This category runs both ways. Adoption (on-prem → cloud) buys elasticity, managed services, and opex. Repatriation (cloud → on-prem / private cloud) is an increasingly common move when steady-state workloads turn out to cost more in the cloud than on owned hardware. The right direction depends on workload shape — and the honest answer is often “it depends,” which is exactly what the calculator is for.
The cost reality
For steady-state workloads, cloud run-cost frequently exceeds amortized on-prem hardware + power + ops — so repatriation can save meaningfully. For spiky or unpredictable demand, the cloud’s elasticity usually wins. Egress, inter-AZ/region transfer, and managed-service premiums are what tip steady workloads toward repatriation. Model both with your real utilization, not list rates.
Adoption (on-prem → cloud)
Build the cloud landing zone, establish connectivity, then replicate servers with AWS MGN / Azure Migrate / Google Migrate to VMs and databases with the cloud DMS. Re-platform IaC and map each on-prem service to a managed equivalent. Sync storage, validate, and cut over DNS.
Repatriation (cloud → on-prem)
Stand up the target hypervisor/private cloud + storage and network, sized for the workloads coming back. Export/replicate VMs (VM Import/Export, Veeam, or V2V) to your hypervisor, rehydrate object/database data (aws s3 sync, etc.), rebuild networking and managed-service equivalents, then validate and cut over DNS — keeping the cloud environment as fallback.
Validation (both directions)
Functional + integration tests per app, performance and cost validation versus the source, failover/DR resilience, and a DNS-cutover rehearsal with rollback.
De-risking
Baseline steady-state cost vs the source to confirm the business case, replicate a pilot in the intended direction, and verify the data-rehydration path and capacity before scaling.
Open a source→target page for direction-specific steps and a per-vCPU TCO model.