Not too long ago, I decided to start learning AWS. It seemed like one of those things everyone in tech was talking about — but also kind of intimidating. There’s a ton of services, acronyms flying around, and a whole dashboard that feels like a cockpit. So I thought: Why not start small? Let’s just get a simple website live using one AWS service.
That’s how I ended up making my very first static website using Amazon S3. If you’re also just getting into AWS, this post is for you.
🧠 Why Amazon S3?
Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) is basically cloud storage — you can upload files and access them from anywhere. But what I didn’t know at first is that you can actually host a static website with it. That means if your site is just HTML, CSS, and maybe some JavaScript — no backend stuff — you can host it on S3 without spinning up a server.
It sounded perfect for a beginner like me. No DevOps. No EC2. No headaches.
💻 Step 1: Building a Simple Website
I kept it super minimal. No frameworks, just plain HTML and CSS. Here’s what I used:
index.html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>My First AWS Site</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Hello, AWS!</h1>
<p>This is my first static site hosted on S3.</p>
<img src="output.jpg">
</body>
</html>
output.jpg
That’s it. Two files. Just enough to test the process.
☁️ Step 2: Creating the S3 Bucket
Here’s where the AWS part begins:
Logged into the AWS Management Console.
Searched for S3 and clicked Create bucket.
Gave it a unique name (S3 bucket names are globally unique).
Unchecked “Block all public access” (important! Otherwise, no one can view your site).
Then I added a policy to only ensure my s3 object could read the stuff stored in it.
Created the bucket.
The policy I used is below. Just place the unique name of your bucket in ‘Bucket-Name’
{
"Version": "2012-10-17",
"Statement": [
{
"Sid": "PublicReadGetObject",
"Effect": "Allow",
"Principal": "*",
"Action": [
"s3:GetObject"
],
"Resource": [
"arn:aws:s3:::Bucket-Name/*"
]
}
]
}
At this point, I had cloud storage ready to go.
🌐 Step 3: Enabling Static Website Hosting
Inside the S3 bucket:
I clicked on the Properties tab.
Scrolled down to Static website hosting.
Enabled it and set index.html as the index document.
AWS gave me a URL. This would be the live address of my site.
But first, I had to upload the files and make sure they were public.
📤 Step 4: Uploading and Making Files Public
Went to the Objects tab.
Uploaded both index.html and style.css.
After uploading, I selected each file, clicked Actions > Make public.
(Note: You can set a bucket policy to make everything public automatically, butif you want you can stick with manual for now — it felt safer while learning.)
🔗 Step 5: Visiting My Site
With everything uploaded and public, I went back to the static hosting section in Properties and copied the Endpoint URL.
I pasted it into my browser, and boom — it worked. My little website was online. No servers, no deployment tools. Just files in a bucket.
🔍 What I Learned
AWS can feel like a lot, but starting with one service (like S3) makes it manageable.
Hosting a static site doesn’t need to be complicated.
Public access settings are a key part of getting S3 hosting to work.
The feeling of getting a website live — even a basic one — is honestly really satisfying.
✅ Final Thoughts
This was my first actual hands-on experience with AWS, and it went smoother than I expected. Sure, I had to Google a few things (especially around permissions), but I came away feeling a little more confident in navigating the AWS ecosystem.
If you’re new to AWS and wondering where to begin — host a static website on S3. It’s simple, useful, and gives you a nice win early on.
Next up for me? Maybe setting up a custom domain, adding HTTPS with CloudFront, or playing with Lambda. But for now, I’m just happy that I took the first step.
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