Cloud Platforms: Types, Services and Benefits
Google, Microsoft, IBM and plenty more popular enterprise offers cloud platforms to support various needs of the businesses from development to sales and marketing. Let us explore more about cloud platforms in this article.
Varun Saharawat30 Oct, 2025
Cloud platforms make everything possible within cloud computing. All these services we can get directly from servers with the only requirement is a device enabled with the internet. These cloud platforms consist of various resources, frameworks, and software that make cloud computing possible and accessible for everyone.
The rapid shift of businesses and services from offline to online is creating an urgent need for services that are easy to access, faster, and more secure. Let us know some of the best features of cloud platforms and what benefits they hold for us.
What are Cloud Platforms?
Cloud Platforms are stages full of cloud resources consisting of hardware, software, databases, frameworks, and operating systems running within one or more data centers. A cloud platform supports various cloud services, and applications, and makes the cloud accessible for users.
Cloud platforms enable servers, databases, analytics, networking, applications, and many other requirements of cloud computing. On a cloud platform, you only pay for the services you use as it is a Pay-per-use-based model which makes it more beneficial for businesses, especially startups.
Cloud Platforms: Key Takeaways
- Cloud platforms are system of hardware and software of a server in a cloud based data center. It allows various services which can be accessed remotely.
- There are three modes of Cloud platforms i,e. Private, public and Hybrid Cloud platforms.
- Cloud platforms provide many services such as servers, database, storage, compute, analytics, networking, AI/ML services, etc.
Types of Cloud Platforms: Based on Accessibility
There are three major types of cloud platform based on the level of accessibility they offer to their users. Let us know about them below.- Public Cloud Platforms: A public cloud platform is a platform that provide scalable services available for multiple users and organisations.
- Private Cloud Platforms: These are industry specific platforms highly customised as per the needs of industries. It offers a high level of customisation and security.
- Hybrid Cloud Platforms: These type of cloud platforms provide the benefits of private and public cloud platforms. It provide scalability as well as security which makes hybrid cloud platforms an ideal platform for enterprises as well as individual clients.
Services offered on Cloud Platforms
Nowadays Cloud platforms are feature rich place filled with resources and services for various work from sales to development, marketing to management, securing and more. Let us know some of the major features to look while choosing a cloud platform in 2024.- Cloud platform offers compute services to help us build applications, schedule daily jobs, analytics, processing, etc.
- Real time work load monitoring and VM manager to help manage operating systems for Virtual Machines on compute engine.
- Cloud Storage, Backup, Cloud file store which is easily accessible and can be shared from anywhere.
- Databases to manage to solve query related problems, transactions, load management, syncing data, and more. Cloud SQL on Google Cloud Platform allow to configure and use and manage relational databases available on Google Cloud.
- Easy networking with Cloud based platforms with higher interconnectivity features, real time load balancing, and vast features like Network Address Translation (NAT), Cloud Intrusion Detection System (CIDS), and more.
- Developer tools, data analytics, AI/ML services, APIs, Container Services, and many more services are now available on Cloud based platforms.
Top 5 Cloud Platforms in 2024
There are many cloud platforms available in the market. However, we have shortlisted some of the best cloud platforms for you to watch and choose from the best.
1. AWS (Amazon Web Services)
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a one of the most integrated and scalable cloud platforms offered by multinational company Amazon. Some major highlights of AWS services are- Faster deployments and accessibility
- Centralised management and billing features
- Seamless add management
- Limitless storage options
- Unlimited advanced features
- Pay per use based billing model
Services available on Amazon Web Services
AWS is one of the most trusted and secured cloud platform used by people around the world. AWS platforms offer a range of cloud based services listed below.| Cloud Based Services | Service Name |
| Compute | EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) |
| AWS Lambda | |
| Elastic Beanstalk | |
| Storage | S3 (Simple Storage Service) |
| EBS (Elastic Block Store) | |
| Glacier | |
| Database | RDS (Relational Database Service) |
| DynamoDB | |
| Aurora | |
| Networking & Content Delivery | VPC (Virtual Private Cloud) |
| CloudFront | |
| Route 53 | |
| Security, Identity, & Compliance | IAM (Identity and Access Management) |
| KMS (Key Management Service) | |
| GuardDuty | |
| Analytics | Redshift |
| Kinesis | |
| Athena | |
| Machine Learning | SageMaker |
| Rekognition | |
| Lex | |
| Management & Governance | CloudWatch |
| CloudFormation | |
| Systems Manager | |
| Developer Tools | CodeCommit |
| CodeBuild | |
| CodeDeploy | |
| Internet of Things (IoT) | IoT Core |
| Greengrass | |
| Customer Engagement | Connect |
| Pinpoint | |
| Game Development | GameLift |
2. Microsoft Azure
Azure is a cloud based platform provided by Microsoft. It helps in software development processes by providing services like development, testing, deployment and management of applications through data centers.Services available on Azure Cloud platform
Azure Cloud Platform offers a wide range of features which include Microsoft Azure Stack, Internet of Things (IoT), Developer tools, storage security, databases, containers, Artificial intelligence, machine learning, analytics and other advanced supports are available on Azure. Azure is a popular cloud based platform used by small to big level enterprises to facilitate the overall application development process from one place. If you want to develop a career as an Azure developer, Azure Certifications can help you find opportunities at various positions.|
Cloud Based Services |
Service Name |
| Compute | Virtual Machines |
| Azure Functions | |
| Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) | |
| Storage | Blob Storage |
| Azure Files | |
| Disk Storage | |
| Database | Azure SQL Database |
| Cosmos DB | |
| Azure Database for MySQL/PostgreSQL | |
| Networking | Virtual Network (VNet) |
| Azure Load Balancer | |
| Azure Traffic Manager | |
| Security & Identity | Azure Active Directory (AD) |
| Azure Key Vault | |
| Azure Security Center | |
| Analytics | Azure Synapse Analytics |
| Azure Databricks | |
| Azure Data Lake Storage | |
| Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Machine Learning | Azure Machine Learning |
| Azure Cognitive Services | |
| Azure Bot Service | |
| Management & Governance | Azure Monitor |
| Azure Policy | |
| Azure Resource Manager | |
| Developer Tools | Azure DevOps |
| Azure Repos | |
| Azure Pipelines | |
| Internet of Things (IoT) | Azure IoT Hub |
| Azure IoT Central | |
| Azure Sphere | |
| Hybrid & Multicloud | Azure Arc |
| Azure Stack | |
| Developer Tools | Azure DevOps |
| Azure Repos | |
| Azure Pipelines | |
| Web | Azure App Service |
| Azure API Management | |
| Media & Content Delivery | Azure CDN |
| Azure Media Services | |
| Backup & Disaster Recovery | Azure Backup |
| Azure Site Recovery |
3. Salesforce
Salesforce is a popular cloud based software company which provides various services to support various operations within a company such as customer support, sales, marketing and more. It is basically a cloud based CRM tool which is used to ensure customer engagement is positive for a business to help them achieve their goals.Services Available on Salesforce
With the help of cloud based features Salesforce allow businesses to easily connect with their clients and drive a positive response. Some of the major services provided by Salesforce are listed below.| Cloud services | Service Name |
| Customer Relationship Management (CRM) | Sales Cloud |
| Service Cloud | |
| Marketing Cloud | |
| Commerce Cloud | |
| Experience Cloud | |
| Analytics & AI | Tableau |
| Salesforce Einstein | |
| CRM Analytics (formerly Einstein Analytics) | |
| Application Development | Salesforce Platform (Force.com) |
| Heroku | |
| Salesforce AppExchange | |
| Integration | MuleSoft (Anypoint Platform) |
| Salesforce Connect | |
| Collaboration & Productivity | Quip |
| Salesforce Anywhere | |
| Slack | |
| Industry Solutions | Financial Services Cloud |
| Health Cloud | |
| Education Cloud | |
| Customer 360 | Customer 360 Data Manager |
| Salesforce Identity | |
| Automation & Workflow | Salesforce Flow |
| Process Builder | |
| Approval Processes | |
| Commerce & Digital Experiences | Salesforce B2B Commerce |
| Salesforce B2C Commerce | |
| Order Management | |
| Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) | Salesforce ERP Integration |
| Document & Contract Management | Salesforce CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) |
| Salesforce Contract Management |
4. Google Cloud Platform
Google Cloud platform offers smart cloud solutions with many advanced features such as google hardware, networking, serverless computing, storage, networking, databases, containers, API management, Internet of Things, Machine Learning, Multi-Cloud, AI and more. Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is a popular platform developed with the aim of solving all cloud based related problems and help make cloud services make more accessible.Services available on Google Cloud Platform
| Service Category | Service Name |
| Compute | Compute Engine |
| Kubernetes Engine (GKE) | |
| App Engine | |
| Cloud Functions | |
| Cloud Run | |
| Storage | Cloud Storage |
| Persistent Disk | |
| Filestore | |
| Cloud SQL | |
| Cloud Spanner | |
| Bigtable | |
| Networking | Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) |
| Cloud Load Balancing | |
| Cloud CDN | |
| Cloud DNS | |
| Cloud Interconnect | |
| AI & Machine Learning | AI Platform |
| AutoML | |
| BigQuery ML | |
| Vision AI | |
| Natural Language AI | |
| Dialogflow | |
| Data Analytics | BigQuery |
| Dataflow | |
| Dataproc | |
| Pub/Sub | |
| Data Studio | |
| Security & Identity | Identity and Access Management (IAM) |
| Cloud Identity | |
| Key Management Service (KMS) | |
| Security Command Center | |
| Management Tools | Stackdriver (now part of Google Cloud Operations Suite) |
| Deployment Manager | |
| Cloud Console | |
| Cloud Shell | |
| Developer Tools | Cloud Source Repositories |
| Cloud Build | |
| Container Registry | |
| Internet of Things (IoT) | IoT Core |
| Cloud IoT Edge | |
| Hybrid & Multicloud | Anthos |
| Google Cloud VMware Engine | |
| Traffic Director | |
| API Management | Apigee |
| Migration | Migrate for Compute Engine |
| Database Migration Service |
5. IBM Cloud
IBM Cloud is one of the most suitable cloud based platforms with rich features and services. It supports various cloud service models and include features like dev tools, blockchain, IoT, AI, analytics, VMwARE, Security, Management, Storage, and more.Services Available on IBM Cloud
| Cloud Based Services | Service Name |
| Compute | Virtual Servers |
| Bare Metal Servers | |
| Kubernetes Service | |
| OpenShift on IBM Cloud | |
| Cloud Functions | |
| Storage | Cloud Object Storage |
| Block Storage | |
| File Storage | |
| Cloud Backup | |
| IBM Cloud Hyper Protect Crypto Services | |
| Networking | Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) |
| Load Balancer | |
| Direct Link | |
| Cloud Internet Services | |
| AI & Machine Learning | Watson Studio |
| Watson Machine Learning | |
| Watson Assistant | |
| Watson Natural Language Understanding | |
| Watson Visual Recognition | |
| Watson Speech to Text | |
| Data & Analytics | Db2 on Cloud |
| Cloudant | |
| IBM Db2 Warehouse | |
| IBM Cognos Analytics | |
| IBM Analytics Engine | |
| Security | IBM Cloud Security Advisor |
| IBM Key Protect | |
| IBM Cloud Identity and Access Management (IAM) | |
| IBM QRadar on Cloud | |
| DevOps & Developer Tools | Continuous Delivery |
| Code Engine | |
| IBM Cloud Foundry | |
| IBM Garage | |
| Hybrid Cloud & Multicloud | IBM Cloud Satellite |
| IBM Multicloud Manager | |
| Blockchain | IBM Blockchain Platform |
| Internet of Things (IoT) | IBM Watson IoT |
| Quantum Computing | IBM Quantum |
| API Management | IBM API Connect |
| Integration | IBM App Connect |
| IBM Event Streams | |
| Migration | IBM Cloud Mass Data Migration |
| IBM Cloud for VMware Solutions |
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Cloud Platforms FAQs
Q1. What are cloud Platforms?
Ans: Cloud platforms provide a wide range of service such as databases, storage, analytics, networking, software and intelligence.
Q2. What are the benefits of Cloud platforms?
Ans: Cloud Platforms provide various development, marketing, sales, security services on a single stage. Enterprises do not have to build their own data centers and storage system plus they can access services remotely.
Q3. Why is cloud platform important?
Ans: Cloud platform provide data, storage, computing, applications online from anywhere in the world and from any device. You just need an stable internet connection.
Q4. Which is the best cloud platform?
Ans: Google Cloud Platform, Microsoft Azure, AWS are some of the best cloud platforms.