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Most buyers should pick DeepSeek.
Choose DeepSeek if you want a free chatbot, token-priced API, or self-hostable distilled models. Its listed deepseek-flash input rate is $0.15 per million tokens off-peak, while Bedrock has no published subscription price and lists Nova Micro at $0.000035 per 1,000 input tokens. Choose Bedrock when AWS workloads need inference and agent building at scale. Check Bedrock costs and model access before committing; its homepage gives no further pricing or model details.
01Side by side
| Amazon Bedrock | DeepSeek | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | No subscription; Nova Micro input: $0.000035/1,000 tokens. | Free chatbot; deepseek-flash input: $0.15/1M off-peak tokens. |
| Free plan | No free plan listed. | Free web/mobile chatbot; signup grant: 5M tokens. |
| Best for | AWS workloads needing inference and agent building at scale. | Developers wanting an API or self-hostable models. |
| Core strength | Inference and agent building at scale. | Reasoning models, API tools, self-hostable distilled checkpoints. |
| Learning curve | Review ease-of-use score: 5. | Review ease-of-use score: 6.5. |
| Integrations/data | AWS service; batch datasets use Amazon S3. | Developer API; distilled checkpoints can be self-hosted. |
| Team/seat costs | Seat pricing not published. | No chatbot seat limits listed; API is token-metered. |
| Support | Review support score: 5. | Review support score: 5. |
Amazon Bedrock Choose Amazon Bedrock if
- Choose Amazon Bedrock if AWS workloads need inference at scale.
- Choose Amazon Bedrock if you need agent-building capabilities on AWS.
- Choose Amazon Bedrock if you can budget for consumption-based usage.
DeepSeek Choose DeepSeek if
- Choose DeepSeek if you want a free web or mobile chatbot.
- Choose DeepSeek if you want a token-priced developer API.
- Choose DeepSeek if you want self-hostable distilled models.
02Pricing compared
DeepSeek is easier to price from the published figures: its Chat app is free, and its API is pay-as-you-go with no monthly subscription. The listed deepseek-flash input rate is $0.15 per million tokens off-peak and $0.30 at peak; output is $0.60 and $1.20, respectively. Signup includes 5 million free tokens. Peak rates apply during listed weekday UTC windows.
Bedrock has no published subscription price. Its pricing listing gives Nova Micro at $0.000035 per 1,000 input tokens and $0.00014 per 1,000 output tokens. Batch inference is listed at 50% below on-demand, while Provisioned Throughput requires a one- or six-month commitment. Other costs, including Knowledge Bases and Agents, are not published on the vendor's site. Compare the exact models and usage you need before estimating either bill.
03Features and depth
The clearest difference is product detail. AWS describes Bedrock as a trusted platform for running inference and building agents at scale, but its homepage does not specify models, limits, or further Bedrock features. The published pricing details list several ways to run workloads: on-demand, batch, Provisioned Throughput, model customization, and custom model import. Access to specific models and service quotas still need checking.
DeepSeek publishes more model and API detail in the published material. Its V3 and R1 models cover chat, reasoning, code, and text analysis; R1 is described as reinforcement-learning-trained. The listed features include function calling, JSON output, and context caching. The company also publishes distilled Qwen- and Llama-based models from 1.5B to 70B parameters for self-hosting. Its flagship architecture is listed at 671B total parameters, with 37B activated per token. That gives developers more visible technical choices, but self-hosting means choosing and running a model yourself.
04Ease of use and learning curve
For a casual user, DeepSeek has the simpler starting point: its web and mobile chatbot is listed as free, with no published usage or seat caps. Building with its API requires more decisions, including token spend, peak versus off-peak rates, and whether to use hosted models or self-host a distilled one.
Bedrock is positioned for AWS workloads, inference, and agent building at scale. The vendor's homepage gives little detail about its model selection or limits, so teams should confirm access, quotas, and likely costs before committing. Its pricing options also span on-demand, batch, and committed throughput. Neither listing provides enough information to judge onboarding steps or the learning curve definitively.
Questions people ask
Is DeepSeek cheaper than Amazon Bedrock?
DeepSeek publishes a free chatbot and per-token API rates, including deepseek-flash at $0.15 per million input tokens off-peak. Bedrock has no published subscription price; the pricing page gives Nova Micro rates per 1,000 tokens. Actual cost depends on model and usage, so compare the rates for your intended workload.
Does Amazon Bedrock have a free plan?
The published Bedrock pricing details do not list a free plan or free trial. They show usage-based options, including on-demand inference, batch inference, and Provisioned Throughput. AWS’s homepage provides no further Bedrock-specific pricing, so check the current service pricing and model availability before budgeting.
Can I self-host DeepSeek models?
The published DeepSeek details say the company publishes distilled Qwen- and Llama-based checkpoints from 1.5B to 70B parameters that developers can self-host. The material does not specify hosting requirements or associated infrastructure costs, so those should be assessed separately from the API rate card.
When should I choose Amazon Bedrock over DeepSeek?
Choose Bedrock when your requirement is AWS’s described platform for inference and agent building at scale, and verify model access and costs first. Choose DeepSeek for its free chatbot, published token-priced API, or self-hostable distilled models. The published Bedrock homepage does not provide comparable model or limit details.