AWS Amplify
AWS Amplify is a development platform for building secure, scalable mobile and web applications. It provides a set of tools and services that enable frontend and mobile developers to quickly build full-stack applications powered by AWS.
What Amplify Offers
- Hosting: Git-based CI/CD with global CDN distribution via CloudFront
- Authentication: Pre-built UI components backed by Cognito
- APIs: Easy setup for REST (API Gateway) and GraphQL (AppSync)
- Storage: File storage with S3 integration
- Functions: Lambda functions for backend logic
How We Use Amplify
We typically use Amplify for:
- Rapid prototyping: Spinning up full-stack apps quickly for MVPs
- Static site hosting: Deploying React, Vue, or Nuxt applications
- Authentication flows: Leveraging pre-built auth components
What We Like
- Speed to market: From zero to deployed in minutes
- Integrated tooling: CLI, libraries, and UI components work seamlessly together
- Automatic scaling: No infrastructure to manage
What We Don't Like
- CLI quirks: The Amplify CLI can sometimes behave unexpectedly
- Abstraction limitations: Can be restrictive when you need fine-grained control
- Complex ejection: Difficult to migrate away once deeply integrated
When to Use Amplify
Amplify shines for greenfield projects where speed matters more than flexibility. For more complex enterprise applications, we often use the individual AWS services directly for greater control.