---
title: "Amazon Athena Pricing, Features & Alternatives (2026)"
description: "Amazon Athena (Distributed SQL Query Engines): From $0.3/mo. Plans, pros & cons, and Amazon Athena alternatives compared for startups in 2026."
source: https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/amazon-athena
retrieved: 2026-11-10
---

![Amazon Athena logo](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=aws.amazon.com&sz=128)

[Distributed SQL Query Engines](https://appstackbuilder.com/categories/query-engine)

# Amazon Athena: Pricing, Features & Alternatives

Athena runs SQL directly on files in Amazon S3 without servers or clusters. You pay $5 per TB of data scanned, so compressed columnar formats and partitions cut the bill. Federated queries over non-S3 sources are rounded up to the nearest MB with a 10 MB minimum. Capacity Reservations cost $0.30 per DPU-hour for steady workloads, and Athena for Apache Spark is $0.35 per DPU-hour.

Who it’s for: Teams on AWS that want to run SQL on files in S3 occasionally or on a schedule, with nothing to manage.

Category

Distributed SQL Query Engines

Pricing

From $0.3/mo

Free tier

No

Best for

Distributed SQL Query Engines: serverless, S3, pay per scan

## Amazon Athena at a Glance

What it is

Serverless SQL on S3 (AWS)

Licence

Managed AWS service

How you pay

$5 per TB scanned

Where it runs

AWS

Managed option

Fully managed

Checked November 2026 against [Amazon Athena pricing](https://aws.amazon.com/athena/pricing/).

[Visit Amazon Athena official site](https://aws.amazon.com/athena/)

## Amazon Athena Pricing Plans (2026)

| Plan                  | Price            | Highlights                       |
| --------------------- | ---------------- | -------------------------------- |
| SQL queriesPopular    | $5 / TB scanned  | No servers · Queries S3 in place |
| Capacity Reservations | $0.30 / DPU-hour | Dedicated capacity               |

Pricing summary: From $0.3/mo. Always confirm current pricing on the official site.

## Key Amazon Athena Features

* ✓SQL queries: $5 per TB scanned
* ✓Federated queries on non-S3 sources: rounded up per MB, 10 MB minimum
* ✓Capacity Reservations: $0.30 per DPU-hour
* ✓Athena for Apache Spark: $0.35 per DPU-hour

### ✓ Pros

* +Nothing to provision
* +Pay only for data scanned
* +Works on existing S3 data
* +Spark option on the same service

### ✗ Cons

* −Scanning uncompressed data gets expensive
* −AWS only
* −Less control over performance than your own cluster

## Best Amazon Athena Alternatives

[Compare all ](https://appstackbuilder.com/tool-alternatives/amazon-athena)

[![Trino logo](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=trino.io&sz=128)TrinoFree](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/trino)[![Starburst logo](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=starburst.io&sz=128)StarburstFree · paid from $0.5/mo](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/starburst)[![Presto logo](https://www.google.com/s2/favicons?domain=prestodb.io&sz=128)PrestoFree](https://appstackbuilder.com/tools/presto)

## Amazon Athena Compared

[Amazon Athena vs Trino](https://appstackbuilder.com/compare/amazon-athena-vs-trino)[Amazon Athena vs Starburst](https://appstackbuilder.com/compare/amazon-athena-vs-starburst)[Amazon Athena vs Presto](https://appstackbuilder.com/compare/amazon-athena-vs-presto)

## Amazon Athena FAQ

What is Amazon Athena used for?⌄

Amazon Athena is a distributed sql query engines tool. Serverless SQL over data in S3: $5 per TB scanned, nothing to run. Spark and reserved capacity also available.

Is Amazon Athena free?⌄

Amazon Athena does not offer a permanent free tier; paid plans start at $0.3/month.

How much does Amazon Athena cost?⌄

Amazon Athena plans start at $0.3/month.

What are the best Amazon Athena alternatives?⌄

Popular Amazon Athena alternatives include Trino, Starburst, Presto. Compare pricing and features on our Amazon Athena alternatives page.

## Not sure if Amazon Athena fits your stack?

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