What should I choose?

Title: Accepted offer ($26/hr, MSP Help Desk Technician, 45 min commute) vs Amazon counter-offer ($29/hr, IT Support Associate II, 20 min commute) — which would you take?

Looking for outside perspective on a decision I’m stuck on.

Background: I’ve been at an MSP for about 3.5 years doing help desk/service desk work, Active Directory, Microsoft 365, networking (DNS/DHCP/VPN), some virtualization (VMware ESXi), and security incident response (phishing, etc.). I have CompTIA A+, Network+, and Security+. My goal is to move toward a Systems Administrator or Cybersecurity role eventually.

Offer 1: Another MSP — Help Desk Technician

**•** $26/hour (\~$54K/year), firm, no flexibility on pay **•** 45 minute commute **•** Already accepted this offer after 3 rounds of interviews (including in-person with the team) **•** Similar work to what I do now, AD, M365, networking, multi-client support **•** Haven’t started yet 

Offer 2: Amazon (IT Support Associate II, Ops Tech Solutions)

**•** Countered at $29/hour (\~$60K/year) after I pushed back **•** 20 minute commute **•** Single-tech site, recruiter says schedule is effectively stable day-shift in practice, no forced on-call **•** 401k match (50% up to 4%), benefits day one, no probation period **•** Real internal ladder (Associate II → Support Engineer I → Support Engineer II/IT Manager) **•** From what I’ve read (including an old Blind thread), this specific entry tier is considered fairly junior/“level 1 helpdesk” compared to what I’m already doing at the MSP, some people treat it as a stepping stone using the Amazon name, not a destination 

The dilemma: Amazon pays more, has a much shorter commute, but I already verbally and formally accepted the other offer after three rounds of interviews with a small company. Backing out feels like it could burn a bridge, especially since it’s a pretty tight-knit local IT/MSP market. On the other hand, the Amazon role might actually be a step down in day-to-day technical scope from what I already do, even though it pays more and is way closer to home.

Has anyone been in a similar spot, accepted one offer, then got a better one before starting? How did you handle it, and did backing out actually cause real problems for you? Also curious if anyone’s done the Amazon OTS route and can speak to whether it’s worth it as a stepping stone.