades continuously for the life of the application across your entire portfolio. One platform, one way to operate, so your team ships the next feature instead of maintaining infrastructure.

Bring your app as it is today

Source code, Dockerfiles, or container images. No re-architecture, no containerization required. Deploy .NET Framework on IIS, Java/Tomcat backends, Django, Rails, or PHP platforms exactly as they are. AWS runs it, and you modernize later on your own timeline.

Security built in, not bolted on

Deploy with built-in compliance certifications (HIPAA, PCI, SOC) and configurable guardrails for organizational standards. Security groups, VPC integration, IAM controls, and SSL/TLS via AWS Certificate Manager are configured automatically.

Pay for resources, not overhead

There is no charge for Elastic Beanstalk itself. You pay only for the AWS resources your applications use. As your portfolio grows, shared infrastructure across your applications powered by AWS EKS, reduces per-application cost without adding operational complexity.

Two ways to run. One way to operate

Pick the environment that fits your app. AWS manages both the same way.

EC2

Dedicated Instance for each application

Teams running single applications, Windows/.NET Framework workloads on IIS, or any stack where the simplicity of one environment per application fits the need.
Standard Mode
  • Supports Go, Java, .NET, Node.js, PHP, Python, Ruby, and Docker
  • Amazon Linux 2023 or Windows Server
  • Dedicated Auto Scaling group and load balancer per environment
  • Managed platform updates for OS and runtime patching
  • Platform configurations for Apache, Nginx, Passenger, IIS
  • Amazon RDS integration for database provisioning
  • EC2 Spot Instances and Graviton support
Learn more
Amazon EKS

Infrastructure shared across applications

Teams running multiple applications on managed infrastructure powered by Amazon EKS, with cost efficiency at scale, enterprise-grade reliability, and operational responsibility that stays with AWS.
Cluster Mode
  • Supports Go, Java, .NET, Node.js, PHP, Python, Ruby and Docker
  • Accepts source code, Dockerfiles, or pre-built container images
  • Auto-containerizes via Cloud Native Buildpacks from source code
  • Shared infrastructure: bin-packs apps onto shared compute
  • Same console, CLI, and API as Standard
  • Native OpenTelemetry integration, managed for you
Learn more

What are the Top AWS Elastic Beanstalk use cases?

Legacy application migration to AWS

Organizations moving off on-premises servers or aging hosting providers want a lift-and-shift path without a full rewrite. Elastic Beanstalk accepts .NET Framework on IIS, Java/Tomcat backends, PHP platforms, and Django/Rails services as they are. No containerization, no code changes. AWS runs it, patches it, scales it, and you modernize later on your own timeline.

Compliance-driven workloads (healthcare, finance, government)

Patient portals, loan and payment systems, enrollment platforms, and government applications need HIPAA, PCI-DSS, SOC, and FedRAMP-eligible infrastructure with strict access controls. Elastic Beanstalk runs inside a VPC with encryption, network isolation, IAM controls, and audit logging. AWS handles runtime patching, security updates, and infrastructure hardening as the app runs. Teams get a defensible compliance story without building the operational machinery themselves.

Multi-tenant SaaS platforms

SaaS providers serving multiple customers need environment-level isolation with consistent operations across every tenant. Elastic Beanstalk lets you provision a dedicated environment per tenant or customer tier, each with its own scaling rules, domain, and IAM role. As the tenant count grows, shared managed infrastructure keeps per-tenant cost declining instead of climbing with every new customer onboarded.

Consolidating a mixed-stack portfolio onto one platform

Teams running 10-50+ applications across Node.js, Python, Java, .NET, PHP, Ruby, Go, and Docker need one operational model that works identically for every app regardless of stack. Elastic Beanstalk consolidates the portfolio onto a single platform with consistent deployments, health monitoring, patching, and scaling. Same console, CLI, and API for app #1 and app #50.

Rapid environment provisioning for time-sensitive launches

Teams that need to stand up production-grade environments quickly can launch from saved configuration templates with full scaling, monitoring, and compliance posture from minute one. The same operational model applies whether the environment runs for a month or a decade.

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FAQs

General

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    Elastic Beanstalk sits in the Cloud-Native Application Platforms (CNAP) category, the market segment covering managed application runtime environments with integrated capabilities to deploy, scale, patch, monitor, and operate applications across their full lifecycle. It is commonly categorized as a Platform as a Service (PaaS). If you are searching for a PaaS on AWS, Elastic Beanstalk is the service designed for that job.

    Traditional PaaS services handle initial deployment and platform setup, but operational responsibility often returns to the customer over time. Elastic Beanstalk goes further: AWS takes full operational responsibility for your production environments, deploying, scaling, patching, monitoring, and maintaining them continuously for the life of the application. That responsibility stays with AWS permanently, not just at setup.

    You bring applications as source code, a Dockerfile, or a container image. Elastic Beanstalk creates and manages the production environment underneath. You manage your application. AWS manages everything else.

    No. Elastic Beanstalk meets your applications where they are. You can bring source code in Java, Python, Node.js, PHP, Ruby, Go, or .NET, and Elastic Beanstalk runs it directly in Standard Mode on EC2. If you choose Cluster Mode, Elastic Beanstalk handles containerization automatically through Cloud Native Buildpacks when needed. You can also bring a Dockerfile or a pre-built container image. No re-architecture is required regardless of which path you choose.

    Yes. Cluster Mode, powered by Amazon EKS, is designed for operations at large scale. The many applications you own can share infrastructure through bin-packing, eliminating the per-environment overhead of dedicated instances and load balancers. The eighth application shares operational overhead with the first seven rather than duplicating it.

    AWS manages a single operational baseline across your portfolio: one deployment pipeline model, one scaling configuration approach, one patching schedule, and one set of infrastructure controls for assessors to evaluate.

    Yes. Standard Mode on EC2 fully supports Windows Server and .NET Framework workloads running on IIS. This includes legacy ASP.NET applications that cannot be containerized. EC2 Fast Launch support for Windows instances improved provisioning speed and reduced downtime during deployments. Windows/.NET Framework workloads remain on Standard Mode, which continues to be the actively maintained and supported deployment model for these applications.

    Elastic Beanstalk is HIPAA eligible, PCI compliant, and SOC 1/2/3 aligned. It is among AWS services in scope for ISO and FedRAMP frameworks. Elastic Beanstalk is available in all commercial AWS Regions including AWS GovCloud (US).

    Environments run in your own AWS account, not behind an opaque abstraction, so your security and compliance teams retain full visibility. Organizations can download third-party audit reports through AWS Artifact and hand them directly to their own assessors. Security groups, VPC integration, IAM controls, and SSL/TLS via AWS Certificate Manager are configured automatically.

    Yes. AWS owns runtime patching for the life of the application. This operational responsibility stays with AWS continuously. When a runtime reaches end of support or a security vulnerability requires a patch, AWS handles it. Your team focuses on application code.

How much does Elastic Beanstalk cost?

No service fee. You pay only for the underlying AWS resources your applications consume.See Elastic Beanstalk pricing

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