2025 Amazon Cognito's latest pricing explained and the best Amazon Cognito alternatives
This article provides an overview and breaks down the key details of Amazon Cognito. It covers what Amazon Cognito is, a summary of its pricing, and the best alternatives to Amazon Cognito.
Product & Design
What is Amazon Cognito
Amazon Cognito is an Amazon Web Services (Amazon) offering that procides adding authentication, authorization, and user management to web and mobile apps. However, many of our Logto users have migrated from Amazon Cognito due to its complicated pricing, limited features, and an outdated developer experience.
In this article, we’ll revisit the Amazon Cognito pricing structure and show how you can potentially save money and plan your budget more effectively if you decide to migrate.
Key authentication and authorization feature supported by Cognito
First, let’s take a look at Amazon Cognito’s main features:
User pools
Secure user sign-up, sign-in, and profile management, including MFA, email/phone verification, and social logins.
Identity pools
Provide temporary Amazon credentials to users, allowing access to Amazon services through federated identities (e.g., enterprise SSO providers like Microsoft or Okta).
Security features
Advanced MFA, token-based authentication, device tracking, and risk-based authentication.
Federation
Integration with social identity providers, SAML for enterprise SSO, and support for custom identity providers. (This is same as Logto Enterprise SSO features, supporting OIDC and SAML)
User management
Support for user groups, custom claims, fine-grained access control, and easy user migration.
Overall, Cognito is a traditional auth provider that’s deeply integrated and rooted in the Amazon ecosystem.
Cognito detailed pricing
Amazon Cognito’s pricing can be quite complicated, especially since the monthly active user (MAU) rate varies depending on the SKU and features you’re using. In this section, we’ll go over Amazon’s different plans, break down the pricing, and explain it all in a more straightforward way.
What features are included in the Amazon Lite Plan?
The Amazon Lite plan includes basic password-based authentication, ideal for cost-conscious use cases. However, additional features require customization.
One of the best things about Amazon Cognito is that it provides MFA support in its cheapest plan, the Lite plan, including authenticator apps and SMS one-time codes.
More detailed features are as follows:
| Features | Avalability |
|---|---|
| 40 million users or more | ✅ |
| Sign-in with social, SAML, or OIDC providers | ✅ |
| Sign-in with username and password | ✅ |
| MFA with authenticator apps and SMS one-time codes | ✅ |
| Custom runtime action with Lambda triggers | ✅ |
| Customize managed login page with CSS | ✅ |
| 99.9% service level agreement | ✅ |
One thing to note is that Cognito Lite Plan doesn’t support passwordless sign-in (where you only need a one-time passcode and no password), but it does offer a wide range of MFA options, including authenticator apps and SMS codes. Amazon likely believes that MFA is a must-have in today’s security-sensitive world.
How is the MAU cost calculated in the Amazon Lite Plan?
Amazon set its MAU as tiers. Different tiers have different unit price.
| Pricing Tier (MAUs) | Price per MAU |
|---|---|
| First 10,000 (Free-tier) | $0.00 |
| 10,001-100,000 | $0.0055 |
| 100,001 - 1,000,000 | $0.0046 |
| 1,000,001 - 10,000,000 | $0.00325 |
| Greater than 10,000,000 | $0.0025 |
Next, let’s do some quick math to estimate the cost for different numbers of MAUs.
| MAU | Cost |
|---|---|
| 10,000 | 0 |
| 50,000 | $220 |
| 100,000 | $495 |
| 1,000,000 | $4635 |
If your consumer app has fewer than 10k MAUs, there’s no cost. However, as your user base grows, the cost can become high for an individual developer — above $220, for example. Authorization features, such as role-based access control (RBAC), are not included in the Lite plan.
What features are included in the Amazon Essentials Plan?
The Essentials plan offers flexible and secure authentication with easy sign-up and sign-in setup. In addition to everything in the Lite plan, it includes these extra features:
| Features | Availability |
|---|---|
| Customize managed login page with visual editor | ✅ |
| MFA with email one-time codes | ✅ |
| Passwordless sign-in with one-time codes | ✅ |
| Passkeys sign-in with biometrics and hardware keys | ✅ |
| Protect against unsafe passwords | ✅ |
| Prevent reuse of previous passwords | ✅ |
| Customize access token scopes and claims at runtime | ✅ |
The key differences in the Plus plan, if we translate them into Logto terminology, are either already available or on the roadmap.
- Custom UI using CSS
- MFA using email (in roadmap)
- Passwordless sign-in
- Passkey as first factor (in roadmap)
- Password policy
- Custom token claims
How is the MAU cost calculated in the Amazon Essentials Plan?
Amazon Essential plan has a straightforward MAU pricing model. The Plus plan costs $0.02 per MAU.
For example, if your app has 50,000 MAUs, the cost would be:
50,000 × $0.02 = $1,000
Wow, that’s pricey!
What features are included in the Amazon Plus Plan?
The Plus plan is for customers who need enhanced security, offering protection against suspicious logins. Plus everything in the essential plan, it includes some advanced features, espeically the secruity features.
| Features | Availability |
|---|---|
| Protect against unsafe passwords | ✅ |
| Protect against malicious sign-in attempts | ✅ |
| Log and analyze threat profiles and user activity | ✅ |
| Risk-based adaptive authentication | ✅ |
| Compromised credentials detection | ✅ |
| Export threat profiles and user activity | ✅ |
How is the MAU cost calculated in the Amazon Plus Plan?
Plus plan different tiers. Its first 10,000 is free and once it is greater than 10,000, it starts charging at $0.015/MAU.
| MAUs | Price per MAU |
|---|---|
| First 10,000 (Free-tier) | $0.00 |
| Greater than 10,000 | $0.015 |
Next, let’s do some quick math to get a rough idea of the cost again for plus plan.
| MAU | Cost |
|---|---|
| 10,000 | 0 |
| 50,000 | $600 |
| 100,000 | $1350 |
| 1,000,000 | $14850 |
As you can see, the cost becomes very high as your MAUs grow. The Plus plan is likely aimed at enterprise companies.
What is the MAU cost for users signing in through SAML or OIDC federation?
Cognito’s pricing can be tricky because the MAU unit price varies based on the features you enable.
If your MAU exceeds 50 and users sign in through enterprise SSO (using SAML or OIDC federation), you will be charged $0.015 per MAU.
What is the MAU cost for users signing in with security features enabled?
If you enbaled security features like dvanced security features include compromised credentials detection, adaptive authentication, advanced security metrics, and access token customization. Your MAU will be also higher.
| Pricing Tier (MAUs) | Price per MAU |
|---|---|
| First 50,000 | $0.050 |
| Next 50,000 | $0.035 |
| Next 900,000 | $0.020 |
| Next 9,000,000 | $0.015 |
| Greater than 10,000,000 | $0.010 |
What are the additional add-on costs?
If you use the following features, you will be charged extra.
- Machine-to-machine authorization
- Higher API RPS quota
- Amazon Cognito sync
API RPS quota
| API Category | Continuous use for full month | Use for partial month |
|---|---|---|
| User authentication | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User creation | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User federation | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User read | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User resource read | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User token | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User resource update | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User update | $20.00 | $45.00 |
| User account recovery | $20.00 | $45.00 |
M2M authorization
| Number of token requests per month | Range | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 1-250,000 | $2.250 per 1000 token requests |
| Tier 2 | 250,001-5,000,000 | $1.500 per 1000 token requests |
| Tier 3 | 5,000,001+ | $1.125 per 1000 token requests |
Amazon Cognito sync
Beyond the Free Tier, Amazon Cognito charges:
- $0.15 per 10,000 sync operations
- $0.15 per GB of sync storage per month
If push synchronization is enabled, standard Amazon SNS rates apply.
Amazon Cognito pricing summary
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Lite plan uses tiered MAU pricing.
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Essential plan has a fixed MAU price.
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Plus plan combines tiered MAU pricing + add-on enabled MAU.
-
Extra charges may apply for M2M, API requests, and sync features.
The drawback of Amazon Cognito
While Amazon Cognito offers many benefits, it does have some drawbacks that may make it less suitable for certain use cases:
Complexity in setup and configuration
Setting up Amazon Cognito can feel like navigating a maze, especially if you’re new to Amazon. From configuring authentication flows to integrating third-party identity providers, every step demands a solid grasp of Amazon services. What seems like a straightforward task quickly becomes a technical puzzle—one that often leaves new users facing a steep learning curve. Yet, for those willing to climb that hill, Cognito offers powerful tools to secure and scale their applications.
Limited customization and flexibility
Amazon Cognito offers some customization options, like custom authentication flows, but it can quickly hit its limits when you need more advanced features or full flexibility. Imagine wanting to tailor the user experience—like redesigning sign-up forms or personalizing email templates—only to find that it requires Amazon Lambda functions or extra development work. What should be a simple tweak often turns into a technical project, adding complexity and time to your implementation.
Lack of advanced features for enterprise use
Amazon Cognito lacks some enterprise-grade features compared to solutions like Logto, including:
- Advanced role-based access control (RBAC): Cognito’s built-in RBAC is less flexible than that of other identity solutions.
- Granular user management: Customizing user roles or permissions may require complex Amazon Lambda functions.
Limited support for non-Amazon ecosystems
Amazon Cognito works best when your infrastructure is on Amazon. While it can integrate with other cloud providers and services, the setup process can be more difficult and less seamless for non-Amazon environments. For multi-cloud setups or hybrid environments, other identity solutions might be more suitable.
Potential for vendor lock-In
As part of the Amazon ecosystem, Cognito can lead to vendor lock-in, especially for companies that rely heavily on Amazon services. If your organization is using other cloud providers or plans to move away from Amazon, transitioning away from Cognito could be challenging.
User interface and developer experience
Cognito’s user interface for managing users and authentication flows is less intuitive than some other identity management solutions. The Amazon Management Console can feel overwhelming with its many settings and options. The dashboard isn’t as polished or user-friendly as alternatives like Auth0, which could slow down development or user management for teams unfamiliar with Amazon.
Pricing complexity at scale
While Cognito’s pricing is generally affordable at lower scales, costs can increase as your user base grows, particularly for enterprise-level usage. The pricing model can become complex and difficult to predict, especially if you’re using features like multi-factor authentication (MFA) or advanced analytics. In some cases, this may lead to unexpected costs.
Limited customer support
While Amazon provides customer support, users of Cognito may find that the support options for this service are not as comprehensive or responsive compared to other identity management providers. Many users rely on forums, documentation, or community-based support, which may not always be sufficient for troubleshooting complex issues.
Documentation can be difficult to navigate
While Amazon provides detailed documentation, it can be overwhelming due to its depth and the variety of services involved. New users or those not familiar with Amazon services may struggle to find the relevant information needed for their specific use case.
What are the benefits of switching from Amazon Cognito to Logto for user authentication?
Logto is an open-source authentication platform with 9K+ stars on GitHub, meaning no vendor lock-in. Here’s why it stands out:
Cost-effective token-based pricing
- Logto follows a simple token-based pricing model.
- The Plus plan provides 100K tokens for free, then charges $0.08 per 100 tokens after that.
- If your app isn’t highly active, 50K MAUs can be supported for just $16—far cheaper than Amazon Cognito.
No hidden fees
- API requests and M2M authentication are included at no extra cost.
- Enterprise SSO (SAML & OIDC) and security features are fully included, with no additional charges.
- Fully open-source & cloud-agnostic
No vendor lock-in
Logto works with various public cloud providers, giving you complete flexibility.
If you’re considering migrating to Logto, we offer direct human support to ensure a smooth transition, keeping your users secure and your system stable for the long run.