Workshops Use Cases Architecture Projects Blog
About Contact Offers Talks
Home›AWS service alternatives›ROSADeutsch

Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) alternatives: Azure, Google Cloud and open source

ROSA is OpenShift, run as a service.

The same OpenShift runs in your own data centre, so the platform stops being a cloud decision.

  • From my own projects
  • Sources linked
  • Updated September 2026

The same job on four platforms

The same task, a different bill and a different console. The layer does not change.

AWS

Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)[1]

ROSA is OpenShift, run as a service.

AWS documentation →[2]

Microsoft Azure

Azure Red Hat OpenShift[3]

Official documentation →

Google Cloud

OpenShift Dedicated on Google Cloud[4]

Official documentation →

Open source / run it yourself

OKD[5]

The community distribution of Kubernetes that OpenShift is built from, Apache 2.0. No Red Hat support.

OpenShift on your own hardware[6]

Not open source as a product, but the same platform on premises, with a Red Hat subscription.

What ROSA does

You sendThe same OpenShift objects you would apply on premises
ROSA

ROSA is OpenShift, run as a service.

You get backA full OpenShift cluster: builds, routes, operators and the console
What it costsPer cluster and per worker node, on top of the AWS compute.
Who operates itAWS and Red Hat jointly. Your workloads, their platform, one support path.
When it is the wrong choiceWhen plain Kubernetes is enough. OpenShift is a larger platform and you pay for all of it.

AWS calls it: “Managed OpenShift integration in the cloud”[1]

How I use it

The base of my OpenShift AI on AWS lab. It is the service that makes the platform portable, and portability is the whole hybrid argument.

Cloud architecture and modernization →All AWS services in my projects →
Linda Mohamed

Linda Mohamed, AI and cloud consultant and AWS Community Hero in Vienna. I build these pipelines for clients and teach them at FH Burgenland.

Read more on ai-solutions.wiki

My open knowledge base, with longer comparisons and more sources.

Questions

What is the Azure equivalent of Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)?

Azure Red Hat OpenShift.

What is the Google Cloud equivalent of Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)?

OpenShift Dedicated on Google Cloud.

What is the open-source alternative to Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)?

OKD: The community distribution of Kubernetes that OpenShift is built from, Apache 2.0. No Red Hat support. OpenShift on your own hardware: Not open source as a product, but the same platform on premises, with a Red Hat subscription.

How is Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) billed?

Per cluster and per worker node, on top of the AWS compute.

When should you not use Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA)?

When plain Kubernetes is enough. OpenShift is a larger platform and you pay for all of it.

Sources

  1. Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) product page. https://aws.amazon.com/rosa/
  2. Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) documentation. https://docs.aws.amazon.com/rosa/latest/userguide/what-is-rosa.html
  3. Azure Red Hat OpenShift documentation. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/openshift/intro-openshift
  4. OpenShift Dedicated on Google Cloud documentation. https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/cloud-computing/openshift/dedicated
  5. OKD. https://okd.io/
  6. OpenShift on your own hardware. https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/cloud-computing/openshift
  7. Red Hat OpenShift, ai-solutions.wiki. https://ai-solutions.wiki/tools/red-hat-openshift/
  8. Red Hat OpenShift AI, ai-solutions.wiki. https://ai-solutions.wiki/tools/openshift-ai/
  9. Kubernetes vs ECS for AI Workloads, ai-solutions.wiki. https://ai-solutions.wiki/comparisons/kubernetes-vs-ecs-ai/
  10. Linda Mohamed, course slides “The projects”, MASE-3, FH Burgenland, September 2026.

Links checked September 2026. Product names and availability change: check the linked pages before you decide.

Choosing between AWS, Azure and open source?

Book a free 30-minute Idea Call. We look at your use case and where it should run.

Book a free 30-min Idea Call →15-min question slotWork with me