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AWS CloudFront vs Cloudflare

Based on 407 and 2272 real audits

View AWS CloudFront details | View Cloudflare details
MetricAWS CloudFrontCloudflareWinner
Performance3949Cloudflare
Accessibility8888Tie
Best Practices8786AWS CloudFront
SEO9189AWS CloudFront
Security6669Cloudflare
TTFB261ms310msAWS CloudFront
Composite7275Cloudflare
Performance
AWS CloudFront
39
Cloudflare
49
Accessibility
AWS CloudFront
88
Cloudflare
88
Security
AWS CloudFront
66
Cloudflare
69
SEO
AWS CloudFront
91
Cloudflare
89
Composite
AWS CloudFront
72
Cloudflare
75

AWS CloudFront and Cloudflare are closely matched, each leading in different categories. AWS CloudFront has a composite score of 72 while Cloudflare scores 75.

When to choose AWS CloudFront

Choose AWS CloudFront when your primary concern is server response time and SEO. Its audit data shows consistent strength in these areas across the sampled sites.

When to choose Cloudflare

Choose Cloudflare when your primary concern is performance and security. Its audit data shows consistent strength in these areas across the sampled sites.

How this comparison was built

Scores are medians across 407 audited AWS CloudFront sites and 2272 audited Cloudflare sites in the BeaverCheck database. Every audit runs the same 100+ checks — Lighthouse performance, security headers, accessibility, SEO, server response time — against a real URL. No vendor input, no sponsorship, no affiliate links. Read the full methodology →

FAQ

Which is faster, AWS CloudFront or Cloudflare?
Based on real BeaverCheck audits, Cloudflare sites score higher on Lighthouse performance (49 vs 39 on average).
Which has better security, AWS CloudFront or Cloudflare?
Cloudflare sites score higher on security analysis (69 vs 66 on average).
Which has better accessibility, AWS CloudFront or Cloudflare?
Accessibility scores measured by Lighthouse WCAG 2.1 checks favor AWS CloudFront (88 vs 88). Both technologies can be made fully accessible with care — the difference reflects common patterns in the sampled sites, not inherent platform limits.
Which is better for SEO, AWS CloudFront or Cloudflare?
AWS CloudFront sites score higher on Lighthouse SEO signals (91 vs 89 on average), which cover meta tags, crawlability, mobile friendliness, and structured data. Content strategy and backlinks still matter more than platform choice for ranking.
Which has faster server response (TTFB), AWS CloudFront or Cloudflare?
AWS CloudFront sites show lower Time to First Byte (261 ms vs 310 ms on average). TTFB depends heavily on hosting and CDN setup rather than the technology itself, but the sampled sites suggest a meaningful difference in common deployment patterns.
Should I choose AWS CloudFront or Cloudflare for my website?
Both platforms have trade-offs. Cloudflare scores higher on overall composite score while AWS CloudFront may excel in metrics you care about most. Run a free BeaverCheck audit on a real site using each to compare the metrics relevant to your use case.
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