Executive Summary
Cloud IaaS is not a technology decision — it is a business-model decision that shapes how an enterprise innovates, scales, and competes.
Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) represents the foundational layer of modern enterprise IT. The choice between AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform influences everything from application architecture to talent strategy.
This guide provides a vendor-neutral evaluation framework with weighted scoring, 3-year TCO models, RFP templates, and phased implementation timelines for enterprise procurement teams.
Strategic Importance of Cloud IaaS
IaaS selection impacts speed to market, operational resilience, and cost efficiency. It influences talent acquisition, ecosystem partnerships, and financial flexibility for years to come.
Key trends in 2026 include AI-native infrastructure (GPU/TPU availability), sovereign cloud mandates, FinOps maturity, and sustainability reporting requirements across all three hyperscalers.
Build vs. Buy vs. Migrate
Before evaluating cloud providers, determine your cloud strategy posture.
| Scenario | Recommendation | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Aging on-prem infrastructure with rising maintenance costs | Migrate to Cloud | Cloud migration delivers 30–50% TCO reduction with elastic scaling. ROI typically materializes within 12–18 months. |
| Existing cloud commitment with optimization opportunities | Optimize & Expand | Leverage reserved instances, savings plans, and FinOps practices before considering multi-cloud complexity. |
| Regulatory requirements mandating data sovereignty | Evaluate Sovereign Cloud | All three hyperscalers now offer sovereign cloud regions. Assess compliance-specific capabilities carefully. |
| AI/ML GPU workloads requiring specialized compute | Evaluate GPU Availability | GPU supply constraints make cloud provider choice critical for AI workloads. Evaluate reserved GPU capacity and pricing. |
| Stable, predictable workloads with no scaling needs | Assess TCO Carefully | For truly static workloads, on-prem or colocation may offer lower long-term costs. Run a rigorous 3-year TCO comparison. |
Key Capabilities & Evaluation Criteria
Use the following weighted evaluation framework to assess vendors across the dimensions that matter most to your organization.
| Capability Domain | Weight | What to Evaluate |
|---|---|---|
| Compute & Scaling | 25% | Instance variety, auto-scaling, spot/preemptible pricing, GPU/TPU availability, serverless compute options |
| Networking & Security | 20% | VPC architecture, DDoS protection, private connectivity, zero-trust networking, compliance certifications |
| Storage & Data Services | 20% | Object/block/file storage, data lake integration, backup/DR, cross-region replication |
| AI/ML & Analytics | 15% | Managed ML services, GPU availability, data warehouse integration, AI platform maturity |
| Management & Operations | 10% | Console UX, IaC support (Terraform, Pulumi), monitoring, cost management tools |
| Ecosystem & Support | 10% | Partner network, marketplace, training resources, enterprise support tiers, SLA guarantees |
Vendor Landscape
The hyperscale cloud market is a three-player race with distinct strengths and strategic positioning.
Strengths: Largest service portfolio (200+ services), deepest enterprise adoption, strongest marketplace and partner ecosystem, and most mature operational tooling. Considerations: Pricing complexity; console UX fragmented across services; AI/ML capabilities strong but less integrated than GCP; vendor lock-in risk with proprietary services.
Strengths: Deepest Microsoft 365/Dynamics integration, strongest hybrid cloud (Azure Arc), enterprise licensing advantages (EA discounts), and rapidly growing AI capabilities (OpenAI partnership). Considerations: Service reliability has lagged AWS historically; some services less mature; console experience inconsistent; pricing tied to complex EA agreements.
Strengths: Best-in-class data and AI services (BigQuery, Vertex AI, TPUs), strongest Kubernetes (GKE), excellent network performance, and competitive pricing. Considerations: Smaller enterprise market share; fewer services than AWS; enterprise support and partner ecosystem less mature; concerns about Google commitment to enterprise.
Pricing Models & Cost Structure
Pricing varies significantly by vendor, deployment model, and scale. Understanding the pricing model is critical for accurate budgeting.
| Vendor | Pricing Model | Typical Enterprise Range | Key Cost Drivers |
|---|---|---|---|
| AWS | On-demand + reserved + savings plans | $500K–$5M+ / year | Instance type/size, storage volume, data transfer (egress), reserved commitment level, support tier |
| Azure | Pay-as-you-go + reserved + EA | $500K–$5M+ / year | VM size, hybrid benefit credits, EA commitment level, Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC) |
| GCP | On-demand + committed use + SUDs | $300K–$3M+ / year | Machine type, sustained-use discounts, committed-use discount level, BigQuery consumption |
Implementation & Migration
Cloud migrations are multi-year transformations that require phased execution and continuous optimization.
Inventory workloads, classify migration strategies (6 Rs), design target architecture, establish landing zone, and negotiate commercial agreements.
Migrate first 20% of workloads (rehost/replatform), establish CI/CD pipelines, implement monitoring/observability, and train operations team.
Refactor key applications for cloud-native, implement auto-scaling, deploy serverless where appropriate, and optimize reserved capacity.
Implement FinOps practices, right-size instances, optimize storage tiers, decommission legacy infrastructure, and establish ongoing governance.
Selection Checklist & RFP Questions
Use this checklist during vendor evaluation to ensure comprehensive coverage of critical capabilities.
Peer Perspectives
Insights from technology leaders who have completed evaluations and implementations within the past 24 months.