# Face Recognition API Pricing (2026): AWS Rekognition vs Azure Face vs SightRadar

> A worked cost comparison of face recognition APIs — AWS Rekognition, Azure Face and SightRadar — at 10k, 100k, 1M and 10M photos a month, using each vendor's published rates and volume tiers.

Source: https://sightradar.com/research/face-recognition-api-pricing-2026 · Data as of: 2026-11-05

SightRadar has processed 300M+ photos across 180k+ collections.

## Key findings

- <a id="batch-vs-rekognition-1m"></a> At 1 million photos a month, SightRadar batch indexing costs $620 — 38% less than AWS Rekognition's $1000 at its first-tier US rate ($0.0010/image, us-east-1).
- <a id="rekognition-volume-tiers"></a> At 10 million photos a month, AWS Rekognition's volume tiers bring its effective rate to $0.00072/image ($7200 total), but SightRadar batch is still lower at $6200. Above roughly 37M photos a month, AWS Rekognition's blended cost drops below SightRadar's batch rate.
- <a id="compare-billing-difference"></a> CompareFaces on AWS Rekognition bills one image (the source); SightRadar's /v1/compare bills both images ($0.00186 per comparison). For 1:1 verification, supply one side as a stored embedding to pay for one photo instead of two.
- <a id="azure-transaction-model"></a> Azure Face charges per transaction, not per photo. A selfie-search workflow (Detect + Identify) costs two transactions per photo. At 100k single-operation calls, Azure costs $100 and SightRadar batch costs $62.
- <a id="storage-comparison"></a> Face vector storage: SightRadar charges $6 per million stored faces per month; AWS Rekognition charges $10 — 40% less on SightRadar.
- <a id="scale"></a> SightRadar has processed 300M+ photos and hosts 180k+ collections to date.

## Monthly cost by volume (USD)

| Photos/month | SightRadar batch | SightRadar real-time | AWS Rekognition | Azure Face |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 10k | $6.20 | $9.30 | $10.00 | $10.00 |
| 100k | $62.00 | $93.00 | $100.00 | $100.00 |
| 1M | $620.00 | $930.00 | $1000.00 | $1000.00 |
| 10M | $6200.00 | $9300.00 | $7200.00 | $7200.00 |

## Per-photo rates

| Vendor | Rate | Basis |
| --- | --- | --- |
| SightRadar batch | $0.00062/photo | [Pricing](https://sightradar.com/pricing), checked 2026-11-05 |
| SightRadar real-time | $0.00093/photo | [Pricing](https://sightradar.com/pricing), checked 2026-11-05 |
| AWS Rekognition | $0.00100/image (first 1M, us-east-1) | [AWS pricing](https://aws.amazon.com/rekognition/pricing/), checked 2026-10-30 |
| Azure Face | $0.00100/transaction (first 1M) | [Azure pricing](https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/cognitive-services/face-api/), checked 2026-10-30 |

## Methodology

- All prices are published list rates in USD, not negotiated or reserved pricing.
- AWS Rekognition rates are Group 1 (face operations) in us-east-1. Volume tiers are applied: $0.0010 for the first 1M, $0.0008 for 1M–5M, $0.0006 for 5M–35M, $0.0004 above 35M images per month.
- Azure Face rates are Standard tier. Volume tiers: $1.00/1k for the first 1M transactions, then $0.80, $0.60, $0.40.
- SightRadar has no volume tiers; the per-photo rate is flat regardless of volume.
- Storage: SightRadar $6/million faces/month; AWS Rekognition $10/million faces/month.
- CompareFaces: AWS bills 1 image (source only); SightRadar bills both images.
- Prices last checked: SightRadar 2026-11-05; AWS and Azure 2026-10-30.

## Suggested citation

"Face Recognition API Pricing (2026)." SightRadar, 2026-11-05. https://sightradar.com/research/face-recognition-api-pricing-2026

Related: [Pricing](https://sightradar.com/pricing) · [Benchmarks](https://sightradar.com/benchmarks) · [Compare](https://sightradar.com/compare)