AWS Network Load Balancer vs Nginx

Developers should use AWS Network Load Balancer when building high-performance, low-latency applications that require handling of TCP/UDP traffic, such as gaming servers, IoT applications, or real-time streaming services meets developers should learn nginx when building or deploying web applications that require efficient handling of high traffic, load balancing across multiple servers, or caching to reduce latency. Here's our take.

AWS Network Load Balancer

Nice Pick

Developers should use AWS Network Load Balancer when building high-performance, low-latency applications that require handling of TCP/UDP traffic, such as gaming servers, IoT applications, or real-time streaming services

Pros

• It is particularly useful for scenarios needing static IP addresses, preserving source IP addresses for backend processing, or integrating with other AWS services like AWS Global Accelerator for improved global performance
• Related to: aws-elastic-load-balancing, aws-application-load-balancer

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

Nginx

Developers should learn Nginx when building or deploying web applications that require efficient handling of high traffic, load balancing across multiple servers, or caching to reduce latency

Pros

• It is essential for DevOps and system administrators to optimize server performance, secure applications with SSL/TLS termination, and serve as a reverse proxy for microservices architectures
• Related to: http-server, load-balancing

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

The Verdict

These tools serve different purposes. AWS Network Load Balancer is a platform while Nginx is a tool. We picked AWS Network Load Balancer based on overall popularity, but your choice depends on what you're building.

The Bottom Line

AWS Network Load Balancer wins

Based on overall popularity. AWS Network Load Balancer is more widely used, but Nginx excels in its own space.