Amazon Database Migration Service

aws.amazon.com

Free plan WebAPI

Spec score 8.7 #2 of 32 in Cloud Migration Tools

What it is

Amazon Database Migration Service (AWS DMS) is a SaaS service for moving relational databases, data warehouses, NoSQL databases and other data stores to AWS or between cloud and on-premises environments. It handles one-time migrations and continuous replication, with support for both like-for-like and cross-engine moves. AWS says more than 20 databases and data warehouses can serve as source or target endpoints. DMS Schema Conversion assesses schemas and converts many code objects, including views, stored procedures and functions, while identifying work that needs manual conversion. DMS Serverless provisions and scales capacity according to transaction volume, billed hourly. Multi-AZ deployment uses redundant replication instances, and interrupted migrations can resume. API and AWS CLI support automation, while CloudTrail and CloudWatch Logs provide integrations. TLS, VPC deployment, PrivateLink and column masking are available. At least one endpoint must be Amazon RDS or EC2; on-premises-to-on-premises replication is unsupported. The AWS Free Tier offers free with credits.

Spec sheet

What it does: AWS DMS is a managed web service that migrates databases between on-premises, Amazon RDS, EC2 and other AWS or on-premises targets, including same-engine and heterogeneous migrations.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Purpose: AWS DMS migrates relational databases, data warehouses, NoSQL databases, and other data stores to AWS or between cloud and on-premises setups.Read 30 Sep 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Intended users: AWS describes DMS as a service for migrating and modernizing databases and analytics workloads to AWS, including migrations from self-managed databases to managed AWS databases.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Integrations: DMS integrates with CloudTrail and CloudWatch Logs, and its API and AWS CLI can automate replication task management and custom monitoring.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Security: AWS DMS requires TLS 1.2 for API clients and recommends TLS 1.3; it also supports resource-based access policies and AWS PrivateLink VPC endpoints.Read 30 Sep 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Compliance: AWS lists DMS in scope for SOC, PCI, ISO, FedRAMP, DoD CC SRG, HIPAA BAA, MTCS, CS, K-ISMS, ENS High, OSPAR and HITRUST CSF programs.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Founded: 2006Read 28 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
API and SDK access: AWS publishes a DMS API reference with operations, sample requests, responses and errors, and provides AWS CLI commands for DMS.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
AWS service integrations: DMS documentation describes VPC endpoints for S3, DynamoDB, Kinesis, Redshift, OpenSearch and Secrets Manager.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Company founding: Amazon Web Services says it launched in 2006.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Company headquarters and size: G2 lists Amazon Web Services headquarters in Seattle, Washington and 148,266 LinkedIn employees.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Company ownership: AWS says it operates as part of Amazon.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Continuous replication: DMS continuously captures source changes and applies them to a target so applications can keep using the source during migration.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Data protection: DMS can secure endpoint connections with SSL/TLS, run replication instances inside a VPC, and mask specified sensitive data columns.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Data validation: DMS uses continuous validation and a resync function to detect and correct source-target discrepancies.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Database coverage: AWS says DMS supports more than 20 databases and data warehouses as source and target endpoints.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Database integrations: Documented source options include Oracle, SQL Server, MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, SAP ASE, IBM Db2, Azure databases, Google Cloud databases, OCI MySQL, Amazon RDS, Aurora, S3 and DocumentDB.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Documentation depth: AWS provides data migration, Fleet Advisor, Schema Conversion, step-by-step, API reference and CLI reference documentation.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Fleet Advisor: DMS Fleet Advisor inventories on-premises database and analytics infrastructure and produces migration target recommendations.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Generative AI conversion: The feature page says generative-AI-assisted schema conversion can automatically convert up to 90% of complex objects such as procedures, triggers and functions.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Installation model: DMS requires no local drivers or application installation and is started through the AWS Management Console.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Limit: CDC complexity: A G2 reviewer says change-data-capture setup requires detailed study and sometimes messy JSON configuration.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Limit: complex transformations: A TrustRadius reviewer says task and mapping controls are limited for complex replication, requiring manual deduplication and producing poor ROI.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Limit: data-type compatibility: G2 reviewers report JSON parsing failures with multiline objects and geospatial-column problems requiring datatype changes.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Limit: pricing: G2 reviewers report that pricing can be higher than competing suppliers and that infrastructure maintenance costs remain.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Migration types: DMS supports homogeneous migrations between like database engines and heterogeneous migrations between different engines.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Network requirements: API clients must support TLS 1.2, while AWS recommends TLS 1.3 and perfect-forward-secrecy cipher suites.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Notable limitation: For DMS replication, either the source or target database, or both, must be in Amazon RDS or on EC2; on-premises-to-on-premises replication is not supported.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Notable news: Fleet Advisor retirement: The AWS DMS product page announces that Fleet Advisor support ends on May 20, 2026, after which its console and resources become inaccessible.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Praise: ease and speed: G2 reviewers repeatedly describe setup as easy, the interface as user-friendly and migrations as fast for gigabyte-scale transfers.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Praise: migration flexibility: G2 reviewers praise full-load and change-data-capture modes, multiple source types, heterogeneous migrations and reduced downtime.Read 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Rating on Capterra: 0.0 out of 5 from 0 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · capterra.com
Rating on G2: 4.1 out of 5 from 47 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Rating on GetApp: 0 out of 5 from 0 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · getapp.com
Rating on TrustRadius: 7.9 out of 10 from 17 reviewsRead 15 Oct 2026 · trustradius.com
Replication: DMS supports one-time migrations and ongoing replication of changes to keep source and target data in sync.Read 30 Sep 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Resilience: The DMS Multi-AZ option provides high availability with redundant replication instances, and DMS can resume a migration after an interruption.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Schema conversion: DMS Schema Conversion assesses migration complexity and converts schemas and code objects for a target engine.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Security controls: DMS supports IAM policies, TLS, KMS encryption, Secrets Manager credentials, VPC isolation, CloudWatch, CloudTrail and SNS monitoring integrations.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Self-hosting: AWS describes DMS as a managed service protected by AWS global network security, with replication instances hosted and managed by AWS.Read 15 Oct 2026 · docs.aws.amazon.com
Serverless: DMS Serverless automatically provisions and scales migration capacity based on data transaction volume, with capacity billed hourly.Read 30 Sep 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Serverless scaling: DMS Serverless automatically provisions and scales migration capacity according to transaction volume and charges for used capacity.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com
Supported coverage: AWS states DMS supports more than 20 databases and data warehouses as source and target endpoints.Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com

Plans and prices

AWS Free Tier Free Credits valid up to 12 months for new post-July-15-2025 sign-ups $100 credits plus up to $100 for foundational services · no DMS transfer charge · credits unavailable in GovCloud and China Beijing Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com

AWS DMS Serverless Priced on request Per hour for AWS DMS capacity units used 1–384 DCUs · 1 DCU equals 2 GB RAM · Single-AZ or Multi-AZ Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com

Database Savings Plans Price not published Commitment measured in dollars per hour for one year Eligible AWS DMS usage · savings in exchange for commitment Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com

On-demand instances Priced on request Hourly capacity usage; no long-term commitment T2, T3, C4, C5, C6i, R4, R5 and R6i instance classes Read 15 Oct 2026 · aws.amazon.com

Every Amazon Database Migration Service plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

One-time migration and continuous replication
Supports homogeneous and heterogeneous database moves
Schema conversion flags manual work
Serverless capacity scales with transaction volume
API and CLI enable automation

Limits

On-premises-to-on-premises replication is unsupported
At least one endpoint must be RDS or EC2
Paid usage follows free credits
Serverless capacity is billed hourly

Who it suits

It suits teams modernizing databases or analytics workloads on AWS, including moves from self-managed systems to managed AWS databases. It also fits users needing recurring replication or schema conversion.

Verdict

AWS DMS covers migration, replication, schema conversion and operational automation in one AWS service. Check the endpoint restriction and usage-based plans before planning a move.