Deploy to AWS: Complete Beginner’s Walkthrough

Your First AWS Deployment

AWS can feel overwhelming at first—hundreds of services, a complex console, and pricing that’s hard to predict. Let’s cut through the complexity and get your app deployed.

Setting Up Your AWS Account

1. Create account at aws.amazon.com
2. Enable MFA on your root account immediately
3. Create an IAM user for daily use (never use root)
4. Set up billing alerts to avoid surprise charges

Core Services You’ll Use

Deploy a Static Site to S3

# Install AWS CLI
pip install awscli
aws configure  # Enter your credentials

# Create S3 bucket
aws s3 mb s3://my-website-bucket

# Upload website files
aws s3 sync ./build s3://my-website-bucket --acl public-read

# Enable static website hosting
aws s3 website s3://my-website-bucket     --index-document index.html     --error-document error.html

Deploy Node.js with Elastic Beanstalk

# Install EB CLI
pip install awsebcli

# Initialize EB application
eb init my-app --region us-east-1

# Create environment and deploy
eb create production

# Update deployment
eb deploy

Cost Tips for Beginners

• Use t2.micro or t3.micro (free tier eligible)
• Stop EC2 instances when not using them
• Use S3 for static files instead of EC2
• Set billing alarm at $10 to avoid surprises
• Delete unused resources regularly