AWS, Microsoft, Google Battle For $169B Cloud Services Market: IDC

IDC reports on cloud services revenue share from the five top public cloud companies: AWS, Alibaba, IBM, Microsoft and Google Cloud. Here’s the market share data.

Worldwide spending on public cloud foundational services reached $169 billion in 2022 with Microsoft and Amazon Web Services, combined, accounting for 62 percent of the cloud market share.

AWS, Microsoft, Google Cloud, Alibaba Group and IBM are the world’s five leading foundational cloud services providers dominating the market with service offerings around use case-specific Platform as-a-service (PaaS) or cross-cloud compute, data or network governance services, according to a new report by research firm IDC.

IDC defines foundational public cloud services as compute, data, application framework and usage multiplier services that support businesses’ digital-first strategies. Foundational cloud services include PaaS, Infrastructure as-a-Service (IaaS), and System Infrastructure Software as-a-Service that provide the foundation for cloud services in general.

CRN breaks down the public cloud services market share for AWS, Alibaba Group, Google, IBM and Microsoft, according to new IDC report.

AWS, Alibaba, Google, IBM And Microsoft’s Market Share

Before jumping into these five cloud companies’ 2022 market share numbers, it is key to note that public cloud foundational services generated total revenue of $169 billion last year. This represented a 29 percent sales increase compared to 2021.

The 29 percent growth rate highlights the increasing reliance of enterprises on a cloud innovation platform built around widely deployed compute services, data and artificial intelligence (AI) services, and application framework services to drive innovation.

IDC expects spending on foundational cloud services—especially PaaS and IaaS—to continue growing at a higher rate than the overall cloud market as enterprises leverage cloud to accelerate their shift toward digital business.

“Cloud providers are making significant investments in high-performance infrastructure,” said Dave McCarthy, research vice president, Cloud and Edge Infrastructure Services in a statement. “This serves two purposes. First, it unlocks the next wave of migration for enterprise applications that have previously remained on-premises. Second, it creates the foundation for new AI software that can be quickly deployed at scale. In both cases, these investments are resulting in market growth opportunities.”

Click through this slideshow to see AWS, Alibaba Group, Google, IBM and Microsoft’s 2022 and 2021 market share numbers for foundational public cloud services.

No. 5: IBM

Global Foundational Cloud Services 2022 Market Share: 2.4 Percent

IBM won 2.4 percent share of the $169 billion cloud foundational services market in 2022. The Armonk, N.Y.-based technology conglomerate owned 2.5 percent share of the global market in 2021, according to IDC.

The IBM Cloud portfolio offers a full-stack cloud platform with over 170 products and services—from AI and IoT to containers and blockchain. The IBM Cloud platform combines Platform as-a-Service and Infrastructure as-a-Service for public, hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

No. 4: Alibaba Group

Global Foundational Cloud Services 2022 Market Share: 5.2 Percent

Alibaba Cloud, part of Alibaba Group, is one of the world’s largest cloud computing companies in the world. The Chinese company won 5.2 percent share of the global cloud foundational services market in 2022.

In 2021, Alibaba owned 6.1 percent of the worldwide cloud services market. The company provides a broad range of cloud services around AI, elastic computing, databases, analytics and enterprise applications.

No. 3: Google

Global Foundational Cloud Services 2022 Market Share: 6.1 Percent

Google Cloud is the third-largest cloud computing company in the world, owning 10 percent of the global cloud services market.

On the cloud foundational services front, Google won 6.1 percent market share in 2022. In 2021, Google owned 5.5 percent of the global cloud foundational services market, according to IDC.

The Mountain View, Calif.-based company invests billions of dollars each year in cloud infrastructure to expand its cloud services across the globe by opening new Cloud Regions. This week, Google unveiled new Premier Partner badges to boost its cloud services sales and capabilities via partners.

No. 2: Microsoft

Global Foundational Cloud Services 2022 Market Share: 21.4 Percent

The world’s largest software company ranks No. 2 in the global cloud foundational services market, winning 21.4 percent share in 2022. In 2021, Microsoft owned 21.9 percent share of the cloud foundational services market, according to IDC.

The Redmond, Wash.-based company spends billions of dollars each year expanding its cloud services reach by launching new data centers on a worldwide basis. The software and cloud giant’s Intelligent Cloud segment generated $20.3 billion in revenue during its first fiscal quarter 2023, as Azure sales increased 35 percent year over year.

No. 1: Amazon Web Services

Global Foundational Cloud Services 2022 Market Share: 40.5 Percent

The largest cloud computing company in the world is also the largest cloud foundational services provider across the globe, winning 40.5 percent share of the market. In 2021, AWS scored 40 percent share of the cloud foundational services market.

AWS launched new AWS Cloud Regions and data centers in Switzerland, Spain and inside the U.S. last year, as well as a slew of new investments in 2023. The Seattle-based cloud behemoth owns 32 percent share of the global cloud services market as of first quarter 2023.