c3.xlargeAWS Pricing, Specs & Benchmarks

The c3 family is a generation-3 compute-optimized line running on Intel Xeon (x86_64). c3.xlarge provides 4 vCPUs and 7.5GB of RAM (a 1:2 vCPU-to-memory ratio), priced at $0.2100/hr On-Demand — about $151.20 per month at 24×7 utilization. In Sysbench CPU benchmarks it scores 1043 single-core and 3139 multi-core.

Compute-optimized instances are sized for CPU-bound web servers, batch processing, scientific computing, game servers, ad-serving, and any workload that sits near 100% CPU for extended periods. If your workload doesn't match that profile — for example, if you're running a memory-bound app on a compute-optimized instance, or a CPU-pegged batch job on a burstable t-series — you'll likely pay for capacity you can't use or run into bottlenecks you didn't anticipate. The pages for sibling families (linked further down) cover those alternatives in detail.

In the AWS instance-naming convention, the digit after the series letter is the generation — higher is newer. AWS's current-generation alternative in the same series is **c4**, which generally offers better price/performance on newer silicon; if you're spinning up a new workload it's usually worth comparing the two before committing.

Pricing varies by region (sometimes meaningfully — the gap between the cheapest and most expensive AWS region for the same SKU is often 15–30%). The regional pricing table further down shows where c3.xlarge is cheapest today, both On-Demand and Spot. Spot pricing for c3.xlarge is currently $0.0815/hr — roughly 61% off On-Demand — which makes the instance viable for fault-tolerant batch jobs, CI fleets, and any workload that can tolerate interruption with short notice.