AWS Interconnect- last mile, streamlining private connectivity to AWS.
BUT, didn’t we have that service capability already?
AWS on April 14th 2026, announced general availability of AWS Interconnect-multicloud, a managed private connectivity service that connects your Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC) directly to VPCs on other cloud providers, a landmark step for AWS in embracing the Multicloud. Just after re:invent 2025, I shared my excitement of this service in a separate Medium article . Please read it for a deeper dive on this unprecedented service capability.
Also on this announcement, AWS launched a new service in the Interconnect suite, — last mile. This new capability simplifies how you establish high-speed, private connections to AWS from your branch offices, data centres, and remote locations through your existing network providers, as per official documentation .
Since there has been existing Private Connectivity to AWS via several service options, how different is Interconnect-last mile, and what are the simplifications it promises? To fully expose and appreciate this, I will provide a comprehensive juxtaposition of these existing services below (together with their SLAs and pricing) against the new service offering.
1. AWS Direct Connect (Dedicated)
This private connectivity service links your internal network to a Direct Connect location over a standard Ethernet fibre-optic cable. One end of the cable is connected to your router, the other to a Direct Connect router. With this connection, you can create virtual interfaces directly to public AWS services (for example, to Amazon S3) or to Amazon VPC, bypassing ISPs in your network path. Because it requires physical cross-connect at a Direct Connect location, BGP configuration, VLAN setup etc, it comes with High Setup complexity and typically takes weeks to months to provision.
SLA: Tiered by resiliency model:
- Maximum Resiliency (dual location, dual connection): 99.99%
- High Resiliency (single location, dual connection): 99.9%
- Classic/single connection: 95%
Pricing:
- Port hours: varies by capacity and region (e.g. ~$0.30/hr for 1 Gbps dedicated port in US East)
- Data transfer out: $0.02–$0.19/GB depending on region and Direct Connect location
Ideal Use Case: High-throughput, latency-sensitive, mission-critical workloads requiring consistent performance.
2. AWS Direct Connect (Hosted, via Partner)
A logical connection provisioned by an AWS Direct Connect Partner on your behalf, eliminating the need to be physically present in a Direct Connect location. Because of the shared responsibility in the configuration (the partner handling the physical layer, and the logical BGP and Routing still require configuration being customer managed) it comes with medium complexity. Lead times vary by Colocation partner, typically days to weeks.
SLA: Same tiered model as dedicated, dependent on partner configuration.
Pricing:
- Partner-dependent; typically, higher per-Mbps cost than dedicated at lower bandwidths
- Hosted connection speeds: 50 Mbps up to 10 Gbps
- Data transfer out charges same as dedicated
Ideal Use case: Locations without direct access to a Direct Connect facility, or lower bandwidth requirements that don’t justify a dedicated port.
Honourable mentions- while the following achieve connectivity to AWS from on-prem and remote locations, they do so via Public ISPs, and hence not technically bare-metal private connections.**
3. AWS Site-to-Site VPN
The most accessible entry point for hybrid connectivity. Traffic travels encrypted over the public internet via IPsec tunnels. While secure, it shares the internet’s unpredictability. It comes with relatively low setup complexity, configurable within an hour, via the console or CLI.
SLA: 99.95% monthly uptime per connection
Pricing:
- Standard connection: $0.05/hr per connection (~$36/month running 24/7) per Amazon Web Services
- 5 Gbps connection: $0.60/hr
- Standard data transfer out charges apply on top
Ideal Use Case: Dev/test, low-bandwidth hybrid access, or as a backup path to Direct Connect.
4. AWS Client VPN
This option fully-manages remote access via VPN to securely access resources within both AWS and your on-premises network via public ISPs. AWS Client VPN, including the software client, supports the OpenVPN protocol. Because it requires Certificate Management and per endpoint configuration, it comes with moderate setup complexity.
SLA: 99.9% monthly uptime per region per Amazon Web Services
Pricing:
- ~$0.10/hr per subnet association (the endpoint itself)
- ~$0.05/hr per active client connection
- Data transfer out charges apply
Ideal Use Case: Remote workforce access to VPC resources, not enterprise site connectivity.
Having gone through these legacy private connectivity service options, it is time to rip off the packaging tape and unbox the new service. Here goes (visible excitement) …
Before we get there, it will be only fair to also define what last mile connectivity is, and its importance to customers. Neos Networks, in a blog , define last mile connectivity as final stretch of a Telecommunications/ISP network that connects to your organisation’s network. In the context of cloud and enterprise networking, last mile connectivity means the physical or logical link between your on-premises location, a data centre, branch office, or corporate HQ and the cloud provider’s network edge. Everything beyond that point is the cloud provider’s responsibility, hence the term last mile
AWS Interconnect — last mile
Per official documentation , this is a managed connectivity capability enabling customers to easily configure instant, private, and resilient end-to-end connections from their remote locations to AWS in just a few clicks, directly from the Console. It simplifies on-prem last mile connectivity to AWS by abstracting away the complexity of network configurations such as ordering cross-connects, configuring VLANs, ASN assignment, and BGP peering by automating these steps and enforcing AWS best practices. This lowers the risk of misconfiguration errors.
Based on the same architecture and design as AWS Interconnect-multicloud, AWS Interconnect-last mile enables this connectivity through a participating Partner network provider’s last-mile infrastructure. Customers establish these connections by simply choosing their preferred AWS Region, bandwidth speed, Direct Connect Gateway ID and partner subscriber ID. Once initiated, AWS generates an activation key to complete provisioning with the Partner. While currently available in the US through the launch partner Lumen, a global fibre network service provider, other Partners can also adopt via a published open API package on Github .
SLA: 99.99% availability up to the Direct Connect port
Pricing: Based on a flat hourly rate for the capacity requested. Specific per-Gbps rates have not yet been publicly published at General availability.
So, to answer the question I posed earlier in the article, how is this service different from the existing private connectivity offerings?
a comparison table, highlighting in red, the nuances achieved by Interconnect-last mile
Interconnect-last mile sits at the Intersection of Direct Connects high bandwidth and redundant connectivity performance with less complex VPN level setup. Interconnect simplifies last-mile complexities that usually stem from lengthy and delayed provisioning timelines, which discourage cloud adoption. This also improves time-to-market for time sensitive deployments.
Reducing the infamous provisioning headaches that come with BGP and VLAN configurations is a welcome gamechanger, especially for fellow Cloud Network Engineers. This service will greatly improve the operational experience for customers. Customers with smaller teams that do not have the skill capabilities to manage complex BGP and ASN configurations will also welcome and leverage this service.
Finally, this service will thrive in emerging markets like Africa and other third world regions where there are not a lot of Direct Connect locations. Currently, there are only 4 DX locations in Africa, 3 in South Africa (JB1, JHB2, and CT1) and one in Kenya (NB01). This means that there 52 countries without a DX location, increasing latency and routing paths to connect to these locations. This also outlines why provisioning lead times stretch over months because of the multiple cross-country providers involved. Interconnect -last mile will bridge that gap, as more local last-mile Partners onboard, it will accelerate cloud adoption in these markets.
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