What are the benefits of using Redshift Managed VPC Endpoints vs. VPC Peering?

VPC peering connects two networks together and allows arbitrary routing between them. Once peered, you can configure routes, security groups, and ACLs to let nodes on either network communicate over the peering connection.

Redshift VPC Endpoints use PrivateLink to allow one VPC to access resources in another VPC as if they are local to the same VPC. It is different than the peering concept of connecting two networks together. Instead, the services on the caller side can access resources (in this case, Redshift) on the endpoint side, but not vice versa; nothing in the endpoint network can connect to the caller.

Endpoints are a fundamentally stronger security model because you don't need to use routes, security groups, and ACLs to configure access. Endpoints also involve less configuration.

From a cost standpoint, VPC peering is cheaper. You're charged $0.01/GB in both directions when the traffic is cross-AZ. Traffic over a peering connection within the same AZ is free. With endpoints, you're charged an hourly rate for each VPC endpoint, plus $0.01/GB in both directions plus the same cross-AZ data transfer rates.