Virtual machines & images
Amazon EC2 bare metal instances vs Azure Dedicated Host / Azure VMware Solution
EC2 offers .metal sizes for many instance families, and Azure doesn't.
On Azure, the closest options are Azure Dedicated Host (single-tenant but still virtualized), nested virtualization on supported VM sizes, or purpose-built bare-metal services such as Azure VMware Solution hosts.
Side-by-side comparison
| Aspect | Amazon Web Services | Microsoft Azure |
|---|---|---|
| Service | Amazon EC2 bare metal instances | Azure Dedicated Host Azure VMware Solution |
| Lifecycle | Generally available | Generally available Generally available |
| What it is | .metal sizes of many instance families. They give the OS direct access to the processor and memory, with no AWS hypervisor, for nested virtualization, special licensing, or low-level tooling. | Single-tenant physical servers grouped into host groups, with control over maintenance and placement. Billed per host. VMs on the host show a price of zero. Microsoft-operated VMware vSphere, vSAN, and NSX private clouds on dedicated Azure bare-metal hosts (AV36/AV36P/AV48/AV52/AV64, with a three-node minimum). All SKUs require a portable VCF subscription from Broadcom. Generation 2 (AV64 only) attaches hosts directly to Azure virtual networks. |
| Pricing model | .metal sizes are priced per second like other sizes of the same family. | Dedicated Host is billed per host per hour. Azure VMware Solution is billed per host (node), hourly or reserved. |
| Docs | Amazon EC2 bare metal instances docs | Azure Dedicated Host docs Azure VMware Solution docs |
| Pricing page | Amazon EC2 bare metal instances pricing | Azure Dedicated Host pricing Azure VMware Solution pricing |
| Exams | SAA-C03 | AZ-305 |
Key differences
- EC2 bare metal instances behave like regular instances (EBS, VPC, Auto Scaling) and run your own hypervisor if you want one.
- Azure Dedicated Host gives physical isolation and host-level control, but VMs still run on the Azure hypervisor.
- For VMware workloads specifically, Azure VMware Solution (dedicated bare-metal hosts) and Amazon EVS (EC2 bare metal) are the comparable pair. See the VMware row.
Pricing summary
Pricing models only. No prices are quoted because they change by region and over time.
- AWS
- .metal sizes are priced per second like other sizes of the same family. Amazon EC2 bare metal instances pricing →
- Azure
- Dedicated Host is billed per host per hour. Azure VMware Solution is billed per host (node), hourly or reserved. Azure Dedicated Host pricing → Azure VMware Solution pricing →
Certification exam mapping
| Exam | Provider | Level | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate SAA-C03 | AWS | Associate | current Italian version retires after Dec 31, 2026. |
| Microsoft Certified – Azure Solutions Architect Expert AZ-305 | Azure | Expert | current English version updated Apr 17, 2026. |
Relevance is based on each exam's published scope, not a line-by-line objective match. Check the official study guide.
Verification notes
- Azure also had BareMetal Infrastructure and Large Instances for SAP HANA and similar specialist workloads. Its overview page now redirects, so it's not mapped here.
FAQ
What is the Azure equivalent of Amazon EC2 bare metal instances?
EC2 offers .metal sizes for many instance families, and Azure doesn't. On Azure, the closest options are Azure Dedicated Host (single-tenant but still virtualized), nested virtualization on supported VM sizes, or purpose-built bare-metal services such as Azure VMware Solution hosts.
How does pricing compare between Amazon EC2 bare metal instances and Azure Dedicated Host and Azure VMware Solution?
AWS: .metal sizes are priced per second like other sizes of the same family. Azure: Dedicated Host is billed per host per hour. Azure VMware Solution is billed per host (node), hourly or reserved. Check the official pricing pages for current rates.
Which certification exams cover this topic?
AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03); Microsoft Certified – Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305).