This guide will help you to enable cross region or cross account backups for Amazon ElastiCache.
The Three-Step Summary
The process breaks down into three steps:
- Take a backup (snapshot) of the source cluster.
- Export that backup to S3 in the same region as the source, then copy the object to S3 in the target region of the target account.
- In the target region, create a new ElastiCache cluster and seed it from the RDB file in S3.
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Step-by-Step ElastiCache Backup and Restore
- [Optional, can use the automated one as well] Create Manual Backup of ElastiCache Cluster.
- Sign in to the AWS Management Console.
- Open the ElastiCache console at
https://console.aws.amazon.com/elasticache/. - From navigation pane, choose Redis OSS caches or **Valkey caches.**
- Select the checkbox next to your cluster name.
- Choose **Backup.**
- In the Create Backup dialog:
- Enter a descriptive name (e.g.,
my-cluster-backup-20250904). - Choose **Create Backup.**
- Enter a descriptive name (e.g.,
- Wait for backup status to change from "creating" to "available".
- Create S3 Bucket in the Source Region.
- Grant ElastiCache Access to Source S3 Bucket.
- In S3 console, select your bucket.
- Go to Permissions tab.
- Under Access Control List (ACL), choose **Edit.**
- Add grantee with canonical ID:
540804c33a284a299d2547575ce1010f2312ef3da9b3a053c8bc45bf233e4353 - Grant Read and Write permissions for Objects.
- Grant Read permissions for Bucket ACL.
- Export Backup to Source S3 Bucket.
- In ElastiCache console, go to Backups.
- Select your backup.
- Choose Actions → **Export.**
- Enter export name (ElastiCache will append
-0001.rdb). - Select your S3 bucket.
- Choose **Export.**
- Create S3 Bucket in the Destination Region.
- Copy RDB File Between Regions.
- Configure Destination S3 Bucket Permissions. Same as the steps in point 3.
- Create New ElastiCache Cluster from the copied RDB File.
- Switch to destination region in ElastiCache console.
- Choose Create → **Design your own cache.**
- Select Redis OSS or **Valkey.**
- Configure cluster settings (name, node type, etc.)
- In Import data to cluster section:
- Enter S3 location:
your-destination-backup-bucket/exported-backup-0001.rdb
- Enter S3 location:
- Configure network, security, and other settings.
- Choose Create.
Cost Components Overview
The total cost for migrating an ElastiCache cluster to a different region consists of several components:
- ElastiCache Backup Storage
- Rate: $0.085 per GB per month (all AWS regions)
- No charges for creating backups or restoring from backups
- Duration: Temporary storage during migration process
- S3 Storage Costs
- S3 Standard: $0.023 per GB per month (first 50TB)
- Duration: Time RDB files are stored in S3 buckets
- Cross-Region Data Transfer
- Cross-region transfer: $0.02 per GB (typical rate between most regions)
- Inbound transfers to S3: Free
- Outbound transfers from S3: $0.02+ per GB depending on destination
- S3 Request Charges
- PUT requests: $0.005 per 1,000 requests
- GET requests: $0.0004 per 1,000 requests
- New Cluster Costs
- Destination cluster: Standard ElastiCache pricing in destination region
- Duration: Runtime costs for new cluster
ElastiCache Cross-Region Backup FAQs
Common questions about ElastiCache cross-region backup and restore: why there is no direct snapshot copy, how the S3 hop works, and what the exercise costs.
No. Unlike RDS or Redshift, ElastiCache has no one-click cross-region snapshot copy. You export the backup to an S3 bucket in the source region, copy the resulting .rdb object to an S3 bucket in the target region, and then seed a new cluster from that file. The three-step summary above is the supported path.
Use the same export-to-S3 route, but make the destination bucket one owned by the target account. Grant ElastiCache the canonical-ID ACL permissions on each bucket it writes to or reads from, as in step 3 above, and the restore in the target account reads the .rdb file directly from its own bucket.
There is no charge for creating a backup or restoring from one. You pay for backup storage at $0.085 per GB-month, S3 Standard storage at $0.023 per GB-month, cross-region transfer at roughly $0.02 per GB, S3 request charges, and the standard hourly cost of the new cluster. For a one-off migration the transfer charge usually dominates, so delete the intermediate S3 objects and the manual backup once the new cluster is verified.
Only if you keep the proof. A configured backup satisfies an auditor's design question; what they test is operation — that a restore was actually attempted, by whom, when, and whether the data came back intact. Keep the export and restore records, plus a dated restoration-test log, and the control evidences itself instead of needing a scramble at audit time.
Free template
The ISO 27001 Backup & Disaster Recovery Policy Template
A ready-to-adapt backup and recovery policy plus a worked restoration-testing log, so cross-region backups like this one are also audit evidence. Enter your work email and we'll send the PDF.
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