What does PaaS stand for?
PaaS stands for Platform as a Service. A cloud model where the provider runs the servers, operating system and runtime, and you deploy only your application code and data. It sits between IaaS (you manage the OS) and SaaS (you manage only your data and users).
PaaS is the cloud model in which the provider supplies a ready platform for running applications: the operating system, the runtime, the database service and the scaling are managed for the customer. Developers upload their code and the platform runs it. The customer is responsible for the application and its data, and has no access to the servers underneath. It sits between renting raw virtual machines and using a finished application.
PaaS in practice: an example
A small development team builds a booking website. They deploy the code to a managed application service and use a managed database. Nobody on the team patches an operating system or configures a web server; when traffic doubles before a holiday, the platform adds capacity by itself.
What PaaS is confused with
PaaS vs IaaS: what is the difference?
With IaaS the customer receives virtual machines and manages the operating system. With PaaS the operating system and runtime are the provider's job and the customer deploys code. What IaaS stands for
PaaS vs SaaS: what is the difference?
With PaaS the customer runs an application of their own on the provider's platform. With SaaS the application itself belongs to the provider. What SaaS stands for
Which exams cover PaaS?
PaaS is on the official CompTIA acronym list for two of the four exams covered here.
- Network+ N10-009: 1.0 (Networking Concepts).
- A+ 220-1201 and 220-1202: 220-1201 4.0 (Virtualization and Cloud Computing).
Each number is a CompTIA exam objective and the name in brackets is its domain. The exam puts the term in a scenario; it does not ask you to recite the expansion.
Check yourself: two practice questions
Written by CertSprint for this page. They are not taken from any exam.
1. Developers want to deploy their own web application without managing servers or operating systems. Which cloud model fits?
- IaaS
- PaaS
- SaaS
- A private data centre
Show the answer
B. PaaS. A managed platform that runs the customer's own code, with the operating system and runtime handled by the provider, is platform as a service.
2. In a PaaS model, what does the customer remain responsible for?
- The physical servers
- The hypervisor
- The application code and its data
- The cooling of the data centre
Show the answer
C. The application code and its data. Everything below the application is the provider's. The code the customer deploys and the data it handles stay the customer's responsibility.
Sources: NIST SP 800-145, The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing; NIST glossary: Platform as a Service. The acronym and its expansion come from CompTIA's official acronym lists, linked from each exam glossary above. The explanation, example and questions are CertSprint's own, checked against these sources on 11 November 2026.