Kubernetes vs AWS ECS vs AWS Lambda — Container Orchestration for UK Software (2025)
AWS ECS Fargate is the right default for most UK containerised workloads: no Kubernetes complexity, no master nodes to manage, Cyber Essentials OS patching handled by AWS, and native AWS service integration. Kubernetes (EKS) is right when you need multi-cloud portability, custom operators, or a large team (4+ DevOps engineers) to justify the operational overhead. Lambda is right for event-driven, short-lived workloads. Most UK software teams should use ECS Fargate, not EKS. Container orchestration choice has major implications for Cyber Essentials patching obligations, FCA operational resilience complexity, and team operational burden. Here is an honest UK comparison.
| Factor | Kubernetes (EKS) | AWS ECS Fargate | AWS Lambda |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cyber Essentials OS patching | Complex — node patching required | ✅ AWS managed — no obligation | ✅ AWS managed — no obligation |
| Operational complexity | High — YAML, operators, networking | Low — ECS task definitions | Very low — just code |
| Team size needed | 4+ DevOps engineers to operate well | 1–2 engineers sufficient | 1 engineer sufficient |
| Multi-cloud portability | ✅ Runs anywhere | AWS only | AWS only |
| NHS/GovTech standard | Not standard — NHS Digital uses ECS | ✅ NHS Digital preferred | For event handlers |
| FCA PS21/3 per-service SLAs | ✅ Per-pod HPA autoscaling | ✅ ECS Service autoscaling | Concurrency limits — plan carefully |
| Cold start latency | None — pods always running | None — tasks always running | 50–500ms cold start |
| Cost at low traffic | High — node instances always running | Medium — tasks always running | ✅ Near-zero — pay per invocation |
| ClickMasters default | Large teams needing multi-cloud | ✅ Standard containerised workloads | Event handlers, background jobs |
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