--- title: Amazon Linux 2 Reviews meta_title: 'Amazon Linux 2 Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features | G2' meta_description: Filter 72 reviews by the users' company size, role or industry to find out how Amazon Linux 2 works for a business like yours. aggregate_rating: rating_value: 4.5 review_count: 72 scale: '5' date_modified: '2026-08-07' parent_category: name: IT Infrastructure url: https://www.g2.com/categories/it-infrastructure --- # Amazon Linux 2 Reviews **Vendor:** terracloudx **Category:** [Operating Systems](https://www.g2.com/categories/operating-system) **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 72 ## About Amazon Linux 2 Amazon Linux 2 is a Linux operating system developed by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to provide a secure, stable, and high-performance environment for cloud and enterprise applications. It is designed to integrate seamlessly with AWS services, offering a robust platform for developers and IT administrators. Amazon Linux 2 is available at no additional charge and includes long-term support with ongoing security and maintenance updates. Key Features and Functionality: - AWS Integration: Pre-installed packages and configurations facilitate tight integration with AWS services, simplifying the deployment and management of applications. - Long-Term Support: Provides five years of support, ensuring stability and predictability for enterprise applications. - Extras Repository: Offers access to the latest software packages through the Amazon Linux Extras repository, allowing users to install newer versions of popular software without compromising system stability. - On-Premises Use: Available as virtual machine images for VMware, Oracle VM VirtualBox, and Microsoft Hyper-V, enabling on-premises development and testing. - Systemd Support: Includes the systemd init system for efficient process management and service control. - Optimized Kernel and Toolchain: Features an LTS Kernel tuned for enhanced performance on Amazon EC2, along with updated compiler and build toolchain components. - Security Features: Implements default security measures such as limiting remote access, disabling remote root login, and reducing non-critical packages to minimize exposure to vulnerabilities. - Kernel Live Patching: Supports live patching of the Linux kernel, allowing critical and important security updates to be applied without rebooting or downtime. Primary Value and User Solutions: Amazon Linux 2 addresses the need for a secure, reliable, and high-performance operating system tailored for cloud environments. Its deep integration with AWS services streamlines application deployment and management, enhancing developer productivity. The long-term support and regular security updates provide peace of mind for enterprises, ensuring system stability and compliance. Additionally, the availability of virtual machine images for on-premises use allows for consistent development and testing environments, bridging the gap between local and cloud-based operations. ## Amazon Linux 2 Pros & Cons **What users like:** - Users value the **long-term support** of Amazon Linux 2, ensuring reliability and stability for their cloud applications. (8 reviews) - Users value the **regular updates** of Amazon Linux 2, ensuring security and performance for cloud workloads. (8 reviews) - Users value the **lightweight and high-performing** nature of Amazon Linux 2, optimizing their AWS workload efficiency. (8 reviews) - Users commend the **lightweight size** of Amazon Linux 2, enhancing performance for efficient cloud workload management. (7 reviews) - Users find Amazon Linux 2 to be **exceptionally easy to use** , facilitating management and application setups effortlessly. (5 reviews) - Stability (5 reviews) - Cloud Computing (3 reviews) - Easy Management (3 reviews) - Free/No Cost (3 reviews) - Users value the **reliability** of Amazon Linux 2, making it a dependable choice for running applications on AWS. (3 reviews) **What users dislike:** - Users experience **limited software availability** on Amazon Linux 2, needing additional effort for libraries and configurations. (6 reviews) - Users often face **limited app availability** in Amazon Linux 2, leading to challenges in accessing newer tools and libraries. (4 reviews) - Users note the **strong dependence on AWS** limits Amazon Linux 2's portability and flexibility in non-AWS environments. (3 reviews) - Users experience a **lack of support** for newer packages and find documentation insufficient for advanced configurations. (3 reviews) - Users find issues with **outdated technology** , as core components lag behind other distributions, affecting software compatibility. (2 reviews) - Users find the **command line interface challenging** , especially those unfamiliar with CMD, unlike GUI OS like Windows. (1 reviews) - Users face **integration issues** due to limited support for newer packages and AWS dependency, hindering flexibility. (1 reviews) - Skill Requirements (1 reviews) ## Amazon Linux 2 Reviews ### 1. AWS Linux 2 Works Great, Though We Sometimes Prefer Familiar Ubuntu **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Karel A. | Lead Architect, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** April 30, 2026 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** We develop applications for transportation and buses control, with a lot of connected devices such as bus validators. We also have CRM users running reports. AWS Linux 2 is a great OS to work with. I have used on some deployments with great success. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** I don't specifically dislike any particular feature. It's just that we are familiar with Ubuntu Server and that's the only reason we sometimes prefer Ubuntu instead of AWS Linux 2. We are not detractors of AWS Linux 2. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** On our backend systems we need a stable, well maintained and affordable OS solution that have to be Linux based. AWS Linux 2 is one of the best choices for that. It is very performant and AWS has great support for it. ### 2. fastest growing and safest operating system **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** kaushik g. | System admin, Information Technology and Services, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** October 06, 2025 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** as we know Linux is light weight and less consume resource like CPU and RAM compare to windows, and also we dont have pay for any license like windows and i like this feature among best and same we can say it most secure one and easy to use if you know ,how, aws Linux 2 command work than it would be very easy to work with aws Linux 2 and just for information by default SSH is disable for security purpose this one and we can just manage our patching activity using yum cmd , that make single cmd to work you update package manager **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** so there is not much i don't like , it would be to little difficult to someone don't know cmd , because this is not GUI OS like windows so before we want to work with aws linux 2 just learn some basic cmd so it will be make easy to work with it **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** For me, hosting any application becomes easy—just install your web server, such as Apache or Nginx, make a few simple changes, and you can use an AWS Linux server as your web server. Additionally, the security features are a major advantage here. ### 3. Stable, Lightweight, and Easy to Maintain **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Information Technology and Services | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 30, 2026 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** I feel it is very stable and lightweight it feels, especially on AWS. It’s easy to maintain, gets regular updates, and just works without unnecessary complexity. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** The main downside is that some newer packages and tools aren’t available by default. eg. getting newer versions of Node.js or Python often requires enabling extra repos or doing manual installs. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** AL 2 helps me run AWS-optimized OS without extra tuning. It benefits me by reducing setup time, improving performance on EC2, and making long-term maintenance much easier. ### 4. Lightweight, Cost-Effective, and Seamlessly Integrated with AWS **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** May 13, 2026 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** It is lightweight and optimised for AWS Workloads. Since it is an Amazon product it runs well with AWS servers and costs almost nothing. It integrates well with other AWS services **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** It is more AWS centric, so outside AWS portability and support are an issue compared to Ubuntu and Debian **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** The problem of maintaining secure, stable, AWS-optimized servers with minimal setup effort ### 5. User-Friendly, Easy to Use, and Packed with Nice Features **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Hospital & Health Care | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** July 07, 2026 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** user friendly, easy to use, nice features **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** could have more pictures and videos in one page **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** trying to fix the bugs and make it faster ### 6. Easy to Use and Easy to Understand—A Confidence Booster **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Insurance | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** February 10, 2026 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** It’s easy to use, gives me confidence when I’m using it, and is very easy to understand. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Nothing much to add. Since I’m a techy person, I was able to learn Amazon Linux 2 easily and get comfortable with it pretty quickly. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** I haven’t experienced any issues yet, so I’m fine with it. ### 7. Practical and functional experience **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Rubens V. | systems analyst, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** October 02, 2025 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** What I appreciate about Amazon Linux 2 is its reliable stability and seamless integration with AWS services. I also value the ongoing support for security updates, which gives me confidence in using the system. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** There is a limitation when it comes to certain newer packages and software. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** This product addresses compatibility, security, and performance challenges commonly encountered in cloud environments. It effectively resolves these issues, making it a valuable solution for those working with cloud-based systems. ### 8. My Expericence with Amazon Linux 2 **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Shubham M. | Platform Engineering manager, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** June 06, 2024 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon Linux 2 is like a reliable and sturdy toolbox for building and running applications on Amazon's web servers. It comes with everything you need pre-installed, so you can get started quickly. Plus, it's updated regularly to keep things running smoothly and securely. It's like having a trusted friend who always has your back when it comes to managing your online stuff. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon Linux 2 works best within Amazon's world, which might not suit everyone. Also, its starting features might feel a bit sparse for some users, needing extra tinkering to match their exact needs. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** newtwork is easy than other linux distro ### 9. Optimised and cost effective cloud/server side OS **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** K Madhusudan C. | Software Engineer, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** August 29, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Comes with a predefined setup for AWS. less effort is needed. Easily customizable to suit our needs, Also its cost-efficient since its provided by AWS itself which is good for early-stage startups and projects **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** optimization is limited to only AWS environments, using outside is less performant. Applications built on other Linux distributions are tightly coupled or have other dependencies face compatibility challenges while running in Amazon Linux **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** Since I was in AWS environments when using Amazon Linux 2, Most of the configuration/libraries come built-in and it is optimized for containerization/ serverless, which is good for developing modern applications ### 10. Amazon Linux 2 Review **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** ADESH J. | Information Technology Support Engineer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** September 13, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** I would like to inform you that I have already an Amazon Linux server for creating a custom Dedicated server for our company. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** I don't dislike Amazon Linux 2, In fact, I did have not enough points to dislike this product at the time. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** Amazon Linux server is admin-friendly for doing automation and Containerization on it. Amazon Linux 2 is solving many problems like an online package repository updation and upgradation, in an easy way for DevOps Engineers. ### 11. It's awesome **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Rakesh kumar g. | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** September 06, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** It's fast ,reliable and secure .it provide almost every feature that most of linux disto not provide. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** only available for aws . need more customization . **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** It help me to host my website that run very smooth on amazon linux2 .I feel secure to use this operating system. Thanks ### 12. Amazon linux2 **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** September 01, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon linux2 is cloud software os,it is developed by Amazon Web services,in that easy to spinup server. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon Linux the commands are bit difficult to execution. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** Amazon linux2 is operation system like windows,it is user friendly,it development by Amazon. ### 13. CLOUD BASED LINUX SYSTEM **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Pranay Kumar P. | Quality Engineer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** February 16, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon Linux 2 operating system is very useful while using AWS services. So that we don't have to connect from system Linux or have to change it or have to take headache for operations on cloud. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** It requires other services to start and those are paid things to start with. Without proper setup you can't start working with Amazon Linux 2 operating system. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** As it has latest Amazon Ec2 instance capabilities it unlocks much more features for working with cloud. It enhances productivity for developers. Devops pipeline are best to work with AWS. ### 14. Amazon Linux 2 - Lamda Operating system **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Yashank J. | Beta Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** December 18, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** We prefer using Amazon Linux 2 to AWS lambdas. Its operating system is quite lightweight. The finest feature is that it is fairly scalable and customizable. Does the necessary work to enable us to configure quite rapidly compared to others. also performs well with user interface apps **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** The documentation for Amazon Linux 2 is poor and it is not at all user-friendly for beginners. It can be shaky at times and even become stuck for small instances. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** It is utilised throughout our lambda structure. Making use of it for parallel computation to prevent undue strain on our application server. We can parallelize things because we have a lot of generating servers. ### 15. Amazon linux review aws **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Dharmesh R. | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** February 16, 2023 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** pretty standard wrapper over linux supporting a lot of aws cli shortcuts and commands. can add ram/cpu very seamlessly **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Might be a bit difficult to start with but once it gets comfortable, becomes pretty seamless. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** able to host our services and deploy our application ### 16. Amazon Linux 2 is super Linux based operating system **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** priyanshu b. | Senior Technical Lead, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** March 31, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** I have used Amazon Linux 2 OS to build my IOT enabled application recently. It is super from performance point of view and also comes with security provided by AWS itself. Also there is no additional cost for using this OS. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Some times we won't be sure whether application running fine on this OS would work fine on another Linux based OS like Ubuntu, CentOS. So it would be great if they make it clear which OS other than this it would support. Also if we are installing a software, mostly ubuntu and centos steps would be mentioned separately in their installation documents, so it would be great if they tie up with other softwares as well. **Recommendations to others considering Amazon Linux 2:** People who wants to work on Linux based operating systems along with super performance and security can go for it. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** We are able to use our application in more optimised way because of super performance from this OS. Also we are able to deploy our application easily compared to windows based operating systems. Also we can schedule our application using crontab here. ### 17. Amazon Linux 2 **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Raghavendra D. | Java Software Developer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** March 05, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Take full advantages of its crowds offering and created its only in a server operating system as Amazon Linux it's mainly based on redhat enterprise has stands out sanxx to its light integration with many Amazon Web services. Amazon Linux 2 limits exposure to security vulnerabilities by reducing the number of non critical packages which are installed on instance but security updates and sorry Charles h o I updated Amazon machine images and VM and container images when it comes to running Linux workloads on our WS Amazon Linux 2 is an easy choice combining long term support with convenient access of trading software this rhel5 Linux distribution provides a convenient entry point into the world of Amazon Web services and they are infinite possibilities that come with that we always enjoyed the Amazon services and I enjoyed a lot of Amazon Linux 2 thank you **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** The cold used a letter sharpening and it needs some improvements cost is one factor that it is on the expensive side for implementing fully difficult to switch to different version of framework the frame is very disappointing feature and it needs and upgrade it was difficult to switch to different version of framework as well as GPU drivers I didn't for nothing apart from this thank you **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** E w s built and designed so that they are easy to use fixable cost-effective and many more like security resilience exciting new startups which is about the new mobile application that helps people to find the best restaurant and food joints around them also provide a platform restaurants to showcase their speciality upload many years and photos yes just like their favourite apps Zomato to keep in short that's limited edition donate in storage system required to store and manage photos actually the upload limit is good ### 18. Amazon Linux 2 Best secure OS for server management **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Sujith S. | Consultant, Information Technology and Services, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 09, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Amazon Linux 2 server is one of the most secure Linux server operating systems from AWS. It has all the security features and community support from the tech giant Amazon. The thing I like more about is its constant updates to improve performance and security. So as a user, I don't have to worry about security issues and server down. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** What I don't like about it is its price range for added features. Hidden prices are there, so as a user, it's not a good thing for your budget, especially for a startup. Some issues I faced were connectivity issues, ipv6 issues. Also, it's has a wide range of tools, and it's not an easy thing for the new employees to cover all things. I have to catch up with many documents to get the knowledge for it. **Recommendations to others considering Amazon Linux 2:** I will recommend this for all startups **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** We use Amazon Linux 2 to host our web applications, build, test, and automate specific applications. We mainly use the auto-scaling feature of ec2 for our applications. ### 19. Eeasy to learn and use **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Sattam S. | Software Expert, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Reviewed Date:** May 18, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** It's easy to use even for new people , i learned it quickly by some training courses **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** To be honest i didn't go deep with it to judge **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** launching and manage light vm in aws in very reasonable time ### 20. Linux env on Cloud **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Sanjay S. | Architect, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** March 09, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** Its better performance, product support, is developer-friendly, lightweight and no cost for the software. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** It only supports Amazon web servers and compute cloud. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** We use this for high performance execution environment and to run the cloud applications. It provides better developer community and product support from Amazon and hence make it easier for development eco system. ### 21. BEST EVER SERVER OPERATING SYSTEM **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Sooraj S. | Senior Software Developer, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 12, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** I liked it because it constantly updated, and it was designed to provide a stable, secure, and high-performance execution environment for applications running on Amazone **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** Sometimes there is a connection issue, and we have to restart Amazone linuz2 instance .other wise, it is ok to use. please ensure this connection is more secure and stable **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** I realized it has some significant benefits. It connects to multiple Amazone services via the bito3 package and has increased in my productivity a professional manner ### 22. Stable, Secure, and high performance execution environment **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** ALPER K. | Senior Software Engineer, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Reviewed Date:** January 17, 2022 **What do you like best about Amazon Linux 2?** * It provides secure and high performance execution environment. * It provides modern application environment with the latest enhancements from the Linux community. **What do you dislike about Amazon Linux 2?** * Amazon Linux creates additional migration costs when moving to another cloud service. * Developing on distribution A and deploying to distribution B is just asking for trouble. **What problems is Amazon Linux 2 solving and how is that benefiting you?** * Using Linux Operating System on Amazon Cloud. Cloud and Workspace or Operating System are combined. ## Amazon Linux 2 Discussions - [How to look for the correct linux commands, which works with the Amazon Linux 2?](https://www.g2.com/discussions/how-to-look-for-the-correct-linux-commands-which-works-with-the-amazon-linux-2) - 1 comment, 1 upvote - [View Amazon Linux 2 pricing details and edition comparison](https://www.g2.com/products/amazon-linux-2-2021-10-12/reviews?filters%5Bnps_score%5D%5B%5D=4§ion=pricing&secure%5Bexpires_at%5D=2026-08-12+22%3A28%3A27+-0500&secure%5Bsession_id%5D=b1eaf5e7-6614-4441-96f7-73d3720c4365&secure%5Btoken%5D=427891c03d19af3b444b3b244195a05e15d2935ab5eeae64aa14682b9c49c4aa&format=llm_user) ## Amazon Linux 2 Integrations - [Docker](https://www.g2.com/products/docker-inc-docker/reviews) - [IBM Terraform (formerly HashiCorp Terraform)](https://www.g2.com/products/ibm-terraform-formerly-hashicorp-terraform/reviews) - [Laravel](https://www.g2.com/products/laravel/reviews) - [Node.js](https://www.g2.com/products/node-js/reviews) ## Amazon Linux 2 Features **Memory Management - Operating System** - RAM management - App Management - File Management **Device Management - Operating System** - I/O management **Backup and Recovery - Operating System** - Data backup **Error Detection - Operating System** - System operations monitoring **Additional Functionality** - Generative AI - Data Security - User Interface - Resource Allocation - System Updates - For Developers - AI Copilot - Desktop Interface ## Top Amazon Linux 2 Alternatives - [Rocky Linux](https://www.g2.com/products/rocky-linux/reviews) - 4.6/5.0 (20 reviews) - [AlmaLinux OS](https://www.g2.com/products/almalinux-os/reviews) - 4.5/5.0 (21 reviews) - [Ubuntu](https://www.g2.com/products/ubuntu/reviews) - 4.5/5.0 (2,346 reviews)