Amazon EBS GP2 vs GP3 – Cost & Performance Battle for the Cloud Age
- Sep 3
- 3 min read
Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS) is the backbone of persistent storage for EC2 in AWS. Whether you're running mission-critical databases, container workloads, or general-purpose applications, choosing the right volume type can make or break your performance—and budget.
AWS currently supports five EBS volume types, broadly split into two categories:
Volume Type | Category | Use Case |
gp2 | General Purpose SSD | Legacy general workloads |
gp3 | General Purpose SSD | New default, cost-effective SSD |
io1 / io2 | Provisioned IOPS SSD | High-performance databases (e.g., Oracle, SQL Server) |
st1 | Throughput-optimized HDD | Big data, streaming workloads |
sc1 | Cold HDD | Archival, infrequent access workloads |
gp2 and gp3 are the most commonly used volume types for general-purpose workloads like boot volumes, web servers, and microservices. But while gp2 has been the default for years, gp3 is rapidly replacing it—offering better performance at a lower cost.
This blog dives deep into gp2 vs gp3, helping you understand:
Why gp3 is superior from a cost-performance standpoint
When it makes sense to migrate
How to migrate without downtime
Understanding gp2 and gp3: Key Differences
gp2: The Legacy Standard
Performance tied to size: 3 IOPS per GiB
Bursting model: Volumes <1 TiB can burst to 3,000 IOPS
Throughput maxes at 250 MiB/s
No fine-grained control over IOPS or throughput
Cost: $0.10 per GiB-month
gp3: The Next-Gen SSD
Decoupled performance: IOPS and throughput are provisioned separately
Baseline IOPS: 3,000 IOPS, independent of volume size
Scalable up to:
16,000 IOPS
1,000 MiB/s throughput
Cost: $0.08 per GiB-month (20% lower than gp2)
Extra IOPS & throughput are pay-as-you-go
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
Feature | gp2 | gp3 |
IOPS Scaling | 3 IOPS per GiB | 3,000 IOPS baseline (independent) |
Max IOPS | 16,000 (at 5,334 GiB+) | 16,000 (provisionable) |
Bursting | Yes (for <1 TiB volumes) | No – performance is consistent |
Max Throughput | 250 MiB/s | 1,000 MiB/s |
Performance Control | Not possible | Fine-grained control |
Cost | $0.10/GiB-month | $0.08/GiB-month |
IOPS Cost | Included in price | $0.005 per extra IOPS over 3,000 |
Throughput Cost | Included in price | $0.04 per MiB/s over 125 MiB/s |
Cost Comparison: Real Examples
Scenario 1: Moderate workload – 500 GiB, 3,000 IOPS
Metric | gp2 | gp3 |
Storage Cost | 500 × $0.10 = $50 | 500 × $0.08 = $40 |
IOPS Cost | Included | Included |
Total Cost | $50/month | $40/month |
Savings | – | 20% cheaper |
Scenario 2: High-performance DB – 1,000 GiB, 10,000 IOPS
Metric | gp2 | gp3 |
IOPS Needed | 10,000 IOPS | 10,000 IOPS |
Required Volume Size | ~3,334 GiB (10,000 ÷ 3 IOPS/GiB) | 1,000 GiB (IOPS provisioned separately) |
Storage Cost | 3,334 GiB × $0.10 = $333.40/month | 1,000 GiB × $0.08 = $80.00/month |
Provisioned IOPS Cost | Included in gp2 size-based pricing | (10,000 - 3,000) × $0.005 = $35.00/month |
Total Monthly Cost | $333.40 | $115.00 |
Savings with gp3 | — | $218.40/month (~66% cheaper) |
Insight: With gp2, you're forced to overprovision storage to get more IOPS. With gp3, you pay only for what you need.
Migrating from gp2 to gp3 – In-Place & Painless
AWS supports live migration from gp2 to gp3 via Elastic Volumes - zero downtime, no data loss.
CLI Example:
aws ec2 modify-volume \
--volume-id vol-0abcd1234efgh5678 \
--volume-type gp3 \
--iops 6000 \
--throughput 500
Best Practices:
Start with non-critical workloads
Monitor VolumeReadOps, VolumeWriteOps, and BurstBalance in CloudWatch
Use AWS Systems Manager for fleet-wide migration
Use Cases for gp3
Workload | Why gp3 Wins |
Web & App Servers | Predictable IOPS at low cost |
Databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL) | High IOPS/throughput without overprovisioning |
Containers & Microservices | Consistent boot times, low-latency |
Analytics & Big Data | Up to 1,000 MiB/s throughput |
Dev/Test Environments | Cost-effective provisioning |
Key Takeaways
gp3 is ~20% cheaper for baseline workloads and up to 70% cheaper for high-performance workloads
More control = less overprovisioning
No reason not to migrate unless you’re running very small, burst-dependent volumes (e.g., <50 GiB)
Migration is safe, reversible, and supported by AWS tooling
Final Verdict – gp3 is the Future of General-Purpose Storage
gp3 is a clear upgrade in every measurable way: cost, performance, and scalability. At Ananta Cloud, we recommend making gp3 your default volume type, retrofitting existing volumes, and enjoying predictable performance at a significantly reduced cost.
Need Help Migrating?
Ananta Cloud offers tailored storage audits and automated gp2→gp3 migration blueprints for clients running large fleets. Reach out to us to learn how we’ve helped companies reduce EBS costs by over 60% in 30 days.
Contact us at:
Email: hello@anantacloud.com | LinkedIn: @anantacloud | Schedule Meeting
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