Serverless vs Containers: Key Differences Explained

Although they address different issues, serverless functions and containers both aid in the deployment of apps without the need for conventional servers.



Serverless Functions:

  • Run individual tasks/functions

  • Event-driven, short-lived

  • Fully managed by cloud provider

  • Pay-per-use pricing

Containers:

  • Package apps with dependencies

  • Run continuously

  • You manage deployment (or use orchestration like Kubernetes)

  • Fixed-cost infrastructure

Comparison Table

Feature Serverless Containers
Lifecycle Short-lived Long-running
Management Cloud handles infra You manage infra
Scaling Automatic per request Manual or orchestrated
Use Case Event-driven, small apps Complex apps, microservices
Cost Pay-per-use Fixed

Example:

  • Serverless: A Lambda function resizes uploaded images.

  • Container: A Docker container runs a full Node.js web app continuously.

Conclusion
Use serverless for small, event-driven workloads; use containers when you need full control, longer runtime, or complex dependencies

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