Cloud migration companies in the US: types, examples and how to choose
Country Manager, India
AI, Manufacturing, DevOps, and Managed Services. 17+ years across Manufacturing, E-commerce, Retail, NBFC & Banking
Cloud migration companies in the US fall into four groups: the cloud providers' own professional services teams, global systems integrators such as Accenture and Deloitte, specialist AWS, Azure or Google Cloud partners, and managed service providers that migrate and then run your estate. The right choice depends on your size, compliance scope and who will operate the cloud afterwards.
Key takeaways
- Pick the type of company before you pick the company. A 40-server move and a 4,000-server programme need different partners.
- Verify credentials in the official directories: the AWS Partner Solutions Finder, Microsoft's partner listings and the Google Cloud partner directory.
- Microsoft is retiring the Azure Expert MSP programme: no new enrolments from 15 September 2026, renewals end in January 2027.
- AWS's Migration Acceleration Program (MAP) can offset initial migration costs when you work with AWS or an AWS Migration Competency Partner.
- US regulated workloads add specific checks: FedRAMP authorisation for federal work, a signed business associate agreement for HIPAA data.
- Ask who runs the platform after cutover. Most cost and security problems appear in the first year of operations, not during the move.
What does a cloud migration company do?
A cloud migration company plans and executes the move of applications, data and infrastructure from your data centre or another cloud to AWS, Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud. Good ones also leave you with a platform you can run.
A typical engagement has four stages:
- Assess: inventory servers, applications and dependencies, and build a business case with a total cost of ownership (TCO) model.
- Mobilise: design the landing zone (accounts, networking, identity, logging), close skills gaps and run a pilot migration.
- Migrate: move workloads in waves, test them and cut over in agreed service windows.
- Operate and optimise: monitor, patch, back up and tune cost, either with your own team or through a managed service.
This mirrors the three phases of the AWS Migration Acceleration Program: Assess, Mobilize, and Migrate & Modernize. Azure and Google Cloud use similar frameworks.
The four types of cloud migration companies
Most US buyers shortlist from four groups. Each has a clear sweet spot and clear trade-offs.
| Type | Examples | Best for | Trade-offs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud provider professional services | AWS Professional Services, Microsoft's consulting teams, Google Cloud Consulting | Large, strategic moves to one platform; architecture reviews | Single-cloud view; often delivered together with partners; less hands-on operations |
| Global systems integrators | Accenture, Deloitte, IBM Consulting, Capgemini, Cognizant | Enterprise programmes that mix migration with ERP, data and organisational change | Higher day rates; senior staff may hand over to junior delivery teams |
| Specialist cloud partners | Hyperscaler-focused consultancies with migration competencies | Mid-market and enterprise migrations to one or two clouds | Smaller bench; check depth in your specific stack (SAP, Oracle, mainframe) |
| Managed service providers (MSPs) | Rackspace Technology and cloud MSPs, including Opsio (the publisher of this article) | Companies that want one partner to migrate and then run the platform 24/7 | Contract length and exit terms matter; compare run costs, not just project fees |
Cloud provider professional services
AWS, Microsoft and Google each run consulting arms. They know their own platform deeply and are useful for architecture decisions and very large programmes. For day-to-day migration work they often bring in partners, so ask who will actually be on your project.
Global systems integrators
Firms such as Accenture, Deloitte, IBM Consulting, Capgemini and Cognizant have partnerships with all three hyperscalers and large US delivery teams. They suit programmes where cloud migration is part of a wider change, such as moving off a legacy ERP or consolidating after an acquisition. Ask for named delivery leads and a staffing plan, not just a pitch team.
Specialist cloud partners
These are consultancies that focus on one or two clouds and hold the providers' migration credentials. They are usually faster to start and closer to the engineering work. Check that the competency matches your target: an AWS Migration Competency says little about Azure SQL or Google BigQuery skills.
Managed service providers
MSPs migrate workloads and then operate them: monitoring, patching, backup, security and cost management. This model suits companies without a large in-house cloud team. The key question is what the monthly run cost covers and how you exit if you change provider. Our guide to cloud migration consulting companies compares the consulting-only model in more detail.
How do you verify a cloud migration company's credentials?
Check the cloud providers' own directories instead of logos on a website. Credentials expire and programmes change.
- AWS: search the AWS Partner Solutions Finder for the company and confirm its tier and validated competencies, such as Migration and Modernization.
- Microsoft: check Solutions Partner designations and Azure specialisations in Microsoft's partner directory. Note that the Azure Expert MSP programme is being retired: per Microsoft Learn, new enrolments stopped on 15 September 2026 and renewals end in January 2027, with the Frontier Partner specialisation as the recommended path.
- Google Cloud: look up the partner and its specialisations in the Google Cloud partner directory.
- References: ask for two customers with a similar estate and call them. A good reference can describe what went wrong and how the partner handled it.
Which migration strategies should a partner offer?
A capable partner should recommend a strategy per application, not one approach for everything. AWS documents seven common strategies, the "7 Rs", in its large migration guide.
| Strategy | What it means | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Retire | Switch the application off | Duplicate or unused systems found during assessment |
| Retain | Keep it where it is for now | Systems with a near-term replacement or hard constraints |
| Rehost | Lift and shift to cloud virtual machines | Fast data centre exits |
| Relocate | Move a platform as-is, for example VMware to VMware Cloud on AWS | Large virtualised estates with a deadline |
| Repurchase | Replace with a SaaS product | CRM, HR and email systems |
| Replatform | Small changes, such as moving a database to a managed service | Standard business applications |
| Refactor | Re-architect for cloud-native services | Customer-facing systems that need to scale |
Be wary of a company that proposes refactoring everything. It is the slowest and most expensive route, and AWS's guidance recommends rehosting, relocating or replatforming first for large migrations.
US compliance checks to add to your shortlist
If you handle regulated data, compliance experience narrows the list quickly.
- Federal workloads: cloud services used by US federal agencies need FedRAMP authorisation. Check the cloud service and region on the FedRAMP Marketplace, and ask whether the partner has delivered in GovCloud or Azure Government.
- Healthcare: a company that stores or processes protected health information on your behalf acts as a HIPAA business associate. Expect a signed business associate agreement (BAA) with both the cloud provider and the partner.
- Payments: PCI DSS scope should be designed into the landing zone, with network segmentation and logging agreed before the first card-data system moves.
- Customer assurance: many US buyers ask for SOC 2 reports. Ask the partner for its own report and for how it maps your controls in the new environment.
- EU or Indian data: if you also operate in Europe or India, check how the partner handles GDPR and data residency for those workloads.
How are cloud migration projects priced?
Migration companies use three main commercial models, often combined.
| Model | How it works | Best for | Risk to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time and materials | Hourly or daily rates for the people on the project | Unclear scope, discovery phases | Overruns if scope is not managed |
| Fixed price | A set fee for an agreed scope and timeline | Well-defined waves of workloads | Change requests for anything outside scope |
| Managed service | A monthly fee to run the platform after migration, sometimes including the move | Companies without a cloud operations team | Minimum terms and exit costs |
Ask every bidder whether your project qualifies for provider funding. AWS states that MAP can "offset initial migration costs", and the amount depends on the size of the migration. Budget also for costs outside the partner's fee: running two environments in parallel during migration, data transfer, new licences, training and security tooling. A FinOps practice set up early keeps the first cloud bills predictable.
Red flags when choosing a migration partner
- A fixed quote before anyone has looked at your application inventory.
- No pilot or test migration in the plan. See our cloud migration testing strategy for what a test plan should cover.
- No rollback plan for each cutover.
- Credentials that do not appear in the provider's directory.
- Silence on operations: who patches, monitors and pays attention to cost from day one after cutover?
- Exit terms that make it hard to take your code, templates and documentation to another provider.
How Opsio helps
Opsio is an AWS Advanced Tier Services Partner with the AWS Migration Competency, with offices in Karlstad, Sweden, and Bangalore, India. We plan and run AWS migrations and Azure migrations, then operate the platform as a managed service.
For SilverRail Technologies, Opsio migrated the company's Nordic branch onto AWS and merged it with the global organisation on a single platform. The work followed three phases (Assessment, Mobilize, Migrate), included a pilot test migration, used native PostgreSQL tools for the data move and ran cutovers in tight service windows to limit customer impact. Read the SilverRail case study.
Frequently asked questions
What are the biggest cloud migration companies in the US?
By size, the largest are the cloud providers' own professional services teams (AWS, Microsoft, Google) and global systems integrators such as Accenture, Deloitte, IBM Consulting, Capgemini and Cognizant. Size is not the same as fit: mid-sized companies often get more senior attention from specialist partners and MSPs.
How do I choose a cloud migration company?
Decide which type of company fits your project, verify credentials in the cloud providers' directories, ask for references with a similar estate, and compare how each bidder handles assessment, testing, rollback and operations after cutover.
Do I need a partner for AWS MAP funding?
MAP is delivered with AWS Professional Services and AWS Migration Competency Partners, so most companies access it through a qualified partner. Ask each bidder whether your migration qualifies.
How long does a cloud migration take?
It depends on the number of applications and the strategies chosen. A small rehost can take weeks, while large programmes run in waves over months or years. A partner should give you a wave plan after the assessment, not before.
Should the same company migrate and manage my cloud?
It often helps, because the team that built the platform knows it best. If you choose that model, make sure the contract includes clear SLAs, cost reporting and exit terms.
Related reading: Top IT Services Companies.
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About the Author
Country Manager, India
Praveena leads Opsio's India operations, bringing 17+ years of cross-industry experience spanning AI, manufacturing, DevOps, and managed services.
Editorial standards: This article was written by a certified practitioner, named in the byline above. We revise it when the technology or regulation it covers changes; the dates above show the latest update. Opsio maintains editorial independence — we recommend solutions on technical merit, not commercial relationships.
