Difference Between GP2 and GP3 EBS Volumes
Amazon EBS provides General Purpose SSD volumes in two types:
✅ gp2 – Traditional SSD-based volume with performance linked to size.
✅ gp3 – Newer generation with better performance, lower cost, and customizable throughput and IOPS.
1. Key Differences Between GP2 and GP3
| Feature | gp2 (General Purpose SSD v2) | gp3 (General Purpose SSD v3) |
|---|---|---|
| Performance Model | IOPS scales with volume size | Fixed IOPS, separate from volume size |
| Baseline Performance | 3 IOPS per GB (max 16,000 IOPS) | 3,000 IOPS by default (max 16,000 IOPS) |
| Throughput | Max 250 MiB/s | Max 1,000 MiB/s |
| IOPS Customization | No (depends on volume size) | Yes (up to 16,000 IOPS) |
| Cost | Higher cost | 20% cheaper than gp2 |
| Use Case | General workloads, inconsistent performance | Cost-effective, consistent performance |
2. Performance Comparison
| Volume Size | gp2 IOPS | gp3 IOPS (default) | gp3 IOPS (customizable) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 GiB | 300 IOPS | 3,000 IOPS | Up to 16,000 IOPS |
| 500 GiB | 1,500 IOPS | 3,000 IOPS | Up to 16,000 IOPS |
| 1,000 GiB | 3,000 IOPS | 3,000 IOPS | Up to 16,000 IOPS |
| 5,000 GiB | 15,000 IOPS | 3,000 IOPS | Up to 16,000 IOPS |
📌 gp2 performance depends on volume size, whereas gp3 provides stable performance regardless of size.
3. Pricing Comparison
| Volume Type | Cost per GB | IOPS Cost | Throughput Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| gp2 | $0.10 per GB | Included | Limited to 250 MiB/s |
| gp3 | $0.08 per GB | $0.005 per IOPS above 3,000 | $0.04 per MiB/s above 125 MiB/s |
📌 gp3 is 20% cheaper per GB and allows separate tuning of performance.
4. Example Scenarios
Scenario 1: Web Application Database (500GB volume)
✅ gp2: 1,500 IOPS (scales with size)
✅ gp3: Fixed 3,000 IOPS (better performance at lower cost)
🔹 Best choice: gp3 for better performance and lower cost.
Scenario 2: Large Data Processing (2TB volume)
✅ gp2: 6,000 IOPS, 250 MiB/s throughput
✅ gp3: Customize up to 16,000 IOPS and 1,000 MiB/s throughput
🔹 Best choice: gp3 for higher throughput needs.
5. When to Use gp2 vs. gp3
| Use Case | Best Choice |
|---|---|
| Web Applications | gp3 (higher performance, lower cost) |
| Databases | gp3 (customizable performance) |
| Big Data Analytics | gp3 (higher throughput) |
| Dev/Test Environments | gp3 (cheaper and stable) |
| Small Workloads | gp2 (if performance is not critical) |
6. Migration from gp2 to gp3
AWS allows easy migration from gp2 to gp3 with zero downtime:
🔹 AWS Console: Modify volume → Select gp3 → Adjust IOPS/throughput.
🔹 AWS CLI:
aws ec2 modify-volume --volume-id vol-1234567890abcdef0 --volume-type gp3 --iops 6000 --throughput 500
✅ gp3 migration improves performance and reduces cost instantly!
7. Summary
| Feature | gp2 | gp3 |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | Scales with volume size | Fixed 3,000 IOPS (up to 16,000) |
| Cost | Higher | 20% cheaper |
| Customization | No | Yes (IOPS & throughput) |
| Best Use Case | Small workloads | High-performance, cost-efficient apps |
📌 💡 Want to optimize AWS costs? Switch to gp3 today! 🚀
