Amazon RDS Essentialsince 2009
A managed service providing relational databases like MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle
What It Does
Amazon RDS (Relational Database Service) is a fully managed service offering MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB, Oracle, SQL Server, and Db2 relational databases. AWS automatically handles patching, backups, failover, and scaling.
Use Cases
Backend databases for web applications, data management for business systems, product and order data storage for e-commerce sites, multi-tenant databases for SaaS applications - anywhere a relational database is needed.
Everyday Analogy
Think of a managed parking garage with an attendant. Instead of building and maintaining your own garage (database server), the attendant (AWS) handles cleaning (patching), security cameras (monitoring), and regular inspections (backups) for you.
What Is RDS?
Amazon RDS is a managed service that automates relational database operations. It handles database engine installation, OS patching, automated backups, and Multi-AZ failover on your behalf, letting developers focus on application development.
Choosing a Database Engine
RDS supports six database engines. MySQL and PostgreSQL are the most widely used open-source options. MariaDB is a MySQL fork with its own enhancements while maintaining compatibility. Oracle and SQL Server are commercial databases that support bring-your-own-license (BYOL). For higher performance and availability, consider Amazon Aurora, which is compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL.
Multi-AZ and Read Replicas
Enabling Multi-AZ deployment automatically creates a standby instance in a different Availability Zone from the primary. If the primary fails, automatic failover to the standby typically completes within 60 seconds. Read replicas distribute read traffic and you can create up to 15. Cross-region replicas also support disaster recovery.
Getting Started
In the RDS console, select "Create database" and specify the engine, instance class, and storage size. You'll receive an endpoint - set it in your application's connection string and you're connected. On legacy accounts created before July 15, 2025, the 12-month free tier included a db.t3.micro instance for up to 750 hours per month; newer accounts use the credit-based free plan (up to $200 in credits) instead (as of August 2026).
Things to Watch Out For
- Stopped instances automatically restart after 7 days - for long-term inactivity, take a snapshot and delete the instance
- Multi-AZ incurs additional charges for the standby instance. Consider single-AZ for development environments to save costs
- The legacy 12-month free tier (accounts created before July 15, 2025 only) covers 750 hours/month on db.t3.micro - this is the combined total across all instances
References (Official AWS Resources)
The primary sources for this page are the official AWS website and documentation. Check the official pages below for the latest specifications and pricing.
If this page and the official documentation disagree, treat the official documentation as authoritative.
