How to transfer AMI ownership to other AWS account

Why Change AMI Owner at Account Level

In AWS, you cannot literally edit the owner of an AMI — but you can share it and have another AWS account copy it, making that account the new owner.
This is useful when:

You are moving workloads or resources to a new AWS account (e.g., during a company migration).
You want a partner, client, or another team to fully manage the AMI without relying on your account.
You are consolidating AMIs into a central account for better management.
You are decommissioning an old AWS account but need to retain the AMI in another account.

Benefits

Full Control in Target Account – The new owner can manage, modify, or delete the AMI without depending on the original owner.
Account Separation – Helps keep workloads separate for security or billing purposes.
Easier Collaboration – Useful when working with other teams or organizations that need full ownership.

Account Cleanup – Allows removal of resources from an account while keeping them active elsewhere.

Disadvantages

Complex Transfer Process – Requires sharing the AMI and snapshots, then copying it in the target account.
No Direct Ownership Change – AWS does not allow a simple “Change Owner” button; the process is manual.
Snapshot Costs – Copying and storing AMIs in multiple accounts can increase storage costs.
Possible Access Gaps – If the sharing or snapshot permissions are misconfigured, the transfer can fail.
Version Control Issues – If multiple copies exist in different accounts, it can be harder to track which is the latest version.

1. Login to the your account