Vendor comparison
Azure WAF vs AWS WAF: pricing compared
Hyperscaler-on-hyperscaler. The SKUs are structured similarly (per-policy or per-web-ACL plus per-request) but the per-million-request rates differ and Azure splits the product across Front Door and Application Gateway with two pricing models.
Last verified June 2026
Decision in one paragraph
Pick the WAF on the cloud the app already lives on. Cross-cloud WAF deployments are rare for a good reason: cross-cloud egress and latency cost more than any per-request rate difference. If you are on Azure, Azure WAF wins by default; if you are on AWS, AWS WAF wins by default. The interesting question is Front Door versus Application Gateway, not Azure versus AWS.
Side by side
Azure WAF (Front Door)
- Front Door Premium managed: $5/policy + $20 base + $1/M requests.
- Application Gateway WAF v2: $0.443/gateway-hour + $0.0144/capacity-unit-hour.
- Bot Protection Rule Set included with Front Door Premium managed rules.
- Native to App Service, Functions, Azure Kubernetes Service.
- Two products to choose between; per-VNet vs global edge.
AWS WAF
- $5 web-ACL + $1/rule + $0.60/M requests.
- Bot Control add-on: $10/web-ACL + per-request rule-group fee.
- Native to ALB, CloudFront, API Gateway, App Runner.
- Account Takeover Prevention and CAPTCHA are separately-billed add-ons.
- One product; per-request billing across both edge and per-VPC use cases.
Feature matrix
| Feature | Azure WAF | AWS WAF |
|---|---|---|
| Published list pricing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Per-request billing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Per-hour billing option | ✓ | ✗ |
| Bot defence included | ◐ | ✗ |
| Native cloud integration | ✓ | ✓ |
| Single product line | ✗ | ✓ |
| Marketplace rule groups | ◐ | ✓ |
| Custom rules at entry tier | ✓ | ✓ |
Headline pricing
| Vendor | Cheapest published rate | Pricing model | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azure WAF (Front Door) | $5.00 per policy per month (Front Door Premium managed rules) | Per policy + per rule + per million requests | Source (2026-06-19) |
| AWS WAF | $5.00 per web-ACL per month | Per web-ACL + per rule + per million requests | Source (2026-06-19) |
Direct answer
Which is cheaper at typical traffic?
At 100M req/mo and one policy/web-ACL: AWS WAF is roughly $75/mo (no Bot Control); Azure Front Door Premium managed is roughly $125/mo (Bot Protection Rule Set included). With AWS Bot Control added at $10 + per-request rule-group fee, the two converge or AWS overtakes. The decision is the cloud, not the rate card.
Source: Use the cost calculator on the homepage to model your own workload.
Switching cost
If you are already on one and considering the other
Cross-cloud WAF migration is rarely about the WAF; it is about migrating the app. If the app is staying on its current cloud, the question is Front Door vs Application Gateway on Azure or web-ACL placement on AWS. If the app is moving cloud, the WAF migration is the smallest line item in the project.
Where to read more
Cross-reference with the pricing-models explainer and the hidden-costs page before signing.
Last verified June 2026