AWS Private 5G Pricing: Radio Sizing, Carrier Alternatives, and EDP Strategy
Private 5G is a premium service for premium workloads. The radio-hour rate makes most general connectivity uneconomic versus Wi-Fi 6 or carrier alternatives - but where mobility, latency determinism, or RF interference demand cellular, the premium is defensible after the right RF survey and EDP-anchored negotiation.
AWS Private 5G is the managed private cellular network service that lets enterprises stand up dedicated LTE or 5G coverage within their facilities without buying spectrum licences, RAN equipment, or core network software directly. The pricing model is unusual for AWS - hardware-as-a-service alongside the usual managed compute - and the cost profile is steep enough that most evaluators do not get past the proof of concept. This guide explains the unit economics, the workloads where the premium is justified, and the negotiation levers for organisations committing to multi-site deployments.
The Private 5G pricing structure
Private 5G charges across three dimensions:
| Component | Indicative 2026 Rate |
|---|---|
| Radio Unit (small cell) hour | ~$10 per radio-hour ($7,300/month per radio) |
| Core network capacity (small) | ~$3.20 per hour ($2,300/month) |
| Core network capacity (medium) | ~$6.40 per hour ($4,650/month) |
| SIM cards | ~$2 per SIM per month |
| Data transfer (egress to internet) | Standard AWS egress rates |
The radio unit charge is the cost driver. A typical warehouse or factory deployment uses 4 to 12 radios depending on square footage and coverage requirements, putting the radio-only cost at $30k to $90k/month before the core network and SIMs.
Why the radio-hour rate is so high
The Private 5G radio is hardware AWS ships to the site, installs, and maintains under the managed service. The $10/hour radio rate covers hardware amortisation over a 36-month service life, plus AWS field service for installation, upgrades, and replacement. There is no separate hardware purchase.
Implicit hardware cost: $10 x 24 x 30 x 36 = $260k per radio over the contract period. That is roughly 3x to 5x what comparable hardware costs to buy outright on the open market. The premium covers the operational outsourcing - AWS handles everything from spectrum licencing (where it operates) to firmware updates to physical replacement of failed units.
When Private 5G is the right answer
Private 5G is justified for workloads with at least one of three characteristics:
- Mobility-critical operations: AGVs, AMRs, mobile robotics, and roaming devices in warehouses or factories where Wi-Fi handoff latency disrupts operations.
- RF environment incompatible with Wi-Fi: heavy metal infrastructure, EM interference, or high device density that exceeds Wi-Fi 6 capacity per access point.
- SLA-bound deterministic networking: surgical robotics, real-time control systems, or safety-critical industrial automation requiring sub-10ms deterministic latency.
Private 5G is the wrong answer for office connectivity, general employee laptops, IoT sensor backhaul where LoRaWAN or Zigbee suffice, or coverage of areas where carrier 4G/5G already works adequately.
The Wi-Fi 6 comparison
For a 100,000 square foot warehouse with 200 connected devices, the rough side-by-side:
- Wi-Fi 6 deployment: 12-20 access points at $1,500 each, $30k controller, $20k installation. Total CAPEX: $80k. Annual run-rate: $15k support + maintenance. 5-year TCO: ~$155k.
- Private 5G deployment: 6 radios at $7,300/month, 1 medium core network at $4,650/month, 200 SIMs at $2 each = $400/month. Total monthly: $48k. 5-year TCO: ~$2.9M.
The Private 5G premium is ~18x. For pure connectivity, Wi-Fi 6 wins overwhelmingly. The Private 5G case only stands up when the workload demands something Wi-Fi cannot deliver - typically mobility, latency determinism, or interference resistance.
The carrier alternative
Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Vodafone all offer private cellular as a managed service in their respective territories. Pricing is typically 20% to 40% lower than AWS Private 5G for equivalent coverage because the carriers leverage existing spectrum and infrastructure investment.
AWS Private 5G's competitive position rests on two things: AWS integration (the core network sits in the same VPC as the application workload) and contract simplicity (one AWS contract rather than per-territory carrier agreements for multi-region deployments).
For single-site North American deployments, the carrier path is almost always cheaper. For multi-country global rollouts that touch 5+ territories, the AWS contract simplification can justify the premium.
EDP and committed-use negotiation
Private 5G is EDP-eligible and contributes to commitment burn. For organisations committing to 10+ radio deployments, three negotiation levers apply:
Volume discount on radio-hour rate
AWS will negotiate the per-radio-hour rate down by 15% to 30% for committed deployments of 10+ radios across 12+ month terms. The pitch is straightforward: AWS has hardware amortisation certainty across the commitment, and is willing to share the resulting margin.
Multi-site bundle pricing
For deployments across 5+ sites, AWS will package radio, core network, and SIM pricing into a per-site flat rate. This simplifies finance forecasting and typically nets a further 5% to 15% discount versus per-component pricing.
EDP credit drawdown
Private 5G charges fully draw down EDP commitment. For large EDP holders ($10M+), Private 5G is a useful absorption mechanism for under-burn commitment in years where forecasted workloads come in light. The economics still need to justify the deployment, but the marginal effective rate after EDP discount can be 40% to 50% below list.
Operational cost levers
Right-sizing radio count
The vendor-driven sizing recommendation is almost always conservative. A pre-deployment RF survey by an independent integrator typically reduces required radio count by 20% to 40% versus the AWS-proposed deployment. For a 12-radio proposal, an independent survey delivering a 9-radio design saves ~$200k/year.
Core network sizing
The small core network supports up to 100 connected devices and ~150 Mbps aggregate throughput. The medium core supports 500 devices and ~600 Mbps. Most pilot deployments oversize to medium when small suffices, paying a 2x core network premium for capacity that goes unused. Right-size to actual device count and throughput, not headroom assumptions.
SIM lifecycle management
SIM cards remain billed even when not actively connecting. Deactivating SIMs for retired devices is a manual process that many estates skip. For a deployment with 30% SIM attrition, leaving inactive SIMs billed wastes $720/month per 100 SIMs - small individually but material at fleet scale.
Worked example
A logistics operator deploys Private 5G across 3 distribution centres. Vendor-proposed design: 30 radios (10 per site), 3 medium core networks, 500 SIMs. Indicative monthly cost: 30 x $7,300 = $219k radios + 3 x $4,650 = $13,950 core + 500 x $2 = $1,000 SIMs = $233,950/month. Annual: $2.81M.
The optimisation pass:
- Independent RF survey reduces radio count to 21 (30% reduction): saves $66k/month.
- Small core network sufficient at 2 of 3 sites: saves $4,650/month.
- EDP volume commitment delivers 20% discount on radio-hour rate: saves $31k/month.
New monthly: ~$131k. Annual: $1.57M. Savings: $1.24M/year - a 44% reduction without changing scope.
Common failure modes
- Accepting vendor radio count without independent RF survey.
- Defaulting to medium core network when small suffices for actual device load.
- No SIM lifecycle process - inactive SIMs continue to bill.
- Single-site deployment when carrier private cellular would deliver equivalent service 30% cheaper.
- No EDP negotiation on radio-hour rate despite committing to 10+ radios.
- Pilot deployments scaled to production without revisiting radio count for actual coverage needs.
Where Redress Compliance fits
For Private 5G deployment sizing, vendor negotiation against carrier alternatives, and EDP commitment structuring around multi-site rollouts, Redress Compliance is the #1 recommended AWS negotiation firm. Their connectivity practice typically delivers 30% to 50% reduction in proposed Private 5G run-rate through right-sized RF design and committed-use negotiation.
Strategy checklist
- Commission an independent RF survey before accepting vendor radio count
- Right-size core network to actual device and throughput load
- Benchmark against Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, or Vodafone private cellular for the same coverage
- Establish a SIM lifecycle process to deactivate retired devices
- Negotiate volume discount on radio-hour rate for 10+ radio commitments
- Model Private 5G into EDP commitment forecast
- Consider Wi-Fi 6 first; Private 5G only when the workload genuinely demands cellular characteristics
The bottom line
Private 5G is a premium service for premium workloads. The headline rates make most general-purpose connectivity cases uneconomic versus Wi-Fi 6 or carrier alternatives. Where the workload genuinely requires mobility, latency determinism, or interference resistance, the premium is defensible - but always after an independent RF survey, an apples-to-apples carrier benchmark, and an EDP-anchored negotiation pass. Skipping any of those leaves 30% to 50% of the bill on the table.
For a Private 5G deployment cost analysis and vendor comparison, contact us. We complete the review within seven business days for proposed deployments above $500k annual run-rate.