Cloudflare vs AWS WAF (October 2026)
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Cloudflare
CDN, WAF and DDoS protection, with the WAF and free managed ruleset on every plan.
Visit CloudflareVerdict. AWS WAF has the lower entry price (USD 5.00 against USD 20.00). Cloudflare also has a free plan; AWS WAF does not. Cloudflare confirms 3 of our 3 key features; AWS WAF confirms 1.
Side by side
| Feature | Cloudflare | AWS WAF |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest paid plan | Pro: USD 20 per month, annual | Web ACL: USD 5 per month |
| Other plan or fee | Free | — |
| Another plan or fee | Business: USD 200 per month, annual | — |
| Free plan or trial | Yes | No |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Managed rule sets | Yes | Yes |
| DDoS protection | Yes | Not confirmed |
| Number of plans listed | 3 | 1 |
| Our score | 81/100 (#1 of 3) | 60/100 (#2 of 3) |
| Best for | Best free starting point | Lowest entry price |
| A year on the cheapest paid plan | USD 240 (billed yearly) | USD 60 |
| Notes | — | — |
Shaded cells mark the lower price. Sources: Cloudflare, AWS WAF.
Which to choose
Choose AWS WAF if you want the lower starting price.
Choose Cloudflare if its features above matter more to you than price.
See all options: best web application firewalls.
More: Cloudflare pricing, Cloudflare alternatives, Cloudflare vs Sucuri, AWS WAF pricing, AWS WAF alternatives.